Techwire does a short review of the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 – another one of the “iPhone killers” that’s been trotted out over the last year or so. They give it a 3/5 score and will follow with a more detailed review on Sunday.
Cons
— Its Microsoft Windows doesn’t sit easily with the Sony Ericsson software: it’s awkward to navigate, except when you’re in panels format
— The text, icons and external buttons are all tiny. You can re-set the on-screen items but they switch back sometimes. Too small to use without a stylus
— The three inch screen is too narrow to properly display videos and photos — they end up being the same size as on a bog-standard pre-pay mobile
To be honest, this list plus a few other things, was the primary reason why the HTC Touch Diamond (the iPhone-killer of last summer) lasted only a couple of hours in our house. Similar issues abound with the nice interface that sometimes breaks down and dumps you into WindowsMobile. And the finicky nature of the chicklet keys and tiny stylus-led interface means it’s a nightmare to navigate.
The iPhone will be 2 years old this January. And still no-one is doing it better?