The Sony Ericsson W980i is the latest instalment in the renowned Walkman series that have dominated the mobile phone market over the years. The W980i does a fantastic job as mobile phone, and is a wonder for music enthusiasts. You may find yourself pondering how well the Sony Ericsson W980i can imitate a portable music player and mobile phone at the same time! Thus a truly genius phone in more than one way, the W980i is a worthy competitor in the mobile phone market and more than holds its own.

You can call the W980i many things, but one thing you cannot call it is dull. The phone has an exquisite design that is sure to impress anyone, anywhere. When the sexy clamshell is closed the mobile phone resembles a MP3 player, and there is also the fantastic addition of large touch-sensitive music keys. All you can do is marvel in awe at how well this is constructed and how smooth it is. This really has to be the best clamshell Sony Ericsson has ever produced, period.

If you love your music more than the average person and really want to let everyone know, this phone is a dream come true. Forget the other mobile phones which ‘include’ an MP3 player, the W980i ‘is’ an MP3 player in every sense of the word. What really sets it apart is the quality of the music that is played, included is a wonderful Mega-Bass enhancement. Truly remarkable. To ensure a great audio experience, Sony Ericsson have thrown in the new Stereo Portable Handsfree HPM-77 headset!

The built-in FM transmitter allows you to send music from the W980i to any other device with a built-in FM radio receiever to listen to! Now that is seriously cool. The W980i also has a TrackID feature which allows you to identify tracks you cannot put a name to, and download them via the PlayNow arena. You will never be short of tracks to listen to on the Sony Ericsson W980i; this clamshell gem has 8GB internal memory, which means tracks and lots of them! It roughly equates to 8,000 full songs. Other music related features include the Shake Control, which allows you to switch tracks with a flick of the wrist.

However aside from the fact the W980i is a gateway to hours of quality music, it is a very good phone. This phone is no gimmick, it has several other handy and quality features. It has HSDPA for high speed downloads, especially useful for music. The W980i is also a 3G phone, which means it has the scope for video calls. It also has a very nice well-protected 3.2 megapixel camera. Although this does lack features such as a flash and autofocus, it is nonetheless useful. The Sony Ericsson W980i is also quadband, so can literally be used anywhere in the world.

It has to be said that the Sony Ericsson W980i has taken the Walkman range to a whole new level, with even better sounding music. It has countless music related features, and effortlessly combines what people want in a mobile phone and music player. The W980i lacks in that it does not have the features or quality of features that other mobile phones have. Nonetheless, the Sony Ericsson W980i was not designed to pack extra features, but include the most practical ones with a fully integrated music player. So in conclusion, Sony Ericsson have done a fantastic job, and if you have a passion for music and want a phone that conveys it, the W980i does it better than any other phone out there.

By: Kaamran Malik