Sony Ericsson C905 review: Cyber shot, cyber hot

High megapixel count is the rage these days and Sony Ericsson C905 is adding fuel to the fire. The first 8 megapixel GSM cameraphone to make headlines is shipping as we speak. On top of geotagging, Smart Contrast, face detection, and xenon flash, the elaborate camera-centric outfit hides the extra sweet Wi-Fi, GPS and turn-by-turn voice guided navigation. Is it us, or are cameraphones and smartphones alike lining up to negotiate a truce with Sony Ericsson C905?

The Cyber-shot squad has its trustworthy captain and its job is to keep spirits high in the face of cut-throat competition by Samsung and LG. Is it just us, or isn't Nokia missing quite some action here?

Official photos of Sony Ericsson C905 Copper Gold

Official photos of Sony Ericsson C905 Night Black

Lifestyle photos of Sony Ericsson C905

Key features:

• 8.1 MP autofocus camera with Xenon flash and active lens cover
• Dedicated camera mode switch, two camera/gaming keys over the display
• Face and Smile detection, smart contrast, image stabilizer, geotagging, red-eye reduction
• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE and HSDPA (3.6 Mb) / tri-band HSDPA for US version
• Scratch resistant mineral glass 2.4" TFT 256K-color display
• Built-in GPS with A-GPS function, Wayfinder Navigator software
• Wi-Fi b/g with DLNA and SIP VoIP support, Bluetooth (with A2DP), USB v2.0
• Enhanced user interface with basic multi-tasking
• Media Center, Smart search, Manage Messages, extended TrackID
• FM radio with RDS and TrackID
• 160 MB built-in memory, M2 card support, 2GB included

Main disadvantages:

• Display is relatively small for a high-end device
• Video recording limited to QVGA resolution at 30fps
• No front facing video call camera
• No office document viewer
• Sliding lens cover of questionable durability
• Exposed connectivity port
• Fiddly battery cover

Sony Ericsson C905

Sony Ericsson C905 is no doubt trying to give it all. Now, finding room for all those goodies is a tough one indeed. Despite its massive thickness we love the C905 design and its imaging-related ergonomics. The impressive girth isn't that striking alongside the Pixon and will only get in your face against a real thin shooter like Sony Ericsson C902. You do get used to this in a while, and it's an enjoyable feature set after all.

More C905 views

Sony Ericsson C905 will be remembered as the first announced 8 megapixel GSM phone. That alone earns it a line in history but it's performance to decide if the line should become a chapter. By the looks of it, the Sony Ericsson team is going for a whole page, putting a great effort to dealing with the skeletons in the Cyber-shot closet. Now, that's about the closest it comes to a spoiler.

Sony Ericsson C905 with the display off

Anyway, the C905 is well aware it takes quite a bit to keep a bunch of sharpshooters off its back. Things have been heating up lately at ours, with the cameraphone finest scrambling and tail-wagging for a pat of approval.

Outflanked and outnumbered, Sony Ericsson C905 finds itself right in the middle of the Samsung - LG brawl. Both LG and Samsung are hedging their bets with two 8 MP cameraphones each. The Symbian-powered Samsung i8510 INNOV8 flaunts a formidable spec sheet and already has a head start on the rest, selling for about a month. Samsung M8800 Pixon is the other Samsung offer we just recently reviewed in-depth. LG stake their cameraphone fortunes on KC910 Renoir and LG KC780.

The 8 MP line-up

Comparison	Sony Ericsson C905	Samsung i8510 INNOV8	LG KC910 Renoir	Samsung M8800 Pixon	LG KC780
Network	quad-band GSM, tri-band HSDPA	quad-band GSM, dual-band HSDPA	quad-band GSM, dual-band HSDPA	quad-band GSM, HSDPA	tri-band GSM/EDGE
Dimensions	104x49x18-19.5mm	106.5x53.9x17.2mm	107.8x56.9x14mm	107.9x54.6x13.8mm	107x52x13.9mm
Display	2.4" QVGA 256K TFT	2.8" QVGA 16M TFT	3" WQVGA 256K TFT	3.2" WQVGA 256K TFT	2.4" QVGA 256K TFT
GPS/Wi-Fi	yes/yes	yes/yes	yes/yes	yes/no	no/no
Camera	geo-tagging, face detection, smart contrast, xenon flash, QVGA@30fps video	geo-tagging, auto-panorama shot, face/smile/blink detection, flash, VGA@30fps, QVGA@120fps video	geo-tagging, face/smile/blink detection, xenon flash, VGA@30fps, QVGA@120fps video	geo-tagging, auto-panorama shot, face/smile/blink detection, flash, WVGA@30fps, QVGA@120fps video	face/smile detection, flash, WVGA@30fps video

OK then, the scene is set and the all-star support cast will be enjoying a day-off. It's the Cyber-shot act and curtains are parting on Sony Ericsson C905.