So when the names Sony and Ericsson were finally merged into one giant entity, many expectations and eyebrows were raised. Optimists eagerly awaited what cool and nifty features the researchers at Sony Ericsson can come up with while detractors (Nokia users perhaps) of course didn't think much of said partnership.

So, to see whether this partnership is worthy of a second glance, let's take a close look at one of their products, particularly the Sony Ericsson W960.

Sony Ericsson W960 Camera and Display

What better way to judge a cellphone than to look at the specs and nitty gritty of its camera capabilities. Quite ironic but it is what most consumers look for in cellphones nowadays. In fact I have come across many who crossed out certain handsets from their wish lists after hearing bad phone camera reviews.

Boasting of a 3.2 megapixel shutter complete with autofocus with a dedicated Macro mode and LED flash (dual in fact), and the ability to capture images at a maximum of 2048 x 1536 pixels, the W960 promises clear photos of your friend's envious faces once you whip out this phone from your pocket and start clicking. For the novice user, there is of course the auto focus feature which you can turn off once you get the hang of it and decide you can do better than the phone's focal judgment.

Another standard is the automatic white balance. If you want to start getting a little artsy, the W960 offers a wide range of photo editing capabilities such as rendering your shots as black and white or sepia, or even applying solarization effects. If this is not enough for you, the W960 can even capture videos of your YouTube-worthy karaoke antics. It is with this feature that this unit falls short though, as it can only capture at 15 frames per second when set at the maximum video resolution of 320 x 240 pixels. If this would prove too choppy for you, you can opt to shoot at 30 fps although only at very low resolutions such as QCIF - 176 x 144. Something has to give I guess.

The length of video you can capture of course is dependent on the phone's available memory. Although this is sufficient for the average user, it's shortcomings regarding video capturing is quite of a let-down when compared to its competition.

Another disappointment would be the W960's TFT display. Although the screen size is ample at 2.6 diagonal inches, it only supports 262K colors QVGA at 240 x 320 pixels. This is a shame considering its camera capabilities. The screen is transreflective though which means it performs well even under bright sunlight.

Sony Ericsson W960 Design and Accessories

What I consider a plus with the W960 is its design. Although its casing is made out entirely of plastic, it feels sturdy and looks elegant as well. With phone dimensions of only 109 x 55 x 16 mm, this Sony Ericsson handset would fit comfortably into anyone's hand. Lefty users will have a hard time with the location of the jog wheel though as it seems it is designed with the general public of right handed users in mind. Users weary of supposedly “innovative” keypad designs which are just cell phone design novelty more often than not would greatly appreciate the W960's straightforward yet ergonomic keypad. And if that still proves too hard for jotting down messages, you can opt to use the virtual QUERTY keyboard on the phone's display. Or simply write down your messages using the supplied stylus pen for which the phone has great character recognition. Useful for those of us who can't seem to understand our own bad handwriting?

The W960 can also accommodate after-purchase accessories such as Bluetooth headphones and hands-free sets, portable speakers, and better-than-supplied stylus packs - pretty much what consumers might look for to accessorize their smart phones.

Perhaps it would be wrong to judge the W960 for it's lackluster performance in the video and display department. After all, this is a Walkman phone we're talking about, and this is where the strength of the phone lies – and where the Sony legacy comes in.

First of all, the W960 boasts of an 8gig on board memory – at par with the Apple iPhone. This alone is more than enough for a long, boring ride out of town, taking also into consideration that the W960 promises music playback for 27 hours when fully charged.

Another thing I love about this mobile phone (most people will probably love the W960 for it) is that once connected to a computer, the phone's memory is recognized as an external drive much like when a USB flash drive is plugged into the machine. This means no more fiddling for hours with any proprietary software. To get your music from the computer to your phone, simply drag and drop - via USB or Bluetooth.

Summary of Sony Ericsson W960 Features

• Weight: 119 g
• Dimension: 109 x 55 x 16 mm
• Network: GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900 (2G), UMTS 2100 (3G)
• Screen Resolution: TFT touchscreen, 256K colors, 240 x 320 pixels, 2.6 inches
• Data: GPRS, 3G, WLAN/WiFi, EDGE, WCDMA
• Connectivity: Bluetooth (v2.0 with A2DP), USB (v2.0)
• Web Browser: WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML(Opera 8.0), RSS reader
• Music: Walkman® player, Supports MP3, AAC, AAC+, E-AAC+, WAV and m4a
• Camera: 3.2-megapixel, Digital zoom 3x
• Messaging: SMS, EMS, MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
• Tones: Polyphonic (40 channels), MP3, AAC, Vibration
• Software Features: Symbian OS v9.1, UIQ 3.0
• Other Features: Java MIDP 2.0, FM radio with RDS , Walkman Touch player, TrackID music recognition, T9, Image viewer, Picture/document editor, Organiser, Voice memo, Built-in handsfree
• Battery: Standard battery, Li-Po 900 mAh (BST-33), 9 Hours talk time, 370 h Stand-by time

PROS: Massive memory at 8 gigabytes. Elegant, compact design. Great multimedia player.

CONS: Plastic casing. Low display and video resolution.

Overall: A good all around handset with all the nifty features the modern consumer looks for in a phone.