Sony Ericsson Satio Preview – It’s time to say Idou
It’s almost time for Sony Ericsson to unleash its firepower….The Satio! Previously known as the Sony Ericsson Idou, the Satio is Ericsson’s first 12 mega-pixel camera phone and is being widely touted as their first complete multimedia phone. Running the same Symbian S60 platform found in the Nokia N97, the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic and the Samsung OMNIA HD i8910, the Sony Ericsson Satio also features a 3.5-inch 360 x 640 pixel touch screen, Wi-Fi, 8GB Internal Memory, GPS and heaps more. There are high expectations in the mobile device market in regards to this handset and we can’t wait to see the final retail version.
Judging from its prototype, the Sony Ericsson Satio sounds like it’s going to be the real deal. Already, competing manufacturers ‘Samsung’ and ‘LG’ are planning to go head to head with their own 12 mega-pixel camera phones, which gives camera phone fan boys and girls a lot to look forward to. Just the thought of a 12 megapixel camera which can pump out images in 4000 x 3000 pixel resolution and one that has autofocus, xeon flash and video LED flash features makes me want this phone now!
With all its potentially cool features plus a 3.5-inch touch screen, it’s expected that the Sony Ericsson Satio could be on the bulkier side. Although its weight and dimensions don’t really suggest as much, this extra bulge could be due to the camera’s positioning in the phone’s upper back behind the sliding cover. Still, its light enough, and we’re hoping that the retail version unveils an even sleekier looking design.
The Sony Ericsson Satio features three control buttons on the front side which are used for starting and ending calls, as well as for the menu function. Side volume rockers can be used for the camera’s zoom and, located next to the earpiece, is a built-in light sensor that helps automatically control brightness. Also positioned near the earpiece is the LED indicator, the video call camera and the proximity sensor. Personalisation is offered through five separate tabs that appear at the top of the screen. Navigating through them can be done by pressing, or by sliding your finger. There are tabs are available for viewing favourite contacts and web pages, and for returning to the home screen (which also allows access to the menu and audio Flash enabling so you can see the album name and use playback controls even when the player is running in the background). Other tabs are for the picture gallery and for up to eight additional shortcuts to be stored.
A Symbian series 60 OS will be shipped with the Satio and can support both Flash and Java and in the CPU territory we see a 600MHz processor with 3D Graphics Accelerator! The first question that comes to mind here is ‘what the hell I’m I going to use this processing power on?’ Photoshop? Hahaha. Maybe it’s future proofing, naa surely not, then again, specs such as this should make performing tasks and commands so much faster than other phones even if it’s not that noticeable to the human eye. All jokes aside, the probable reason for a 600MHz CPU and 3D Graphics Accelerator could be due to the Symbian OS technology that widely been known to lag? Guess we’ll have to wait’n see.
On the surface the Sony Ericsson Satio’s audio player seems to be very similar to its counterpart the W960, but may lack things like equalizer settings and sound effects (although it will incorporate an FM Radio). I guess being an all rounder, Sony Ericsson need to make priorities, even if that means cutting corners somewhere, and unlike some of their other walkman phones, we’re concerned that the Satio might lack in Audio Quality and Features. There’s only so much room you can make before a phone turns into a brick!
The video player specifications seem to be on the money with bold control keys, adequate file support, video LED flash and the expectations of viewing footage through a decent 3.5-inch 360 x 640 pixel sized screen. You see, the prototype is a good indication that the Sony Ericsson Satio will deliver on good playback quality, but the final version is rumoured to not support either DivX or Xvid, so let’s hope that’s wrong. Somehow I think they’ll through in the extra codec support.
Final Word
The Sony Ericsson Satio has the specs to take on the best, there’s no doubting that. Just take a look at some of its features… GPS, 8GB Internal ram (up to 32GB externally), HSDPA 7.2 Mbps/HSUPA 3.6Mbps; 600MHZ CPU, 3D Graphics Accelerator, Accelerometer, Wi-Fi and so on…. But you know what the Satio will have before anyone else, yup, that’s right… a full on 12 megapixel camera with a tonne of features. First might not necessarily be best, and megapixels mightn’t equal quality… but then again, some say its size that counts, so I guess we’re just going to have to wait to find out!
The Sony Ericsson Satio release date is scheduled for September 2009.
Release Update: Sony Ericsson Satio Release Date now 16th October 2009!
Sony Ericsson Satio Specifications
Networks: GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 & HSDPA 2100
Dimensions: 112 x 55 x 13mm Weight 126gms
Display: TFT touchscreen, 16M colors
Resolution: 360 x 640 pixels, 3.5 inches
Device Input: touch
Internal Memory: 8GB, (Expandable up to 32GB microSD)
Connectivity: GPRS, EDGE, HSCSD, 3G HSDPA 7.2 Mbps, HSUPA 3.6Mbps, Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP, USB v2.0, Wi-Fi
Messaging: SMS, MMS, Email, IM
CPU: ARM Cortex A8 600 MHz; 3D Graphics HW Accelerator
Operating System: Symbian OS Series 60 5th Ed.
Camera: 12MP, 4000×3000 pixels, geo tagging, face, smile detection, auto focus, xeon flash
Video Capture: VGA@30fps, video LED flash
Video Playback: DivX/XviD?, WMV, RV, Mpeg4, 3GP
Video Call Camera: Yes
Audio: MP3, WMA, WAV, RA, AAC, M4A
Battery: Li-Po 1000 mAh
- Stand by Time: Unknown
- Talk Time: Unknown
Features: A-GPS, Google Maps, Organiser, Gesture Control, Accelerometer
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