Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro

Sony Ericsson reckoned it was on to a winner with its impressive Xperia X10 handset, which in one swoop helped us to forget the pain of flawed Xperias past. Then it squeezed the formula into the tiny palm-sized X10 Mini - reviewed here - which offered smart functionality in a handbag-sized package. Sony Ericsson X10 Mini Pro …

[geekguy]

Keyboard pointless

I don't see the use of a keyboard (hardware) since I installed swype on my full sized X10 I never looked back the fact is I can enter test super fast with this app and accurately, much faster than I could with a hardware keyboard (which is just another thing to go wrong).

The size on the otherhand is great, exactly the sort of thing that my wife complains about with the full size X10 (even though its roughly the same size as her iphone).

I don't see the point of these phones other than size.

[Matthew 3]

...oooOOOooo...

Do your neighbours ever ask why you keep photographing the same pillar box?

(I know the reason, but just wondered...)

[Bassey]

80%?

It takes several seconds to turn on, the phone software doesn't work, there are really annoying bugs in the keyboard software etc. etc. etc. Did you read your own review before giving it 80%? I understand that sometimes the sum of the parts doesn't equal the experience as a whole but the review comes across as suggesting the phone is a complete nightmare to live with day to day but then you give it 80%. WTF?

[Paul 77]

80%? Yes. Definately.

Having lived with one of these (a free upgrade on Three) for a couple of weeks now, I believe it does deserve at least 80%. The keyboard is fine for texting and I've not experienced any bugs with it.

There are two things I have had minor problems with. Sometimes after a long call I've had trouble working out how to hang up - but then I've not read the manual. The other minor niggle is that the microphone on the supplied hands-free kit seems to be a bit insensitive, so that you have to grab the mic bit and bring it fairly close to your mouth.

[MikeyD85]

Slow to turn screen on...

I've seen that kind of behaviour before on my HTC Hero, more specifically, if I underclock the CPU to 249Mhz when the screen is off, it takes about the same amount of time to turn it on as the X10 Mini Pro.

Set language every time you type sounds like a file permissions issue to me too... I had a similar issue with Astro file manager asking me to accept the EULA every time it launched.

I think 80% is a fair review considering the only issues seem to be software fixable.

At least you can hold it as you like. :rolleyes:

[Lottie]

Hmm

I recently got the X10 mini without the keyboard (it was the el Reg review that finally swayed me) and I found that I had difficulty with the turning off the call thing, but then I realized all you need to do is hit the back button and it'll take you to the basic phone screen where you can push the red icon. Sounds like a faff, but it's really not. I suspect the keyboarded version would be similar.

[spencer]

Battery

Like the HTC Hero i had, i found that the battery life improves after a while.

Whether this is due to not playing with it as much or not i have no idea.

My X10 mini pro doens't take a long time for the screen to load.. at all. It's instant.

[Andrew Woodvine]

FM Radio

I wish the FM Radio worked as well on the HTC Desire - it's hopeless and about the only thing I don't like on the phone.

[Anonymous Coward]

Bad SW?

Sounds to me like to you Pre RTL Software on that device.

[Lawrence 7]

So Different from x10Mini??

As '80%??' Above said, Even though the percentage is the same, How can this review be so much more negative than he X10mini Review?

Surely the Pro review can only differ in the fact it has a HW Keyboard.

You cannot Zoom the Browser? Wow, You Can, And its pretty simple to do so, hardly a hidden feature.

Unlocking the screen having to press one of the 3 buttons and then 'unlock' button 'everytime'?

Press the Hardware Unlock/power button on the top of the device.

[Tony W]

Could do better

The review together with the 80% rating show what a low standard is expected of smartphones. I suspect that an Apple phone with these bugs would get a lower rating. Still, fixing it is a simple matter of software ...

[Lu]

Qwerty not better

They always say use the right tool for the job. Well, if you can't use at least 8 fingers on it, Qwerty's not the right tool, IMHO.

I touch type very fast on a full sized keyboard, but on my Mini (non-pro), I can go along at a fair clip using T9. Much faster than I'd be able to using only 2 fingers on a tiny Qwerty.

Also, quicker than on a non-touchscreen phone, which I didn't expect. Think it's because it's quicker to activate a button with a light touch than a full press.

Haven't tried Swype yet, but suspect it would be pretty quick too.

[Anonymous Coward]

2 quick points

1. I have an HTC touch pro with swype installed as a software keyboard. Swype is NO match for a hardware keyboard if doing serious typing e.g. note taking in educational meetings, need to touch type, accuracy

2. 80% for a phone still running android 1.6 (and a customised version at that) with no mention of a planned upgrade to 2.1/2.2 PLUS all the other misgivings!?

[Obvious Robert]

2.1 upgrade confirmed

According to http://blogs.sonyericsson.com/products/2010/05/05/sony-ericsson-xperia%E2%84%A2-x10-to-get-uxp-upgrade-in-q4-2010/

"We can also confirm that the Xperia™ X10 mini and Xperia™ X10 mini pro will be upgraded to Android version 2.1, during Q4 2010."

I'm looking to get one of these for the missus when her current contract ends in a few weeks. She wants the smartphone capabilities but is wary of going to a pure touchscreen phone and also doesn't want or need a massive screen. This looks just the ticket and I was very impressed with the one I got to play with recently.

[Anonymous Coward]

Agree regarding the rating

80% for a smartphone that might need to find a charging point nightly?? No ta...

[EvilGav 1]

As someone who has this phone . . .

. . . and has been using it for a couple of weeks, some of the points in the review are a little off.

The time to get the screen on, for me, is a second or two - which, until the review mentioned it, I hadn't even noticed. It's that much of an issue.

The browser zooms by tapping the screen. Granted, the browser that comes with the phone isn't the best, but isn't the point of smartphones to be able to get other tools to do the job ? Mine now has Opera as default and it is much better than the supplied browser.

The keyboard, for me, is an absolute joy to use. I've had a touch screen phone for a couple of years and have never got used to a touch screen keyboard, it's been the bain of my life. The fact that almost all phones were going down the route of touch-screen only was really pissing me off. I was looking at an HTC Droid, but the size was putting me off - I don't need a screen that large on a phone. As many have said, the whole point of Android and it's myriad options, is that manufacturers can make different types of phone for different markets/people - this keyboard will not be to everyones taste, but for anyone like me who's been searching for one, it's ideal.

The only big problem is the battery life. I use it reasonably heavily, including firing up GPS to track cycling times, speed etc on SportyPal for over an hour each day. The battery will last about 36 hours of my level of usage, when you take care to switch off GPS when not in use and make sure you aren't leaving app's open unnecessarily - it's not good, supposedly the switch to Android 2.1 improves the situation. However, given it's a standard micro-USB connection, I don't find it a huge deal to recharge each night plugged into my PC.

[EvilGav 1]

More

I was thinking a little more about this last night, namely one of the other complaints regarding the keyboard - the fact that there are 9 keys on the left side which have no alternative use.

When I first read the comment in the review, I sort of agreed, but again it wasn't something i'd really noticed. But having thought about it, the lack of alt's on those keys makes perfect sense.

The 9 keys in question are on the extreme left of the keyboard, above the Alt button. Which would make for some serious finger-gymnastics to hold the phone, press the Alt key and press one of the keys directly above it. It would actually make it less useful and more irritating.

[funkenstein]

another owner's opinions.

@EvilGav 1,

you don't have to keep the alt key pressed. just press it and then press the other button of your choice. as such is the case with mine, I agree with OP that it's strange not to have more functionality there.

My biggest peev (sp?) with this phone is the lack of space on the home screens - 1 app per screen, with only 4 screens? that is seriously limiting and for no good reason. That would bring the score down for me most.

Otherwise, having had my handset for a whole 2 weeks and using an iPhone for work for over a year now, I can say this is a much better hand set. As I'm on o2, it cost me a whopping £180 which is an absolute bargain in the smartphone market.

I think the best option for me, would be to simply rip out the SE Donut optimisations and stick on a vanilla Cupcake or Froyo. mmmmm.... vanilla cupcake.... If anyone knows how to do it, please do direct me towards it!