Sony Ericsson W580i Cell Phone Review - Software
OS (3.5)
The W580i runs Sony Ericsson's proprietary operating system. We found the operating system to be fairly straightforward, but there were a couple of things that caused us problems. On some cell phone operating systems you can use the keypad as a shortcut for menu items, and this is usually indicated by having the numbers show up next to the menu items. The operating system on the W580i also allows this, but for some reason doesn't show the numbers. This mean if you want to access the sixth item on a menu you pulled up you will have to manually count down the menu items, which can take almost as long as just scrolling down, thus defeating the purpose of such a shortcut. We did like that the W580i's operating system had some multi-tasking capabilities, for example you can send the music player into the background and access other features while music still plays. Overall, we would call the OS middle of the road. Our score for proprietary operating systems is capped at five, with higher scores being reserved for more capable and flexible smart phone operating systems.
Home Screen Score (5.0)
The W580i's home screen is fairly standard. Along the top there is a bar with indicators for things like signal strength and battery life. At the bottom are labels for the two soft keys, and in between is the wallpaper. The home screen also shows the time and carrier name. The left soft key is assigned to call history, while the right soft key shortcuts to the main Applications menu. You could argue this is redundant since the center select key is also a shortcut for the Applications menu. There are also four shortcuts accessed by using up, down, left, and right on the d-pad. By default these are assigned to My Stuff, new text message, instant messaging, and contacts. You can change the assigned applications in the settings, where you can also change the wallpaper for the home screen. All in all it's well organized and designed, but there's nothing about it you won't find on other cell phones, as well.
Extensibility (3.0)
The W580i is capable of using Java-based applications like Google Maps and Opera Mini. It's not capable of installing native third-party applications like those found on smartphones.
Customizability (4.0)
The W580i provides an average selection of customization options. You can set the background photo on the home screen and change the function of the shortcuts, as we mentioned above. Themes are also supported, allowing you to change the look and feel of the interface. You cannot change font type or size, however, nor can you rearrange the application icons.
OS Responsivness (6.0)
This is one of the W580i's strong points. We rarely encountered any lag while moving through the interface, with even processor-intensive programs like the camera loading quickly. This is in sharp contrast to phones like the LG Chocolate VX8550, which displayed significant lag at times.
Gaming (3.0)
The W580i doesn't come with any full version games, but includes several demonstration versions. We don't like to use the word cheap, but there's really no other way to describe this. We feel any worthwhile phone should have at least one decent full version game. The W580i is capable of playing Java-based games and the controls, especially the d-pad, do a good job for controlling games.
Browser Features (7.0)
The W580i's browser is a typical offering for regular mobile phones. It supports mobile-focused WAP pages, as well as standard HTML. Javascript is supported, as are cookies, encryption, and images. A nice extra is support for RSS feeds. More advanced features like Java, Flash, and password management are not included, and frames are not supported either. All in all it's a decent offering, a little better than other mobile browsers only because of its support for RSS feeds.
Browsing Interface (5.5)
The W580i's browser compresses all websites down to a single screen width by default, however you do have the option to view the page in landscape orientation, and can also set the browser to only display text. These are nice options. Moving through the page is link to link using the d-pad, however there are also keypad shortcuts that allow you to page up and down, something we very much appreciate. There are also additional keypad shortcuts that allow you to quickly access your history, favorites, and search.
The history on the browser is grouped into folders based on the site visited, with each folder leading to all the links you visited at that site. We like this arrangement, as it makes it much easier to find the exact page you want without too much clutter. Bookmarks are a little less friendly, organized as a simple list with the newest bookmark created at the top of the list. We were happy to see you can organize your bookmarks into folders, however.
When viewing a page the left soft key is assigned to activate the currently selected link, which is also the function fulfilled by the center select button on the d-pad. The right soft key opens a menu where you can access all the functions. There are a few submenus here, but things are fairly easy to get to. We also liked the keypad shortcuts, although we wish we could have reassigned them, and they're a little more difficult to use if you're in landscape orientation. There is no support for more advanced features like tabbed browsing or an Overview mode, as found on Series 60 Web or the iPhone's Safari browser. Overall though, we feel the browser does a better job than many.
Browser Access (8.0)
To see how easy it is to access the browser we count the number of steps it takes to launch the browser and visit our own site. We use steps instead of a timed test so we can take connectivity issues out of the equation. We count entering the Web address as a single step. The W580i took five steps to complete this process. This is an excellent score. The W580i was helped by a button that takes you directly to the browser, as well as its keypad shortcuts. Just hit the number 2 to enter a new Web address instead of going two levels deep in the menu system.
Calculator (2.5)
The W580i's calculator is very simple, with access to arithmetic functions and a few extras like percentages. Unlike many cell phone calculators we see where the four directions of the d-pad are assigned to each arithmetic function, the W580i instead puts most of its functions on a strip along the bottom, which is navigated using left and right on the d-pad and the center select key. We like the other method better, honestly. We did like that there are memory functions available via the left soft key menu, however overall it's really only useful for simple functions.
Alarm (7.0)
The W580i allows you to set up to five different alarms. Each alarm can have its own ringtone, and you can set a recurrence pattern to go off on any day or days of the week. You cannot, however, set it to go off monthly. Still, this is better recurrence support than we see from most phones.
Document Software (0.0)
The W580i does not include any software for viewing or editing office documents.
Other Software (1.0)
In addition to the software we've discussed already, the W580i has a fitness application that allows you to keep track of how many steps you've taken and how far you've gone while walking or jogging. This is a very nice extra for those who want to use the W580i as a music player during exercise, and one we haven't seen on any other phone to date.
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