Sony Ericsson T200

On the Sony Ericsson Web site, the T200 is described as the phone for the "minimalist". Given the limited feature set, the description seems apt.

Ericsson Under The Hood
The 85g handset, released under the Sony Ericsson marque, sports the trademark rectangular speaker bezel and ice blue color scheme. But it is really an Ericsson inside. For instance, the T200 employs folder-style menus reminiscent of Ericsson mobiles. There is also the all-too-familiar 5-second wait when retrieving text messages from the SIM card.

Previous Sony Ericsson handsets don't prepare you for the odd-looking shape of the T200. Its girth is disproportionately wide across the screen, while the keys come in a mish-mash of shapes and sizes. The "Yes" and "No" buttons below the five-line display resemble a bow tie; the four-way rocker has a somewhat diamond outline; the widely spaced numeric keys are chiclet-shaped.

Partly because of this, the different buttons offer varying feel and responsiveness. The large "Yes" and "No" buttons are the most thumb-friendly, while the rocker offers little key depth. Overall, the phone buttons have a rather clickety-clack quality, even when the key tones are switched off.

Color-less Features
Sony Ericsson has been increasingly factoring in GPRS and triband into its phones, which should get the nod from globetrotting executives. However, the axiom "you get what you pay for" applies here. While the GPRS capability allows the T200 to support data speeds of up to a good 43.2kbps, there is no infrared port. If you aim to surf wirelessly on your notebook, you'll have to purchase a connecting data cable separately.

The T200 is also short on gee-whiz features that would appeal to today's younger mobile set. It doesn't offer polyphony, multimedia messaging service (MMS), Bluetooth.

A color screen is also sorely missed. Sony Ericsson touts the CommuniCam MCA-10 digital camera as an add-on for the T200, but this potential is downplayed by the phone's small, monochrome display which doubles as a viewfinder.

SAR Rating
According to a leaflet included with the retail package, the T200 measures 0.63W/kg on Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) tests. Based on the recommendations of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), this is well below the limit of 2.0W/kg.

Reception And Battery Life
In our tests, the reception proved average. Like many other phones, the T200 failed to register signals in areas with poor network coverage. We had no issues with voice quality.

This being a Sony Ericsson, we expected battery life to be good. The manufacturer claims a talktime of up to 4 hours and standby of 150 hours. In our real-world tests, the 700mAh Lithium-ion battery lasted us four days on normal usage.

Conclusion
Although the current price at S$268 (with a two-year contract) is about right, it won't be long before color-screen phones flood the market and submerged the better qualities of the monochrome T200. We expect downward pressures to drive this Sony Ericsson to a sub-S$150 price then. For now, the T200 is well worth a look if it’s a budget GPRS triband you're seeking.

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