Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini

Features

As the release cycles of Android shorten, devices are undoubtedly going to be launched with older versions of Google's OS. Hence, one of the most frequently asked questions is whether there will be a firmware upgrade and when. For the X10 mini, Sony Ericsson has said it will provide an update to version 2.1 in Q4 this year. The mini pro and original X10 will also get the software upgrade during that time. Sure, the mini may be left out of the upgrade for now, but this Sony Ericsson nails it for someone seeking to buy a basic, compact Android smartphone.

Sony Ericsson's custom interface for Android features four customisable quadrants for placing applications at each corner of the home screen. There's space for only one widget per home screen due to the limited screen estate. We noticed that the mini started to lag as we added more widgets (we had a total of 12) and eventually gave up at one point with a force quit pop-up message. The home screens don't loop, so when you get to the last one, you'll have to make several swipes in the opposite direction to go back.

Performance

The X10 mini is powered by a 600MHz Qualcomm MSM7227 processor. This may be less powerful than higher-end smartphones fitted with the 1GHz Snapdragon processor and more RAM, but the mini managed to deliver a very smooth and snappy experience. This is probably due to a smaller, lower-resolution screen and less demand on the system resources compared with more advanced and power-hungry devices. To sum it up briefly, the X10 mini flies.

On call quality, the party on the other line reported that our voice sounded muffled when we were at a busy cross junction with music blaring from a nearby shopping mall. The quality was better when we tested the phone indoors at the CNET Asia office. The volume was also adequate when we switched to speaker mode. Note that the mini doesn't support video calls.

The 950mAh battery is rated for four hours of talk time and slightly less than 12 days on standby. With push email from Gmail and Exchange ActiveSync enabled, the mini lasted only slightly past a day.

Conclusion

The Xperia X10 mini will probably end up as one of the most easily misplaced phones in our book. Despite its small footprint, the mini doesn't compromise on usability. The interface is fast and the fonts suit the tiny display. The mini won't compete with higher-end Android smartphones, but with all the basic smartphone features included and an affordable retail price, the X10 mini may hold out on its own against the trend for large touchscreens and advanced features, for people who just want things simple.

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