Oct 12, 2003 03:34 PM
2743 Views
(Updated Oct 12, 2003 03:34 PM)
Corporate types: just buy it!. This is the only phone in the market that can syncronise the meetings and tasks in Outlook, and gives you a reminder of the meetings: typical PDA functionality for 9000 bucks!, no extra cables, no paid software required. Also you can download additional games, themes, wallpapers and sounds (entire MIDI files= true polyphony) free.
You will not find this Outlook feature advertised in the sonyericsson website, since this phone is supposed to be a 'low-end' fun phone, not for biz users, however the feature is very much there. There are 2 versions of the phone (actually the same hardware, but two versions of the software/firmware) the older one with no calendar, and the newer one with the calendar option. When I bought the phone in Delhi, it was the one with the Calendar enabled.
To do syncronisation: you need a IR port, which is there in most laptops (or you can buy a USB IR port for you desktop m/c for around 1500 bucks) and install the free software from the sonyericsson.com website. When you install the software and put the phone in front of the IR port, it is automaticaly recognised, and inside Outlook 2000 there comes an additional option to 'Sync'... just click and all your meetings and tasks are downloaded to the phone. Needless to say you can also take a backup of the data on the phone or upload stuff to the phone (drag n drop in Windows 2000).
This is amazing: when i'm away from my laptop, I get reminded 15 mins before my meetings in office (or whatever time u've set as a reminder in Outlook) .. all my collegues in office now want this phone for this feature...except they all have Nokias!! :) In Nokia such functionality is only available in the phones above 15000 bucks (beware: not all nokia phones that have an IR port allow syncing of data!), and you need additional cables/software worth about 3500 : to give you a fair picture.. Nokia support guys were themselves clueless as to what I would need to get this setup woking...''shayad isse chal jana chaiye''.
Tip: For ringtones, games etc.. download to the laptop and upload to the phone using IR...then you don't require to get a WAP enabled connection fro your service provider.
Also the navigation system is brilliant, as compared to a Nokia. I had to use my sister's Nokia 3315 for 1 week and I was pulling my hair out, once I was used to this phone. The 310 is built like a computer... and has got a context sensitive 'right-click' option.. e.g. Let's say you are at the 'Call Contact' menu.. you can 'right-click' on a Contact, and edit the details, delete the guy,send the guys vcard to another phone etc.., whatever you want can do right from here! Like a picture?, right click and Set as wallpaper. This 'right-click' is available throught the menu system, and makes use the phone a pleasure. (In Sony language this right-click is called the Options key).
This is great for a computer savvy person, but maybe basic users would find this confusing.
