Should I buy C905 branded or not branded?

KieranIRL

Im looking to buy a Sony Ericsson C905. But Im not sure should I buy it online (on Expansys.ie) or in a phone store? Could anyone give me any details which would be a better place to buy?

drunkmonkey

I wouldn't but a c905 at all but if you must it depends on the network your using it on...If it's 3 i'd say yes go get the branded one as it'll be preloaded with skype, google maps, msn messanger etc and they'll also support those apps. If it was on any other network get the debranded one as they don't offer those kind of services.

I'd be wating to see the price of the sony satio when it comes out in the next few weeks if your after a really good camera phone...

KieranIRL

drunkmonkey wrote: »

I wouldn't but a c905 at all but if you must it depends on the network your using it on...If it's 3 i'd say yes go get the branded one as it'll be preloaded with skype, google maps, msn messanger etc and they'll also support those apps. If it was on any other network get the debranded one as they don't offer those kind of services.

I'd be wating to see the price of the sony satio when it comes out in the next few weeks if your after a really good camera phone...

I was thinking of waiting to see the price of the satio first, I want it for Meteor so Id say Ill get the debranded phone, but will I be able to use the GPS and geotagging etc for free or do I have to pay?

cnocbui

KieranIRL wrote: »

I was thinking of waiting to see the price of the satio first, I want it for Meteor so Id say Ill get the debranded phone, but will I be able to use the GPS and geotagging etc for free or do I have to pay?

I owned one of these briefly, but sold it promptly when I discovered the dreadful inherent defects this model seems to have.

You can get third party Java based GPS applications that will let you download maps off the internet and use the stored maps offline so there are no data charges. (laborious process)

However, if you want turn by turn navigation like you get with a proper GPS, you have no option that I am aware of but to pay ongoing data charges.

The GPS in the C905 will not work indoors, is slow to lock on to satellites and obtain a fix and heavy cloud cover would mean it is unlikely you would get any signal/fix at all.

Geotagging is a bit of a joke. If you turn on the GPS function and wait for it to obtain a fix before taking your photo, you will be waiting several minutes before you can take the shot. Leaving the GPS turned on is a really bad Idea because it would flatten the battery in less than 3 hrs I estimate.

The camera is a huge disappointment. There are dreadful jpeg compression artifacts visible if you zoom in on a photo just a little bit.

I think this is because Sony skimped on the processor which has a speed of 169 mhz, which I suspect is too slow to process 8.1 MP images 'properly' in a reasonable time.

The C905 is also a bit fat, thickness wise, for comfortable pocket carry.

And last but not least, it has a list of dreadful design defects just waiting to turn it into an expensive paper weight, most notably the ear speaker stopping working and some of the keys getting stuck and not working.

The C905 'could' have been a great phone if it had been made and designed properly, but it wasn't.

It does have great WiFi and Java functionality, I will give it that.

I owned a C905 for about two weeks. I sold it and bought a Samsung S8000 Jet instead, a much better phone all-round. The GPS is as gimmicky as the C905's but the camera is heaps better, probably because the processor in the Jet has enough oomph to do the 5MP images justice as it runs at 800mhz, nearly five times faster than the C905.

Dankoozy

I wouldn't ever buy a branded phone but thats just me. i debranded my E63 to get rid of that planet 3 thing and various other ****e they put on it and used a dremel to get rid of that uggly logo they put on it

but i'm a bit of an extremist. i just really hate the ongoing trend of phones becoming more proprietary. or anything that perpetuates the idea that mobile phone networks do anything more than move data between your phone and the public internet and telephone system which are almost the same now anyway

KieranIRL

Thanks for all the replys so quick saved me from making a huge mistake buying it.

eden_my_ass

KieranIRL wrote: »

Thanks for all the replys so quick saved me from making a huge mistake buying it.

Keep in mind you've only got a few opinions there, hardly enough to call it a big mistake. I've a C905 for a year now, looks as new (only "design" fault is that the keys got slightly scratched from the sliding action). GPS reception isn't great, but thats not surprising for one of the earliest gps phones to market, picture quality has never let me down (its not a camera so I don't expect brilliance!). Otherwise no problems....and never let me down Just another opinion!

KieranIRL

eden_my_ass wrote: »

Keep in mind you've only got a few opinions there, hardly enough to call it a big mistake. I've a C905 for a year now, looks as new (only "design" fault is that the keys got slightly scratched from the sliding action). GPS reception isn't great, but thats not surprising for one of the earliest gps phones to market, picture quality has never let me down (its not a camera so I don't expect brilliance!). Otherwise no problems....and never let me down Just another opinion!

It wasnt just their opinions. Ive looked through other forums too and some people are getting the same problems and others are not. Thanks for the reply.