Mobile Phones

The Sony Ericsson HCB-120 is a Bluetooth hands-free speakerphone that is designed for use in either the office or a car, and is the upgrade to the previous HCB-100. Once again boasting above average sound quality, as well as the ability to connect with up to five mobile phones, the HCB-120 adds a small display to show caller ID information. Unfortunately, the price is a little steep.

The HCB-120 includes a visor clip to mount in your car. It supports Bluetooth 1.2 and will work with any mobile phone that supports Bluetooth headsets. For use in an office, the HCB-120 can be placed on a desk and used just as you would in a car. Sony Ericsson has done away with the flip up microphone used in the HCB-100, this time building it into the unit itself.

Like the previous model, the HCB-120 controls are well laid out and marked. There are four buttons; a call key, end/power key, and two others - one to mute the microphone during a call and turn on Bluetooth pairing mode, and the other to switch between the five Bluetooth profiles available and change the colour of the display. You can assign a different colour to show you which of the five available profiles are being used using the convenient volume control; of course, this dial also adjusts ringing and in-call volume levels.

Sony Ericsson's W610i is a solid, if not outstanding, midrange handset. It sports the latest Walkman software and FM radio, a 2 megapixel camera, and a 512MB Memory Stick Micro (M2). The downside is its small and cramped controls, which detract from the overall user experience.

The W610i includes the latest version of Sony Ericsson's proprietary music software, Walkman version 2.0, along with an FM radio. An icon representing each menu provides a sleek and structured feel. The tiered interface (with artists, albums, tracks and playlist menus) also provides access to Sony Ericsson's download service, PlayNow. This operates in a very similar way to iTunes, allowing you to listen to samples and then download tracks to your phone or PC in MP3 or AAC format. The Walkman software also supports album art and this is automatically downloaded and added to the track each time you upload your music.

TrackID is once again available on the W610i. This allows you to record a few seconds of any song you wish, through the external microphone. The recording is then sent to a music database and if the song is recognised, the title, album and artist name are sent back to you. It then allows you to download the full track if it is available. The W610i also features Bluetooth Stereo A2DP (Advanced Audio Distribution Profile), enabling you wirelessly stream music to a compatible pair of Bluetooth headphones.

Although looking similar to the 5-megapixel G600, the J700 is a totally different kettle of fish. This basic GSM slider is aimed at the low-end of the market and it provides reasonable bang for your buck.

Like many Samsung handsets, the J700 looks smart and stylish. Samsung has worked hard on the design of its handsets in recent years and the majority of them are quite attractive. The J700 may be an entry-level unit, but that hasn't stopped it receiving the flashy treatment &$8212; a gloss finish adorns the front and rear, making the J700 look and feel like a much more expensive handset than it is. Unfortunately, the glossy design attracts fingerprints and is difficult to keep clean.

Despite the J700's small size, it feels reasonably well built. The controls and keypad are well designed - despite the latter being relatively flat, the keys are quite large and well spaced and the J700 is comfortable enough for SMS use. Our only complaint lies with the five-way navigational pad - it's a little small for our liking; we found ourselves accidentally pressing the centre button when aiming to press the directional controls.

The J700's display isn't going to win any awards: it's quite small and text isn't crisp or clear. Photos taken using the on-board camera aren't displayed very well. However, the display is good enough for the target market of this handset - it's important to keep in mind that this isn't a

A stylish handset despite its positioning at the bottom-end of the market, Sony Ericsson's T250i is designed to do the basics and do them well. Reasonably efficient controls and a well-built frame make this a worthy handset for first-time users or consumers looking for a second mobile phone.

In terms of design, the T250i falls in line with many other Sony Ericsson handsets. The fairly straightforward but stylish candy bar features a brushed silver finish (it's also available in black) on the front and rear, with chrome edging and navigational controls a nice touch. Despite the T250i's lightweight frame it surprisingly feels solid and capable of taking a few knocks.

The keypad and controls are laid out and spaced well. All buttons are easy to press and produce reasonably tactile feedback, so avid SMS users shouldn't have too many issues. The only real complaint is that the keys within each column could have been farther apart for a more comfortable user experience, although there is a good amount of space between each column. It's a minor complaint though, and the main controls, consisting of a four-way navigational pad with shortcuts and two selection buttons, are well implemented.

More a piece of James Bond-like gadgetry than a necessity, Sony Ericsson's MBW-100 is a stylish Bluetooth watch that wirelessly synchronises with your mobile phone to alert you of incoming calls and messages. It also enables you to control music without touching your phone.

Designed in partnership with watch company Fossil, the MBW-100 is stylish, but there is no indication that this is an electronic device at first glance. It's available in either silver or black finishes and looks much like a regular, albeit large men's watch. At 187g, it's heavier than most mobile phones on the market and does weigh down your arm, but after a few minutes of wearing it, you won't tend to notice the weight.

The MBW-100 features a hidden OLED display. You are notified when your phone rings, and when you receive a text message. For calls, if the caller is stored in your phonebook, the MBW-100 displays the name; if not, then just the number is displayed. When a new message is received, a small message icon appears on the display. Unfortunately, you can't actually read your message on the MBW-100 - it would have been extremely practical for the message to scroll across the display. Conveniently, the watch vibrates when notifications appear, although this function can be turned off if you wish.