Sony Ericsson C702

release date: June 2008
colours:
 
cool cyan
 
speed black
Sony Ericsson C702

RATING

4 stars

Pros

  • 3G
  • HSPDA
  • GPS with maps
  • Wayfinder Navigator
  • Dust and splash resistant
  • Battery life

Cons

  • No Xenon flash
  • Battery cover
  • Keypad
  • No 3.5 mm audio jack
  • Small screen

SUMMARY

3.2 megapixel quad-band camera phone with GPS, M2 memory card slot (up to 4 GB), 3G, HSDPA, Google Maps and Wayfinder Navigator, GPS tracker application.

Review

The C702 is easily summed up - 3.2 MP camera phone with assisted GPS, Google Maps, Wayfinder navigation, GPS tracker application and a "rugged" look. The C702 is "splash and dust resistant" - IP54. How much water constitutes a "splash", we don't know. Rain drops? Swimming pool splash? A rainforest downpour?

The C702 was released soon after the Sony Ericsson C902. The C902 is more expensive, has a 5 MP camera with BestPic, touch-sensitive controls, accelerometer and is a slimmer thinner beauty.

The C702 is a slightly chunky phone - 1.6 cm thick, and is supposed to be a rugged sporty/outdoors sort of phone. The C702 is more rugged than a typical phone, but if you want tough, opt for a Sonim XP1 wonder phone.

Design

A little chunky - 1.6 cm, average height and width. Weighs in at 105g - reasonably light for a phone. Available in cool cyan or speed black colours. Non-slip smooth pimpled back (think golf ball) with matt grey plastic. Build quality is OK.

Quick tour:

Front: Ear speaker, video call camera, 2.2-inch 240x320 pixel TFT screen, keypad and navigation controls. The keypad keys are thin and wide - personal preference rules. The navigation keys above the keypad are a little cramped. Some people might find themselves making accidental presses. The keys wedged in above the activity menu and cancel keys are a little small and fiddly.

C702 Keypad

Back: 3.2 MP camera, lens cover (slide open to start camera), self-portrait mirror and dual-LED flash. At the bottom is a big strap holder and the battery cover lock. Move the screw and push the cover down. The cover is difficult to remove.

Top: Power button.

Right: Volume / digital zoom keys, camera key.

Left: M2 memory card slot - up to 4 GB M2 card supported.

Bottom: Connector.

Features

Splash and Dust Resistant

Yes. The C702 is splash and dust resistant. The C702 is "built for an active lifestyle" - as opposed to all the other Sony Ericsson phones which are built for inactive people who keep their phones in the box.

The Sony Ericsson site says "So just enjoy the outdoors, regardless of weather conditions." Pants to that. "Splash resistant" means exactly that. It can take "mild" splashes. For outdoor folks, we recommend the Sonim XP1. Tougher, more water resistant and cheaper. Oh yes, it's wonderfully tough. Chuck it out the window, drop it, urinate on it - the Sonim XP1 takes it all.

GPS

GPS is now becoming a standard feature of many mid to high-range phones. Not surprising giving the revenue opportunities it provides - downloading maps and voice navigation. Use A-GPS to get a quicker fix on the satellites (30 seconds) vs the 1 minute or more without assisted GPS. Works well. Quite accurate, as with other GPS systems. View your position on Google Maps.

Google Maps For Mobile

View your location on the map. Search for place names and view them on the map. You must pay data charges to use the service. Pay for the data transfer querying the Google servers. Check charges with your mobile network operator.

Wayfinder Navigator

Voice-guided navigation, favourites, 3D, real-time traffic information. Free 3-month trial included. You can download maps onto your memory card from the Wayfinder Web site. Otherwise maps are grabbed "as-you-go" and you have to pay connection charges.

Best option is to buy the Wayfinder Navigator Maps Pre-loaded option - although we couldn't see the C702 listed at their Web site, so if you decide to use Wayfinder, you might have to pay £99.99 per year. Paying £119 once (for the maps) and avoiding the yearly Wayfinder payments and expensive data transfer costs would be the sensible option.

Sports Tracking Application.

GPS sports tracking application. Get your speed, location and energy used. Works well.

3.2 Megapixel Camera

The "image quality" issue. For this review, we were curious what other reviewers were saying about the C702 image quality. Some said "great", others said "OK, but not as good as a 5 MP" and others say "rubbish". All down to personal preference and expectations.

We think the images are fine. Lousy compared to our Canon SLR, but not bad for a camera phone. Common sense should tell people that quality is likely not to be as good as the camera-focussed mobiles - 5 MP+. They would be correct. Not stellar, but better than average.

The C702 has a bevy of features - face detection, auto-focus (no BestPic - 9 shots in quick succession), video capture (QVGA at 30 fps), shoot mode, scenes, white balance, metering mode, LED flash (not as good as a Xenon flash), macro mode and self-timer.

C702 Camera

Turn the camera on and the right column of keys light up blue to the side. These are camera shortcut keys.

Battery Life

Sony Ericsson quote 12 hours 2G talk time, 5 hours on 3G. GPS turns off automatically when you close the applications. Use the GPS a lot and you'll have to recharge the battery every few hours. The battery is 950 mAh.

Music Player 3.0

Headphones included. Basic music player features such as playlists and categories. Loudspeaker is fine - could do with being a little louder. Access through the Media Center - Photos, Music, Video browser, Web feeds and TV.

Internet Browsing

Pages appear quickly with HSDPA (up to 3.6 Mbps speeds). The NetFront Web browser is fine, although we prefer Nokia, Opera and Safari browsers. Small screen and no QWERTY = poor browsing experience. Good for quick tasks and downloads.

Summary

Decent mid-range camera phone. The C702 is ideal for those wanting a mid-priced GPS phone with 3.2 MP camera. We are now up to 14 GPS phones at MobileSift, with a lot more GPS phones due for release in the coming months.

Buy the C702 on PAYG (£180 - August 2008), on a pay-monthly contract or SIM free.

Features / Specifications

* confirm features at manufacturer's Web site.

Release Date
June 2008
Size
106.0 x 48.0 x 16.0 mm
4.2 x 1.9 x 0.6 inches
Weight
105 g
3.7 oz
Colours
 
cool cyan
 
speed black
Screen
  • 2.2-inch TFT
  • 240x320 pixels
  • 262144 colours
Memory
  • 150 MB phone memory
  • m2 memory card (4 GB max)
Networks
  • Quad-band (GSM 850, 900, 1800 and 1900 Mhz)
  • EDGE
  • 3G (UMTS 2100 Mhz)
  • HSDPA (Max: 3.6 Mbps)
Battery Life
  • Talk time: 12 hours
  • Standby time: 318 hours
  • 3G talk time: 5 hours
  • 3G standby time: 318 hours

In The Box

Sony Ericsson C702 phone, battery, charger, stereo headset, software CD, user guide.

Connectivity

  • GPS
  • Bluetooth 2.0
  • USB 2.0
  • Video calling

Camera

  • 3.2 MP Camera

  • features: Auto-focus, 2x digital zoom, 2048x1536 pixels (3 MP), dual LED, face detection, auto-focus, red-eye reduction, video capture, shoot mode, scenes, white balance, metering mode, light, picture size, night mode, self-timer, geo-tag photos, macro mode

  • QVGA video resolution
  • 30 FPS video capture
  • 0.1 MP front camera

Messaging

  • SMS, MMS, Email

Entertainment

  • Games: Brain Juice, Foto Quest Fishing

  • FM radio
  • RDS Radio
  • Music Player
  • Video Player

Internet

  • NetFront Web browser
  • RSS Reader

Installed Applications

  • Tracker application, Google Maps, Wayfinder Navigator software, TrackID, PhotoDJ, VideoDJ, PlayNow, Accuweather, Facewarp, no BestPic
  • PIM: Alarm clock, calculator, calendar, contacts, flight mode, notes, phone book, stopwatch, tasks, timer
  • Voice recorder/memo, dialling

Prices

Prices coming soon.

TAGS: 3g, hsdpa, gps, bar phones