Screen

The T68i had the most advanced screen when it came out over a year ago when all other phones were black and white. This time around everyone has flooded the color cell phone market.

The T610 has a 65,000 color 128x160 pixel STN screen. Now you might have read that other phone displays contain a TFT screen. The main difference between the two is that the TFT has the circuit transistors placed on the glass at the pixel location. This results in greatly increasing the response time and allows for very fast refresh rates.

Unfortunately, the T610 uses a STN which do not have the circuitry on the glass and has to scan the pixel locations. This slows the response time and produces what is commonly referred to as "ghosts." Ghosts happen when you change to a new screen and the old imprint can still be seen on top. Most phones use STN because the need for fast refresh rates aren't needed, and ghosts aren't a big deal. However, if you plan on playing a fast action packed games with a lot of motion, then this could potentially be a problem.

For a STN screen, the T610 performs very well. The refresh rate is high and minimal ghosts occur. Fading occurs pretty significantly when used in bright sunlight. Almost to the point where you can't see anything on the screen. However for most everyday use, you'll find the screen bright and clear.

Controls

A 5-way joystick was great on the T68i, and the T610's is even better. If you've never touched a Sony Ericsson joystick then you are truly missing out. Navigation is incredibly fluid, and playing games gives you greater control. The 5 directions are up, down, left, right, and press.

Sony Ericsson added a new red light in the center of the joystick. It lights up to tell you when your batter is low.

Battery and Charger

The Sony Ericsson T610 comes with a 750 mAh Li-Polymer battery. Sony Ericsson claims that the battery has a standby time of 315 hours and a talk time of 14 hours.

Mobiledia tests reveal real-world times of 475 minutes of talk time and 260 hours of standby time. The company's estimates are inflated for "optimal conditions" (which is no surprise) but the tests do not disappoint, especially considering the color screen. To conserve battery power, the phone should be put in sleep mode whenever it is not in use, meaning that the "always-on" backlight setting should not be used. The phone takes about 2 hours to recharge.

Connections

The Sony Ericsson T610's connections are located on the bottom of the phone. That's where the plug is connected when it's time to recharge the phone. All old accessories are still compatible with the T610 which is very advantageous if you used to own T68i accessories.

An infrared port is included so you can transfer pictures, ring tones, themes, and all the other customizable feature to your phone. The T610 allows you multiple ways to get multimedia to it so you can have fun with its functionality.

Additionally the T610 comes with Bluetooth. That's right, one of the few. If you don't know much about Bluetooth technology, it allows you to pair devices to your phone wirelessly. It can be connected to a network card in your laptop so you can use your T610 as a wireless modem. Or paired with a Bluetooth enabled PDA to allow browsing through a handheld device. But most common usages are connecting a wireless headset so you don't have wires to tie down your mobility.

Sony Ericsson has mentioned the addition of its QuickShare software. Supposedly the T610 has the ability to share images with other users seamlessly through this program from just a few clicks away.

If you're a Mac user you'll be happy to know that Sony Ericsson plans to make the T610 compatible with iSync, Apple's free synchronization software, much like the T68i was. Now users of Apple computers can synchronize their calendar and contact information with the T610 using iSync.

Overall the T610 has great connectivity. With all the ways to transfer and connect stuff to the T610, you can add on many other options that you normally couldn't with other phones.

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