Design and Looks
To the discerning eye, the resemblance between the S500i and the W850 is readily apparent but to others they could just as well as be two entirely different looking phones. The S500i is definitely a W850 in disguise but with jaunty and bold colour schemes that follow environmental and seasonal themes.
The S500i also raises eyebrows as it is the first slider to belong to a hitherto exclusive line of swivel phones. The form of the S500i is exactly the same as that of the W850. It is unusually slim for a slider measuring at only 14mm thickness. The sliding mechanism is itself very solid and produces no creaks when opening or closing.
To add to the quirkiness of the phone, the line dividing the two parts of the slider are adorned with LED lights that flash in various patterns during an incoming call. What's more is that a special light effect can be assigned to each contact so you'll know who's calling without having to check the cell display.
Coming to the keypad and the D-pad, they both perform satisfactorily and are very comfortable to use.
The display is the 'piece de resistance' of the S500i. Although small it does provide for excellent detail and clarity. And keeping with the nature theme, the phone features active themes or as they call it 'Dynamic Themes' in the background that literally come alive and change with time. For example, in the day you'll have butterflies hovering over flowers while at night the black screen will be lit up by fireflies or during rainy season the background of the phone will witness showers and so on.
Sadly, the phone comes with a camera that doesn't quite well compliment the excellent display. The camera, a 2MP unit giving a maximum resolution of 1600 x 1200 pixels, doesn't feature autofocus or LED flash unlike the W850. As usual, camera settings are extensive; it includes night mode, white balance, panoramic pictures, and user-configurable exposure compensation.
Then there's the Activity menu that greatly helps getting things organized. Users have four tabs one each for new events, My Shortcuts, Internet Bookmarks and Running Applications. This time around, the phonebook lets users view both phonebooks at the same time, the one stored in the SIM and the one stored in the phone's memory.
The phone also features much the same applications as the W580 like Audible, Code memo, Tasks application and Accuweather. What is lacking here is the walkman mediaplayer, so no shake control. The FM Radio and Track ID is also missing here.
To add insult to injury, the earphones that come bundled with the phone are of standard quality and not the excellent ones you'd find on the walkman phone.
But like most SE phones, the MusicDJ, VideoDJ and PhotoDJ applications are available, just not the pedometer and the fitness applications that you'd find on the W850.
In the end, the choice boils down to either looks or extra functionality, if you choose the former, then the S500i is the phone for you.
Features
- Small, compact form
- Avant-garde designs and colour schemes
- Dynamic themes with wallpaper animation
- LED light effects for events notification
- Decent keypad
- A2DP enabled Bluetooth
- Quad band support, GPRS and EDGE Class 10
Accessories
- Bluetooth Headset VH310
- Video Viewing Stand IM920
- Clip-on Bluetooth Handsfree VH300
- Snap-on Speaker Stand MS410
- Outdoor Wireless Speaker MS500
- Bluetooth Car Handsfree HCB-108
- Courtside Case IDC-31/32
- Bluetooth Watch MBW-200
