Sony Ericsson C510 Review

The C902 was, and still is, a decent cameraphone. Packing in 5-megapixels and a powerful LED flash, it has served the market well. But now Sony Ericsson is offering a cheaper model that retains the basic style (right down to the mix of silver and blue on the edging), but with only 3.2-megapixels.

The question is: can this really do the business in a market that consists of many five, a few eight and soon 12-megapixel cameras? The answer is: decide what you want to do with your captured pictures.

If you have desires to take photos and print them out on A3 paper or get them blown up even bigger, then the C510 isn’t suitable. Take a look at an 8-megapixel model from Samsung or LG, or Sony Ericsson’s own C905 instead. If you want to print at postcard size, upload photos to Facebook or share pics by email then 3.2 megapixels is more then adequate.

The important thing is to make sure the pictures you do get are decent, and the C502 mixes an autofocus sensor with a twin LED lamp that is good enough for illuminating subjects a metre or two away.
It also combines the Cyber-shot interface with dedicated camera keys that light up when you open the shutter cover. You will need to get used to sliding this cover by its edge, as it’s not quite as slick as lifting the top up on the C902.

The handset lacks the BestPic feature that takes multiple shots, but has a new function called Smile Shutter. Simply focus on the subject and the camera waits for their smile before taking the picture. It works extremely well, and gives it an edge over most of the other cameraphones on the market.

Our review model came from 3, which comes with some additional applications for free (see right). These offer extra value for money on a phone that doesn’t even come with a memory card. There's 100MB of onboard memory (good for around 100 photos), but a memory card is an essential purchase if you want to take more snaps, shoot video or use the phone for listening to music.

As with any other Cyber-shot, the phone also has a Walkman-like media player but only very basic headphones come in the box and there’s no 3.5mm headphone adapter.

A new feature of the C510 is the threaded text messaging view, which copies the feature on the iPhone quite unashamedly, but I have no complaints when it makes it much easier to keep track of SMS conversations.

The Smile Shutter feature is an excellent addition to the Cyber-shot family, but it’s worth noting that future models will have this feature too (including the C905 with a firmware update). However the C510 is here now – it's a good value prepay cameraphone on 3 with a decent feature set.

VERDICT

The C510 is a cut down version of the C902, featuring a 3.2-megapixel camera instead of 5-megapixels. You get a twin-LED flash, lens cover, illuminated camera buttons and a new Smile Shutter function that waits until your subject smiles before taking the shot. The phone has a bright display, a new threaded SMS mode and support for YouTube, Skype and Facebook on the 3 branded version. Although it’s cheap and affordable, the image quality is good and on a par with previous models like the K800. The lack of memory card and decent headphones is a disappointment, considering it has the potential to be a decent media player too.

RATINGS (OUT OF 5)

PERFORMANCE: 4
FEATURES: 4
USABILITY: 5
OVERALL: 4

Get even more with 3

The 3 version comes with an exclusive Facebook application, showing updates on the home screen plus access to Skype, YouTube and Windows Live Messaging.