Especially designed for those with a discerning eye, who take pride in their personal image, and who are uncompromising in matters of quality and style. With its slimline distinctive diamond cover and innovative features such as Gesture control and seasonal theme changes, this multimedia phone doesn’t go unnoticed.

Design

The design of Z555 has a relief diamond-like pattern with rounded edges giving it stylish vision. The stunning front panel only reveals the camera, the speaker with the OLED display below them. You will find the memory card slot indication charger port on one side and a volume control key on the other.

When you open the Z555, in the upper half there is a standard 1.9″ TFT display surrounded by a complimentary pattern to the device’s facia. You will find in the lower left hand corner a light sensor. On lower half of the shell you will find the navigation and numeric keys with identical internet browser, the power on/off button and the ‘My’ shortcuts menu shortcut buttons between them. It has a gold trimmed large flat keypad with a surface area to allow easy navigation.

This is an entry-level handset that has such designer style and a well-crafted chassis that you will forgive the basic 1.3-megapixel camera and lack of multi media functions. You are aware of what camera modes you are currently using such as night mode, self-timer or burst mode (which takes four shots in rapid succession) by the fittings on the screen. There is no designated camera key; you just simply push the navigation pad upwards.
You can zoom 2x and QVGA 4x when you flip to VGA. The only exterior button, found on the right-hand side of the phone has multifunction capabilities. This button doubles up as the brightness adjuster when using the camera, and when using the music player it becomes the volume control. It also serves as the status indicator when the phone is idle showing you your profile, model of your phone and how much free memory you have left.

Features

The Sony Ericsson Z555 has a slim profile with matching accessories to give you a complete look. There is no compromise to the clamshell handset’s diamond design as the outside display is discreetly undetectable when idle. The Sony Ericsson Z555 will show you at a glance who is calling as the diamond facade illuminates on activation.

Wave the interruptions away with ‘Gesture Control’- Sony Ericsson’s sophisticated answer to unwanted distractions. Now you can fully focus on the important things simply by a sweeping of your hand back and forth over the phone’s camera lens to mute the ringtone and send the caller to voicemail and similarly to stop the nasty alarm.

When you open the clamshell the Z555 has in-built personality as it effectively changes its themes as the year progresses to reflect the ever-changing seasonal styles. The look of the home screen and the menu system update automatically as the year progresses as it is linked to the phone’s calendar. Instinctively it knows when spring turns into summer and autumn to winter, saving something special for occasions like New Years Eve!

Commuting can now be an enjoyable experience as you can indulge your music passions to pass away the time. Immerse yourself in the sounds of your favourite band or catch up on that fascinating audio book.

The 262,144 colour TFT Screen has a 176 x 220 pixels resolution displaying your data with quality and clarity. The Sony Ericsson Z555 has a phone memory up to 12Mb with Memory Stick Micro^TM (M2^TM) support. With Bluetooth stereo support and Multimedia and entertainment options including, the ultra fast Media player 11, PlayNow^TM, 3D games, FM radio, Java, Video viewing and RSS feeds you’ll never be bored. Your favourite music tracks or audio books on the phone can be easily stored and conveniently filed according to your preference of chapters, albums or artists. You can keep up to date with the latest news, weather traffic and gossip when you tune into to the FM Radio which can also be played whilst using the other phone features such as the camera.

Why not catch up with those near and dear to you via talk or video as you have 8.4hours of talk time. The 1.3 megapixel camera with 4x digital zoom and Picture blogging will allow to you snap the action on the spot. Can’t decide which one to buy and need a friend’s advice? Take a picture, attach it to a message and send it to a friend or publish it onto your blog for everyone to see what you have been up to.

You can surf the net quite adequately using the Z555′s GPRS connection although the download time may take longer than you are used to.

The Sony Ericsson Z555 is also compatible with sleek new Bluetooth headsets with its Bluetooth^TM stereo (A2DP) capabilities. Offering you the best combination of style and convenience to keep you in touch is the HBH-PV708 Bluetooth Headset or if you are constantly struggling with comfort wearing your headset and your glasses the HBH-PV770 provides an alternative in-ear wearing style. Up the fashion stakes with two changeable Style-up covers of the HBH-PV770 Bluetooth Headset which also lets you concentrate on the conversation in maximum comfort and background noise reduction.

Verdict

The clamshell Z555′s is an entry level phone but with its extravagant design and impressive gesture control with the instinctive themes one is may forgive its shortfalls. Mainly it’s the design which off sets the multi media capabilities and 1.3megapixel camera. This makes the Sony Ericsson Z555 an attractive phone for people with diamond tastes who choose not to invest a lot of money in mobile phones.