Sony Ericsson Vivaz - Review

“Pureness’ transparent screen is an appealing gimmick, but one that t makes the phone hard to use. Pureness’ basic features also mean the mobile is only fit for use as a back-up device”

HD video capture

Vivaz's screen is great for videos

The Sony Ericsson Vivaz looks stylish thanks to its “Silver Moon” bodywork and rich purple sides that combine to make the mobile phone an appealing fashion accessory.

But what’s Vivaz like as a phone? I wouldn’t class Vivaz as a smartphone because it doesn’t have enough high-end features to compete in the same category as the HTC Desire or Apple iPhone 4.

Vivaz’s strongest selling point is its HD video camera which captures beautifully crisp and clear videos in 720p resolution. Dedicated side-mounted buttons for activating the video camera and zooming in or out came in handy.

Still image capture is equally good on Vivaz, with its 8.1Mp camera performing well during a series of test shots. Photography on the phone is fun thanks to its various shooting modes, such as the panorama mode which stitches multiple images into one.

At 3.2in, Vivaz’s touchscreen occasionally felt too small to fully enjoy content on. Worse still was the fact that it often jumped between portrait and landscape display modes when all I had done was slightly adjust my grip on the phone.

Nonetheless, I was impressed how clear text and images were on the small screen and – thanks to Vivaz’s wi-fi and 3G support – I could even watch TV shows streamed to the phone through its BBC iPlayer app. Just don’t expect TV quality video!

BBC iPlayer app

Vivaz supports BBC iPlayer

Music is another of Vivaz’s strong points. Despite coming with a cheap pair of plastic earphones – which supplied good quality sound, I stress – the phone’s industry standard 3.5mm jack means you can use any pair of headphones you like.

Vivaz isn’t strong on apps – something I believe keeps it out of the smartphone category. Those it does have, which include one for turning the phone into a satnav and another for Facebook, can be pinned onto a virtual shortcut menu for quick access.

The phone has an internet browser, but I’d only choose to use it if every local internet café was closed because the touchscreen’s inability to acknowledge my fingertips prevented me from opening hyperlinks.

Vivaz comes with a stylus to make touchscreen navigation easier. But who wants a stylus in an age when rival phones effortlessly navigate Google Maps with a single finger swipe?

Vivaz also supports Play Now – Sony Ericsson’s online store for music and game downloads. Accessing the store from Vivaz is fairly easy, though its selection pales in comparison to the Apple App Store and Android Market.