Sony Ericsson Z500 Product Review

I have owned the Sony Z500 for almost two years now, and I must say that it has held up very well for me. I do not consider myself a cellular phone connoisseur by any means, and I've found that durability and reliability are a far bigger virtue, at least in my personal opinion, than number of features. And in the area of reliability, the Z500 shines.

The Z500 is without a doubt a very user-friendly phone. The key layout is pretty straightforward and intuitive, without too many keys for obscure functions you won't use, and it has a very conspicuous menu-entry button in the middle. It has all the basic features including ring tones, a camera, text messaging, and the ability to upload games. It also allows you to preset up to four different functions for one-touch accessibility on the keypad, which I use for Task Manager and the alarm clock.

The camera can take both stills and video, though I have to admit the quality is not very high. It is convenient for situations where a quick picture is needed, but definitely not for quality itself. The Z500 keeps track of all outgoing, incoming, and missed phone calls up to a week after they are made, and it is very easy to add phone numbers to your directory. Overall, the features are satisfactory but nonetheless a little out-of-date. There is no predictive text to be found, for example. But if you're at all interested in the Z500 or a model similar to it, you're probably aware that it is an older phone without all of the bells and whistles of the latest models.

The phone's biggest strengths are its simple design and its ease of use. It is light and compact (it is a flip phone), yet it is built well enough to withstand heavy use. My Z500 has taken quite a bit of wear and tear without its performance being affected in any way. Recently, I had to replace the SIM card in it, but I took it into my nearest Cingular store (which I guess is AT&T now) and they added a new one free of change, and it has worked fine since.

Though my own contract renewal period is approaching, I'm actually thinking of holding onto my Ericsson for a good while longer. There's really no need for a new model unless you want to be able to play mp3's or text a whole lot. And when I do finally decide to get another, I think I'm going to stay with Ericsson. And if you're looking into a new or used phone, you should too.