gadgets

The first time I lay my eyes on the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini in a colleague's hand, I can't stop myself from exclaiming: "It's so small!" Within a week, I'm saying it again and again as two other people in the office have been won over by a device that's miniature compared to powerhouses like the iPhone and Nokia N8.

Getting my own hands on the X10, I'm delighted that it actually fits comfortably into my pocket. And for its size, the phone packs a mean punch.

The smallest handset running on the Android operating system, it features a fully touch sensitive screen making for one-touch access to pretty much everything: your Facebook profile, your Twitter updates, and media player (which plugs into an online application and pulls down relevant artist and album information).

Thanks to the built-in Wi-Fi, you'll stay connected to your social networks, the FM radio keeps the tunes coming, the aGPS ensures you're always on track, and the multitasking capabilities make it all as easy as one, two, three.

The Android Market lets you customise the Xperia to your needs and download the apps you want with a few finger touches of the screen. The only gripe is that the 3.0-inch screen doesn't have a lot of room to type an SMS or email for that matter. Thankfully there's a simple solution - just download the far more user-friendly keyboard from the Market.

But beware - some of the newer apps won't work on the X10. The phone's OS can only be upgraded to Android 2.1, so anything developed for OS 2.2 is useless to you.

Nevertheless, for something so minute in size this handset leaves a big impression, and it's easy to see why users have taken a hold of it. Small in size, but huge in capability - and at a price that's affordable enough to get new users into the smartphone market - Sony Ericsson's Xperia X10 Mini has done the industry a favour. Heck, it's no wonder the phone's been named as European Mobile Phone 2010-2011 by the European Imaging and Sound Association.

"Xperia X10 mini from Sony Ericsson is a very small and stylish mobile phone. Nonetheless, it delivers excellent performance with a comprehensive range of features such as GPS, Wi-Fi, 3G and a 5 megapixel camera with flash," said EISA.

"The phone runs on the Android platform and offers users the full benefits of a much larger device although its touch screen size is just 2.55-inch (6.48 cm). Its small size and weight and variety of vivid case colours make it perfect for introducing the fairer sex to smartphone technology."

A jury and this reviewer can't both be wrong.

Features:

• Sony Ericsson Timescape  brings together all communication in one place
• Four corner control – applications, calls, web, the consumer decides. Four customisable icons for ultimate control
• 5.0-megapixel camera and video - share creations via the web
• Music player links to music stores and YouTube - access the world of music
• Android platform  - with Googleservices and Android Market
• QWERTY keyboard - slide and text for quick and easy messaging (Xperia X10 mini pro only)

X10 mini and X10 mini pro support HSPA 900/2100 and EDGE 850/900/1800/1900, HSPA 850/1900/2100 and EDGE 850/900/1800/1900.

The X10 mini will be available in selected markets from Q2 in the colours Pearl White, Black, Pink, Lime, Red and Silver

The X10 mini pro will be available in selected markets from Q2 in the colours Black and Red.