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| Sony Ericsson W580i Black Phone (AT&T) | 
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| Brand: Sony Ericsson
Category: Wireless
List Price: $399.99
Buy New: $0.01
You Save: $399.98 (100%)
New (1) Used (1) from $0.01
Avg. Customer Rating:  51 reviews
Sales Rank: 340
Color: Black
Media: Wireless Phone
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 0 x 0 x 0
Bluetooth:
Model: W580i
EAN: 7311270170304
ASIN: B000X1M9B4
Release Date: October 15, 2007
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Promotion: Data not available Terms and Conditions
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews:
 Poor basic funtionality September 8, 2008
As others have pointed out this phone has a number of design flaws. I'm a user that expects a phone to be a phone 1st and once it has that functionality down cold then start adding the bells and whistles. (Sounds a lot like what we've been wanting out of computer manufacturers for years, doesn't it?)
1. The phone can easily become unlocked and make calls. My daughter's phone called me while she was sitting next to me in the car and her phone was in her pocket.
2. The interface is not customizable. You cannot remove the unwanted icons (advertisements) from the interface nor can you change the icons to text.
3. Speed Dial is poorly done. Having to push 2 buttons is not speed dial by most people's definition, at least not those of us who are used to 1 button Speed Dialing. Voice dial isn't any better, at least mine can't seem to understand what I'm saying so it's hard to set up and only has a 50-50 chance of working when I want to dial with it. This is probably because it uses voice tags rather than true speech recognition, but I don't know. Plus, the voice recognition requires that you wait for a tone that is so soft that it can only be heard in the quietest of conditions- certainly not in the car where you might want to use voice dialing.
4. The menus are overly complex and convoluted. Even the "expert" at the phone store kept getting lost and basically stumbled on most of what she was looking for or trying to show us.
5. There is no direct access button to the camera. All my other phones have had a button on the side that allows quick access to the camera or I could change the functionality of a button to perform that function, because isn't that what you really want with a phone camera. I mean, it's not high quality so shouldn't it at least be easily and quickly available?
6. The only shortcuts that can be changed on the phone itself are the 4 direction buttons. Nothing else on the phone can be customized, so I have a number of buttons I don't need and would like to use for something else or just disable them entirely.
7. As a another reviewer points out, it is really easy to press the wrong button or one when you don't want to. I keep hitting the down arrow when I slide the phone open.
8. The keypad is small and I find the only way I can dial is with my fingernail. I don't have very large hands at all so this could definitely be problematic for those who do.
9. I also haven't found a way to lock the phone except to open and then close it. And then, once again, I hit the down arrow (see #7) so if I'm not careful I stick the phone in my pocket and it's not locked.
10. A small thing, but annoying: it's incredibly hard to remove the battery cover. As the lady customer who removed it in the store (for the salesperson!) said, "You've got to have fingernails to get this thing off." And even with her fingernails and experience doing it, it was difficult.
The pluses to this phone are that it is attractive, sturdily built, and it sounds good when making calls or listening to music. Also computer access and loading music are both very easy.
For those that have commented that this is a very basic or cheap version of the iPhone, I've gotta say that this ain't no iPhone.
Other than what I've listed, this phone is fine as far as I know. Of course, I haven't had it all that long or used it as a browser.
I realize that some of the things I've listed may not bother some people, but I thought I'd mention them.
 good phone September 8, 2008
good phone, happy with purchase, would recommend reading through entire description, compare with other models, esp accessories etc
 Awful! August 19, 2008
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
I have never before been motivated to write a review in my life however this phone is the worst phone that I have ever owned in my life and AT& T has been unhelpful in fixing it. Lets start by saying within the first week I needed to get a replacement since the screen broke the second day. Then when I was on vacation the bottom part come right off and then the next day it just stopped working. My insurance refused to cover this since a part was missing and had to pay over 50 dollars to do this. And a couple days later the speaker just stopped working. So now my phone works fine but won't ring or make any noise. I talked to the AT&T and Sony Erickson people and they both refuse to fix my phone since the little dot under the battery went red. I never dropped my phone in a puddle or even had time to get wet in the rain before my speakers stopped working yet because the little red dot (moisture indicator) was detected they are at grounds to refuse fixing the phone. In my opinion this is the worst phone design that I have ever used and will go back to using the black and white phone I used before this which proves to be reliable. The W580i has only been a weight on my shoulders. If you are still convinced and set in your ways on buying this phone go to a store and check it out. Turn the phone over and try to remove the back cover (where the battery resides). When I brought the phone in the first time to get fixed the woman at the store took five minutes trying to pry it open and had to get help from another employee. She said that some of them are hard and others work fine. Thus from my numerous experiences I beg you not to buy the phone. Thanks -Sara
 Great phone but needs memory stick for optimal use as mp3 player August 18, 2008
Other reviewers have commented in detail on this phone's great features and I tend to agree. I only wish to add that if you are buying this phone and intend to use it as an MP3 player you MUST purchase a Memory Stick Micro M2 (SanDisk 2 GB Memory Stick Micro (M2) w/ Adapter (SDMSM2-2048, Bulk Packaging)). The base phone that was sold to us at an AT&T store did not include this, and more importantly, the rep that sold us the phone didn't warn us (nor did we think to ask) that we would need this "accessory". After struggling with the phone software for a day or so I finally called Sony Ericsson customer service and was told that we needed a memory stick. The rep was very helpful and their phone system was easy to navigate.
One thing we really liked about the phone is that it comes out of the box with a partially charged battery - no more charging overnight before you can even turn the darn thing on. My daughter was happily texting away before we had even left the store!
Sony Ericsson W580i vs LG Shine CU720 August 7, 2008
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
Background: Over the past two months, I have spent a great deal of time debating between whether to get the Sony Ericsson W580i or the LG Shine CU720. After making numerous threads at various forums regarding this question, reading countless reviews, watching many videos, looking at hundreds of pictures, and mapping out the pros and cons of each one multiple times, I have settled on the Sony Ericsson W580i. Since my family just got a family plan with ATT (3 lines/550 minutes shared) and one of my sisters got the Shine, I was able to do a comparison between the phones.
Battery Life: The claim that Sony Ericsson has poor battery life, in short, is complete bull ****. Those that say they had short battery life... you just got a lemon (or are trying to reason yourself out of the fact that buying a shine was actually a poor decision). My OTHER sister, who also got a Sony Ericsson, also gets great battery life with hers. Rather than the claimed "3-4 day charge" that many people on this forum and others are claiming, I have found that the phone will last over a week (11-13 days). The LG Shine, which is said to have poor battery life, disappoints: its battery life is indeed very short. The papers that the LG Shine comes with claims that battery life is around 3 hours of talk time, up to 240 hours (10 days) of standby time, is standard marketing bull ****: through a test of 10 different charges with three different batteries, the phone has lasted no more than 3 days before it required a charging.
SE: 10/10 Shine: 3/10
Durability: People say the LG Shine has a stronger build than the Sony Ericsson, but if you actually compare the two, you find that you cannot actually compare the two... Why? The SE is a plastic phone; the LG shine is a plastic phone with metallic components. One thing that is not usually noted is that the Shine actually has VERY little metal in its body; it's only the battery cover and some of the front. The LG shine doesn't really feel that much more durable than the SE. If you drop the shine, you will certainly damage the screen, and/or scratch the body, and/or break the phone. With something plastic, eg. Sony Ericsson, a drop will do no more than give a few scratches. Regarding the slider mechanism, the LG Shine's "snaps" when you open and close it, whereas the SE's slider is not as snappy. Due to the difference in the way that the phones slide, it isn't really accurate to say that one feels more durable than the other. Since the durability was one of my biggest concern in getting the phone, I did a test of each phone upon cracking open the box: I opened and closed each phone 300 times. Results: The LG Shine's slider remained the same; the SE's slider got smoother after the test.
SE: 9/10 Shine: 6/10
Fingerprints/Scratchability: The claims that the Shine is a fingerprint magnet could not be more true. The Shine cannot stand to be touched at all. Walking around with the Shine put in my side jeans pocket for a day, the Shine went in looking stellar and came back looking pretty poor. The back plate had obviously been rubbed on, the front plate exhibited small, but noticeable scratches. I'm sure you could prevent the Shine from getting scratched by getting a screen protector and/or case, but the hassle of one is not something that I'd want to deal with (not to mention such protection would take away the "beauty" of the Shine). The Sony Ericsson, as one may predict, does not scratch easily. Same jeans, same walk, and the SE still looked great after. There was something that looked like a small scratch on the front screen on the SE, but nothing a wipe could clean off. Speaking of which, with the LG Shine, you cannot wipe the phone with any shirt; it will scratch if the fabric of the cloth/shirt is rough. A BIG reason people get the Shine is because it looks good. Well, if you don't take care of it like a newborn baby, it's going to look like **** and ipso facto, it was a poor decision to buy the phone for its looks.
SE: 9/10 Shine: 1/10
Keypad: People always complain about the keypads of the Sony Ericsson and the LG Shine and say how small they are and how difficult it is to text with them... Most of these complainers are complaining from hearsay (they repeat what they read/hear from others, not from their own experience). The problem of cracking keypads is also a huge concern for potential buyers of the SE. First, to address the keypad. The size of the keypad is very usable for texting and other usage. I have 6'2" and have large hands and I can still manage to comfortable use the phones' keypads. Texting with both is very easy (albeit not as easy as texting on a RAZR). The SE's keypad is not as responsive as the Shine's, meaning the click down are not as solid, and that the row of numbers are connected so that one press on a number slightly depresses the row, but nonetheless, it is very solid. The LG Shine's keypad is like a smaller version of the RAZR. Regarding the cracking keys on the SE, I performed a test to see if this rumor was true. Over a period of 2 days, I had the phone off and during my spare time (which is a lot since it's summer), I've been clicking away at the keys (with a good amount of pressure I might add), and the keys exhibit no sign of cracking. Clearly the cracking keys is an issue with older phones (which you could potentially still buy if the reseller of your phone has old stock).
SE: 9/10 Shine: 9/10
Navigation: Those that say navigation on the Shine is difficult are clearly retarded: physically or mentally. The joystick on the Shine takes no practice to nail. It is very easy to use, and is not too small. The SE, with no joystick, as imagined, is also very easy to use. My only caveat with the SE is that there's no dedicated end call button like my old Nokia. The numbered menus in the Shine are very easy to use.
SE: 9/10 Shine: 9/10
Reception/Sound Quality: I live in Northern California in a well populated city, and everywhere I go, I get 5 bars with the SE and from 3 to 4 bars with the Shine. I have found the number of signal bars that you get has a big impact on the call quality (as it should)... The Shine frequently echoes what the other person says, and a background static seems to be present in all calls. To ensure that I didn't receive a lemon shine, I tested a friend's shine and sure enough, it was the same. My friend told me they didn't notice the static (he probably got use to the poor call quality)... The SE's reception and sound quality it top notch. No complaints whatsoever here. Even with 3 bars (in a tunnel), the call was still strong.
SE:10/10 Shine: 5/10
Features: SE wins hands down. Read the features at each phone's respective website; I won't waste your time here. The LG Shine is the most basic of phones. The only thing its got over the SE is 3G. The Shine is all looks.
SE: 10/10 Shine: 2/10 (absolutely pitiful for a phone be so lackluster in features)
Other concerns and notes:
- The speaker on the SE kills that one which is on the Shine
- Both phones have ringtones are loud enough to be heard
- Both phones can [be modified to] receive games and , but with the SE, you have more options.
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