Sony Ericsson's Vivaz turns Pro

Sounds and looks familiar? Yes it does because just a few months back I gave you a glimpse of its sleek and stylish precursor “Vivaz”. Join me as I take another look at Vivaz as it goes “pro”.

Glancing at the new Vivaz pro seems like “deja vu”. It does look the same as its older version. It still is a stunner with that smooth and shiny high quality plastic, its 3.2” resistive touchscreen display with resolution of 360 x 640 pixels supporting 16M colors, its camera that captures HD videos and of course the sexy curved back that makes it fit like a glove when held is still apparent. Most of Vivaz pro’s specifications are mirror images of the older Vivaz and so to avoid repetition and redundancy, let’s venture on what is different.

Holding on to Vivaz pro, you will notice that it is a bit heavier and thicker. This holds true and actually is quite understandable because Vivaz is now equipped with a side sliding QWERTY keyboard. Although it is thicker (well, of only about 2 mm), the difference in weight and height can be insignificant. Even with its QWERTY keyboard Vivaz pro is still lightweight, slim and compact.

The QWERTY keyboard slides smoothly sideways and at the end of which a distinct reassuring stable click. The keys are square-shaped and made of rubber giving just the right amount of contact between the keys and the thumb for easy typing. I guess to maintain Vivaz’s slim and svelte profile, the keys had to be set a bit shallow and not much elevated. Good thing each key is soft to touch and keying in does not require extra pressure.

It is quite noticeable though that even the 4-row QWERTY keyboard is solid stable and evenly spaced, it seems however to be crowding on to the center of the slider. Hence for some, it may just be too cramped. Surrounding the keyboard, I noticed that there is still a considerable amount of space especially on the left and right side. Had they used this space as part of the keyboard then mispresses especially for those with fat and stubby thumbs will be avoided.

Nevertheless, the QWERTY keyboard is comfortable to use and it did deliver what it was specifically made for and that is for a quicker and more efficient way to communicate whether it be SMS or e-mail or even for social network sites (it is loaded with apps like Facebook and You Tube). I must admit, even though Vivaz pro is equipped with a responsive resistive touchscreen, I still tend to key in with the QWERTY keyboard.

What made the original Vivaz different from other smart cameraphones are its camera features. Compared to its contemporaries, Vivaz can take really good quality still photos and shoot 720p HD video and with the “pro”, expect the same. Even though Pro’s camera is now at 5 megapixels, its ability to capture high definition video remains the same (still at 720p HD video).

Besides the minor difference in the camera features, those really familiar with the original Vivaz will notice that Vivaz pro has 75MB memory where as the original has 95MB, but since “pro” can take a MicroSD card of up 16GB in size then that reduction won’t be much of an issue.

Needless to say, both may be so much alike, but still there are differences. It is not a question of which is better but rather which would you prefer. Like what they say, “to each his own.” Whether you go Vivaz or you go Pro, both are packed with powerful features. So, if you are the type who prefers to text or just be connected in the easiest and most convenient way, definitely with Vivaz Pro’s QWERTY keyboard, your need for speed, ease and accuracy will surely be met.

Source: MB