Sony Ericsson K660 preview: First look

Sony Ericsson K660 360-degree spin

Construction

Though we usually start with the display, the K660 keypad is worth breaking the mold. The small round knobs on the keypad offer good response and tactility.

The keyboard with the rounded keys

The keyboard backlighting however is truly worth the cheer. The on-key numbers and the letters in between are backlit in different shades of white, making the keypad a pleasure to look at in the dark.

The keyboard backlighting • the keyboard in the dark

The right column of keys serve a double purpose: in web mode they're used for text input, bookmarks, home page and zoom. Icons with red backlighting indicate the function of each key.

The text input, bookmarks, home page and zoom colored in red in browser mode

The other noteworthy element is the main wine-colored block of controls above the keypad. There are six keys and the D-pad with confirming action amidst in one unbroken layout. K660 is another Sony Ericsson handset to feature dedicated Call and End keys. The remaining controls are the usual soft keys, the Activity Menu key and the Clear key. Generally, we're quite pleased with this setup; working with the controls is trouble-free.

"...The right column of keys serve a double purpose: in web mode they're used for text input, bookmarks, home page and zoom. Icons with red backlighting indicate the function of each key..."

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A design drawback that we found with the K660 soft keys is that they are a bit crammed up. We occasionally found ourselves pressing the right soft key together with the Call End key.

The wine-colored block of controls

The 262K 2" QVGA color display is quite good, with nice contrast, adjustable brightness and vivid colors. It's at its best when used indoors. The reflective front panel reduces usability in direct sunlight, but the screen is still passable.

Display performance is commendable indoors and in the dark

Above the display are the loudspeaker grill and the secondary videocall camera with the Sony Ericsson logo beneath.

Loudspeaker grill and the secondary videocall camera

Here is how Sony Ericsson K660 stacks against some of the other handsets we've measured in our speakerphone loudness test. As you would see, it has an overall good performance on our loudness ladder, but it's a weaker performer compared to other Sony Ericsson phones we've already tested. You can find more information about the loudness test itself here.

Speakerphone test	Voice, dB	Pink noise/ Music, dB	Ringing phone, dB	Overal score
Sony Ericsson K660	74.5	66.6	75.7	Good
Sony Ericsson W910	77.5	70.7	82.7	Excellent
Sony Ericsson K850	71.0	75.7	75.7	Very good
Nokia E51	67.0	65.7	71.2	Average
Apple iPhone (firmware 1.1.1)	67.2	60.2	66.6	Below average

The left side of the K660 sports only the M2 memory card slot. The right side houses the camera key and the flat volume rocker. The camera key is active only with the phone unlocked.

Controls on the left and right

At the top, the round On/Off key is the only thing to notice. The regular Fast port for connecting the charger, headset and data cable is at the bottom. It's in-between the mouthpiece and lanyard eyelet. The latter is the same as in Sony Ericsson K850.

The top and bottom side of Sony Ericsson K660

At the rear, the 2 megapixel camera lens with a self-portrait mirror and the loudspeaker grill are noticed. On the left part is the Sony Ericsson logo. The plastic on the back ruins the high-flyer impression that we had from the glossy front panel.

Sony Ericsson K660 rearside