Sony Ericsson Cedar

Editor's Review of the Cedar

Keeping an eye on your carbon footprint? No, me neither. However, an environmentally friendly phone is a fantastic idea, such as the Sony Ericsson's Cedar, part of the manufacturer's Greenheart range. This doesn't mean it's lacking in features, as this handset proves you can be green and enjoy technology at the same time.

Design/Build

The Sony Ericsson Cedar is crafted from recycled plastic, which, although it may not sound too appealing, still manages to look stylish with its glossy metallic finish. It's a lightweight device too, measuring in at 111 x 49 x 15.5mm and weighing just 84g. With its "human curvature" design, the handset sits comfortably in your hand. Within its housing is a 2.2 inch TFT display alongside an alphanumeric keypad, which may not be all-that flashy, but it's great for those of you looking for an easy to use handset.

OS and Interface

It's fair to say, the 2.2 inch display of the Cedar isn't the most impressive we've ever seen, but for an affordable handset, it certainly does the job. It's not as customizable as that found on a high-end smartphone, but the homescreen does come equipped with plenty of widgets, including e-mail, calendar and social networking tools.

Multimedia & Storage

The entertainment features on the Sony Ericsson Cedar are nothing to shout home about, but we found them reasonable for an affordable smartphone. The handset is equipped with a 2 megapixel camera, and the photo quality isn't fantastic. However, it does come equipped with a video recorder alongside a geo-tagging function, so you can tag your friends and upload them straight to Facebook.

A music player is also on-board, which is easy to use and comes equipped with TrackID, alongside a video player and built in gaming.

Everything Else

It's a shame the Cedar doesn't come equipped with WiFi connectivity, but you are provided with a 3G connection, which allows you to browse the web at some pretty impressive speeds.

Social networking is made easy too, as Facebook, Twitter and Myspace applications can all be accessed straight from the homescreen, along with Widget Manager 2.0, which brings updates live to the phone's interface.

Conclusion

The Sony Ericsson Cedar may not be the most spec-heavy handset on the market, but for an affordable handset, it's almost impossible to complain. If you're keen to keep an eye on your carbon footprint, the Cedar could just be your perfect handset.