Sony Ericsson's clever BestPic technology crosses over from the Cyber-shot range, enabling users to end up with better shots by the image sensor recording a sequence of nine shots before, during, and after you press the shutter button. From these you can select the ideal one – which is handy if you're taking pics of non-static subjects.

An efficient 2-step autofocus system is included, enabling users to capture sharply focused images, including fine quality macro close up shots.

Impressive photo quality

Image quality generally is high, with plenty of detail and mostly good colour rendition. It's certainly an improvement on previous Walkman phones shooters, offering much better functionality and picture quality.

It doesn't quite match top-notch 5-megapixel Cyber-shot performances though, as we had occasional slight imperfections in colour rendering. Exposure and contrast was usually good, though indoors shooting was less crisp than outside, even with the flash. That works reasonably over short distances, but doesn't match the sort of xenon flashes we've seen on some top grade cameraphones.

There's a good selection of image adjustment options available, plus image editing tools, images can be uploaded straight to Blogger accounts from the handset.

Video clips have also been made easily bloggable. Video shooting on this model isn't particularly special. It can shoot at up to QVGA resolution at 30 frames per second, offering smooth playback of average quality footage.

Web-based applications

In addition, Sony Ericsson has pre-loaded a YouTube app on this model which allows users to upload their own clips quickly and easily, as well view video clips from the online site.

Google Maps software is included. Despite no onboard GPS, it offers a way of finding your rough location on an onscreen map using cellsite-based triangulation. You can also search for places and services nearby and get routing info. This app, which is appearing in many mid-tier Sony Ericssons, is an extremely useful piece of software to have onboard, even if it's not full satellite navigation.

The W902 has a full web browser, which works efficiently enough for a mid-tier phone, and is speedy to download pages, thanks to HSDPA speed data. It's similar to those on other mid-range Walkman phones, providing a range of pan and zoom options, plus an option for page formatting in mobile optimised Smart Fit mode. The home screen is pretty user friendly, even if text is quite small. RSS feeds are also supported on this device.

Among the other functions included are a web-based AccuWeather.com weather forecasting app, plus a motion sensor-enabled Walk Mate stride counter - a keep fit app that records how many steps you ad your phone have taken each date.

A full complement of organiser tools are included too - calendar, calculator, world clock, sound recorder, notes, tasks, alarms, stopwatch, timer, and code memo app. There's also a music quiz game using onboard tunes and three other decent games.

Great battery life

Call quality on this handset is top class. It's exactly what you'd hope for on any phone – loud, clear and reliable.

Battery life isn't bad either; Sony Ericsson reckons on 360 hours standby or 4 hours of talktime in 3G coverage, or 380 hours standby or 9 hours talktime on GSM networks. Alternatively, the music player alone can run for up to 25 hours. In real life usage, we managed to get around three days of normal phone use between charges.

With its classy design, a top-drawer Walkman player with 8GB of in-box storage, and a decent quality 5-megapixel camera, the Sony Ericsson W902 provides an attractive option for the music phone buyer who also wants presentable snaps.

It's not a do-everything handset, lacking high-end features such as GPS, Wi-Fi and smartphone functionality, and apart from the camera, the W902's specs aren't much different to other mid-tier 3G Sony Ericsson Walkman phones.

The real selling point of course, is the higher quality shooter that sets off this appealing Walkman handset – and that's just what many people have been asking for.

Network availability: Orange, O2

Looks: 4/5
Ease of use: 4.5/5
Features: 4/5
Call quality: 4.5/5
Value: 4/5