Foreword:

The first thing we notice about the new release by Sony CLIE PEG-TH55 is its awesome design. It has broken off the typical handheld keypad outline and the old jog dial is replaced by a new high-resolution screen. It is powerfully loaded with multimedia features. Particularly the people who are fond of gadgets would certainly love this model.

A vigorous shape of 7.3 x 12.1 x 1.57cm makes this an amazing piece that you will love to hold in your hands and flaunt. The 320-480 pixel TFT screen of the size 3.8in is the prominent feature of the gadget. Here, it is important to mention about the inbuilt camera as well. It enables to use the inbuilt applications in many ways. The TH55 weighs about 185g, which is fair enough, considering that it comprises Wi-Fi, built-in camera and Bluetooth. Its strapping outer walls are ready to undergo any rough handling. However, the transparent grey plastic shield covering the screen does not practically look as tough. Although it did not bear any scratches in our tests, it did show many fingerprints. Moreover, it feels as if its hinges may break off easily if handed a bit roughly. The good thing about the translucent cover is that with a momentary look you can come to know about any ringing alarm. Sony does not provide for an extra safety case but there is a wrist strap with the device.

+Ves:

• Attractive high-resolution color screen
• In-built digital camera
• Total back up for the MP3 and multimedia
• Incorporated Bluetooth and Wi-Fi facilities
• Long battery life
• Robust software package

-Ves:

• Scroll wheel is located inconveniently
• Buttons positioned at the sides look awkward
• Non- replaceable battery
• No Mac back up

Final Word:

Sony has provided a package of software with this gadget, that includes (i) Pixel Viewer for viewing PDFs though they cannot be edited, (ii) Excel files, (iii) Microsoft Word, (iv) Decuma, a cool substitute to Graffiti; and (v) the attractive CLIE Launcher. Installing any software requires several restarts of the PC and takes a long time. It is too unclear about the files that are required to be installed, the spare ones and the sample versions. There is also no back up for Macs.