Expect the unexpected with the Sony Ericsson S500i slider phone, which features unique external light effects and visual display accents. Hidden illumination appears to highlight a certain event and the keypad glows with energy when the slim slider is opened. The display themes can also change when you want--with the seasons, as day turns to night or when the weekend begins. Featured in a Mysterious Green, the quad-band S500i is nicely slim at just 14mm (0.55 inches) thin and it boasts a brightly colorful 2-inch LCD with support for 256K colors. Other features include a 2-megapixel camera, multi-format digital audio player, Memory Stick Micro (M2) expansion, and Bluetooth stereo music streaming.

This unlocked cell phone can be used with a GSM network service provider and it provides quad-band connectivity (850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 1900 MHz). Powered by GPRS/EDGE Class 10 (Enhanced Data for Global Evolution) technology, this phone makes information exchange a breeze by offering immediate mobile connectivity. It does not come with a SIM card, and it requires that you provide a SIM card for usage with your selected service provider.

The Mysterious Green S500i includes themes and colors that change with the time of day and the season.

The S500i brilliant 2-inch display has a QVGA resolution (240 x 320 pixels) with 256K colors, perfect for its emphasis on beautiful imagery. It comes with three themes to choose from: Clarity, Day & Night, and Everchanging. The latter changes the phone's animated wallpapers and illuminated color menus as day turns to night and as the months change on the calendar.

The S500i phone offers a full-function Walkman digital audio player that's compatible with MP3 and AAC files. Other Walkman features include a flight mode that lets you keep listening to tunes with the phone's network connectivity turned off, and Disc2Phone software for easy transfer of song files between phone and PC.

Easily pocketable, the S500i measures 0.55 inches thin and weighs just 3.3 ounces.

This phone provides Bluetooth version 2.0 wireless connectivity with EDR (enhanced data rate), and includes profiles for communication headset, handsfree car kits, and audio/video remote control. With the A2DP Bluetooth profile, you can stream your music to a pair of compatible Bluetooth stereo headphones. You can connect your laptop (either via Bluetooth or wired USB) and enjoy dial-up networking--surf the Internet, send email, and access files from a server.

The built-in 2.0 megapixel camera captures stills and video--and playback of video or still pictures is only limited to the memory card size. Picture effects and custom screensavers, backgrounds, and themes can be setup to fit your personality. It provides support for PictBridge technology so you can print your photos without the need of a PC (either using USB or Bluetooth). And the S500i makes it easy to send snapped photos directly to a blog or an online photo, complete with text.

The phone also ships with a built-in email client with support for POP3 and IMAP4 protocols, while the included Access NetFront Web Browser allows you to surf full HTML web sites. It also supports RSS feeds, allowing you to use your phone to view up-to-the-minute news and other content from selected Web sites and blogs. Just subscribe to the feed and let it come to you. Support is built in for sending and receiving text, video, graphics and sound via messages.

The phone also supports the SyncML PC synchronization standard. This means the phone can be used with the included Sony Ericsson Sync Station software, which lets you synchronize your Microsoft Outlook calendar, contacts, notes and tasks on your PC with the phone.

Other features include:

• Up to 1000 contact entries, each with five number fields
• Java support for online and offline 3D games (preloaded games include PacMan and Ms. PacMan)
• USB 2.0 wired connectivity with mass storage capability
• PIM functions including calendar, tasks, notes, alarm, calculator, stopwatch, and timer
• T9 text entry technology
• 72-chord polyphonic ringtones and MP3 ringtones
• Digital audio file formats: MP3, AAC, AAC+, eAAC+

Vital Statistics
The Sony Ericsson S500i weighs 3.3 ounces and measures 3.9 x 1.8 x 0.5 inches. Its 900 mAh lithium-polymer battery is rated at up to 9 hours of talk time, and up to 370 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the 850/900/1800/1900 GSM/GPRS/EDGE frequencies.