I’m a sucker for convergence devices (and anything with lots of buttons and lights).

Any company that makes a product that combines several devices in one, has my attention. So, when I got the chance to review the Sony mylo personal communicator, I was naturally excited (yeah, I’m a geek…).

The Sony mylo COM-2 is a 6.9oz (196 gram) "personal communicator". The specifications are:

• High resolution 3.5" 800×480 touch screen display
• 802.11B/G Wi-Fi
• 1Gb built in memory, expandable with Memory Stick Duo cards
• Slide out backlit full QWERTY keyboard
• 1 year free Wi-Fi access at Wayport McDonalds locations
• 1.3MP camera with macro mode

The mylo (which stands for "MY Life Online" runs a proprietary Sony OS with support for Adobe Flash widgets. The default software package includes the following applications:

• Instant Messaging support for AIM, Yahoo! and Google Talk
• Skype
• RSS and Podcast player
• Web browser with flash support
• Music, video and photo player
• Games
• Camera application
• Flash Widgets (Facebook, Youtube, Google and Shoutcast are pre-installed)

Later in this review I’ll show off each of these applications, but let’s take a look at the mylo hardware first:

The keyboard is surprisingly good, keys are spaced well and there is a decent amount of tactile feedback. There are also dedicated buttons for music control and 4 cursor buttons.

On the left of the device is a joystick and a power/wireless switch. On the right is the volume control and a Memory Stick Duo slot behind a small cover. The left side also has an opening for attaching the lanyard/stylus.

On the top of the device is the camera shutter button, a MiniUSB connector, a power connector and the proprietary headphone jack. In this day and age I still don’t understand why companies don’t include a standard headphone jack on all their devices.

The back of the mylo; you see the camera with self portrait mirror, the camera macro switch and the battery/cover.

The hardware feels very sturdy, it all fits together nicely and even the keyboard sliding mechanism yells reliability with what feels like a very well designed sliding system. The screen slides up and down with a decent "click".

Included in the box is the mylo itself, a miniUSB cable, a pair of decent Sony headphones, a Microphone, a neoprene carrying case, a lanyard/stylus and the AC adapter.

The Interface

First of all; my apologies for the bad photography, I couldn’t find a way to make decent screenshots of the mylo, so all the interface photos are made with my camera, and I’m a lousy photographer.

The mylo’s main screen lists the various applications, along with battery status, Wi-Fi status, mail and Skype indicators and the time. You can navigate the menu using the touch screen, the joystick or the cursor buttons on the keyboard.

The communications menu is where you access the IM clients and Skype. Included are clients for AIM, Yahoo! Messenger and Google Talk. Surprisingly, there is no MSN client.

The first screen of the Skype client is where you enter your Skype account, or where you signup for a new account. Once you signin, you are greeted with a warning reminding you that IP phone services are not suitable for making emergency calls.   

The Skype dial screen is easy to use, you can enter numbers using the keypad on screen, or with the number pad on the keyboard. The application even includes a handy country dialing code chart.

The Internet browser is powered by Netfront and is quite decent. Pages render better than most portable browsers and there is full support for Flash. When you load a large page you do notice the mylo struggles to load it. And therein lies the weakest part of the browser; even though it works, it is pretty sluggish.

The media player is simple and efficient. It has all the features you’d expect, including album art display, support for various formats (MP3, AAC, ATRAC and WMA). It also supports digital rights management on the WMA and ATRAC files, so you’ll be able to play subscription based music.

Sadly the same can’t be said about the video portion of the device; it only supports MPEG-4/AVC in 320×240, and only a couple of the MPEG4 video files I had on my PC actually worked (a couple of Elmo files I had converted for my iPod).

It’s a shame that a device with such a high resolution screen has such lousy video support. Sony don’t even include a PC based media manager/converter, so if you do want to convert your video files, you’ll need to find something that supports the correct format.

Sony did include an 8.4Mb sample video file on the CD, but it doesn’t play in wide screen so it’s hard to get a good idea of the playback quality of the mylo.

Finally; games. Games are written in Flash and are actually pretty decent. Sudoku, Solitaire and Pair-It (a memory game) can be downloaded directly onto the device from the mylo web site. 

Conclusion…

For $299 you get a device that does Skype, web access, IM and has a very decent media player. I’ve compared the mylo with several other devices that have similar capabilities in the same price range:

(1) - Optional extra program, often freeware

(2) - Plus additional monthly fees and a 2 year contract

(3) - Archos web browser plug-in is an additional $30

There are some disappointments with the device; it doesn’t take regular headphones, the camera is just 1.3 megapixels and the browser is a little slow.

The 1Gb of built in memory is a little on the low side, so you’ll need to invest in an extra memory card (around $40). The lack of an email client isn’t much of an issue nowadays as most people have access to a web based email client.

Video playback is really the biggest letdown; between the limited format support and lack of any conversion software, it’s hard to picture anyone being able to use this as a video player when on the road.

It’s also baffling how they decided to include the stylus; hanging it from the lanyard is just plain annoying.

Other than that it performs quite well. If you plan to use it to keep in touch with people when you are on the road then you won’t be disappointed. The Skype implementation is great, the IM clients work efficiently and you can even update your Facebook account when traveling.

The Sony mylo isn’t cheap; at $299 (currently $288 from Amazon) it’s at the high end of what I’d expect to pay for a device like this, but the big advantage is that you don’t have any other monthly fees and no contract commitment.  To conclude; there really isn’t anything like the mylo; similarly priced devices lack a hardware keyboard and don’t have the sleek interface. But $299 is a lot to ask for when you can pick up an Asus Eee PC for the same price (but at 5 times the weight). When you balance price, weight and features the mylo actually looks pretty damn good.

Sony mylo product page or Amazon.com product page