A Walkman phone for less

Most Sony Ericssons tend to be on the pricey side, but every now and then the company gives us a more affordable model for the masses. Last year it rolled out the W200a, and at CES today, the company announced the W350a. At 0.41 inch wide, it sports a design we haven't seen for a while. The keypad is covered by a flap that folds down when you're on a call. The flap not only protects the keypad when it's not in use but it also allows you to get the feel of a flip phone. So in essence, it's a candy-bar handset with flip-phone elements.

But the W350a's design offers another quirk as well. When closed you can access convenient Walkman controls to play your music and shuffle tracks. You also get a choice of four colors: electric black, ice blue, hypnotic black, and graphic white. Beyond the music player, the feature set is pretty average. There's a 1.3-megapixel camera, Bluetooth, messaging and e-mail, an FM radio, a 262,144-color display, a speakerphone, and personal organizer applications. The triband (GSM 850/1800/1900) W350a should be available in the fourth quarter of this year.