Tried and tested tech: Sony Ericsson Xperia Active

Sony Ericsson Xperia Active
Price: Dh1,399 | Available at Emax, Jacky’s, Jumbo

Sony Ericsson promotes this little machine with four words: Use It, Abuse It. And use and abuse we did. We have never reviewed a smartphone that we were encouraged to trash the living bytes out of, however the Active took it gracefully and lived up to the hype. It survived an extremely amusing session of being flung around the room and sat ticking away in a cup of water while we hovered curiously over it.

The Active is dustproof, waterproof, scratchproof and best of all, you can use the touch screen with wet fingers. Try navigating through your iPhone with wet fingers without inducing a mild cardiac arrest or a nervous breakdown. This phone has created a new genre of smartphone users: people who don't use their phones for work during the day and twiddle through applications at night. The Active comes preloaded with sports and fitness apps and to quote Sony Ericsson, "Goes wherever you go." "Without having to dress it up in protective cases and treating it with the care a toddler deserves," I added.

The Active's three-inch touch screen offers a 320x480 resolution and the little fellow has the much-loved Sony Ericsson camera interface as well. Sony Ericsson fitted the Active with a five-megapixel camera, an LED flash feature and allowed it to record HD video at a resolution of 720p. Similar to all of Sony Ericsson's 2011 models — the Active takes advantage of its parent company's Bravia Engine technology. However, for a phone that's marketed towards outdoor enthusiasts, an eight-megapixel camera would have made it more appealing.

You can easily use this phone with one hand, the interchangeable cover helps the phone fit snugly into your palm and if it does slip and fall into a puddle while bumping into every single surface on the way... that's all right too.

The Active is powered by the Android 2.3.4 and, similar to all 2011 models, can adopt the new Android OS — the Ice Cream Sandwich. The interface uses the usual five home pages, while four collapsible icon trays on the main screen house an additional four icons each that can be enlarged and banished back to their corners when required.

If you are in the market for a new smartphone then pressure from your palm-sized slate-wielding friends might deter your decision to home this machine.

However, if you do manage to ignore them, the Active would make a wonderful first Android. Sony Ericsson set out to service the needs of a very explicit market — tech trendy individuals who are fit and active, and/or tech trendy individuals who are aspiring to be fit and active, and, in my opinion, have succeeded.