Sony Ericsson Jalou: Small, practical and unique

Whether or not consumers are immediately taken with the unusual design of the Sony Ericsson Jalou will be simply down to individual taste, but one expert has said the fact remains it is an innovative and practical mobile.

In a piece for Cnet this week, Jonathan Parkyn weighed up many of the features of the fashion-conscious device, pitting them against its unorthodox aesthetics and variety of versions.

Available in three colours – purple, black and blue – Sony Ericsson have also teamed up with Italian design house Dolce & Gabbana for a special edition model that comes in rose and gold.

However, the expert explained the shape of the "very small clamshell" phone might be unlike that of many of its peers, but this may not be good news for everyone. In fact, he predicted those who do find it appealing could equate to "roughly 50 per cent of the population".

Despite this, the compact nature of the jewel-shaped handset makes it a clear winner for those looking to tuck their mobile away in a small purse of handbag and with a feature that allows it to be used as a mirror, Mr Parkyn said it is clear who the target audience for the Jalou is.

Other options onboard include 3G and HSDPA connectivity, Bluetooth support, a 3.2-megapixel camera, an integrated media player, FM radio and 100 MB of on-board memory expandable to 4 GB with a microSD card.

In conclusion, Mr Parkyn explained the look of the Sony Ericsson gadget would not please everyone, but this is really not where the best of its qualities lie.

"From a purely practical point of view, the Jalou is an extremely convenient way of combining your phone, camera, music player and of course, your compact mirror in a single, tiny device," he said.

The model was unveiled in August this year and referred to as "irresistible" by its creator.