Music lovers prefer Sony Ericsson 'Walkman' phone over Motorola and Samsung offerings

October 31, 2005

Strategy Analytics released, "Sony Ericsson Walkman Phone Beats Motorola ROKR to Best-in-Class Cellular Music Device Title," its latest cellular music device benchmark report, which concludes that the Sony Ericsson W800i 'Walkman' phone is the highest rated cellular music device in the USA, ahead of the Motorola E1 'ROKR' and Samsung A970. These results come from hands-on consumer testing by the Strategy Analytics Advanced Wireless User Panel.

The Sony Ericsson W800i 'Walkman' device achieved 'Best in Class' status based upon superior style appeal and an above average rating for music feature quality. The Motorola E1 'ROKR ' achieved the highest rating for usability, but failed to impress in terms of style and feature quality. At 144 grams, the panel considered the Samsung A970 too large for primary feature phone positioning.

The Motorola device achieved an 8-point advantage over its rivals for Application Usability. "Current iTunes users in particular indicated strong usability preference for the ROKR, indicating that the iTunes interface is generating loyalty/preference dynamics similar to branded Operating Systems," according to Chris Ambrosio, Director of Wireless Device Research at Strategy Analytics.

Kevin Nolan, Director of the Advanced Wireless Laboratory at Strategy Analytics, added, "The ROKR was rated lower than the Samsung and Sony Ericsson devices for Music Quality, however, a notable underperformance for Motorola given the branded and highly optimized iPod interface designed for music delivery."