Sony Mylo - Finally an interface that works

Bob Russell · 09-15-2006, 07:15 PM

Sony has launched a new product category with the release of the new Mylo (my life online). It's a "WiFi broadband communication and entertainment device". It feels smaller than a typical smartphone, but has the advantage of being a WiFi device. That means broadband connectivity without the overhead of a cell radio, and as Sony puts it, "all play and no work."

This nifty little gadget slides open to reveal a very usable thumb board for typing, and no matter how many bad user interfaces you've seen in the past, this device proves that it can be done well. It's simple and fun to use. It feels so nice when the keyboard slides in and out that you might find yourself addicted and doing it unconsciously. And it has a fun looking colorful interface that actually makes it easy to use at the same time. I've seen too many flashy looking screens on devices that just get in the way of usability. This one is flashy and fun, but keeps it simple and easy to use.

There's some cool technology and design there like a 320x240 vibrant color screen, 1gig memory, expansion card slot (unfortunately it's a Memory Stick slot), and of course the slideout keyboard.

More about the specs and the device in general are available from the Sony press release, but I think it's a lot more than the sum of it's parts. Sony has put this together in a way that people can communicate through email, instant messaging, interaction on web sites, even by Skype internet phone calls. The device is clearly about simplicity and usability. If you have a wifi connection you can surf the web. HTML surfing, not just that WAP stuff.

But most importantly, we have to note that large text files can be stored on the device which makes it a great little e-book reader for public domain e-books. You'll need decent eyesight because the font size is pretty small, but it's not prohibative, especially for younger users.

With the web browser and an online RSS feed reader, it should be a pretty good news reader device also.

When they say "fun" they aren't kidding. There's something fun about holding the device and looking at the screen, or using it to watch a video (regular MPEG4 files can be watched). Like I said, it's more than the sum total of the technology. I had heard comparisons to the Nokia 770 before, but I don't think that's a good analogy anymore.

The Mylo target audience is the 18-24 year old market, and this is likely to be very well-suited to them. Sophisticated enough to be useful, and simple and flashy enough to create interest. There's a lot of wifi available in homes these days as well as hotspots. The "kids" don't have to tie up the main PC to be online.

It has a user replaceable battery that can play 8 hrs of video, 45 hrs of mp3s, which is definitely nothing to sneeze at. The price is $350, but you get a lot. Besides a quality device, you get a Skype phone which nearly justifies the purchase all by itself. They started shipping yesterday, so they are now "in the wild" and hopefully we'll see them showing up at hotspots everywhere.

My personal preference is for power over "fun" or simplicity, so it's not quite the device for me, but there's a lot to be said for fun and simplicity. This might even be a device that introduces people to the technology and creates a gadget lover for life. It's also something that can be used more carelessly than a $600 smartphone that needs to be treated with care, and which requires a lot of maintenance work. The mylo is more of a "grab it and go" device.

I was surprised quite a bit by how nice it is. I thought it was going to be another curiousity that didn't really have a usefulness. Not so. I think it's a great new product category that will increase technology awareness for mobile devices. That's a very good thing in my book!

Jimmie Geddes · 09-15-2006, 08:16 PM

Great review Bob. I was wondering how this device was going to turn out. You've got me interested it. I linked to your review from my site. Great review!!

eudamon · 09-17-2006, 07:14 PM

So many things are not mentioned regarding this device it almost seems like a Sony viral marketing item.
the device will not support RSS feeds, nor does it support https and finally there is no way to take photo say transfered from a sony memorystick and attach it to an email. All the email web apps, yahoo, gmail, ect the browser shipped has crippled html. Only through skype can you attach a file. Essential the sidekickII (3.5 years old now) browswer is more functional.

Bob Russell · 09-17-2006, 10:17 PM

Eudamon... despite some of the extra bells and whistles it might not implement, how do you like the hardware and core features like music, email, IM, skype, etc?

And for RSS feeds you might be able to use an online RSS feed reader like http://mobilerss.net. I'd be interested to hear if that one or another works for you.

Also curious... does the browser work on WAP sites, or just HTML?

eudamon · 09-19-2006, 10:17 PM

I think the ablity to send a file attachment and support the major web based email applications fully are not things which are extras. The Nokia internet ta blet has set the bar as well as the tmobile sidekick.
So far battery life seems to drain quickly with WIFI on. At about the same dismal rate as the current crop of cell phones with WIFI access.

Egghead · 09-20-2006, 11:10 AM

Here's a review a member of another forum posted about the mylo:

Quote:

the_monk Offline
Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 1

36 hours with mylo

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I stayed up tonight and wrote out more of a brain dump then a review of what I think of the mylo so far. Here we go:

Having played with the mylo for the past 2 days I can give you my take on the unit and what the software is like. Out of the box it has a nice smooth feel and it fits in the hand. Inside the box you'll also find headphones, battery, battery case (?), headset/headphone adapter, AC charger, USB cable, software CD, printed manual, and nylon slip case. The case is the exact same design as the slip case that comes with the PSP; the only difference is white piping around the edge and a Velcro closure. The mlyo can be charged either by the USB cable or AC charger. I dropped my charger next to the couch so I can keep it topped off while watching TV. The AC charger is not compatible to PSP chargers, the tip is smaller for the PSP and the mylo takes 6V vs. the PSP's 5V. The keyboard is usable and I have no problem with the top row of keys. On the flip side I have a problem with the bottom row of keys being slightly too close too the edge. Making the keyboard non-backlit isn't an issue, keeps people from using it in the movie theatre and keeps costs down for now. Turning the unit on for the first time you are asked time, date, time zone and profile name and wallpaper image. The profile name is used during ad hoc communication, which will show name, avatar, birthday and skype, gtalk and yahoo profile names.

Connecting the mylo to a wireless network actually couldn't be easier. Slide and hold the wifi switch until the blue aura lights up and the connection manager goes though all of the networks you have connected to before until it finds one in range. After you have an IP if you have configured the IM clients to auto logon their logos will light up on the status bar. After turning wifi on and off roughly 36 times across 3 different networks I have only had it fail to connect on the first try 3 times. In tools you can open the connection manager to edit any network or change the order the networks during scanning. The mylo tries accessing a Sony page in the background after you connect; and if it can't get to it pops up a warning that you might have to register with the connected network before it will allow you to access the internet. If you would like to see the mylo connect or scan for a new network you can use the connection manager or open the web browser when wifi is off. The only way to turn on ad hoc mode is to open the ad hoc client; at which time the right side will glow orange instead of blue.

The Opera browser works well for the mylo, rendering a complex web page as fast as I'd expect for a 200 MHz CPU. Accessing GMail or Yahoo Mail is done though custom bookmarks, you don't just type in the address and hope the browser and the server figure out it's a small screen device. And yes, HTTPS pages *are* supported; so is JavaScript! Java and Flash aren't supported, but I believe both may appear in a software upgrade in the future. The PSP didn't support Adobe Flash or Sony's Location Free TV until a recent update. Another surprising feature is it is a multi-tabbed browser with a limit of 2 tabs. Click a link that opens in a new windows and it will move to the other tab, you can navigate between the 2 though the option button. If you try to open a link in new window with both tabs full you get a warning asking which tab you would like to load the new link in.

The text editor is a text editor, you can save and load files to internal memory or duo stick. It also displays the text in 3 different sizes if the text is too small.

The image viewer handles BMP and JPG, if you copy a GIF straight to the device it doesn't show it on the list of images in storage. You can zoom and start a sideshow too.

The video player uses mpeg4, other users here have been playing with converters here and can tell the right way to encode files for the mylo. I haven’t tried any videos other then the sample one that's in internal storage; but the screen is beautiful! You have 3 levels of brightness in the options menu. The dimmest setting is hard to see outdoors, but the others work.

Skype works. Period. Logon and it downloads you contact list off the server adding an entry for 'Dial' where you can manually type in a number. Using the internal speaker/mic in the unit one friend said I sounded tinny while another said it sounded better then a cell phone call. Once you plug in the headset the quality gets much better and even though Sony uses a non-standard connector (I would of preferred the PSP one,) you can plug your own headphones into the mic. Since the mylo is supposed to be primarily a music player and IM client I'm not surprised my the route they took and adding Bluetooth would of been overkill. A nice touch is the wireless blue aura flashes when a call comes in. I've been using skypeout and the only difference people see and hear in the call is the strange caller ID number that shows up since I don't have a pay account with Skype.

Yahoo and GTalk work almost identically. You can change your status and even show what mp3 the mylo is playing. Any active conversation you are having can be accessed with the 'Info' button; type out something to someone in GTalk then hit the button to switch to the skype text chat that just came in.

Ad hoc is interesting since you can connect to another mylo in range without being near a wifi network. Right now a friend of mine at work and I are trying it out but it seems the only thing you can do is pull up the other person's profile into and stream any mp3 they have in the shared folder. Ad hoc chat also seems the most unpolished app in the mylo with no real interface on how to start a text chat or even how to send a picture to the other person. Ad hoc was also the only thing that has made my mylo lockup so far; but since the power button is more like standby you have to flip it over, open the cover and pull the battery when it locks up.

The 'What's up' screen is a nice way to see who's online. You can define a total of 90(!) shortcuts in 3 groups of 30. Each shortcut can have up to 9 user ID's under it in any mix of Skype, Yahoo, GTalk, or SkypeOut numbers. If the user has a picture it's imported into what's up will go dim if all of their contacts are offline. My problem is if a message comes in the avatar doesn’t flash; you hear the beep and have to click the info button to see the message. But that issue can be fixed in a OS update.

I havn't even installed the the PC software off included CD yet, the manual shows you where you can drop files straight into the mylo if you want to go all manual and old school.

Jwire is buried in the tools menu and basically uses the browser to show what hotspots are where and if they are free of not. It would be extra neat if the mylo came with 10 free days of T-Mobile hotspot access to try out the voice and wireless while around town but that might not be something Sony is willing to take on and drop the money for just yet.

---
My biggest thing is I see the mylo not as a cell phone but as a net phone (in Sony terms, personal communicator,) which a lot of people have a hard time understanding when I describe it to them. The other thing I keep thinking while moving though the software is this is a first generation device; even Netgear and Belkin are still testing the waters with their dedicated Skype phones. I think there is a lot of potential with what Sony has produced already and would like to see if home-grown software development appears in the next 2 months.

Bob Russell · 09-20-2006, 11:32 AM

Very interesting, Egghead. Thanks.
BTW, Do you have a link for that forum so we can give credit?

Egghead · 09-20-2006, 03:21 PM

Sorry...
it's http://myloforums.net/

and the post itself is http://myloforums.net/showthread.php?t=143

Bob Russell · 09-22-2006, 11:16 PM

Thks Egghead!

There's a nice article at the Wash Post...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...092100859.html

Egghead · 09-25-2006, 12:07 PM

OK, my Mylo was waiting for me when I got home from work on Thursday (Sept. 21st).

It's a nice little machine. It's pretty easy to use, and I had no trouble loading it with photos and music from my Mac. A simple drag and drop into the correct folder copied them onto the Mylo for use. The Mylo excels as a music player and a photo viewer.

Web browsing on sites that are optimized for mobile devices is a joy. Sites optimized for computer screens are readable and navigable, but that's about it.

I haven't tried every Skype permutation yet, but SkypeOut does work. I called my cousin on his cell phone. There was a noticeable lag, but it was sufficiently short enough that we could carry on a conversation.

Text messages are probably going to be mostly short, because entering text on the keyboard, while easy, is much more time-consuming than on a computer keyboard.

You can read and write text files, but the Mylo is never going to excel as a dedicated ebook reader. The screen is simply too small. A short story is about all I'd be willing to read on it.

All in all, the 1st generation Mylo is a promising jack-of-all-trades type of device. While it handles photos and music extremely well, and internet communication somewhat less well, its strength doesn't lie in any of those specific tasks. Its real strength lies in convergence. I'm hoping to see other products come out with other examples of convergence...like a large-screened device that combines a multi-format ebook reader, a web-surfing device, and a photo/movie viewing device.

redx666 · 10-01-2006, 05:02 PM

I've had the Sony Mylo for about a week and wrote up the hands on review. I hope you guys enjoy, and for the people that don't have the Sony Mylo, I hope it gives you insight before you make a purchase.

http://spicygadgetroll.blogspot.com/...ew-part-1.html

09-15-2006, 07:15 PM	#1
Bob Russell Recovering Gadget Addict Posts: 5,381 Karma: 676161 Join Date: May 2004 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Device: iPad	Sony Mylo - Finally an interface that works Sony has launched a new product category with the release of the new Mylo (my life online). It's a "WiFi broadband communication and entertainment device". It feels smaller than a typical smartphone, but has the advantage of being a WiFi device. That means broadband connectivity without the overhead of a cell radio, and as Sony puts it, "all play and no work." This nifty little gadget slides open to reveal a very usable thumb board for typing, and no matter how many bad user interfaces you've seen in the past, this device proves that it can be done well. It's simple and fun to use. It feels so nice when the keyboard slides in and out that you might find yourself addicted and doing it unconsciously. And it has a fun looking colorful interface that actually makes it easy to use at the same time. I've seen too many flashy looking screens on devices that just get in the way of usability. This one is flashy and fun, but keeps it simple and easy to use. There's some cool technology and design there like a 320x240 vibrant color screen, 1gig memory, expansion card slot (unfortunately it's a Memory Stick slot), and of course the slideout keyboard. More about the specs and the device in general are available from the Sony press release, but I think it's a lot more than the sum of it's parts. Sony has put this together in a way that people can communicate through email, instant messaging, interaction on web sites, even by Skype internet phone calls. The device is clearly about simplicity and usability. If you have a wifi connection you can surf the web. HTML surfing, not just that WAP stuff. But most importantly, we have to note that large text files can be stored on the device which makes it a great little e-book reader for public domain e-books. You'll need decent eyesight because the font size is pretty small, but it's not prohibative, especially for younger users. With the web browser and an online RSS feed reader, it should be a pretty good news reader device also. When they say "fun" they aren't kidding. There's something fun about holding the device and looking at the screen, or using it to watch a video (regular MPEG4 files can be watched). Like I said, it's more than the sum total of the technology. I had heard comparisons to the Nokia 770 before, but I don't think that's a good analogy anymore. The Mylo target audience is the 18-24 year old market, and this is likely to be very well-suited to them. Sophisticated enough to be useful, and simple and flashy enough to create interest. There's a lot of wifi available in homes these days as well as hotspots. The "kids" don't have to tie up the main PC to be online. It has a user replaceable battery that can play 8 hrs of video, 45 hrs of mp3s, which is definitely nothing to sneeze at. The price is $350, but you get a lot. Besides a quality device, you get a Skype phone which nearly justifies the purchase all by itself. They started shipping yesterday, so they are now "in the wild" and hopefully we'll see them showing up at hotspots everywhere. My personal preference is for power over "fun" or simplicity, so it's not quite the device for me, but there's a lot to be said for fun and simplicity. This might even be a device that introduces people to the technology and creates a gadget lover for life. It's also something that can be used more carelessly than a $600 smartphone that needs to be treated with care, and which requires a lot of maintenance work. The mylo is more of a "grab it and go" device. I was surprised quite a bit by how nice it is. I thought it was going to be another curiousity that didn't really have a usefulness. Not so. I think it's a great new product category that will increase technology awareness for mobile devices. That's a very good thing in my book!

10-01-2006, 05:02 PM	#11
redx666 Junior Member Posts: 1 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2006	Spicy Gadget Roll I've had the Sony Mylo for about a week and wrote up the hands on review. I hope you guys enjoy, and for the people that don't have the Sony Mylo, I hope it gives you insight before you make a purchase. http://spicygadgetroll.blogspot.com/...ew-part-1.html

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09-15-2006, 08:16 PM	#2
Jimmie Geddes Enthusiast Posts: 29 Karma: 10 Join Date: Sep 2005 Device: Sprint Treo 650	Great review Bob. I was wondering how this device was going to turn out. You've got me interested it. I linked to your review from my site. Great review!!

09-17-2006, 07:14 PM	#3
eudamon Junior Member Posts: 2 Karma: 10 Join Date: Sep 2006 Device: mylo com1	So many things are not mentioned regarding this device it almost seems like a Sony viral marketing item. the device will not support RSS feeds, nor does it support https and finally there is no way to take photo say transfered from a sony memorystick and attach it to an email. All the email web apps, yahoo, gmail, ect the browser shipped has crippled html. Only through skype can you attach a file. Essential the sidekickII (3.5 years old now) browswer is more functional.

09-17-2006, 10:17 PM	#4
Bob Russell Recovering Gadget Addict Posts: 5,381 Karma: 676161 Join Date: May 2004 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Device: iPad	Eudamon... despite some of the extra bells and whistles it might not implement, how do you like the hardware and core features like music, email, IM, skype, etc? And for RSS feeds you might be able to use an online RSS feed reader like http://mobilerss.net. I'd be interested to hear if that one or another works for you. Also curious... does the browser work on WAP sites, or just HTML?

09-19-2006, 10:17 PM	#5
eudamon Junior Member Posts: 2 Karma: 10 Join Date: Sep 2006 Device: mylo com1	I think the ablity to send a file attachment and support the major web based email applications fully are not things which are extras. The Nokia internet ta blet has set the bar as well as the tmobile sidekick. So far battery life seems to drain quickly with WIFI on. At about the same dismal rate as the current crop of cell phones with WIFI access.

09-20-2006, 11:32 AM	#7
Bob Russell Recovering Gadget Addict Posts: 5,381 Karma: 676161 Join Date: May 2004 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Device: iPad	Very interesting, Egghead. Thanks. BTW, Do you have a link for that forum so we can give credit?

09-20-2006, 03:21 PM	#8
Egghead Mentat Posts: 78 Karma: 77 Join Date: Jun 2006 Device: Bookeen Gen3 Cybook	Sorry... it's http://myloforums.net/ and the post itself is http://myloforums.net/showthread.php?t=143

09-22-2006, 11:16 PM	#9
Bob Russell Recovering Gadget Addict Posts: 5,381 Karma: 676161 Join Date: May 2004 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Device: iPad	Thks Egghead! There's a nice article at the Wash Post... http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...092100859.html

09-25-2006, 12:07 PM	#10
Egghead Mentat Posts: 78 Karma: 77 Join Date: Jun 2006 Device: Bookeen Gen3 Cybook	OK, my Mylo was waiting for me when I got home from work on Thursday (Sept. 21st). It's a nice little machine. It's pretty easy to use, and I had no trouble loading it with photos and music from my Mac. A simple drag and drop into the correct folder copied them onto the Mylo for use. The Mylo excels as a music player and a photo viewer. Web browsing on sites that are optimized for mobile devices is a joy. Sites optimized for computer screens are readable and navigable, but that's about it. I haven't tried every Skype permutation yet, but SkypeOut does work. I called my cousin on his cell phone. There was a noticeable lag, but it was sufficiently short enough that we could carry on a conversation. Text messages are probably going to be mostly short, because entering text on the keyboard, while easy, is much more time-consuming than on a computer keyboard. You can read and write text files, but the Mylo is never going to excel as a dedicated ebook reader. The screen is simply too small. A short story is about all I'd be willing to read on it. All in all, the 1st generation Mylo is a promising jack-of-all-trades type of device. While it handles photos and music extremely well, and internet communication somewhat less well, its strength doesn't lie in any of those specific tasks. Its real strength lies in convergence. I'm hoping to see other products come out with other examples of convergence...like a large-screened device that combines a multi-format ebook reader, a web-surfing device, and a photo/movie viewing device.

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