Pretty much these days most people expect their phone to not only do it's duty of a phone well, but also take quality photos. The 3.2 Megapixel camera on the P1 should be sufficient for those spontaneous snapshots so that we don't miss anything; however, how can one ensure that we end up with a clear image rather regret taking a cheap, blurry shot of the subject? Here's a couple of tips that I found invaluable in taking photos using the phone's camera:

• The camera saves your settings so when you launch the application / click the shutter button your old settings are instantaneously reloaded. Great for those shots where you'll be taking photos in, say a sunlit environment, so you can save a lot of seconds.
  
  
• Stick between the Normal/Macro focus as they produce the best results for focusing on a particular subject. You can leave the focus off if you wish to take photos of landscape or far away objects.
  
  
• Change the white balance to suit your needs so the colouring appears as natural as it can get. Sometimes this does screw up though, but in general it's a fine rule to follow.
  
  
• Change the Quality of photos taken to "Fine"; after all, memory space comes quite cheap these days unless you're really filling up on your 2GB M2 memory stick.
  
  
• Try to leave "Night Mode" off unless you really need to, as if you leave it on you need to have rock steady hands to take photos as it widens the aperture to let more light in.
  
  
• Turn Auto Review to "Off" so you can immediately snap picture after picture to satisfy the paparazzi within you.
  
  
• You might as well leave Effects to "Off" (over taking B&W / Sepia / Solarised) photos as you can always apply those effects afterwards on the computer or in the gallery, but the reverse can't be done.
  
  
• Spend that extra split second to focus properly on the subject. Believe me, its worth it (after seeing many of my shots end up blurred and unfocused).
  

So that's just a few tips that I would recommend to all readers. If you've got more tips to contribute, feel free to do so!

Remember a few posts back I mentioned the Digia Web Browser as a fresh, new browser worth trying out on your Sony Ericsson P1 smartphone? Well, it's finally out - and Asri over at UIQ Evangelist seems to have some nice first hand screenshots of browsing on the Digia Browser.

It's only available for registered users, so if you wish to give this beta web browser a shot, you can sign up via this link. I'll be writing a proper review of the beta software as soon as I am able to download it and try it out myself, so keep checking out this blog over the next few days!

The Digia @Web Beta Browser review is up! Click here to read it.

Since the Sony Ericsson P1 only supports the 802.11b wireless standard - which also happens to be synonymous to WEP encryption - I'm assuming the average user will set up their home network with a WEP password to stop those prying neighbours from leeching your Internet.

But WEP encryption isn't very safe. Just do a Google search on "WEP hack" and you'll find that there are over 200,000+ hits, along with numerous guides on how to do it.

Here's 2 tips to make your network slightly more secure. Given enough time, I'm pretty sure a well established, determined hacker will still be able to get around it; but how often will that happen?

1. Change your encryption standard to WPA-Personal, which is supported by the P1. It's a lot more secure than WEP for certain, and that means less of a chance the 15-year old that lives next door can use your Internet service to pirate his songs.
   
   
2. Set up a MAC filter, which should be under Wireless Security in your router configuration page. By setting up a MAC filter, you can permit only certain devices to access the network, which also greatly reduces the chances of someone outside of your permission to access your network. You can look up your MAC address on your P1 by going to Control Panel >> WLAN >> More >> MAC Address.
   

I've heard many situations where the user wasn't able to get online using WiFi just because they were not using the WEP encryption standard. Remember to set the encryption on your router to be WPA-Personal, not WPA2 (or the P1 will not be able to go online using WiFi), and to turn off the "Powersave" feature under Control Panel >> Connections >> Internet Accounts (as many other users have experienced trouble if they left Powersave on).

Got any comments or feedback? Please feel free to comment!

I've got an email some time ago as well as a reader asking the other day how to make a conference call on the P1i, so here's a simple guide in laymen terms on how to do it:

1. Make the call to caller A. Alternatively, accept the incoming call from caller A. Either way have a call going on.
   
   
2. Now tell caller A to wait.
   
   
3. Click on 'More' which should be the center option on your current phone interface. Click 'Add Call'.
   
   
4. Key in caller B's number in to the phone. Click the left button 'Call' and then wait for caller B to connect. Presto - now you have both callers on the line!

Update: okay, I'm stumped. It seems like my World Generic 1 R9K009 P1 is having some issues - when I dial for caller B both calls are dropped automatically. Is anyone having the same issues? It worked before I updated to the new firmware...

ares on the UIQ Evangelist has just posted an article taken from smart-se.ru - it's basically a hack to speed up the loading of the Messaging and the Contacts applications.

If you're curious as to how this hack works - the 2 applications that you install on your P1 are meant for porting applications by developers. The speed boost that was provided is a nice side effect of the applications, and currently there is no explanation for it yet. If you've got a theory, feel free to post it here!

As many of you may know, I've been sitting around waiting for a long time after every else gets their updates for their regions because the Hong Kong region tends to be one of the places where the updates are rolled out last. As always, I'm quite excited for the new firmware updates because they tend to make the phone a lot more, well, 'usable' than the previous versions. So I decided to go along with a change of my phone's CDA - this defines the region of my phone (i.e. every region has a unique CDA, there by differentiating which phones get the updates first, etc).

And that's probably the main reason why you would want to flash your phone's CDA. The other reason is probably because you hold an imported version, i.e. purchasing from eBay or a friend got it for you from Asia, and you really don't need the Chinese input, or some other feature. At this point you would probably want to change your CDA so its better customised for your region.

So I decided to do a bit of Googling and research for software, blah blah... okay I'll cut to the main part of this post - the guide / tutorial / walkthrough to changing your CDA.

The usual disclaimer: note that I'm not responsible for screwing up your phone, follow at your own risk, don't do it if you feel unsure or unconfident about it...blah blah...oh and this MAY void your warranty. So do it at your own risk. I really hate to see bricked phones, so if you do have a question, leave a comment. Don't do anything rash.

Now on to the guide!

1. First off check for the latest firmware here, and see which CDA contains the latest one.
   
2. You'll need a software called XS++. It's free, and it's probably the most useful app you've ever used. Kudos to the author.
3. Start XS++.
   
4. Turn off your P1i, take the battery out and reinsert. Press 'C' as you connect the USB cable and when your PC detects the phone, release the button.
5. Tick the 'Smartphone Connect' option in XS++ and click Connect.
6. Now time to do a backup in case something bad happens. Tick the GDFS option and then click on the Backup button.
7. Your P1i should be disconnected after the process is completed. Reconnect by doing instruction 3.
8. Now for the fun part. Tick the Flash option, and choose the CDA you wish to change to. I recommend World Generic 1 (WG1), as it's the one SE rolls out with the latest updates and changes. The current one is now R9K009, which is offered on WG1, WG2, HKG, and numerous other regions.
   
9. Click Run Script. Wait until the process is done - your phone should disconnect at this point.
10. Now run Sony Ericsson's Update Service. Just let everything work on it's own - the updates should download and you should be left with a brand new, "World Generic 1 / or whatever region you changed to" P1i.

So there you go. There are other ways to change your CDA and your firmware, but this is by far the simplest method of doing so.

swmail, a massive contributer to the UIQ community, has created a new hack to increase the headphone volume for the Sony Ericsson P1i. Establishing his reputation after his Walkman Player 3.0 hack for the P1i, this mod is another welcome enhancement to the P1i community, particularly as many others have claimed that the P1i headphones volume are way too quiet (or too safe for your ears).

Here are the instructions as from the Esato forum post he made:

1. Unlock access to system folders (look CapsSwitch)
   
2. Download the archive from http://www.agathosyne.de/files_ext/se_uiq3_sound_mod_lite.zip
   
3. Copy the file 'C:\Private\10202be9\persists\1020867a.cre' from the your phone to computer.
   
4. Run se_sound_patcher, select the file '1020867a.cre' copied from phone, press "Install".
   
5. Copy the patched file '1020867a.cre' back to your phone (in dir 'C:\Private\10202be9\persists').
   
6. Immediately restart your smartphone.

The standard disclaimers again: I am not responsible for any damage caused to your phone, and you're trying this at your own risk. If you've got any problems, I suggest taking it up with the developer swmail himself. He can be reached from his website - http://101swmail010.googlepages.com/uiq3mods - and it's definitely worth taking a look.

Oh and please don't forget to donate to his cause. I may sound like his employee or something for saying this, but seriously - he's been such a massive contributer to the UIQ community, so if you've got some spare change, do show some appreciation for his work :)

Before people start dissing me for discriminating against users of different operating systems, such as providing ample amounts of information to Windows, few information for Mac users, and virtually no information for Linux users, here's a post dedicated to Linux users.

Since I'm not really a hardcore Linux user (although I do have it installed on one of my older computers), I'm not really in any position to provide advice or support. Nevertheless, the Linux community is a very supportive one, as seen in this guide to help P990i users set up their smart phone as a 3G modem. It also works for the P1i, so if you have both Linux and the P1i, why not take a look?

Today I spent quite a while at the computer mall trying to find a compatible Bluetooth keyboard for my Sony Ericsson P1. I've looked online and the only keyboard that seemed to be tested and available for the P1i was this one by iGo - which coincidentally, none of the vendors stocked at the computer center.

Luckily, I came across this set of instructions on My-Symbian which allowed me to set up the keyboard with the P1i:

1. Make the keyboard discoverable, by pressing Ctrl - Left Fn - Right Fn keys all at the same time, until the green LED above the "T" key flashes once per second.

2. From the P1i, go to Control Panel > Bluetooth > Connections, tap on the phone icon, which takes you to My Devices, and click on New Device. After a few seconds searching, "Think Outside Keyboard" should be shown. Select this device. After a few seconds, you will be prompted to enter a pairing code. Enter a code (numbers only: I used four digits). Then type the same numerical code on the Bluetooth keyboard (making sure that you keep the Left Fn key held down while pressing the number keys), followed by Enter. You should then receive a message on the P1i saying that bonding is successful.

3. The keyboard is now paired, and you can enter text into applications, such as Notes and Quickword. The shortcuts on the keyboard for various applications do not work, but the keyboard works perfectly well for general typing (although I cannot enter the pound sign yet).

My thanks to My-Symbian user acregan who discovered this method of pairing a Bluetooth keyboard with the P1i.

And no, I didn't buy it. The keyboard was from some obscure company from China who obviously didn't take any lessons in designing hardware.

Good news for those who have their exterior casings scratched or badly dented: there's now a disassembly guide out over Esato forums. This means instead of paying the store keeper a fee on top of buying a P1i housing to get him to install the housing on for you, you can now purchase a housing separately and install it yourself.

I know housings are for sale here in some mobile phone stores in Hong Kong, but I haven't seen any on eBay or other retailers. The closest I got was this one, which requires buying in bulk.

I think I'll be getting one of these and doing the disassembling myself - my P1i is quite scarred and dented from 1 or 2 'drops'; it's kind of a miracle how it's not dead yet :)

UIQ 4.0 running on a prototype unit above

In a shocking statement released today, Sony Ericsson has announced that all SE P1i users will be offered a free upgrade to the next generation, UIQ 4.0, when the operating system will be released.

The announcement comes after many users of the P1i (including some from this blog as well as major forums) have complained that the P1 is essentially "a P990i with a new shell and an extra 64MB of RAM".

UIQ 4.0 is widely expected to be a major rival against Apple's iPhone after the iPhone's debut to the smart phone market last summer. It's touted to be far more stable than the current generation of UIQ phones, and includes a host of features to mirror the user's desktop experience. Screenshots were released at the press conference as well.

The Sony Ericsson spokesman declined to comment on the additional features that will be coming up in the new platform, but laid down an expected 2008 Q3 release of the new platform for the P1i. Additionally, the spokesperson also added that WiMax upgrades will be offered to users who will still be under the 1-year warranty when the new platform is released.

The new OS and WiMax upgrade will only be available via the service centers.

With this in store, I honestly cannot wait for 2008 Q3 when all these cool stuff finally descends on my P1i.




(I hope I didn't dash anyone's hopes. Have a happy April Fools everyone!)

Seems like a security breach is kind of imminent, with the amount of UIQ 3 users running amok and hacking this and that on the UIQ platform. The UIQBlog has a full tutorial on how to see those hidden private files on your UIQ system, for that matter.

But this does raise a few eyebrows, as the UIQ platform prides itself on being secure and rather 'hack-proof' from its users. And if we can view these files today, who knows what a hacker or malicious application can do in the future?

Some of you might have realised that with the new update to firmware version R9K009, when pictures are taken with the Camera App, the shutter can no longer be muted. Yes, even when the phone's mode is set to "Silent", the shutter sound still goes off. This is presumably to let...others be aware when a photo is being taken of them.

Not that it can't be hacked. SE P1 enthusiasts from this Chinese forum have found a way to silence their shutters - it involves the simple process of making a phone call from your P1, and then starting the Camera application.

China is finally getting its act together, announcing the start of it's 3G trials next month. However, the 3G standard that China Mobile will be implementing is unfortunately TD-SCDMA - which is a 'homebrew' version of the 3G found in the Western world - and hence the P1i, along with a host of 3G phones released in Europe and Asia, will not be able to access 3G within China for the time being.

Being Chinese, I'm quite glad that my country finally has 3G, but I'm just a bit frustrated that yet another standard is implemented. It means that apart from using a P1i (which incidentally only works on the 3G networks of Europe and most of Asia), we'll need another phone to run 3G in the Americas, AND another phone to run 3G in China right now.

It's not that much to worry about for now, as it seems China's other major communications provider China Unicom will probably be implementing UMTS 3G (European Bands as well!) so I'll be looking forward to that. But it looks like it won't be reality until next year...

Even though I don't have my P1i with me right now, that doesn't stop me in discussing software on the phone. I'll be introducing a bunch of GPS applications today for everyone, so readers won't get ripped off from one developer or another in thinking that there's only the single GPS software for their smartphone.

1. First up is Wayfinder, which comes along with the GPS accessory from Sony Ericsson (HGE-100) - the trial version that is. It's definitely one of the more popular GPS applications around, albeit coming for a costly price of GBP68 (US$137). However it comes as with a lifetime license, so if you plan to keep your phone for quite a while, the cost is quite justified for getting this navigation software.
   
   Maps are available for Europe and North America regions, as well as small parts of Asia, so this application isn't really for the global traveller, but catered for Americans and Europeans alike. Noticeable absences from its map list includes China and South America, so there is still room for improvement from Wayfinder in providing more maps for its users.
   
   Still, excellent support is provided, and coupled with a lifetime license, it should be worth getting if you don't mind that large parts of Asia is absent from it's map coverage.
   
   
2. The other big player in the field is TomTom. Well known for its simplicity and uncluttered interface, I'm sure I'm not lying when I say it is the most popular GPS software around.
   
   Unlike Wayfinder which relies more on having an unlimited data package to download points of interests on the map, Tom Tom can download maps with the points of interest directly in to your memory stick on the phone, thereby saving the cost of using data, especially when roaming in other countries.
   
   Map selection again is pretty much the same as Wayfinder: Europe, US, and few parts of Asia and Southern Africa.
   
   I can't seem to find the cost on the developer's website but I assume it to be priced in the same range as Wayfinder. Seems to me that it beats Wayfinder in the looks department, while retaining the same features. Looks are always good. I think I might go for this one over Wayfinder...
   
   
3. Garmin Mobile XT is another one of those well known GPS applications - the company deals a huge range of GPS accessories, as well as developing for lots of different mobile phones, PDAs and laptops.
   
   Priced at GBP77 (US$100), you get the similar information the above 2 GPS application provides - in addition to having "Garmin Online Services": traffic, weather, gas prices, hotel rates and more.
   
   There's also a feature called PeerPoint, where you can text message your position to any other phone as well as view and navigate to the location of Garmin Mobile XT users in your group. Yep, the other user also needs to use Garmin Mobile XT; I guess it's a handy way of hooking up more users to purchase their application.
   
   Additional maps do cost extra according to the website, so users should beware if they intend to purchase this GPS application.
   
   For some reason the website doesn't show the UIQ 3.0 version of the application - however there is a UIQ 3.0 version available for download from here.
   
   

So I've introduced 3 of the most popular GPS applications for the P1i. However, it seems as if all of them are limited in the coverage of maps they provide; it seems like only Europe and America as well as bits of Asia is covered.

In the next part I'll introduce a few more GPS applications that run on the UIQ 3 platform; however they are GPS applications catered more for the Asian market, which may provide the extra maps you need when travelling or taking a holiday on "this side" (my side) of the world :)

Just to let everyone know that Google Maps has gone native on the UIQ 3.0 platform, so it means that you no longer have the laggy interface that some of you may find when you run a Java application. It's probably one of the new products, thanks to a Google and Sony Ericsson partnership. And no, I'm not complaining - it's one of the few things that has enlightened my day.

And "My Location" now works with on the P1i, thanks to the new release of Google Maps, so get ready for all that extra data. The "My Location" feature is one of the new, stunning specialties of the newly released Google Maps - basically, it takes information from your service provider to provide a location based on your connection with mobile phone towers around you. It's really amazing as it narrows down, with quite a degree of accuracy, where in the world you are. You can now boast to all your friends (that don't use a Nokia) that you've got an excellent GPS on your P1i/M600/W950/P990/W960 now.

On a side note, Bluetooth GPS devices aren't working with this new Google Maps release, so I'm guessing that's definitely on Google's agenda in the short term future. But all in all, definitely great work from Google. And it totally made my day :)

Simply head over to http://www.google.com/gmm on your built-in Opera browser for more information!

This is one of the main issues that I've always been ranting about to SE. And it's definitely an issue everyone should know about before going for a one of Sony Ericsson's flagship smartphones.

For a platform that should be user-friendly given it's cost for the business consumer, it's absolutely ridiculous how DIFFICULT it is to change your homepage on your browser. Yes - you're stuck with that annoying, sh***y page from SE, or one your operator has set - and NO, SE does not give you an option to change it on the Settings screen.

It's even worse when Opera themselves confirm the issue, and reply with the following answer:

There is no functionality for that, I'm afraid.

The home page is either the one pre-configured for the phone or a page set by the network operator.

So, you're probably hoping that there's a way around this. It's got to be a sick joke right? A fully fledged flagship, from one of the largest mobile phone manufacturers, doesn't have the measly ability to let its customer's change its homepage on the product?

I've scouted the forums for several months, and apparently there's 2 "miracles" around this issue:

1. Synchronise your bookmarks/favourites with your Windows ones. The top bookmark in your list will become the homepage, so take some time to configure and organise your bookmarks. I believe this is done via the PC Suite - I myself happen to be a fulltime Mac user, so I haven't had the chance to test this method out. For more information, you might want to talk to a few of the kind souls at Esato Forums.
   
   
2. Changing the settings via Swiss Manager. There just happens to be a feature in Swiss Manager which allows you specify the Start page to open when you use the web favourite. However, it doesn't mean that the change is made to the Opera browser - quite the contrary, you'll have to open the web browser from Swiss Manager each time to get that as your homepage on the built-in browser.

Hopefully the next firmware release will address this issue as well. It's been there since the beginning of time (the release of the P990) and, I'm afraid to say, if Sony Ericsson doesn't come up with a fix, it's going to be these little things that will force me to give up this excellent smartphone.

You've just got your P1i from the local retailer or off eBay, and you're as happy as you can get because it's such a great smart phone, and it's got excellent resources like this blog to help you out :). But when you turn it on for the very first time, you notice with shock that the language you want isn't present in your phone!

It's not the very first time that I've gotten emails and messages from some of my readers asking how to to get a particular language on to the phone. Some of them are even so desperately requiring a particular language that they considered getting XS++ to flash the firmware to another region's firmware, thereby enabling a differing language recognition and input.

Here's a quick tip for those who only require other languages on your phone. It's a solution offered by Sony Ericsson and in no way violates your warranty or pose a huge risk for your phone. I'm not saying that it's 100% guaranteed to be safe but there's definitely a way out should anything screw up - you can take it back to Sony Ericsson and demand they fix it for you because they offered the solution.

So, enough crap from me. This is how you can do it:

1. Get the Sony Ericsson PC Suite from here.
   
2. Get the suitable language file software version from this page as well. Check to make sure it's the same version as your P1i.
3. Connect your P1i with the USB cable. Make sure it's set on Phone Mode.
4. Click the Download language application in the PC suite for smartphones. This will open a wizard on the screen. Click next. Then browse to where the files are located (C:\Program Files\Sony Ericsson\Mobile4\Download Language)
5. ou will need to select the language file and select open. Then click next. It will begin to download to your handset. You will then be able to start the installation on the handset. Once installed you can change to this language.
6. Go to Control Panel > Other > Select Language. Choose your language and reboot your smartphone.

These instructions are also present on Sony Ericsson's Knowledgebase. For any non-trivial questions about this process, I suggest directing the question to Sony Ericsson, as they are in a better position to answer it.

Being a user of the Blackberry plan offered by my service provider (Smartone-Vodafone) here in Hong Kong, I rarely thought about the alternative options for checking my email on the go. That is, until lately when I realised I didn't really need the Blackberry plan that much as my provider offered different (and cheaper) options for email and data on-the-go. And since Gmail is extremely versatile, allowing for a huge number of options to check your email (from POP access to having PUSH email), here's a quick rundown of setting up Gmail on your P1:

1. 
   First off, there's the Gmail app developed by Google themselves to check your email. Written in Java, it's a neat interface as it offers pretty much a near desktop experience, one that is similar to the AJAX version you normally use. However, it does have its drawbacks; namely sucking a bit more of your battery as most Java apps tend to do. It also doesn't really offer a push email experience - you'll have to manually refresh to get the latest mail in your inbox. Still, it's one of the best apps you'll see for Gmail because of its integration with the online version and the fact that it is developed and supported by Google.
   
   To download the app, head over to http://www.gmail.com/app on the Mobile Opera to download the latest version.
   
   
2. 
   Another option is to opt for the built in email client in your P1i, under the Messaging application. Unlike the Gmail app, this one doesn't offer a great integration with your Gmail inbox - however since it's built in to your Messaging app, it follows the same structure as SMS messages on your P1, making it very convenient to locate and reply to emails.
   
   While the Gmail app only requires one to login to their Gmail account, the built-in email client requires some tweaking of settings on your phone before you can use it. It's all very simple:
   
   
   1. Log in to your Google Mail account.
   2. Click Settings at the top of any Google Mail page.
   3. Click Forwarding and POP/IMAP in the orange Mail Settings box.
   4. Select Enable POP/IMAP for all mail or Enable POP for mail that arrives from now on. (depending on whether you're going to use POP or IMAP)
      
   5. Choose the action that you would like your Google Mail messages to take after they are accessed with POP. (again, depending on whether you're using POP or not)
      
   6. Save your changes.
   
   Now you have to choose between POP3 email or IMAP email. I'm not an expert on this, so don't take me for granted on providing this piece of information, but POP3 only allows for polling of email (i.e. checking at set interval to see if you've got a new message) while IMAP allows for push email (once you receive the email you'll receive it on your handset at the same time).
   
   The POP Gmail settings are reproduced below:
   

   Basic Tab
   Account Name: Gmail (or whatever you want)
   Your Name: (Your choice)
   Email Address: yourGmailID@gmail.com
   Connection Type: POP3
   

   Inbox
   Incoming server address: pop.gmail.com
   Username: yourGmailID@gmail.com
   Password: ****
   Download restrictions: (Your Choice)
   Limit is set to: (Your Choice)
   Receive using group: (Your Pre-configured Internet Connection - 3G/GPRS)
   

   Outbox
   Outgoing server address: smtp.gmail.com
   Use SMTP authentication: Yes
   Use Inbox login details: Yes (automatically load your inbox configuration)
   Send using group: Same as receive (Your Choice)

   More > Advanced
   
   Incoming
   Secure connection: SSL
   Incoming mail port: 995

   Outgoing
   Secure connection: SSL
   Outgoing mail port: 465 or 587 (Choose one)
   Use MIME encoding: (Your Choice)
   

   IMAP settings:
   The same as above except for:
   
   Inbox
   Incoming server address: imap.gmail.com
   Connection type: IMAP
   
   Incoming
   Secure connection: SSL
   Incoming mail port: 993
   



3. A third option would be to opt for Blackberry Connect to get push email. Essentially it's like the 2nd option, which is manually adding the email account to your Messaging app; however, it's all taken care of by Blackberry and your service provider. You are essentially provided push email and 24 hour support from your mobile service provider, all at a premium cost (and perhaps a long contract). It's definitely cheaper than getting an unlimited data plan though (for comparison purposes, an unlimited data plan with my service provider costs HK$4xx a month, which is about US$50+ a month. A Blackberry push email plan starts from HK$98 a month, which equates to just a bit over US$10).

So, in a nutshell, I've introduced 3 major ways about setting up Gmail on your P1i. Yes, I do know there are other options out there to get push email or retrieving your email in a more data efficient manner. I'll leave it to be introduced at some other time.

When you've got the P1i for a while like I have and use the fastport (that's what the Sony Ericsson connection port is called), then it starts getting faulty. For example, when you connect your headphones, or any other accessory to the connector, it disconnects for no apparent reason while it's still connected, or it doesn't get recognised by the phone until you pull it out and stick it in again.

What most people would do is travel down to their local Sony Ericsson Service Centre to get their phone and/or the accessory repaired. However, here's a tip to try before sending your phone off, as it really is a hassle to lose the phone for a day or more while they fix it.

• Clean the contacts of the connector - by that I mean the gold contacts on your phone and on the faulty accessory. Usually dust or dirt might get collected in that part of the phone due to the slightly recessed design and with no flap or cover to protect it from the dust. You'll be amazed at the world wonders cleaning does with respect to getting your accessory detected.
  
  
• How to clean?
  Well simply acquire some contact cleaner fluid/alcohol wash/something along the likes of that along with those cotton sticks/Q-tips. Turn your phone off and proceed to use the dampened Q-tip to wipe the contacts on both the phone and the accessory. Wait for it to dry and it'll be as good as new!
  
  Take care not to get the other parts of the phone wet - I won't be responsible if your phone gets effed up because you literally poured the contact cleaner fluid on it!
  
  
• What if it still doesn't work?
  Bring it to the Service Centre. It's probably not the contacts that's causing the problem, so get used to using your spare phone for a couple of days.