There are some of us who are respectful to those around us or like to keep to themselves by using headphones to listen to music stored on MP3 players. For everyone else, there's speakers (not Mastercard). Sony Ericsson have been making speakers for their phones for about half a decade. They haven't released too many, but that's a testament to how good they make them.

The MPS-100 speakers, much like headphones do, make the audio clearer and louder, so if you were expecting these to provide some extra bass, sorry for your disappointment. However, as these are portably designed, any additional bass would just wreck these speakers up. There are two ways these speakers can be used. As you can see in the picture above, 2 different people can hold a speaker each, giving it that mini personal stereo effect, when it is actually for 2 people or it can be used as a surround sound system, even though the speakers won't be very far from each other. Alternatively (and the way I like to use it), you can clip the 2 speakers together, as Sony Ericsson have placed some magnets on the inner part of each speaker. This method noticeably makes the audio much more louder, seeing as the speakers are in close proximity to each other. A socket is also attached on one of the speakers. I have no idea what it's exactly for and even if I did, i probably don't need it, because the main function of a speaker is to shoot out some music.

There are a few problems with this gadget. For starters, the picture makes it seem like each speaker has a separate wire. In actual fact, both speakers are only connected by one wire. As a result, it makes kind of fiddly to clip the 2 speakers together and that the wire can tangle and twist when the speakers are loose. As minor as that is, my main problem is that it can only work on Sony Ericsson phones and the slightly older ones at that too. These are such brilliant quality headphones, so it stuns me why Sony Ericsson would only make some portable speakers just for their own market, when they could have so easily stole their competitors customers.

Of course, the good stuff certainly outweighs the bad stuff. As these are for Sony Ericsson phone, there is a built in antenna, which Sony Ericsson's headphones include too, so you can use the built in FM radio on the phone. These speakers also use the phone's power to work, so there's no extra electricity bills. Naturally, it would be a wise idea to fully charge the phone before you use these. Sony have also made these speakers portable and handheld. There's nothing more annoying to me when I have to hold my phone out for the speaker to take full effect, as I worry someone just might pinch it. With these MPS-100 speakers, the phone can rest in the pocket and I can grip these speakers tighter than my phone, because of its curved (and lack of right angles) body, making it convenient.

As for the appearance of the speakers, there's nothing to ugly about them. There are 2 colours the MPS-100 speakers are available in. The ones in the picture, which is a sliver and grey combination, which would look good for the silver Sony Ericsson phones. The other colour these are available in is the black and silver combo, which I have, for those who have the black Sony Ericsson phones. I pretty sure these speakers work on all C,K and W series phones as well as the Aino and Satio. I'm not too sure about any others but chances are the latter 2 phones I mentioned are the latest 2 models the headphones work on.

The price, seeing as these are quite dated, ranges. I popped into a Carphone Warehouse for these just a few months ago for a bargain price of a fiver. I reckon that it would probably be the same on eBay, Amazon and Play, which would probably be the only sites on the internet you can purchase these on.