Here’s good news for people who have been looking forward to the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10, the device will be getting a software update to the Android OS.
Originally, the X10 was going to come shipped with the Google Android 1.6 Donut operating system. With the Nexus One already out and the Bravo launching alongside the X10, the high end Sony Ericsson phone would end up having the lowest version operating system among its competitors. Fortunately it has already been confirmed that the X10 will get an Android update pretty soon. As to when the update will be released and what version will be available still remains to be seen. Optimally, the update for version 2.1 will come out right before the device launches on March.
The XPERIA X10 was originally meant to be released sometime last year before it was pushed to January and now, end of Q1. While it is never a good sign to see a phone delayed so much, this is pretty much par for the course when it comes to SE phones. Anyway, the update is great news because this means that the phone’s features will be fully utilized by both the Android OS and the Timescape and Mediascape UI.
The phone will come with a Snapdragon processor clocked at 1GHz and will have a 4 inch capacitive touch screen. The built in camera on the device is an 8 mega pixel snapper. It has been reported that the device might be coming to T-Mobile and to Vodafone as well.
Aside from the X10, Sony Ericsson will also be releasing the Symbian 720p HD recording mobile phone, the SE Vizaz. No word yet on the price of the two devices.
Get the full scoop on the new OS update for the X10 from Know Your Mobile.
The Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 is one of the most awaited Android devices to arrive this year. Talks and reports about the high end device from the Japanese and Swedish joint venture have been stirring up late last year. While focus on the next XPERIA phone got sidetracked with news regarding the problems with the Satio, offices closing down and the X2 getting delayed, the production and development on this Android Snapdragon phone never stopped.
Looks like Sony Ericsson will be launching the device on time by March (or April) and Vodafone UK will definitely be offering the handset as part of its lineup (coincidentally, Vodafone pulled out the X2 from its 2010 lineup as the device no longer fit the company’s needs). In any case, it looks like there’s going to be a nice square off between two major Android devices running one Snapdragon processors this March with the HTC Bravo also slated to a release date on that same month. Aside from Vodafone, it has also been recently announced that T-Mobile will also be offering the device and they have hinted that they may have an exclusive color option available for the X10.
Also launching with the XPERIA X10 is the new Sony Ericsson Vizaz (formerly Kurara), a Symbian smart phone equipped with 720p HD video recording.
Aside from the 1GHz Snapdragon processor, the XPERIA X10 will come with a 4 inch capacitive touch screen, delivering high resolution graphics and crisp visuals. Users will enjoy having the large screen to navigate on and the addition of the new Timescape and Mediascape user interface will certainly be worth looking forward to. The phone will also have an 8 mega pixel camera complete with autofocus, flash, geo-tagging and SE’s very own face and smile detection software.
It has been confirmed that from April onwards you will be able to get your hands on the Xperia X10 handset on the Vodafone network.
This follows the recent news that Vodafone ditched the X2 after technical problems resulted in a delay to the mobile phone’s launch date. It seems Vodafone is a little more patient with the Xperia X10 as this handset was originally due to launch this month but has been hit by a two month delay.
Vodafone has released no details of price or an exact date yet, and the launch of the Xperia X10 still stands at “in the first Quarter” according to Sony Ericsson’s head office. With a bit of luck, contract prices for this phone should be competitive, as O2 and T-Mobile will also stock this handset.
All this suspense and uncertainty – but what we do know for definite (for now, anyway) is that this powerful mobile will be within our grasp come April at the latest.
You may well be wondering, is the X10 even worth the two month delay? Our thoughts are, most definitely yes as the X10 promises to be fast, friendly and feature-rich.
The Xperia X10 has a 4 inch capacitive touchscreen, runs on the Google Android platform and is powered by a Snapdragon processor. This means it is impressive externally and internally with a quick connection, advanced features, multitasking abilities and responsive screen.
Among the many features, the Xperia X10 comes with an 8-megapixel camera onboard, GPS and Google Maps, YouTube and Gmail.
The X10 is Sony Ericsson’s first Android phone and will be joining other high-end Android mobiles like the Google Nexus One and the Motorola Milestone handsets.
If you are interested in the X10 on Vodafone, you are advised to register on Vodafone’s site for updates.
To read more about the X10’s imminent arrival, head to the source.
Sony Ericsson has made a concerted effort in the past several months to play its part in combating climate change by releasing many devices through its Greenheart range. The Greenheart phones are designed to come in less packaging and produce less harmful toxins during production, as well as featuring other environment-conscious features. While the green qualities were typically the only selling points of earlier Greenheart phones the new Sony Ericsson Aspen aims to combine the eco-friendliness of the product range with a high degree of business and entertainment oriented features.
Sony Ericsson Aspen Appearance and Screen quality
The Aspen follows a similar style to earlier Greenheart phones, but employs a BlackBerry style physical form with a scaled down QWERTY keypad beneath its screen. The screen itself is a 2.4″ TFT display featuring over 16 million colours and a high resolution of 320 x 240 (QVGA) to provide a sharp and detailed rendering of the Xperia Panels interface.
The Aspen includes an accelerometer that can be used to easily rotate the screen between portrait and landscape by turning the phone in the desired orientation. As well as having the keypad for input the screen on the Aspen is also touch sensitive, making use of resistive technology for enhanced precision.
Sony Ericsson Aspen Media & entertainment
The media player included with the Aspen comes with a high degree of music and video playback with support for popular formats such as MP3 and WMA for music and MP4 and WMV for video. While the Aspen only comes with a limited 100MB of internal storage space this can be easily increased to 16GB with microSD cards. A 4GB microSD card is included with the phone.
If you still run out of space you can always make use of the FM radio (with RDS) so that you can catch up with all the latest music. If you travel a lot by bus then you will be glad to hear that there is a 3.5mm audio jack for the connection of headphones.
The Aspen comes with a 3.2 megapixel camera with digital zoom and fantastic features such as multi-shot and self-timer. The camera can also capture video and with built-in YouTube and Facebook apps you can quickly and easily upload your photos and videos to share online. There are also apps for many other services including Twitter and Skype.
Sony Ericsson Aspen OS, Connectivity and Battery Life
The Aspen operates on Windows Mobile 6.5.3 Professional, which comes packed with many features ideally suited for professional phone users. These features include a PDF viewer and Microsoft Pocket Office (with support for Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote). This is coupled with Sony Ericsson’s new Xperia Panels interface that was designed for the Xperia X2.
The Aspen is a quad-band GSM device with support for 3G being provided via HSDPA/HSUPA. The Aspen can also connect through GPRS and EDGE, as well as having support for microUSB, Bluetooth with A2DP and Wi-Fi. There is also A-GPS that can be used to operate navigational software as well as Sony Ericsson’s Eco Mate application (see below).
Sony Ericsson Aspen Email and Messaging capabilities
The Aspen has excellent support for email and messaging. As well as supporting MMS messages the Aspen allows you to display SMS messages in threaded view. Threaded viewing does not place all of your messages into an inbox folder but displays them on a per-contact basis, making your correspondences much more intuitive and easy to keep track of. As well as standard messages you can also keep up with your contacts in real time through instant messaging, with the WinMo OS providing excellent support for Windows Live in particular.
The Aspen is an ideal phone for people who need to keep up to date with their emails while on the move. The Aspen comes with support for SMTP, IMAP, POP3 and Microsoft Exchange protocols as well as push email, whereby you are automatically notified of new emails as they are sent to your account. The QWERTY keypad on the Aspen makes it much easier for typing out long messages, whether they be emails or standard text messages.
Like all Sony Ericsson Greenheart phones the Aspen is produced with minimal waste and by using as much recycled materials as possible. As well as using recycled plastics and metals, Sony Ericsson has tried to refrain from using toxic materials that are used in the production of most mobile phones that can render them environmentally hazardous when discarded.
The phone is sold in minimal packaging in contrast to most handsets that are sold in layers of unnecessary plastic and cardboard that is usually destined straight for the bin once the phone has been purchased. The Aspen does not come with a paper instruction booklet either, as the instructions are contained electronically on the phone itself. This should not pose a problem unless you need the instructions to figure out how to turn the phone on (you don’t).
There are several features on the Aspen that are aimed at making its owners more environmentally conscious including the Eco Mate application. This is essentially a modified pedometer that can inform you of how much you are reducing your carbon footprint by walking instead of driving.
Sony Ericsson Aspen summary
It is commendable that Sony Ericsson is trying to make some sort of effort with regards to the environment (and seems to be one of the only major mobile phone manufacturers to do so), but with earlier Greenheart phones this had seemed like a bit of gimmick or an empty gesture – as the only thing that marked the phones out were their green credentials.
Now with the Aspen Sony Ericsson is starting to offer environmentally friendly phones that come with many more desirable features, and can even compete against some of the mainstream professional phones on the market. Hopefully there will be some more additions to the Greenheart line catered towards other niches soon, such as a handset with a powerful camera or a Greenheart music-phone. We shall wait and see.
The latest eco-friendly Sony Ericsson mobile phone, the Aspen, launched yesterday. Yes, it’s the first handset to run the latest version of Windows Mobile 6.5.3 and it’s a smartphone with some serious business capabilities alongside fun features, but what we want to know is: how green is this latest addition to the GreenHeart series?
Sony Ericsson’s GreenHeart range of phones lets you enjoy modern mobile technology with a conscience. Just like the other phones in this range including the Naite, the Aspen is made with the environment in mind. The phone is shipped in recycled packaging, uses water-based paint and an energy-efficient display to cut carbon emissions. Instead of the usual paper manual, this phone comes with an e-manual, and is powered by an energy-saving charger.
Internally, the green story continues. In addition to the GreenHeart panel, there is the eco-mate application which offers you advice to help you make greener choices in your daily life. There is a power saving mode too and the phone has up to 25 days standby time.
So, the green credentials of this phone are in evidence on the outside and inside. But the really good news – for those of us who base our phone choice on more than just how planet-friendly the handset is – is Sony Ericsson has also invested in the business and entertainment elements of this phone.
The QWERTY keyboard sits beneath the 2.4 inch touchscreen, presenting you with effortless business and social use. When typing messages or editing Office documents on-screen, you can use the keyboard, and when you want to quickly open applications or browse through web pages, simply touch the screen. Sporting the latest Windows Mobile operating system, there is Microsoft Office Mobile onboard.
The Aspen lets you check your emails on the move, open document attachments, work on and save documents, access online – with plenty of connection options. There is quad-band GSM support, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. And if you are unfortunate enough to lose your phone, you can erase your phone data remotely via the Microsoft MyPhone service.
To keep you entertained, the Aspen is enhanced by the Sony Ericsson Slide View interface. First seen on the Xperia X1, this interface means you are just one press away from the feature you want. Features include a 3.2-megapixel camera with a 4x zoom; GPS and Google Maps; an FM radio, media player and 3.5mm audio connector. There should be plenty of applications to amuse you too such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Windows Live.
The price of the Aspen, which will come in a choice of iconic black and silver white colours, has not been confirmed but it is anticipated to be affordable.
The green-focused Aspen looks set to be a strong addition to the business mobile market. Go here to find out more about the phone and here to read more about the phone’s green credentials.
The Vivaz is Sony Ericsson’s follow up handset to its highly popular Satio. While the Satio was designed with photography as its main feature, the Vivaz places much more emphasis on video, both for recording and playback. The Vivaz features a widescreen display capable of playing HD videos and the camera included can itself record HD video. With the Vivaz you can easily copy your recorded videos to your computer or quickly upload them to share with the world.
Sony Ericsson Vivaz Physical Dimensions
Despite all the high class hardware that has been crammed into the Vivaz it still measures up at just a slender 107 x 51.7 x 12.5mm. The Vivaz offers high quality video playback while at the same time being highly portable and it also weighs just a mere 97g, making it one of the lightest touchscreen smartphones on the market.
Sony Ericsson Vivaz Appearance and Screen quality
The Vivaz comes with a 3.2″ TFT screen that employs over 16 million colours and delivers the highest quality HD visuals to be found on a phone. It uses a high resolution of 360 x 640 that offers true 16:9 widescreen proportions that are ideal for watching widescreen videos on.
The screen is fully touch sensitive and this is the primary method of controlling the Vivaz as the only buttons included are the call accept, call reject and home button on the front and some additional buttons placed on the side for volume control and use of the camera. The Vivaz also includes an accelerometer for automatic rotation of the interface and a proximity sensor for auto-turnoff.
Sony Ericsson Vivaz Media & entertainment
The main selling point of the Vivaz is its support for HD video, both through its media player and camera. The 8.1 megapixel camera would be classed as a very high quality camera just for its still photography alone with features including an LED flash, autofocus, touch focus, face and smile detection and geo-tagging. However, what sets it apart from other phone cameras is its ability to record 720p HD video. The video camera comes with an additional video light and can record videos in a high resolution of 1024 x 720.
As well as recording HD video the Vivaz is an exceptional device for watching videos, either from your own files or by streaming them online. There is a built-in YouTube app that allows you to easily upload your recorded videos and the Vivaz can support microSD cards up to 16GB for storing your own videos or music. There are plenty of connectivity options available to easily transfer your videos to other devices including a TV-Out port.
The Vivaz is not just limited to playing videos as the media player also comes with excellent support for music, supporting MP3, AAC, WMA and M4A files among many others. The Vivaz comes fully integrated with Picasa allowing you to easily upload photos and there are also pre-installed Facebook and Twitter apps providing you with easy access to these popular online services.
Sony Ericsson Vivaz OS and Connectivity
Like its predecessor the Satio, the Vivaz runs on Symbian S60 5th Edition. The OS is powered by a 720MHz processor and PowerVR SGX graphics acceleration.
The Vivaz is quad band GSM with 3G support being provided via HSDPA/HSUPA (10Mbps / 2 Mbps). The Vivaz also comes with support for GPRS, EDGE, microUSB, Bluetooth with A2DP and Wi-Fi.
The Lithium-Ion Polymer 1200 mAh battery provides a staggering talk time of 13 hours which is virtually unheard of in modern, power-intensive phones. Standby battery life is estimated at an average of 430 hours allowing you plenty of time between charging sessions.
Sony Ericsson Vivaz Email and Messaging capabilities
The Vivaz comes with excellent email functionality with support for IMAP, POP3 and SMTP protocols as well as Microsoft Exchange. The Vivaz supports MMS and EMS, and for SMS messages are displayed in threaded view. This can display your messages in a conversation style between you and individual contacts which is much more intuitive and easy to manage than earlier inbox/outbox systems. The Vivaz also features the QuickOffice document viewer and comes with easy access to Google Maps and Wisepilot Navigation that work in conjunction with its A-GPS.
Sony Ericsson Vivaz summary
The Satio was critically acclaimed for revolutionising what could be done with photography on a mobile phone and the Vivaz will no doubt have the same transformative effect for video. There are phones that can play HD videos but few that can also record them, and the Vivaz, with its widescreen display, is ideally suited for viewing or uploading your videos online. With this in mind, the Vivaz is the ideal phone for people who love watching videos on the go or recording all those special moments to enjoy later in all their glory.
The Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 is one very impressive mobile phone, and this time we are not talking about the phone’s actual specs.
This Snapdragon powered Android smart phone is Sony Ericsson’s very first Google Android phone, and from the initial screens it is a very impressive device. As said, the specs is not the issue here, the whole phone is.
Looks like both O2 and Orange both recognize the market value of the upcoming device. With the Google Nexus One pretty much out of access for many residents in the UK; XPERIA X10 certainly makes for quite the convincing alternative. For one thing, the X10 does more than just match the N-One in terms of hardware. It also comes with the additional Timescape and Mediascape user interface to make using the device even more convenient and easy.
Orange has already stated that they are looking into releasing the device this March and dropping hints that the mobile phone network would have some sort of exclusivity deal running. As for O2, the company has just posted a blank spot on their official website as a placeholder for the upcoming page for the X10.
Will this impressive touch screen phone go for exclusivity? It is unlikely that Sony Ericsson would limit the sales of the device to a single network operator (though it is probable that some networks would get exclusive deals on a color variant).
Sony Ericsson cannot afford weak sales for this year. With a reported loss of over 800 million Euros for 2009, the company has to keep up with sales for this year. With the X10 and the SE Vivaz coming this March and April, the joint Venture is confident that their new lineup will be successful.
Whether you are pro-O2 or prefer Orange, Know Your Mobile has the scoop for you.
Sony Ericsson looks poised to draw the first strike against the Nexus One in the upcoming high-end Android smart phone wars as mobile network operator Orange has dropped hints that they might be subsidizing the Snapdragon powered phone.
Whether this will be a totally exclusive remains to be seen and is quite unlikely, considering that a limitation like that would certainly not help Sony Ericsson’s sales figures (which are bad, they lost over 800 million Euros last year alone). It is more likely that the exclusive deal would be for a special color version of the X10.
Anyway, for those folks who have not even heard of the XPERIA X10, this is actually the third device in the XPERIA series and the first Android device by the company. Originally, the device was called the Sony Ericsson Rachel prior to its final re-assignment to the XPERIA line up. The device was also one of the first Android devices to be announced to have a Snapdragon processor.
Yep. This phone packs a Qualcomm QSD8250 Snapdragon 1GHz processor under that stylish chassis. Expect to see apps loading fast and excellent screen refresh rates on this mobile phone. Speaking of the screen, the TFT capacitive touch screen on the X10 is 4 inches diagonally and has a resolution of 480 x 854 pixels, so expect to see high quality images in crisp detail on the screen. The screen can display a total of 65 thousand colors and also has a scratch resistant surface for the more heavy users. An accelerometer sensor enables for auto-rotation.
As stated, this is an Android phone, but it will also be using SE’s new Timescape/Mediascape user interface for easy access of many media and organizer functions in the device.
Orange might be releasing the device around late March or on April, right about the same time as the launch of SE’s Symbian HD-recording smart phone, the Vivaz.
More details of Orange’s upcoming plans are available at Techradar.
Sony Ericsson lost plenty of money last year. An estimated amount of 836 million Euros was reported to be the full cost of the company’s losses for 2009. The holiday sales did provide a little boost to their performance and SE was able to sell more than half a million units more than their 2008 holiday sales. But with such a high deficit, even a good holiday sales run would not be enough to save the company.
The lackluster sales of Sony Ericsson’s devices can be attributed to a series of misfortunes and delayed that have been plaguing SE units for quite some time now. Many might still remember that problems encountered by the Sony Ericsson Satio mobile phone.
This Symbian device proved to be one of SE’s major devices of 2009 and the company must have certainly spent a lot in promoting the device (the bounce video for the Satio promotion was shot in many major locations across the world). Despite the entire buzz, the device suddenly got pulled out of the shelves of Carphone Warehouse and Phones4U due to severe firmware problems that affected many units.
The pull out lasted for over two weeks before a fix finally became available. While the fix did get rid of the problem (and also enhanced the battery life), the pull out certainly did cast a dark shadow over SE’s reputation.
Another big hit to the company was the sudden delay of its XPERIA X2 device. The WinMo phone was originally supposed to launch by December when it was delayed from launch due to technical problems. Vodafone then removed the X2 from their 2010 lineup.
Despite these problems, Sony Ericsson has plenty of powerful mobile phones to be released this 2010, starting with the XPERIA X10 and the Vivaz that is expected to arrive by March, as well as the SE Kanna (Vizaz with Keyboard), Robyn (mini-X10) and the Greenheart phones Hazel and Elm.
Want to know more? Hit this link for the full details.
The Sony Ericsson Kurara is definitely coming, despite the pervious problems with the SE Satio; the joint venture is placing lots of faith and trust in the Symbian OS as they launch one of their first major devices for 2010.
The big change that was announced is that the phone will now have a new name: the Sony Ericsson Vivaz. For anyone who has not seen the initial reports on the Kurara; this Symbian smart phone combines plenty of useful media related functionality and capability with the sleek stylized look that Sony is well known for. The result is a pop-futuristic device that is captivating to look at and fully media capable.
The newly released images of the Vivaz confirm that device will still have the same body and form of the Kurara. The slightly curved edges on the top and bottom of the phone create a perfect border when the phone is viewed sideways (such as for videos and images). And it also shows that the phone will come in four variant colours called Moon Silver, Cosmic Black, Galaxy Blue and Venus Ruby. All the color palettes used in the Vivaz carry a rich and deep hue. While this look may be a little too serious for some, it is perfect for the artistically driven target market of the device.
The phone will have all the specifications already given under the Kurara. This means it will still have a 3.2 inch TFT wide VGA touch screen with 16 million colors and a resolution of 360 x 640 pixels. As expected, the 8 mega pixel camera will be capable of 720p HD recording and it will also have LED flash and auto focus. The device supports AGPS, WiFi, 16GB microSD cards, a 3.5 mm audio jack and a new TV output port.