IntoMobile » Sony Ericsson

Sony Ericsson Kurara/U5 Reviewed

Simon Sage — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:15:33 +0000

The upcoming Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) Kurara, which got a brief glimpse of last week, just got an extensive review. This is clearly Sony Ericsson’s competitor to Samsung’s OmniaHD i8910, and meets the challenge on a few levels, such as processor (Cortex A8) and camera (8 megapixels), but the display loses a few points for not being AMOLED. The Symbian-based OS is similar to the Satio, complete with Facebook and Twitter integration, but the reviewer’s final conclusion is that this handset’s success will depend entirely on the price point – there’s not a lot of innovation going on, but a 300 Euro price point would likely be enough to win over a few folks. Even with the pricetag taken into account, I’m not sure why anyone would pick up the U5 over the X10…

[via Mobile-Review]

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Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 heading to AT&T?

Dusan Belic — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 09:57:14 +0000

File this under “we hope so,” as it’s clear that the version of Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE)’s first Android smartphone that can sing along AT&T (NYSE: T)’s 3G bands will be available. The official X10 page has been updated to reflect that, clearly showing a U.S. centric model that works on UMTS HSPA 800/850/1900 MHz frequencies. Yap, those are the ones that work on AT&T (and Canada’s Rogers (NYSE: RCI) Wireless for that matter). Here’s what it says:

UMTS HSPA 800/850/1900 only available for phones sold in Americas (except Brazil) and Australia. UMTS HSPA 900/1700 not available for phones sold in Americas. UMTS HSPA 1900/2100 available worldwide.

Nothing is confirmed at this stage, but it’s not like AT&T doesn’t offer any Sony Ericsson’s phones, already — i.e. the channel is somewhat open. And getting such a high-end device in the U.S. market is also of interest to the now struggling Swedish-Japanese handset maker. The only problem I see is how this reflects on the exclusivity of the AT&T-Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) releations. AT&T certainly can’t afford to miss the Android bandwagon, but Apple has the negotiating power more than any other company at the moment. We’ll certainly watch this carefully and let you know as soon as we hear something new. Stay tuned…

[Via: phandroid]

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Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 Priced at $860

Simon Sage — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:13:46 +0000

Ow, did anyone else feel like their wallet just got kicked in the crotch? At a Swedish press event, Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) revealed that their Android-powered X10 to be released in February will be costing 6,000 Swedish kroner (which works out to $US 860 at the current exchange rate). Even among high-end smartphones that’s pretty steep, and considering SE’s history with selling the xperia brand unlocked, odds are we won’t see X10 carrier-subsidized for awhile. We’ve seen the super-slick user interface built on top of Android, 8 megapixel camera, slim profile, 1 Ghz processor, and 4-inch display, but it is a very small niche that will shell out that kind of money for this device. Anyone out there unfazed by the pricetag?

[via WSJ]

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Sony Ericsson’s mobile diet: Close four facilities, cut 2,000 jobs

Will Park — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:50:52 +0000

Sony Ericsson has a new plan to whip itself back into shape to compete with leaner and meaner mobile phone makers. The Japanese-Swedish joint venture is planning to close four facilities and cut some 2.000 jobs in an effort to streamline the company. Following a recent round of job cuts that left 450 employees at its Research Triangle Park R&D facility without work, Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) has announced that it will be closing the RTP facility and cutting additional jobs around the world.

Sony Ericsson will close the doors to its RTP headquarters by the third quarter of 2010. The SE North American headquarters will move from RTP to Atlanta, with the R&D operations relocating to Redwood Shores, California. A facility in Miami, Florida will also be permanently close, alongside facilities in Kista, Sweden and Chennai, India. Sony Ericsson says that severance packages will be included, with some lucky employees getting a chance to apply for jobs in California or Atlanta.

The cellphone maker boasts 4.9% of the global mobile phone market, making it the No. 4 handset maker in the world. When it comes to smartphone market share, which we care about more than overall market share, Sony Ericsson isn’t really a big player. But, with leaned-out operations and attractive new handsets, like the Android-powered XPERIA X10, coming down the pipe, Sony Ericsson looks poised to make a big splash in the smartphone space in 2010.

[Via: BusinessJournal]

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Sony Ericsson Launches WebSDK for Android and Symbian

Simon Sage — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 21:24:40 +0000

In preparation for the incoming X10, Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) has opened up a new tool for developers called WebSDK. As you might imagine, it allows developers to write mobile apps in web languages like HTML, CSS and JavaScript, not unlike Palm’s webOS or BlackBerry’s recently-launched widgets. The system is all based around the open-source PhoneGap project cooked up back in March. It’s not just Android getting the love – Symbian phones will also be compatible with WebSDK, and combined with the Kurara/U5 leak earlier today, Sony Ericsson is clearly not forgetting Symbian, even in the wake of their burgeoning Android romance.

The devs in the house can read more and download the new WebSDK here, or get involved with PhoneGap here.

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Meet the Sony Ericsson Kurara

Simon Sage — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:34:15 +0000

The most promising thing coming from Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) these days is the Android-powered X10, but not so fast – they haven’t put all of their eggs in one basket. This here is the Kurara, a Symbian smartphone with 8 megapixel camera with LED flash, ARM Cortex A8 600 MHz processor, 3.2″ touchscreen, and HD video recording at 720p. Also called the U5, the usual fixings like GPS, Wi-Fi (with DLNA support), 3.5mm, microUSB and HSDPA/HSUPA connectivity are packed inside. We’ll have to see more of the device to pass judgment, but maybe SE should take a hint from Motorola (NYSE: MOT) and focus on Android for the immediate future. No release date, target markets, or pricetag just yet, but we’ll be keeping an eye out.

[via GSMArena]

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Sony Ericsson X10 Confirmed for February Launch, Spied on Video

Simon Sage — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:11:46 +0000

Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) UK’s X10 launch page has spelled out their launch window in black and white: February is the month to hold out for. The most we got out of the announcement of SE’s impressive Android handset was an expected release in the first half of 2010, so it’s good to have that narrowed down a bit. The X10 promises to be the biggest, baddest Android handset out there – an 8 megapixel camera, 1 Ghz processor, and 4-inch WVGA display put it head and shoulders above the HTC Hero, and will give the Motorola (NYSE: MOT) droid a run for its money. Their custom Timescape user interface is exceptionally slick, all practicality aside. If you’re interested in a prerelease tour, check out this video.

[via Engadget, HDblog.it]

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Video: Sony Ericsson X10 commercial

Dusan Belic — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:25:27 +0000

Just caught this – a brand new Sony Ericsson X10 commercial. All (or at least some) of the phone’s features are shown in real-world. Or at least that seems like the main idea behind the clip. I like the handset maker’s approach – it’s the experience they want to sell, not the specs, even though we’re talking about the high-end smartphone which is powered by Qualcomm (NSDQ: QCOM)’s 1GHz Snapdragon CPU. But I’m talking too much. Here’s a clip, enjoy it!

[Via: SEMC blog]

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Xperia ‘Pureness’ Pops up on Sony Ericsson Canada Website

James Falconer — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 15:21:11 +0000

The Sony Ericsson Xperia ‘Pureness’ has made an appearance on the Canadian Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) site… a move that will almost certainly see the device make its debut on a Canadian carrier in the near future. My money would be on a January 2010 launch, but we’ll have to wait and see.

If you check out the details on the ‘Pureness’, you’ll notice key features such as Bluetooth, an FM tuner, Exchange ActiveSync compatibility, and a very cool transparent scratch-resistant monochrome 1.8″ TFT display. Of course, all of the standard apps come preloaded as well, including your alarm clock, calculator, calendar, yadda yadda, you know the deal.

For those looking for a stylish new candybar, the Xperia Pureness could be the one. I’ll keep an eye open for availability and pricing when it becomes available.

[Via: MobileSyrup]

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Nokia, plus almost every major international operator, agree on a standard for voice + SMS over LTE

Stefan Constantinescu — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:47:44 +0000

LTE, Long Term Evolution, 4G, whatever you want to call it, was designed to be a complete IP based system. Many of you may be surprised to hear this, but when LTE became a standard, it only supported data. That’s right, 4th generation networks didn’t have an interoperable standard for voice and SMS. Several solutions have been proposed, and I’ve extended my support to VoLGA, but it looks like Nokia (NYSE: NOK) has decided IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) will be the way going forward.

Who supports the decision? AT&T, Orange, Telefonica (many of you know them as O2), TeliaSonera, Verizon (NYSE: VZ), Vodafone (NYSE: VOD), Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU), Ericsson, Nokia Siemens Networks, Nokia, Samsung and Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE). That’s a lot of companies. Their posse is called “One Voice Initiative” and now that the big boys have all decided on a standard, progress towards getting LTE networks up and running will start to pick up. Verizon and TeliaSonera are competing to see who will launch the world’s first commercial LTE network in 2010, but it’s going to quite a ways off until 4G coverage is equal to the current 3G footprint.

If anyone can point me (and IntoMobile readers) to a blog post or a book that explains how IMS works, that would be greatly appreciated. I’ve always avoided the standard since I thought it would never fly. Oh how wrong I am now.

Update: The One Voice spec has been published, check it out [PDF] if you’re a network engineer.

[Via: Press Release]

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Fido Launches the Sony Ericsson T715A

James Falconer — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:35:23 +0000

A quick bit of Canadian mobile news here, on Fido. It seems as though the discount Canadian carrier (run by the behemoth, Rogers (NYSE: RCI) (NYSE: RCI)) has released the Sony Ericsson T715A. The T715A is a slider with a 2.2″ 240×320 QVGA display, 3.2MP camera with video, Bluetooth, speakerphone, MP3 player and more. Pretty standard fare… Not ideal for the power user, but a nice solid device for those that need a steady performer for everyday calling and basic tasks.

The price? Try $50 on a 2-year term, or $200 month-to-month, prepaid, or for the device only. For all the details head on over to Fido.

[Via: MobileSyrup]

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Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 officially unveiled along with UX platform; Coming in the first quarter of 2010

Dusan Belic — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:10:33 +0000

Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) XPERIA X10 has been officially announced! Alongside the super-cool device, the company also unveiled its UX open platform.

Here’s the X10 specs rundown:

Quad-band GSM/EDGE connectivity – 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, plus tri/quad-band HSPA 900/1700/2100 (T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) USA?) or 800/850/1900/2100 MHz
4-inch WVGA (480×854 pixels) capacitive touchscreen
8.1-megapixel auto-focus camera with an array of camera technologies including touch focus, face recognition, smile detection, image and video stabilizer, geo-tagging. Where’s flash???
1GHz Qualcomm (NSDQ: QCOM) Snapdragon QSD8250 CPU!
GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth, 3.5mm audio jack
1GB of internal memory, plus a microSD memory card slot (8GB card should come in box)
Google (NSDQ: GOOG) apps pre-loaded
Android 1.6 Donut – I’m guessing it will be upgradable to 2.0 Eclair
Size: 119×63x13 mm, weight: 135 grams
Colors: Sensuous Black and Luster White

In a nutshell, pretty impressive first Android phone from Sony Ericsson.

As for the mentioned UX platform, it is developed not for the X10, only, but for the whole series which will be launched in the first half of 2010. Included with UX are two signature apps Timescape and Mediascape, which allow users to manage their social networking activities (Timescape), and browse all the media, both on the phone and on the Internet (Mediascape).

And that’s almost it. Plus we have a video to share which Sony Ericsson kindly uploaded to YouTube. It follows after the jump. Enjoy!

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Video: Sony Ericsson Rachael UI looks impressive!

Dusan Belic — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 19:13:29 +0000

Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) may have a winner with the Rachael, which is set to be announced within two days. We’ve seen the teaser clip and now it’s time to see how this baby actually works. Yap, we have the UI video and I can tell you one thing – it rocks! The first Sony Ericsson Android-powered device will come with a WVGA (480×854 pixels) touchscreen and an optimized user interface that really takes advantage of the whole screen estate… Enough said, here’s the video. Enjoy!

[Via: Engadget Mobile]

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Rumour: Sony Ericsson Rachael Android due in UK on 3rd Nov?

Ben Robinson — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 01:29:20 +0000

Well, that’s what TechDigest reckons – and they are following up on evidence that the SE-Blog found on the Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) site!

For those of you that had forgotten the specs:

4?, 800 x 400 touchscreen

2G: 850/900/1800/1900 (Quad-Band)

3G: 900/2100 (Dual-Band); HSDPA (10Mbps), HSUPA (2Mbps)

8 megapixel camera with autofocus and 8 x digital zoom

LED Flash

Image Stabilization

Smile Shutter

Face Detection

VGA Video Recording

POP3, SMTP, IMAP4, MS Exchange e-mail

miniUSB, 3.5mm AV connector

Bluetooth (2.1), Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11g), AGPS

4?, 800 x 400 touchscreen
2G: 850/900/1800/1900 (Quad-Band)
3G: 900/2100 (Dual-Band); HSDPA (10Mbps), HSUPA (2Mbps)
8 megapixel camera with autofocus and 8 x digital zoom
LED Flash / Image Stabilization / Smile Shutter / Face Detection / VGA Video Recording
POP3, SMTP, IMAP4, MS Exchange e-mail
miniUSB, 3.5mm AV connector
Bluetooth (2.1), Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11g), AGPS

So I guess within a couple of days we’ll see how the rumours are – but if it’s true then we have got a real smartphone shootout on our hands over the Christmas period!!

[Story via: TechDigest/SE-Blog, Image via: eXpansys]

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Video: Sony Ericsson X10 (Rachel) Appears in Teaser

Simon Sage — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 20:06:44 +0000

Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) has been getting the gears turning for the launch of their first Android handset code-named Rachel with their What’s Next? website earlier this week, which has since been updated with this teaser video. This is the first official nod to the X10 device, though we’ve seen lots of hands-on pictures (mostly from when it was called the X3), and even a video of SE’s impressive custom user interface. Rumoured specs include a beefy 8 megapixel camera, 4″ WVGA touchscreen, 1 Ghz processor, GPS, Wi-Fi, 3G, 3.5mm headphone jack and the recently-released Android 2.0. January is our best guess for launch so far, but an official announcement will be happening November 3 (next Monday).

[via GSMArena]

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Sony Ericsson Satio: Consumers get a 1000 mAh battery while employees get 1350 mAh

Stefan Constantinescu — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 23:01:37 +0000

Steve O’Hear is in London this week for the 2009 Symbian Exchange and Exposition and had a brief sit down with Anders Westin, Head of Software Relations, Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE). Several questions were asked, mainly concerning Sony Ericsson’s current portfolio which spans every single smartphone operating system under the sun, including, hopefully, Android 2.0 on the XPERIA X3, but the kicker was Steve asking Anders why the Sony Ericsson Satio had such a piss poor battery. The Satio, for those unfamiliar with the device, has a 3.5 inch touch screen, runs Symbian S60 5th Edition and has a 12 megapixel camera. It eats batteries for breakfast. Sony Ericsson has been shipping the Satio with a 1000 mAh battery, and when Steve brought this up to up with Anders, he seemed a bit shocked. “Don’t you mean 1350mAh?” he said, lifting the battery cover off his device to reveal a 35% larger 1350 mAh battery, to which Steve, and many customers around the world, replied “ummm no. what the fuck?”

What gives Sony Ericsson?

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Sony Ericsson to announce new phone(s) on November 3rd

Dusan Belic — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:34:28 +0000

Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) is preparing to unveil new phones on November 3rd. The special “What’s next?” mini-site has been prepared for the occasion, hinting us we could finally see the Swedish-Japanese handset maker releasing something official on their Android plans. Yap, we hope to see the Xperia X3 announced, now that we’ve seen it in in-the-wild photos.

I’ll only remind of you of the X3’s specs – this baby should pack a 4-inch WVGA screen, 8-megapixel camera, and a 1 GHz Snapdragon CPU. In that sense “I want it” is an understatement.

[Via: Unwired View]

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Sony Ericsson Equinox hitting T-Mobile on October 28th; Two cool contests organized as part of the marketing campaign

Dusan Belic — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:11:05 +0000

T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) is Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE)’s main partner in the U.S. and now we have the two companies launching the mid-range clamshell, Equinox, on October 28th. Specs wise, there’s GPS on board, quad-band (850/900/1800/1900 MHz) GSM and dual-band (2100/1700 MHz) HSDPA radio, 3.2-megapixel camera, 2.2-inch QVGA screen, Bluetooth, FM radio, YouTube client, and so on. The key differentiating point of the Equinox is its “eye-catching night effects” feature that allow users to set different “pulsating light effects” for their favorite contacts. Kinda nerdy, don’t you think?

Anyway, to celebrate the launch, Sony Ericsson engaged its sexy ambassador, Maria Sharapova, who will make an appearance at the grand opening of a new T-Mobile store in Los Angeles on October 31st. At the event, the Swedish-Japanese company will hold a Maria Sharapova look-a-like contest, with prizes including Maria-style VIP treatment for a day, Sony Ericsson Equinox phones and Sony’s VAIO computers.

In addition, Sony Ericsson is organizing “Get Your Glam On” sweepstakes beginning November 9th. The winner of the contest will get a trip to Los Angeles to meet Kim Kardashian and receive the makeover from her personal glam squad…

[Image from UnwiredView]

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More Sony Ericsson XPERIA X3 (Rachel) pics surface

Will Park — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 21:35:09 +0000

The Android revolution has begun, and you know what that means – loads of Android smartphone spy pics! We’ve already seen the Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) XPERIA X3 (Rachel) doing its thing in the wild, and we even have video demonstrating the Rachel’s customized Android UI concept. But, we still can’t get us enough of the Rachel. So, we’re happy to see another round of Rachel spy pics coming to light. This go ’round, Mobile Crunch is calling it the Sony Ericsson “X10.” What happened to all those other “X’s” is beyond us.

The X10 you see in these pictures is reportedly running the vanilla Android UI, and not the “Rachel” UI that we’ve seen before. The lighting here is way better than we’ve previously seen in X3/X10 spy photos, but it’s as blur-tastic as most other spy pics. Maybe whoever took these pics thought it would be funny to use a Motorola (NYSE: MOT) RAZR as a camera.

The Sony Ericsson XPERIA X3/X10 (Rachel) is still expected to launch in the first quarter of 2010 with its 4-inch WVGA capacitive touchscreen, 8.1-megapixel camera, 1Ghz Snapdragon processor, GPS, WiFi, 3G data and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Android 2.0 OS (Eclair) will likely be on tap to battle the well-endowed HTC Dragon.

Enjoy the pics, it’s going to be a long winter!

[Via: MobileCrunch and PhoneDog]

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Video: Sony Ericsson Jalou by Dolce&Gabbana commercial

Dusan Belic — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:03:03 +0000

Remember the arguably stylish Sony Ericsson Jalou? One of the device versions was co-signed by Dolce&Gabbana and that specific device got a new commercial. Here’s what’s it all about right from the horse’s mouth (that’s Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana):

The campaign theme plays with the concept of jealousy and desire for a must have object, the protagonists are willing to do whatever is necessary to get it before everyone else, the link with the Dolce&Gabbana brand is the strong femininity, the exclusivity and luxury of the women that wear the Dolce&Gabbana clothing, use the Jalou by Dolce&Gabbana phone and embrace our world in general.

The two companies are also running print campaign, which is reportedly totally created by Dolce&Gabbana. And now the mentioned clip. Enjoy!

[Via: SEMC blog]

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