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Vivaz Announced Ahead of Schedule … Viva!

Thursday, January 21st, 2010

So it’s finally official … Sony Ericsson’s 2nd Symbian smartphone Kurara, or as she is now to be officially known, ‘Vivaz’ (yes it is an odd sounding name, but we’ll get to the name a little later on), will launch ’sometime this quarter’, which would be in keeping with our post from yesterday, which gave a time frame of week nine i.e. the first week in March. The initial leaked shots that had been doing the rounds really didn’t do Vivaz justice, it looks pretty stunning in the press release photos. Interestingly enough it looks like the announcement was made a little sooner than was intended since it’s been pulled as of the time of writing, but no doubt it will appear again soon enough. Anyway let’s begin by looking at the specs list:

Symbian 5th
3.2″ touchscreen, 640×360
8.1 MP camera
720p HD video recording
720 MHz processor
WiFi
AGPS
TV-out

As you will see from the press pictures it comes in a variety of colours and as I said before it actually doesn’t look half bad, from the front at least. I still think the back looks … well, unfinished to be honest. For some reason the dark blue variant catches my eye, but I digress … The official names for the colours are Galaxy Blue, Moon Silver, Venus Ruby and Cosmic Black (not the astronomical references).

Ok now the name! It’s certainly an odd sounding name for a phone and in a spot of deja vu it’s like the Idou/Satio situation; Kurara sounds better to the ear. Still time will tell, but it’s hard to imagine many men sitting at the pub and their mates asking what phone they have only to be told ‘it’s a Vivaz!’. I’ll leave you in the very capable hands of Daniel Sandblom of Sony Ericsson for a demo of the handset.

Posted in announcement, new-phone, news, symbian | No Comments »

Nexus One Official Specs

Tuesday, January 5th, 2010

nexus-one

So the Google Android conference went as planned and the Nexus One is now very unsurprisingly official. It can be bought online from google.com/phone but the same site also offers the official details that we already sort of knew.

Firstly there’s a nice 3D tour which also summarises things such as the dimensions (119 x 59.8 x 11.5mm), screen (3.7″ 480 x 800 pixel), weight (130g), 5MP camera with LED flash, 3.5mm headpone jack and an additional mic for noise canceling as well as providing the chance to see how it looks in a hand your size.

Beyond this is a full spec sheet:

Size and weight:
Height – 119mm
Width – 59.8mm
Depth – 11.5mm
Weight – 130 grams w/battery

Display:
3.7-inch (diagonal) widescreen WVGA AMOLED touchscreen
800 x 480 pixels
100,000:1 typical contrast ratio
1ms typical response rate

Operating system:
Android Mobile Technology Platform 2.1 (Eclair)

Processor:
Qualcomm QSD 8250 1 GHz

Capacity:
512MB Flash
512MB RAM
4GB Micro SD Card (Expandable to 32 GB)

Camera & Flash:
5 megapixels
Autofocus from 6cm to infinity
2X digital zoom
LED flash
Geo tagging
720 x 480 video capture at 20 frames per second or higher

Power and battery:
Removable 1400 mAH battery
Charges at 480mA from USB, at 980mA from supplied charger
Talk time – up to 10 hours on 2G, up to 7 hours on 3G
Standby time – up to 290 hours on 2G, up to 250 hours on 3G
Internet use – up to 5 hours on 3G, up to 6.5 hours on Wi-Fi
Video playback – up to 7 hours
Audio playback – up to 20 hours

Cellular & Wireless:
UMTS Band 1/4/8 (2100/AWS/900)
HSDPA 7.2Mbps
HSUPA 2Mbps
GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)
Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n)
Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
A2DP stereo Bluetooth

Location:
Assisted global positioning system (AGPS) receiver
Cell tower and Wi-Fi positioning
Digital compass
Accelerometer

Graphics, video and audio:
Image
JPEG (encode and decode), GIF, PNG, BMP

Video
H.263 (encode and decode) MPEG-4 SP (encode and decode) H.264 AVC (decode)

Audio encoders
AMR-NB 4.75 to 12.2 kbps sampled @ 8kHz

Audio decoders
AAC LC/LTP, HE-AACv1 (AAC+), HE-AACv2 (enhanced AAC+) Mono/Stereo standard bit rates up to 160 kbps and sampling rates from 8 to 48kHz, AMR-NB 4.75 to 12.2 kbps sampled @ 8kHz, AMR-WB 9 rates from 6.60 kbit/s to 23.85 kbit/s sampled @ 16kHz., MP3 Mono/Stereo 8-320Kbps constant (CBR) or variable bit-rate (VBR), MIDI SMF (Type 0 and 1), DLS Version 1 and 2, XMF/Mobile XMF, RTTTL/RTX, OTA, iMelody, Ogg Vorbis, WAVE (8-bit and 16-bit PCM)

Hardware features:

Oh and they are officially trying to create a new phone category above smartphones called “superphones”. Obviously theyare including the Nexus One in that category but didn’t actually say that it is an exclusive member.

Mik

Tags: android, Google, Nexus One
Posted in android, announcement | No Comments »

Greenhearts Elm and Hazel Announced

Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009

Sony Ericsson recently presented their latest Greenheart tree-hugging phones – aptly named Elm and Hazel. Both the devices pack pretty much the same features – 5 megapixel auto focus cameras, Wi-Fi connectivity and GPS receivers complete with the preinstalled Google Maps and Wisepilot mapping apps, the only difference being that the Hazel has a slider form factor while the Elm is close to your regular Sony Ericsson candybar.

sony-ericsson-hazel2

All Android rumors have been put to rest as both the devices run on Sony Ericsson’s proprietary OS, the fresh look that we saw in spy pics being due to social networking integration via homescreen widgets.

Screen resolution remains at the QVGA standard (320 x 240 pixels), but what’s surprising here is that the one on Hazel is 2.6 inches large and sports a 16.7 million colour TFT, whereas it’s only 2.2 inches on the Elm sporting a 262.144-colour TFT.

sony-ericsson-elm-2

What’s new here is that they both pack in some innovative sound enhancing technologies such as Noise Shield, Clear Voice and Intelligent Volume Adaptation. ‘Clear Voice’ is a technology that is supposed to make a caller’s voice more distinguishable from eventual background noise whereas ‘Noise Shield’ does the opposite,reducing background noise during a call in order to improve the voice quality for the recipient of your call.

The Sony Ericsson Elm will be available in Metal Black and Pearly Rose from Q1 2010. The Sony Ericsson Hazel will be available in Superior Black and Passionate Rouge from Q2 2010.

Official Press Release

Tags: J10, J20, press-release
Posted in announcement, greenheart, j-series, news, upcoming | No Comments »

Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Announced

Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009

We all knew it was coming but it’s great to finally have it officially announced with confirmed specs, release date and name for that matter. Sony Ericsson’s first Android offering, the Xperia X10 with 1GHz Snapdragon.

From the Press Release:

XPERIA™ X10 is the flagship phone in a family of phones coming to market during the first half of 2010. The XPERIA™ X10 will be available in Q1 2010.
New UX (user experience) platform lets consumers organise everything and discover more with the most open, human and intuitive user experience yet.

London – November 3 2009 – Sony Ericsson today unveils the XPERIA™ X10, the first phone in a family of phones to deliver a consistent user experience where communication truly becomes entertainment. Building on Sony Ericsson’s entertainment heritage and combining rich graphics with intelligence capabilities, the XPERIA™ X10 introduces a new UX platform that will evolve across the product portfolio and expand over time continuously introducing new features and capabilities.

The Sony Ericsson XPERIA™ X10 at a glance:

Facts:
Size: 119 x 63 x 13 mm
Weight: 135 grams
Phone memory: Up to 1 GB
Memory card support: microSD™
Memory card included: 8 GB
Operating system: Google™ Android Donut, version 1.6
Processor: 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon™ QSD8250

Screen:
262,144 colour TFT touchscreen
4.0 inches
480 x 854 pixels (WVGA)
Scratch-resistant

Availability and versions:
Networks
UMTS HSPA 900/1700/2100
GSM GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
UMTS HSPA 800/1900/2100
GSM GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
Available in selected markets in Q1 2010

Colour:
Sensuous Black
Luster White

Camera:
8.1 megapixel camera
Up to 16x digital zoom
Auto focus
Intelligent face recognition features
Geo tagging
Image and video stabilizer
Photo and video light
Send to web (photo and video upload)
Smile detection
Touch focus
Video recording
Recent shot tray

Music:
Album art
Bluetooth™ stereo (A2DP)
Media player
Music tones (MP3/AAC)
PlayNow™
TrackID™

Web:
Bookmarks
Google™ search (from standby)
Web feeds
WebKit web browser

Communication:
Sony Ericsson Timescape™
Speakerphone
Vibrating alert

Messaging:
Conversations
Email
Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync®
Picture messaging (MMS)
Predictive text input
Text messaging (SMS)

Design:
Auto rotate
Gesture control
Picture wallpaper
Touchscreen

Entertainment:
3D games
Media browser
Infinite button
Video streaming
Video viewing
YouTube™

Organiser:
Alarm clock
Calculator
Calendar
Flight mode
Infinite button
Office suite
Phone book with dialer
World clock

Location-based services:
A-GPS
Google Maps™
Wisepilot™ turn-by-turn navigation* (free trial version)
*The service may not be available in every market. For more information, go to www.sonyericsson.wisepilot.com

Connectivity:
3.5 mm audio jack
Bluetooth™ technology
Micro USB connector
Synchronisation
USB support
Wi-Fi™

Preloaded applications:
Sony Ericsson Timescape™
Sony Ericsson Mediascape
Sony Ericsson Home with clock widget
Sony Ericsson Sync
Android Market™ Client
Gmail™
Google Calendar™
Google Maps™ with Street View
Google Media Uploader
Google phone-top search
Google search widget
Google Talk™
Google Voice Search™
Network Location Provider
Set-up Wizard
YouTube™

Accessories:
In-Box:
XPERIA™ X10
Battery
Stereo portable handsfree
8 GB microSD™ card
Micro USB cable for charging, synchronisation and file transfer
User documentation

Optional:
Hi-Fi Wireless Headset with FM Radio MW600
Car Charger AN300
Screen Protector ET902

Yes, the 1GHz Snapdragon is there but the rumored 32GB ROM is only 1GB with an 8GB microSD, though that’s enough for me.

Interestingly the Android version is listed as 1.6 though I’m sure the 2.0 upgrade will be there as soon as it can be. There seems to be plenty of SE customisation too with things like SE Mediascape and Timescape™ as well as the custom UI we’ve already seen so much of. Notice also that the Press Release starts off by saying this is the flagship of a family of phones coming in 2010! Can’t wait to see SE’s other Android babies!

Here’s a couple of videos from SE for you to enjoy:

So start saving, you know you want one! And meanwhile check out the shiny new Product Page

Cheers,

Mik

Tags: android, announcement, X10, xperia
Posted in android, announcement, news, xperia | 6 Comments »

Mik’s Impatient Opinions: Introduction

Sunday, October 25th, 2009

Hi guys and girls,

I’d like to introduce something new for you, it’s “Mik’s Impatient Opinions”. Think of this as a review source but in a rather different way to the normal, in depth reviews you’re used to. After all there’s plenty of other people already doing that and I neither see the point or can really be bothered doing the same thing!

So instead I’m going to give you something a little more personal. I’m typically short on patience, quick to form opinions and quick to condemn. I think in this way I can cut to the chase and tell you what you really need to know in an efficient and possibly entertaining way though I expect some things I write may not be what fanboys want to hear.

I won’t be doing detailed comparisons, I don’t intend on spending hours taking photographs and I won’t be covering massive amounts of handsets but I will try to use my own style to highlight things that will affect your every day user experience with a device or application etc.

So keep a look out for my first article, especially if you’re considering a Satio, and I hope you enjoy what I write for you.

Cheers,

Mik

Tags: Mik's Opinion
Posted in Opinion, announcement, article, impressions, rants | 4 Comments »

MH907 Motion Controlled Headphones Announced

Monday, September 21st, 2009

MH907 Headphones

Sony Ericsson unveiled the world’s first motion controlled headphones today, the MH907. Over the past year some Sony Ericsson announcements have been met with a groan, others with high expectations that fell flat, but today’s announcement of the MH907, codenamed ‘Gandalf’, actually seems, for lack of a better description, pretty cool.

The premise behind the headphones is rather simple, you put both headphones in your ears, and thanks to the SenseMe technology, your music starts playing. If you remove the headphones the music stops. Pretty sweet eh? There’s more though because if you just put an earphone in one ear it activates the call mode to allow you to take a call. Even better there’s no chance of calls being answered accidentally because the headphones respond to body contact so if you have both in all you will hear is sweet music.

Now for the bad news … they use the Fastport connector so they will only work with Sony Ericsson handsets. It seems like such a wasted opportunity to bring these headphones to the masses. Sony Ericsson are probably thinking that they may act as an incentive for people to buy a Sony Ericsson phone, but how many times has an accessory acted as a deal breaker?

Posted in accessories, announcement, music | No Comments »

Sony Ericsson to Change Music Forever on 21st September?

Tuesday, September 15th, 2009

Music Forever

Sony Ericsson are all set to change the way we listen to music forever come 21st September. Cliche? Probably, but if it means a new handset or product who cares? Hopefully it isn’t just a cliche and we really do get to see something that makes us go ‘wow’, it would be good to see Sony Ericsson getting back to form by doing that. It would also be nice to see Sony Ericsson giving a little love to the music side of things after what’s been a year or so dominated by big cameras and ‘artsy’ phones. Anyhoo … you can check out the (spartan) website here and sign up for the webcast.

[via IntoMobile]

Posted in announcement, music | 10 Comments »

Sony Ericsson Xperia Pureness announced

Friday, September 4th, 2009

xperia-pureness

Sony Ericsson gave everyone a surprise by announcing the XPERIA Pureness (remember ‘Kiki’? ), a new feature phone, at a media event on Thursday in London. The device was shown off to affirm Sony Ericsson’s new brand message, titled “make.believe.” Sony Ericsson showed it off as “a simple design phone which brings together beautiful craftsmanship and the concept of “talk, text, time – a holiday from technology”. The device sports a transparent screen and while the bottom half of the phone looks like a regular candybar, except without any writing on the buttons, the top half looks like its made of glass with most of the screen completely transparent.

The Xperia Pureness will be officially launched in November 2009 through selected retail distribution channels in key cities around the world.

Official Press Release

Posted in announcement, news, upcoming, x-series, xperia | 2 Comments »