Archive for the ‘rumour’ Category

Abelin: New Android Handset at MWC?

Monday, January 25th, 2010

There are a fair few rumours doing the rounds on the tubes right now that Sony Ericsson may be set to unveil another Android handset at MWC in addition to Robyn. Apparently this new Android handset, Abelin, will resemble a Blackberry, in as much as it is supposed to have a physical QWERTY keyboard at any rate. Other details are predictably sketchy at this stage, but the current talk is of a 5 MP camera and of it being part of the XPERIA range with some even bandying around a designation of ‘X9′. To be honest it sounds remarkably similar to Faith, the WinMo QWERTY handset that was leaked the other week. Could they be the same handset and someone just got the OS mixed up? Possibly, but then Faith only has a 3 MP camera and the specs list for that is a lot more developed than what we are hearing for Abelin. MWC can’t come fast enough!

[via pointgphone.com & others]

X10 To Ship With Android 2.0?

Tuesday, January 19th, 2010

Take this with a bit of salt for the moment, but during a rather interesting conversation earlier today I was reliably informed that a side effect of the delay in launching the X10 would be that it would ship with Android 2.0. The original announcement set the handset’s OS as Android 1.6 of course and there were some who lamented the lack of the newer 2.0 as seen in devices like Motorola’s Droid/Milestone. Sony Ericsson quickly responded by saying that an upgrade to 2.0 (and multi-touch) would take place, but didn’t give any timescale. If this information proves correct then it would mean the X10 starts life on a more even keel with other Android handsets and perhaps more importantly would end speculation over when (and if) it would receive the 2.0 update.

It’s not just the X10 that’s about to be released of course, Kurara is almost upon us too! In fact I was told to expect it in week nine or in other words the first week of March. Whether that means Kanna will be released at the same time or not wasn’t mentioned. Interestingly enough though, well interesting if you live in the UK anyway, it looks like 3 have definitely signed up to stock Kurara. As for the X10 T-Mobile will apparently stock the handset, which is a little surprising given that they have had a somewhat troubled relationship with high-end handsets of late. There was no mention of exactly what other networks would stock the X10, but contract pricing was said to be ‘reasonsble’, somewhere in the £35/month range.

Live Pictures of Robyn

Saturday, January 9th, 2010

Some rather spiffing new pictures of Robyn have appeared on the tubes, not long after the initial leak. Robyn is shown side by side an iPhone of all things so you should be able to get a better idea of its size than the X10 comparison shots since few will have actually handled an X10 yet.

Robyn-iPhone3Robyn-iPhone2Robyn-iPhone3

[via PointGPhone]

Robyn: New Android Handset

Thursday, January 7th, 2010

Another day, another leak. This time it’s Robyn, the next Sony Ericsson Android handset (after the X10). It looks remarkably similar to the X10 in fact albeit a good deal smaller. It also comes in a variety of colours; alongside the lack of XPERIA branding this signifies Robyn is aimed at a lower market segment than the X10.


Robyn-X10
Robyn Colours

Specs wise we’re looking at:

  • 5 MP camera
  • 3.5 mm jack
  • HSPA
  • WiFi
  • USB charging
  • 2.6″ touchscreen

Along with Kanna Robyn is set to be announced at MWC in February. Let’s hope that these latest handsets don’t go the way of the X2

[via se-blog.com]

Kanna – Kurara’s Sister

Wednesday, January 6th, 2010

Mitch over on se-blog.com has posted up some pictures of Kanna, a sibling of Kurara. It’s not just the names that are similar, the specifications are largely similar; the main difference being that Kanna sports a slide out QWERTY keyboard. Mitch reckons the announcement will be during the MWC in February.

Kanna 1Kanna 2

So what are we talking specs wise?

  • 3.2″ TFT screen, 640×360
  • 8 MP camera
  • 720p HD video recording
  • Wi-Fi
  • 3.5mm audio jack
  • Symbian 60 5th Edition
  • 720 MHz processor

[via se-blog.com]

Susie Ericsson … er Sony Ericsson Susan Spotted

Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009

Remember the J10? The little handset that people were wondering ran Android or not? Well the Android part still seems up for debate if chatter in the blogosphere is anything to go by, but there is another picture for you to have a peek at. The actual specs list is obviously not available, but rumour has it that the J10 will be part of the Greenheart line and feature a 5 MP camera and Wi-Fi.

SE J10 (Susan)

[via ubergizmo]

Video: Nexus One

Wednesday, December 16th, 2009

The last couple of days have seen something of a flurry of Android news, pretty much all centring around the ‘Google Phone’ or Nexus One to use its proper title. There have already been a few pictures leaked and of course the specs list is pretty much public knowledge, but there are finally some videos of the handset available. From what I’ve seen so far it looks nice, but X10 nice? I’ll still be buying Sony Ericsson …

[via Engadget]

Google gPhone A-Go-Go?

Wednesday, November 25th, 2009

gPhone Mockup

Some of you will probably have already seen the rumours of the gPhone, a handset purported to be Google branded and promoted by the internet giant. To be fair rumours of a gPhone have been around for a while now, the initial rumours eventually coalescing into the Android OS and the G1. However, these latest rumours seem to be a bit more firm and look to be taken seriously by more than a few commentators.

What’s so interesting about these latest rumours is the idea that Google is planning “an all-out assault on the mobile phone market”. What does that mean? Well The Times is reporting that it will feature a buuilt in advanced version of Google Voice for “the first extensive Google phone service with unlimited free calls”. Such a phone, running Android, would be the first time one company basically controlled everything on the phone, from the software to the firmware to the calls themselves. That would be a serious move if it proved to be true because it would offer a direct challenge, not only to the established manufacturers, but to the networks too.

In terms of specs there is obviously not much to go on at this stage, but the Times mentions that it will be “… one of the most advanced smartphones, with a large touchscreen display an a [Qualcomm] processor almost twice as fast as the one powering Apple’s iPhone 3G S”. Predictions are that it will run the Flan version of Android, which will reportedly usher in high performance 3D gaming for Android.

The big problem for Google though is that if they do release something like this, and reports are saying it could be out as soon as early next year, it would lay down the gauntlet to the mobile networks. With the ability to make unlimited free calls using Google Voice  the networks would essentially become dumb pipes providing nothing more than a connection. Networks don’t seem to like that proposal as has been shown time and time again (NTT DoCoMo aside). If the networks feel that a gPhone challenges their profit margins or relegates them to a back seat role will they be prepared to subsidise it? If not then what are the options open to Google? Well not many except selling the handset directly to consumers and we all know how expensive high-end SIM free handsets can be. Will consumers pay? They seem willing to pay high prices for the iPhone and maybe a high initial cost coupled with unlimited free calls might just be enough to sell it.

[via Pocket-lint]

Mobile-Review Previews Kurara

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

Eldar has put pen to paper, well fingers to keyboard, and published a preview of the much leaked Kurara. It’s an interesting read, pretty long, but certainly gives a good taste of what the handset is all about. As you would expect there’s a tonne of pictures for you to feast on, Head on over to Mobile-Review to check it out. Oh and there is a video sample from the phone!

[Mobile-Review via SE-Blog.com]

Pureness 2 In The Works

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

It looks like Pureness wasn’t a one off, at least according to the Mirror. They spoke with the man who designed the Pureness, Daniel Mauritzson, who said that Sony Ericsson are already working on a follow-up to Pureness. Interestingly though it looks like they aren’t seeking to add more to Purneess 2, but rather make it even simpler. How much simpler it can get I’m not sure, but they’re trying anyway. The idea is apparently to offer a counter-balance to the eve more feature packed phones we see being released.

Mr Mauritzson did hint that the focus would e very much on the software in Pureness 2 rather than the hardware. He said that Pureness itself had beena  challenge for Sony Ericsson’s designers because of the monochrome screen, which forced them to think in terms of things like high-contrast icons. Pureness took 2 years to develop (who would have guessed simplicity took so long?), so Purneess 2 will probably be just as long on the drawig board before it sees the light of day.

[via The Mirror]