I’m really liking the pitter patter of tiny Android feet coming from Sony Ericsson in the form of the new X10 Mini and X10 Mini Pro and what better way to get more acquainted than with an official demo video from the SE Developer World channel on YouTube. The device looks nice and fast and I think could be a big success, let’s hope the release is as fast as the OS response:
The Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 – arguably the most hotly anticipated Android handset now that Google’s own Nexus One has landed – is now officially up with an April release date on the Vodafone UK site.
We’ve naturally become pretty intimate with the device over the last few months – it was expected at the end of last year – but the our excitement at the prospect of a Snapdragon-powered, 8-megapixel snapping beast like the XPERIA X10 has not diminished at all.
Smartphone specs like GPS, Wi-Fi and Exchange support are all present and correct, and the 4-inch capacitive touch display is the perfect home for Sony Ericsson’s heavily customised UX interface. We’re still eager to see if there are any elements of Android still peeking out of Time and Mediascape, but the tiles and threaded nature for contacts and messages are very much appealing.
Roll on April!
Today marked the official unveiling of the Sony Ericsson Vivaz, an 8-megapixel camera handset with HD video recording and a tapered design apparently built upon the idea of ‘human curvature’. Brought forward from an April release to roll out alongside the Android-powered XPERIA X10 in March for a dual flagship launch, both handsets are a big deal for Sony Ericsson.
The Vivaz focusses on bringing the best of communication entertainment, with media player and easy access to social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter.
Sony Ericsson are reportedly spending in the region of £4 million to increase awareness of the pair in the UK, with a combination of print, TV and billboard advertising on the way to raise their profile in the coming months. The Vivaz will be pushed to the youth as an fun-filled device, whilst the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 will be pitched as a connectivity powerhouse, showing off their customised revamp of Google’s Android operating system.
With the Satio and Aino attracting some negative feedback upon their respective launches, these new Sony Erisson phones are sure to mark a change in direction for the manufacturer in 2010.
That infernal twitter nonsense, that everyone but me seems to like, appears to have helped draw attention to something worth looking at. Canadian mobile phone network Rogers have tweeted (what a ridiculous term!) that they are to receive the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 in Q2 of 2010. Thankfully there is also a link to the real part of the internet where there is more information about the phone and launch, though of course we already know all about the phone:
Toronto , January 5, 2010 – Canadians will be among the first in the world to experience open and integrated social media, communication and entertainment with the launch of the Sony Ericsson Xperia ™ X10 phone, which will make its North American debut first in Canada , exclusively from Rogers . The Xperia ™ X10 is expected to be available in the second quarter 2010.
“At Rogers , we have built our legacy on innovation, bringing the most exciting and exclusive handsets first to customers in Canada ,” said John Boynton , Executive Vice President, Marketing, Rogers Communications. “We are thrilled to be the exclusive Canadian carrier to offer this phenomenal mobile entertainment device.”
“Building on our entertainment heritage, the Xperia ™ X10 underpins our commitment to an open and multi-platform strategy that maximizes choice for the consumer and delivers the best possible entertainment experience,” said Andrea Gaal, General Manager, Sony Ericsson Canada . “This handset makes communications more fun and more playful while multiplying and enriching opportunities to connect.”
Introducing signature applications like Sony Ericsson Mediascape and Timescape™, the Xperia™ X10 lets consumers organize everything in their phone and in an intuitive way:
• The Sony Ericsson Timescape™ application manages all your communication with one person in one place. Browse through your conversations and check out your Facebook™, Twitter™ and MySpace™ accounts 1 , photos, emails 1 , and texts 1 all in one seamless, easy to use interface
• Sony Ericsson Mediascape application is the smart way to get all the music, photos and videos you want from your favourite friends and artists. It accesses this content from just about everywhere – your phone or YouTube™ and Facebook™ services 1 and presents everything for you in an integrated way
Intelligence capabilities, integrated into Sony Ericsson Mediascape and Timescape™ applications, automatically recognizes connections between contacts, content and media. By recommending alternative ways to communicate or guiding to new media experiences, consumers can discover more in a truly open way. For example:
• Pressing the new “infinite button” guides you through the connected world, aggregating all your interactions with one person into one view
• Intelligent face recognition features recognize up to five faces in any picture, automatically connecting them with your social phonebook and all other related communications with that person. The X10 also features an 8.1 megapixel camera including 16X digital zoom.
The UX platform builds on top of the Open OS (Android) and creates a unique Sony Ericsson user experience by combining best-in-class entertainment features with signature applications, unrivalled integration of social media services and a rich graphical user interface. The Xperia™ X10 phone is the first mobile phone to truly humanize the way people interact with their phones.
Sony Ericsson’s open approach gives consumers maximum choice. Xperia X10 users can download any application they want directly from Android Market, creating an experience that is entirely unique to them.
It may not be much of a surprise that this makes Rogers the first North American carrier to get the X10 but my worry is still over when the X10 will make it to Europe. I would expect a Sony Ericsson device to release in Europe before North America but the claim by Rogers that “Canadians will be among the first in the world” suggests that there won’t be many releases before this and if there are they may not be much earlier. We’re already expecting the X10 to be delayed but Q2, that’s any time from April until June, sounds like bad news to me. With Google preparing to announce the Nexus One in a few minutes and suggestions that it might go on sale immediately, Sony Ericsson may be missing the boat (again) and would do well to take a lesson from Google on how to launch a product!
Sony Ericsson X10 pre-register
Mik
PS- twitter I still hate you!
Missing out on the big Xmas season, the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X2 is now slated for a January release on the official Vodafone site in the UK, the network set to have a period of exclusivity for the business slider.
With a 3.2-inch high resolution touchscreen and 8.1 megapixel camera, the X2 is ready for pleasure as well as business…well, it would have been if the Windows Mobile 6.5-powered device had made its Q4 release window.
Between the Sony Ericsson Satio being pulled from shelves over problematic firmware and the Aino having touchscreen performance issues, the delay for their smarphone sequel is unfortunate.
With a swathe of hot handsets earmarked for launch early in the new year — including Sony Ericsson’s own Android-ready XPERIA X10 — the luxurious X2 will have to jostle for position amongst an array of releases from the competition.
Having taught us how to make calls on the X10, Sony Ericsson have now put together a couple more tutorials, this time showing messaging and Timescape on the device.
Messaging on the X10:
Timescape:
Things are looking good to me and I’m far from bored of watching stuff about this handset…just let me buy one!!
Mik
We’re currently expanding towards Android and it seems Sony Ericsson are liking that direction too. You don’t need reminding about the Xperia X10 which will be SE’s first Android based device but what we haven’t really heard before is how they feel about Android itself.
Well over on the SE Product Blog Rikard Skogberg has offered his thoughts on the platform after spending some time with the X10. It seems Android is making a good impression too as Rikard likes how smooth the OS feels as well as the number of apps available and the innovative spirit that surrounds them.
Head over and read the rest of the article for more thoughts: Some Personal Thoughts Around The Android OS
Mik
You probably didn’t think you needed telling how to make calls but Sony Ericsson thought they’d provide a tutorial anyway. Seeing as we like to see as much as possible regarding the X10’s progress we thought it was worth a look so here you go:
Mik
It would come as no surprise to most of you if Sony Ericsson was to delay the launch of a high end handset, in fact it’s actually come to be expected! Well that expectation just increased for the Xperia X10!
We recently reported that the Official SE E-Store was showing a specific release date of Feb 10th but no sooner than people could pour scepticism on the date, it’s been removed. The very same E-Store now shows “TO BE ANNOUNCED”.
This may be just a precaution from SE or, more ominously, a sign that the X10 has already been delayed from the February Launch!
Mik
Our good friend rog has posted a huge preview of the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 over at se-first.com.
The preview offers videos of Timescape, Mediascape, e-mail client, browser, messaging and camera application in action as well as a plethora of live images!
Here’s a snippet of the article:
Let’s start with some facts and figures. The X10 sports (among a lot of others) the following main-features:
Android 1.6 (Donut)
WVGA screen (480 x 854)
Scratch resistant, 4 inches, capacitive TFT touchsreen
Size: 119 x 63 x 13 mm, 135 grams
1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon QSD8250 processor
Sony Ericsson Timescape™ & Mediascape™ User Interface2
HSPA
8 Megapixel camera with touchfocus, multipoint-focus, automatic scene detection, smile detection
WVGA video recording
Face recognition on pictures
aGPS
Exchange ActiveSync
3.5mm headset jack, miniUSB connector
1500mAh battery
……….
Let’s get into details a bit more, our first video gives you some impressions of the Xperia X10’s look, which hopefully gives you some better feeling of the Android device (for best quality, watch it in HD!):
……….
Next thing: let’s have a look at the newly introduced concept of Timescape™ and Mediascape™, which basically represents Sony Ericsson’s customization of the Android UI.
……….
What can we say about XPERIA X10 at the current stage? Well… It is definitely fun to use, the huge screen displays every content in a brilliant way, the capacitive screen is responsive, and once the firmware gets into a more final state, the phone for sure will also be more fluent in the usage. A glimps on the power that is hidden under the hood is very noticable already now in the browser, which is ultra-fast.
Sony Ericsson’s approach of including a wide area of social networks and tearing down the borders between those services in such a forceful way is certainly something new in the mobile phone area. A little doubt remains though: will the average (and even the above-average) user really make complete use of all the features that the X10 offers?
The preview is excellent and the phone is looking great, probably the most responsive we’ve seen it performing so far. So head on over to se-first.com to read the full article as well as another two videos and of course loads of live photos.
Cheers rog!
Mik
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