• March 13th, 2012

    Sony Unveils The Xperia Sola: Look, Mom! No Hands!

    Screen shot 2012-03-13 at 2.14.03 PM

    Sony’s been bringing it lately, with a trifecta of monosyllabic Xperia goodness at CES and MWC. I personally believe that a key ingredient in the secret sauce may be Sony’s ability to keep the new phones classy — the Xperia S, U, and P all got high marks from us in terms of build, feel in the hand, and overall aesthetic quality. But the newest member of the Xperia clan may have trouble living up to the standard; that is, if the reality of this “floating touch” thing is anything close to what I’m imagining.

    The freshly announced Sony Xperia Sola is definitely trying to be a forward-thinking phone. Sony’s packed it full of fun technology like NFC-enabled Xperia SmartTags, a (relatively small, yet actually perfectly proportioned) 3.7-inch Reality Display with a Sony Mobile Bravia Engine, 3D surround sound audio tech, and access to the new Sony Entertainment Network. Oh, and we can’t forget that whole “floating touch” thing. → Read More

    February 26th, 2012

    TC@MWC: Hands-On With The Sony Xperia U

    x1

    Besides a fear of imminent conjunctivitis from handling the same phone as hundreds of others at the Sony Xperia Press Event at the GSMA Mobile World Congress…what else comes to mind?

    This phone — a model marketed mostly toward a younger segment — is, to me, reminiscent in some minuscule way of the old Sony W series phones I loved so much (way back in the day). I think it’s the thickness that reminds me of its Cro-Magnon predecessor. → Read More

    February 26th, 2012

    Sony Officially Unveils The Xperia P And Xperia U At MWC

    xperias

    While the idea of skipping Sony’s event to watch a beautiful Barcelona sunset was strangely appealing, we nevertheless come to you from Sony’s press event where the recently divorced company has just (officially) revealed two new handsets, the Xperia P and the Xperia U. → Read More

    November 15th, 2011

    Sony Ericsson Clarifies Xperia Ice Cream Sandwich Plans

    android-ice-cream-sandwich

    In addition to outlining its plans in Dutch on Facebook, Sony Ericsson has clarified its stance on bringing Ice Cream Sandwich to the Xperia-toting masses on its blog today.

    As if you haven’t been obsessively reading up on the update already, I’ll go ahead and mention a few new features including flexible widgets, Roboto font, the ability to take screen shots, revamped notifications and facial unlock. Luckily, if your phone came out in 2011 and it has “Xperia” in the name, Ice Cream Sandwich is headed your way.
    → Read More

    October 20th, 2011

    Sony Ericsson Plans To Release Android 4.0 To The Xperia Line In 2012

    SE Facebook

    Sony Ericsson has joined HTC in offering up a general plan for pushing the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich updates to existing handsets.

    In a message on its Dutch Facebook page, the company has said it will roll out Ice Cream Sandwich to all 2011 Xperia handsets. Phones that should receive the update include the Xperia Play, Xperia neo and neo V, Mini Pro, Xperia Ray, and the Xperia arc. → Read More

    October 14th, 2011

    Sony Ericsson Sold 22 Million Android Devices To Date, Going Smartphone-Only In 2012

    se

    A day after Google announced that 190 million Android devices have been manufactured to date, Sony Ericsson this morning revealed that 22 million of those that were sold were its Android-powered Xperia smartphones.

    In fact, 80 percent of the company’s sales now comes from higher-end mobile devices, which is why Sony Ericsson will be shifting its entire product portfolio to smartphones during 2012, the company said.

    Sony Ericsson estimates that its share of the global Android-based smartphone market during Q3 was approximately 12 percent in volume. → Read More

    June 10th, 2011

    Hands-On With The Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY At E3 2011

    Did you hear? I’m a fan of the Xperia Play. Watch the video above and I say it about a billion times. Thanks to the flights to and from E3 (and several boring bar nights at the event), I’ve put in lots of time with the Android gaming device and have fallen in love. My little E3 meeting calmed my fears of device abandonment as it seems SE is ready to support the Play with a steady release of new games. Full review will drop in the coming days. → Read More

    March 22nd, 2011

    The New Xperia Play Commercial Is Cute (Video)

    There’s just something about Kristen Schaal’s quirkiness I find cute. They got her to compare gaming on the Xperia Play to the iPhone in a sort of Apple-esque manner (solid colored background, three point lighting, two people standing on screen comparing something). Either way, the Xperia offers some pretty good gameplay. Check it out after the break. → Read More

    January 24th, 2011

    A Long Hands-On With The Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc

    I’m totally down with Sony Ericsson trying almost anything to stay relevant in non-niche markets, so the Xperia Arc looks actually exciting and/or good. Sadly, as handsome as it is I doubt there are many who who really want to watch an eleven minute video describing every nuance. However, if you’re that kind of guy, here you are. → Read More

    February 17th, 2010

    Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 clears for landing at AT&T

    When the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 was announced in November, my major concern was whether it was coming to the U.S., when it was coming and if it would be subsidized by a carrier. The good news is that it looks like the X10 will be hitting AT&T’s shores this Spring. → Read More

    February 14th, 2010

    Sony Ericsson keeps 'em coming with Xperia X10 mini and X10 mini pro

    More Android handsets are on the way from Sony Ericsson as the handset manufacturer just announced smaller versions of the Xperia X10: the X10 mini and X10 mini pro. Clever names, right? These handsets are quite sexy, if I say so myself, and the pro version has the nice addition of a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. Like the bigger X10, these feature SE’s custom UX platform over Android, which includes Timescape for aggregating all your content to one place.  But enough about me yapping over these handsets; I’ll step aside and let you experience them for yourself. Hit the break for the full release and some videos. → Read More

    November 3rd, 2009

    Buongiorno, vi presento un video del Sony Ericsson Experia X10

    Long-suffering handset maker Sony Ericsson is all about the UX, people, and they’ve got the screens to prove it. The new system does basically what everyone else is doing and it brings all of your friend’s content into something called TimeScape (there’s another one for media called Media Scape.) Their new UX UI looks pretty amazing – you basically drag cards all over the screen with your finger, which is quite interesting and it’s made all the better by having some lady and two dudes show you how everything works. → Read More

    September 8th, 2009

    It's coming: WinMo update 6.5 shows up for the XPERIA X1

    Windows mobile has had a hard time of it of late, what with the Blackberry and iPhone being so popular. And frankly, the current version of the mobile OS, sucks. There’s good news on the horizon however, because the latest release version 6.5 is coming. → Read More

    November 26th, 2008

    Video: Sony Xperia Panels interface on an HTC Touch Diamond

    A group of tinkers have been hard at work getting the Panels interface from the Sony Xperia working on the HTC Touch HD. Progress is being made at a decent rate, as evidenced by a few YouTube videos that have been released. Why do such a thing? Well, as one of the guys says, “I like the look of this front end alot better than the TF3D.” So, rather than complain about the user interface, they adapt their own. Good on them. → Read More

    November 14th, 2008

    XPeria X1: "The ultimate Windows Mobile phone anyone can ask for…"

    Head over to MobiltyToday as they examine, in gory detail, what they’re calling “The ultimate Windows Mobile phone anyone can ask for… ” My only question is this: what if I never asked for a WinMo phone from Sony Ericsson? What if I asked for the charm and power of a UIQ-powered P800, my first and favorite smartphone? What if asked for a logical addition to the S-E family instead of some weird HTC-designed monstrosity? What if I asked for some S-E phones on these shores? I’m happy they’re trying, but this ain’t the direction they should be taking if they want to hit the big time. → Read More

    November 12th, 2008

    Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 to hit U.S. shelves on Black Friday for.. wait, how much?!

    At long last, Sony Ericsson has announced U.S availability of the Xperia X1. Because it’s definitely the best day to send people to the mall, they’ll be launching the handset on Black Friday (November 28th). With a Black Friday launch date, at least it’ll come in at a bargain price, right? Try $800 bucks. As of right now, the X1 is only planned to be up for sale as an unlocked handset through Sony Style stores and authorized Sony retailers, with preorders beginning November 13th. Sorry, Sony Ericsson – the X1 is a gorgeous piece that I’ve been gushing about for months, but I think I’ll skip this one so I can, you know, afford food. [Via Phonescoop] → Read More

    November 10th, 2008

    Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 to Best Buy on December 7th for $799, unlocked?

    It’s been a long time coming, but it looks like the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 might almost be here. BGR has some shots of Best Buy’s internal stock showing a December 7th in-stock date and an unlocked selling price of $799. That’s a lot of coin, so we can only assume that it’ll be the greatest phone in the history of cellular telephony, right? → Read More

    October 29th, 2008

    Sony Ericsson XPERIA concept: Oh man, please don't be real.

    Just a few days ago, the above shot of a supposed XPERIA concept device started floating around. Though its authenticity can’t be confirmed, we certainly hope it’s fake – or, at most, a concept never intended to leave the labs. Besides being a damned nice looking piece of hardware, much of the XPERIA X1‘s appeal stems from its full, landscape QWERTY keyboard. In this concept, the keyboard slides out vertically, keeping the phone in portrait mode. No thanks. As a portrait slider requires just about the same amount of hardware and sliding mechanics as a landscape slider, it’s not as if it makes the phone any less bulky. What it does do, however, is take a nice, roomy keyboard and cramp it down, removing a big chunk of what made the X1 worthwhile. → Read More

    October 10th, 2008

    Unboxing: Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 stripped of its cardboard coverings

    Now that the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 has stormed European shores, eager owners are rushing to share the unboxing process with the rest of the world. The best we’ve spotted so far is that of Sweden’s Fosfor magazine – for the most part, the rest of them have been “Here’s the box.. HERE’S THE PHONE!”, skipping the oh-so-crucial step-by-step undressing. Just a bit of good ol’ fashion gadget porn for your Friday afternoon. After playing with the X1 a few times during its development phase, I remain wary of its UI – that said, I’ve yet to play with a final build, and man, isn’t that some lovely lookin’ hardware? Check out a few more shots after the jump, or check out Fosfor’s full gallery. → Read More

    September 15th, 2008

    Sony Ericsson: Xperia brand "not tied" to Windows Mobile

    Anytime there is discussion about Sony Ericsson’s Xperia X1, you can almost guarantee that someone will chime in with “Yeah, too bad it’s running Windows Mobile.” While there isn’t much hope at this point for anyone dying for an X1 powered by anything but Microsoft’s platform, that might not be the case for future Xperia handsets. According to Magnus Andersson, product manager for the X1 and winner of MobileCrunch’s Coolest-friggin’-name-ever award, the Xperia ” brand is not tied into any specific technical platform.” While he didn’t add which platform future Xperia offerings might run, there aren’t too many viable options to pick from. [Via Reuters via Phonescoop] → Read More

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