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Exclusive Gallery: Android-Powered Sony Ericsson XPERIA X3 in the wild

Greg Kumparak — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 17:27:10 +0000

Hello, gorgeous! What a nice way to wake up on a Friday morning. You roll out of bed to make yourself some eggs, hop online to start the daily rituals, and bam! Shots of the unreleased, Android-powered Sony Ericsson XPERIA X3 are sitting in your inbox.

Music is forever changed: Sony Ericsson’s MH907 headphones sense when they’re in use

Nicholas Deleon — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 14:30:10 +0000

We (well, I) completely forgot about the BIG Sony Ericsson announcement that went down yesterday. It may have to do with the fact that nobody e-mailed us (well, me) about it, and that the FCC announced its Net Neutrality deal. Be that as it may, we now know, definitively, what Sony Ericsson was on about last week: yes, it’s a pair of headphones that sense when they’re in use. People are dancing in the streets already.

The headphones, the MH907, use what S-E calls “SensMe” technology. As a result of this magic, the headphones will play automatically when placed inside your ear. Um, the music will play automatically when the headphones are inserted into your ear. You know what I mean.

Since the headphones use a proprietary connector, called the Fast Port, they will only work on select S-E phones. I’m guessing this is a Europe thing, because the last time I saw a S-E phone in America Pierce Brosnan was using it as James Bond.

Are you thoroughly excited by this news? Is SensMe a fun gimmick? Sure, yeah; who wouldn’t want their music to play as soon as you put in your headphones, then stop playing when you take ‘em out? Is it OH MY GOD HUGE NEWS? I don’t think so, especially when we have no price nor release date.

Sony Ericsson will change everything with a headset that automatically turns on

Nicholas Deleon — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 21:00:17 +0000

As armas e os barões assinalados,
Que da ocidental praia Lusitana,
Por mares nunca de antes navegados,
Passaram ainda além da Taprobana,
Em perigos e guerras esforçados,
Mais do que prometia a força humana,
E entre gente remota edificaram
Novo Reino, que tanto sublimaram;

E também as memórias gloriosas
Daqueles Reis, que foram dilatando
A Fé, o Império, e as terras viciosas
De África e de Ásia andaram devastando;
E aqueles, que por obras valerosas
Se vão da lei da morte libertando;
Cantando espalharei por toda parte,
Se a tanto me ajudar o engenho e arte.

Cessem do sábio Grego e do Troiano
As navegações grandes que fizeram;
Cale-se de Alexandro e de Trajano
A fama das vitórias que tiveram;
Que eu canto o peito ilustre Lusitano,
A quem Neptuno e Marte obedeceram:
Cesse tudo o que a Musa antígua canta,
Que outro valor mais alto se alevanta.

E vós, Tágides minhas, pois criado
Tendes em mim um novo engenho ardente,
Se sempre em verso humilde celebrado
Foi de mim vosso rio alegremente,
Dai-me agora um som alto e sublimado,
Um estilo grandíloquo e corrente,
Porque de vossas águas, Febo ordene
Que não tenham inveja às de Hipoerene.

Oh, I almost forgot: that Sony Ericsson thing that was gonna change the world? Yeah, apparently it’s a headset that turns on automatically. I hope your jaw didn’t hit the ground too hard.

Hyperbole: Get ready for Sony Ericsson to change the way you listen to music, forever

Nicholas Deleon — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 14:30:10 +0000

Apparently Sony Ericsson will change the way we all listen to music, forever. Let’s see… headphones or speakers, and my ears. That’s how I listen to music; maybe you guys do it differently.

We have little formation beyond this weird drawing, which depicts the bald guy from Night Court sipping a fizzy drink, and listening to music. I mean, presumably he has those headphones for something.

Guesses? Another Walkman phone? A totally new Walkman? We don’t know!

All of it goes down next week, on September 21, so until then all we can do is speculate.

via Giz

Sony Ericsson gets new head and Sir Stringer comes in to shake things up

John Biggs — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 18:55:09 +0000

Sure Sony can’t solve its own problems but SE has brought in a new head, Bert Nordberg, and is officially placing Sir CEO Hoard Stringer as the head of the board. The resulting shake-up had better give SE a huge boost or else they’re going down.

Nordberg replaces Carl-Henric Svanberg.

“Bert Nordberg has a strong track-record in the area of business realignment and was instrumental in the transformation of Ericsson in the years 2002-2003,” Svanberg said in a statement.

“I am confident he will be able to build upon the foundation Dick has created and lead the final stages of Sony Ericsson’s transformation,” he said.

Sony Ericsson’s Jalou, with Dolce&Gabanna branding, is, like, so hot

Nicholas Deleon — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 17:30:33 +0000

Are you an English WAG? (And if you are, how did you hear about us, lol!) Good news, then, since Sony Ericsson just lifted the veil on this fashiony phone, the Jalou. I've been pronouncing it J-Lo, like the singer, all morning, so feel free to do the same.

Sony Ericsson “Rachel” is the XPERIA X3, Specs leaked

Greg Kumparak — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 17:50:51 +0000

Oh man, Expansys. Either you've got someone who doesn't know how to punch in embargo dates properly, or whoever is in charge of determining when your product pages go live likes to live on the edge. Expansys has leaked or confirmed details on more handsets than we'll even bother to count. This time around, they've shined a light on Sony Ericsson's first (and oh-so-gorgeous) Android handset, Rachel.

Sony Ericsson dropping Memory Stick Micro, apparently stopped taking moron pills

John Biggs — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 01:30:59 +0000

Well here’s a welcome addition to today’s happiness bank: Sony Ericsson is dropping the Memory Stick Micro, Sony’s red hot memory stick platform, for MicroSD. The Memory Stick, if you’ll recall, was Sony’s attempt to rule the roost when it came to memory cards, a strategy that failed so spectacularly that they created an entire sidereal constellation of memory cards outside of the normal collection, ensuring absolute uselessness and incompatibility.

Why are they deciding to move to MicroSD? Could it be them losing billions this year? Could it be because they can’t make a good phone to save their lives? The world will never know.

Sony should scrap the entire Memory Stick line, quite honestly. It’s run its aborted course.

FCC approves T-Mobile Sony Ericsson CS8 Cyber-shot handset

Jeremy Kessel — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:41:59 +0000

If I was the FCC, I’d start my own gadget blog in light of the fact that I’d have first dibs to all the new gear. Er, wait…nevermind. Scratch that, stick to your federal duties and leave the blogging to us.

Sony Ericsson’s newest (T-Mobile-bound) slider phone, the Cyber-shot CS8 (known elsewhere as the C905), has received approval by the FCC.

Read the rest of this entry >>

Job cuts to happen at Sony Ericsson

Matt Burns — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 13:35:35 +0000

So maybe the company/venture isn’t OK as the previously released company statement indicated. Now, a few months later, word hits that 2,000 peeps are about to lose their jobs due to decline sales.

These layoffs are part of a plan to bring the company back to profitability after seeing a 35% drop in phone shipments from last year. No word where the cuts will come from, or who they will effect, which must mean a lot is getting done around the ol’ Sony Ericsson HQ today. Everyone knows that when layoffs are announced on a Friday, productivity skyrockets.

Hands-on with Sony Ericsson’s G9 and the KDDI iida mini projector

Serkan Toto — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 18:38:46 +0000

I had the opportunity to test Sony Ericsson’s newest mobile phone, the G9, in Tokyo today. The device is the first KDDI au is selling in Japan under the so-called iida brand. It's not officially on sale yet, but I could lay my hands on finished versions for a few minutes in a KDDI showroom. The G9 will be available in Japan next week.

Sony Ericsson releases S312, W205 Walkman phone

John Biggs — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 11:12:42 +0000

Don't worry: these won't come out here. The S312 is a 2-megapixel camera phone with dedicated "camera" button for taking impromtu snaps of your friends and relations. It should be available in Q3 2009. The W205 (shown here) has a 1.3-megapixel camera and FM tuner and supports up to an amazing 2 gigabytes of Memory Stick Micro storage. It should be available in Q3 as well. How far the mighty have fallen.

Sony Ericsson T707: Maria Sharapova likes it

John Biggs — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 13:23:50 +0000

Let's start with a little gem from the press release for this new S-E phone, shall we?

Maria knows that all eyes will be on her this season and thanks to her new T707; she can rest assured that whatever she does, she will look stylish, glamorous and be in control of her life with just the wave of a hand.

Now, to extrapolate, what we are seeing here is the suggestion that Maria Sharapova, besides having a mean arm, knows enough about cellphones to tell if she - or, in actuality, here travel coordinator and assistant - needs a gesture-based cellphone. Wait, what's that you say? You think S-E paid her to say all those nice things about this otherwise dud of a flip phone? Why you might be right. And there we find the flaw in S-E's plan for world domination.

Sony Ericsson: We’re totes OK, don’t bother us

John Biggs — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 18:59:11 +0000

Ericsson, phone-switch-maker to the stars, has “no plans to abandon its joint venture Sony Ericsson” said an Ericsson spokesperson, thereby ensuring that shiz is going to hit the fan sooner than later. As we pointed out before, S-E isn’t doing too hot and they just lost their North American President, Najmi Jarwala, who was probably ousted for not selling Sony Ericsson phones in the US.

Not to be a naysayer or a nationalist, but the US market for S-E is quite limited – I’d say it’s been squelched over the years and now it’s catching up – and this does not bode well for the company. While S-E works in Europe, it’s definitely not a US play and the US is a fairly big market. No one wants to step into the breech right now and not many people are bullish enough even to take the job of S-E president let alone buy their phones.

Sony Ericsson announces management change in North America

London, UK – Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications (”Sony Ericsson”) today announced that Najmi Jarwala, President of Sony Ericsson USA and Head of Region North America (comprising the US and Canada markets), has chosen to leave the company at the end of March to pursue other career opportunities.

Commenting on today’s announcement, Dick Komiyama, President of Sony Ericsson, said, “Under Najmi’s leadership we have redefined our North American strategy, built operational excellence and strengthened our total presence considerably in this very important market. We are sad to see him leave Sony Ericsson after more than three successful years, but at the same time we wish him all the best for his future.”

“It has been an incredibly rewarding time for me and we have achieved a lot together in North America,” said Najmi Jarwala. “We have introduced an increasing number of new products, grown market share, built operator relationships and, perhaps most importantly, have laid the foundation for North America to play a key role in the long term growth and success of Sony Ericsson. I have been privileged to have led a team of passionate, creative and innovative people at Sony Ericsson and I wish them every success,” he added.

A separate announcement regarding Najmi’s successor in his dual role will be made in due course. In the interim, and effective April 1st, Anders Runevad, Executive Vice President of Sony Ericsson and Head of Global Sales & Marketing, will take on the added responsibilities of President of Sony Ericsson USA and Head of Region North America.

Sony Ericsson no longer sitting in tree, no longer kissing

John Biggs — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 15:39:30 +0000

You know you’re in for a treat when the story you’re reading has, in big red letters, “Please note that this story is based upon rumor and/or speculation.” So let’s begin with that and move on to points rendered.

Manager Magazin in Germany is reporting that both Sony and Ericsson are thinking of shutting down or selling their Sony Ericsson joint venture, a partnership that has thus far spawned little more than a few nice feature phones a whole lot of hype. The company has posted a Q4 2008 loss of $187 million.

Ericsson didn’t comment in the article – and they wouldn’t because it has already negatively affected their stock price – but my feeling is that S-E is ready to fold up shop. This reminds me of BenQ’s slow death. The company had a few interesting ideas but couldn’t breach the atmospheric barrier called Nokia.

If they sold the venture they would presumably sell the handset designs and R&D to the highest bidder.

Sony Ericsson “Idou”

Greg Kumparak — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 22:10:05 +0000

Want to know something I learned today? If you forget the power adapter required for making US style plugs play friendly with the outlets in Spain and happen to have arrived on a Sunday, you are screwed. All the stores are closed and, if your hotel is like mine, the ~~"concierge"~~ dude sitting at the front desk watching spanish Futurama doesn't give a crap. Oh, and I also learned all about the Sony Ericsson "Idou". Sort of.

Sony Ericsson releases C903 Cyber-shot in a pre-MWC explosion of phones

John Biggs — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 14:37:03 +0000

Eyes up here, bud.

It’s stirring. Even in this harsh economy, SE is still launching two phones for MWC, a move that shows SE’s dedication to the status quo and an understanding that consumers want more of the same. In a way, Sony Ericsson is telling the world “Yes, we’re still alive and kicking. Yes, we still have phones. And yes, one is is a mid-level cameraphone for Europe.”

The SE C903 Cyber-shot is a “creative and stylish mobile phone” with swivel screen, 5-megapixel camera, Smile Shutter (TM)(C)(R), BestPic (TM)(C)(R) (a silly system that takes 9 bad pictures in a row and lets you pick the best one). It comes in Lacquer Black, Techno White and Glamour Red and includes aGPS.

Take special pictures in style with the Sony Ericsson C903 Cyber-shot™
10 February 2009

Seeing is believing with the C903 Cyber-shot™. The slick and stylish mobile phone has a unique sliding lens cover to make great photography as easy as one, two, three.

London – February 10, 2009 – The C903 Cyber-shot™ is made for taking memorable pictures – just slide down the protective lens cover and shoot! The slim slider has dedicated camera keys and an impressive five megapixel camera to create big pictures with rich details and true colours.

Packed full of features the C903 Cyber-shot™ will give you the best picture possible with Face Detection, finding up to three people in the frame at a time and Smile Shutter™ which automatically picks out beaming smiles. Snap up to nine images in quick succession using BestPic™, pick your best and delete the rest.

“The C903 Cyber-shot™ adds a creative and stylish mobile phone to our mid-range segment.” said Daniel Sandblom Global Business Marketing Manager at Sony Ericsson. “The C903 Cyber-shot™ furthers Sony Ericsson’s digital camera heritage and makes capturing special images even more memorable.”

Show off your images with the crystal clear, auto rotating 2.4” display, send them to your blog or connect to your TV screen using the TV-out function and get up close and personal.

The C903 Cyber-shot™ also comes complete with aGPS – never lose track of where you took an image or where you are – simply tag your photos to a location or use the feature to find your way home or to the pub.

The C903 Cyber-shot™
Made for taking memorable pictures

* Snap really clear, big pictures with auto focus and the five megapixel camera
* Turn your subjects into stars with Smile Shutter™ and face detection
* View images on the big screen using TV-Out cable
* Tag a place-name to your memories or stay on track with aGPS

The C903 Cyber-shot™ supports GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900 and UMTS/HSPA 900/2100. C903 Cyber-shot™ will be available in selected markets from Q2 in the colours Lacquer Black, Techno White and Glamour Red.

The Sony Ericsson C903 Cyber-shot™ at a glance

Camera

5.0 megapixel camera
Up to 16x digital zoom
Photo fix
Picture blogging
Video blogging
Auto focus
Smile Shutter™
Face detection
BestPic™
Photo flash
Video recording
Image and Video stabilizer
Snapfish™

Music

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

Web

Access NetFront™ Web browser
Web feeds
Photo feeds
Picasa™
Flickr™

Communication

Speakerphone
Polyphonic ringtones
Vibrating alert
Video call

Messaging

Email
Picture messaging (MMS)
Predictive text input
Sound recorder
Text messaging (SMS)
Exchange ActiveSync
Chat View (TBC)
Instant messaging

Design

Picture wallpaper
Wallpaper animation
Auto rotate

Entertainment

3D games
Motion gaming
Java
FM radio with RDS
Video streaming
Video viewing
Media
YouTube™
Walk Mate
Tracker
TV-out

Connectivity

Bluetooth™ technology
Modem
USB mass storage
USB support
Synchronization
PictBridge

Organizer

Alarm clock
Calculator
Calendar
Flight mode
Notes
Phone book
Stopwatch
Tasks
Timer

Location-based services

Geo tagging of photos
Google Maps™
aGPS
Wayfinder Navigator™ (3-month trial version)

Accessories

In-Box:

* C903
* Battery
* Battery Charger
* Stereo portable handsfree
* User guide (e-manual on the phone

Facts and Figures 1)2)

Size: 97 x 49 x 16 mm
Weight: 96 grams

Colours:
Laquer Black
Techno White
Glamour Red

Main screen: 262,144 colour TFT, scratch-resistant
Resolution: 240 x 320 pixels
Size: 2.4 inches

Phone memory: Up to 105MB
Memory card support: Memory Stick Micro™ (M2™)

Talk time GSM/GPRS: Up to 10 hrs
Standby time GSM/GPRS: Up to 400 hrs

Availability and versions

Networks
C903:
GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
UMTS/HSPA 900/2100

C903a:
GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
UMTS/HSPA 850/1900/2100

Available in selected markets from Q2 2009.

Sony Ericsson to announce 8-megapixel “Hikaru” Walkman phone at MWC09?

Greg Kumparak — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 20:27:00 +0000

Take the 8-megapixel shooter and slider form factor from the Sony Ericsson C905, up the screen from 2.4″ to 2.6″, throw in stereo speakers, dedicated music keys and an oh-so-necessary 3.5mm headphone jack, and stamp on the Walkman logo. What do you get? The Hikaru.

According to the SEMCBlog, we’ll see this high-end camera phone/music phone hybrid get announced at Sony Ericsson’s MWC press conference on February 15th, with a launch window sometime before the end of Q2. We can’t really say what we think about this one until we get a chance to touch it, but we can say that we really want to touch it.

Oh, France: To promote Sony Ericsson, agency creates ‘air [activity]’ campaign

Nicholas Deleon — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 21:00:11 +0000

This is what I get for trying to find photos of French TV journalists: air gaming. Apparently it’s a “thing” in Paris right now, along with striking every other day, that was created to help promote Sony Ericsson. One of its new phones has a motion sensor, so SE wanted a hip, cool way to attract eyeballs, and euros. A marketing agency was hired, which then came up with the “air” concept: people were encouraged to take videos of themselves engaged in “air” activities. Think air guitar, only, somehow, less dignified.

Here we have a man “air fishing” in front of the Sacré-Coeur. He’s fishing, you see, but without a pole or line. Additional, he’s fishing for men, so, you know.

This is “air tennis,” outside of Euro Disneyland.

What else can we expect from the delicious campaign? Just a little Air Football, care of FIFA 09.

KDDI au unveils spring cell phone line-up (photo gallery)

Serkan Toto — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 11:53:01 +0000

Japan’s second biggest mobile phone carrier KDDI au today presented their new cell phones [JP] for this spring. The first handsets will be available in Nippon on Saturday.

And they have a few spectacular models to offer – if only the Japanese carriers did what they promised a few months back (large-scale internationalization due to a shrinking home market), everyone could get their hands on these things.

Here is the complete line-up [JP]:

Hitachi Woo Keitai H001
(featuring a fantastic stereoscopic IPS 3D display, the world’s first display of this kind)

Sony Ericsson Walkman Phone Premier3
(3-inch display with 480×854 resolution and superior audio quality)

Sony Ericsson Cybershot Keitai S001
(3.3-inch OLED display based on BRAVIA technology)

Toshiba Fullchain Keitai T001
(3.1-inch OLED display)

Casio CA001
(equipped with sound and music apps made by Yamaha and a touchscreen)

Sharp SH001
(featuring a 8.0 megapixel CCD camera with face recognition function)

Panasonic P001
(advanced color reproductivity)

Kyocera K001
(featuring a kid-friendly design

Beruto no tsuita keitai (”Handset that can be attached to belts”) NS01

Keesu no you na keitai (”Handset that looks like a case”) NS02

I blogged about KDDI’s winter 2008 line-up here and about their summer 2008 handsets here.