Xperia ion white paper confirms MSM8260 chipset, 1900mAh battery and microSD card slot

by XB on January 9, 2012

in News,Xperia ion

Sony has released the white paper for the recently announced Xperia ion (LT28at). It confirms several details about the phone including that it will run the Qualcomm Snapdragon S3 MSM8260 chipset which features a 1.5GHz dual-core processor and Adreno 220 GPU.

The handset will come with 1GB RAM, 1GB of internal phone storage and 16GB of eMMc flash memory. Crucially, the white paper confirms that the handset will come with microSD memory card support. Rumours suggested that this was believed to be absent in some of the new Xperia handsets such as the Xperia S (Nozomi).

A 1900mAh embedded battery will provide juice to the 4.55-inch 720p display, providing up to 10 hours of GSM talk time, 3 hours of video or 12 hours of music. The Xperia ion will also have a number of sensors on board including gyroscope and magnetometer.

The Xperia ion utilises the Qualcomm MDM9200 modem chipset. This is the industry’s first 3G/LTE single-chip modem. It will support a number of network frequencies including UMTS [HSPA+ 850 (Band V), 1900 (Band II), 2100 (Band I)], GSM [EDGE 850, 900, 1800, 1900] and LTE [Band IV and Band XVII].


Xperia ion white paper.

Xperia ion product page live; promo shots and video

by XB on January 9, 2012

in News,Videos,Xperia ion

The Sony Xperia ion may not look as striking as the Xperia S, but checking out the video attached below reveals the Xperia ion has a very understated design. The Xperia ion chassis is made from magnesium and it also features a no air-gap display, last seen in the Xperia arc.

The product page for the handset is now also live, where you’ll find further details on the handset. See some promo pictures for the Xperia ion below along with a hands-on video. Also note the “Use of Sony brand subject to regulatory approval” disclaimer below each photo!

New Sony accessories: SmartWatch, Smart Wireless Headset pro and Xperia SmartTags

by XB on January 9, 2012

in Accessories,Featured Content,News,Videos

Sony has announced three new Sony ‘Smart Extras’ accessories. First of all we have the SmartWatch, the successor to the LiveView, bringing remote Bluetooth access from your Android phone to the SmartWatch microdisplay. The SmartWatch has a 1.3-inch OLED display and measures just 8mm in thickness. Unlike the LiveView it features a 128 x 128 pixel touchscreen, capable of displaying 65,536 colours, defined into 9 distinct touch areas in a 3 × 3 matrix.

It’s good to know that SmartWatch has a vibration function, accelerometer and is both dust and splash proof. Sony says that you can also customise this with any 20mm wristband. The SmartWatch white paper is available to download here.



 The Smart Wireless Headset pro is a Bluetooth wireless headset that will allow users to also read text messages, view incoming calls, access the calendar alerts and more. With the phone disconnected it will work as an independent MP3 or radio player. If you’re wondering how this works, the Smart Wireless Headset pro supports microSD and will ship with a 2GB card. Smart Wireless Headset pro uses Bluetooth 3.0 to communicate with the phone and it features a two row display. The white paper is available here.






Lastly there are Xperia SmartTags, using the NFC functionality of the new Xperia phones to change the settings of the handset with a single pass. Once the phone is touched with a SmartTag, it will launch a preconfigured profile inside the phone. For example you may have a SmartTag in your car which will activate a GPS application. Customisation is key here and Sony will allow you to easily customise the tags to make your lives easier.

SmartWatch Pictures

Smart Wireless Headset pro Pictures

 

 

Xperia SmartTags Pictures

 

 

 

Xperia S: official press images

by XB on January 9, 2012

in News,Xperia S

The Xperia S is gorgeous. We have all of the details in the previous post, but we also managed to get hold of some more press photos that we thought we’d share. Feast your eyes below. 

Xperia S official: 4.3-inch HD display, 1.5GHz dual-core, 12MP camera

by XB on January 9, 2012

in Featured Content,News,Xperia S

Following on from the Xperia ion, the Sony Xperia S will be formally announced later today. Full details of the handset were leaked prematurely and we have all of the details. The Xperia S is part of the new Xperia NXT series, this range denotes the company’s next generation products. One of the key features of this range is a new design called Identity Iconic. We are referring to the transparent notification strip at the bottom of the phone. Sony says that this element emphasises the display and also houses the antenna.

In terms of specifications, the Sony Xperia S will be powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core processor (MSM8260 chipset) and 32GB of internal memory. It will have a 4.3-inch (720 x 1280) Reality display with Bravia Engine, implying a very impressive 342PPI pixel density. Camera duties will be taken care of by a 12MP Exmor R camera with f/2.4 aperture and 1080p video recording. It will also be armed with a 1.3MP front facing camera, capable of 720p video recording. Like the Xperia ion the Xperia S will be able to take pictures from sleep in just 1.5 seconds.

Other features include a 1750mAh battery, HDMI and NFC. The latter will be able to be used with one of the company’s new accessories called Xperia SmartTags NFC (more on that later). Like the Xperia ion, the Xperia S will be a PlayStation Certified handset. The Xperia S weighs 144 grams and has dimensions of 128 x 64 x 10.6 mm. The Xperia S will launch from the end of Q1 2012, initially with Android Gingerbread 2.3.7 and then updated to Android 4.0 ICS in Q2 2012. It will come in black and white colours.

Xperia ion for AT&T gets official: 1.5GHz dual-core , 4.6-inch 720p display, 12MP camera

by XB on January 9, 2012

in Featured Content,News,Xperia ion

Sony has officially taken the wraps off the Xperia ion, which will be an exclusive in the United States with AT&T. This phone is jam-packed with features. It will come with a 4.6-inch high-resolution (720 x 1280) display powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core S3 Snapdragon processor. It has a 12MP Exmor R camera capable of 1080p video recording and a 720p front camera. The Xperia ion will have 1GB RAM, 16GB of internal storage, HDMI and NFC. It is also LTE enabled, crucial for the US market and will be also be PlayStation Certified.

The camera features will be a big marketing point, especially with that 12MP sensor. Sony claims it can go from standby to first picture shot in less than two seconds (1.5 seconds to be exact!) Sony claims that the phone will be unmatched against any other Android phone. The phone will be branded ‘Sony’, the Xperia arc S was the last Sony Ericsson handset you’ll ever see. The phone is set to release in the United States in Q2 2012. It’s not clear whether we will see this phone elsewhere globally, although we wouldn’t bet against it. See some larger pics of the Xperia ion below.

Leaked Android 4.0 ICS ROM hits Xperia PLAY [Video]

by XB on January 9, 2012

in Android,Firmware,News,Videos,Xperia PLAY

The Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY already has an Android 4.0.1 Ice Cream Sandwich alpha ROM by ICX, however a newer and more complete ROM has become available to PLAY owners. The ROM, which is based on Android 4.0.3, was apparently leaked anonymously and therefore it is more fully-featured than the previous ICX ROM. Users have DooMLoRD from xda-developers to thank for turning the leaked ROM into something usable for end-users.

It’s not all perfect though as the camera is not working and the stock launcher does not allow anyone to add widgets to the homescreen. However, you can use the Trebuchet launcher to get round the latter issue. This ROM is pre-rooted and includes the ICS boot animation. See a couple of preview videos of this in action below.






Via xda-developers.
Thanks Guddu!

Sony Ericsson LiveView successor spied

by XB on January 9, 2012

in Accessories,News,Smart Watch

Sony Ericsson is all set to announce some new products later on today at CES 2012 (or early tomorrow depending on which time zone you are in). Whilst most Sony Ericsson fans are waiting on details of the new Xperia handsets with feverish anticipation, we expect the company to announce some new accessories too.

One of these will be the successor to the LiveView Bluetooth remote mini display. The Verge caught a picture of the device, which looks imminently more fashionable than its predecessor. It features what looks like a rubber green wrist strap and a spring loaded clip to easily remove the display from the strap. The unit itself also looks nicer than the original, with a chrome metal strip along the sides. Many felt that the LiveView was an interesting concept but needed more work, both in terms of the wrist strap and apps. Let’s hope Sony Ericsson deliver on this new version.

Via The Verge.
Thanks adsada & Damir!

Xperia S and Xperia ION to be announced at CES?

by XB on January 7, 2012

in News,Rumours

SEMC Blog has just revealed that the two Sony Ericsson handsets to be announced at CES 2012 will be the Xperia S (LT26i Nozomi) and the Xperia ION. We already know all about Nozomi, but we don’t know which specs correlate with Xperia ION. SEMC Blog says that the Xperia ion will have a 4.6-inch display.

By deduction, it may be easy to think that the Xperia ION is the Sony Ericsson LT28at Aoba. After all this is the only handset we have heard of that has a 4.55-inch display. However, one of our sources recently got in contact to say that the Sony Ericsson LT28 Aoba codename has now been assigned to a different handset. Aoba will in fact have a 5-inch display and will be available for NTT DoCoMo (Japan) and AT&T (US) only.

The 4.55-inch Xperia ION is instead expected to be the LT29i Hayabusa. It is meant to look very similar to the Xperia arc but will have specifications similar to that of the Xperia S (Nozomi). As always, this is all speculation for now. All will be formally revealed on Monday 9 January at CES 2012.

First images of Sony Ericsson MT27i ‘Pepper’ leak

by XB on January 7, 2012

in News,Rumours

We have just been sent the first images of what is believed to be the Sony Ericsson MT27i ‘Pepper’. The MT27i is believed to be the successor to the Xperia neo V and rumours point to this handset running a 1GHz dual-core processor (most likely the ST-Ericsson NoveThor U8500 chipset) with a 3.7-inch (480 x 854 resolution) display. It is supposed to have a 5MP camera and shoot 720p video.

There appears to be a certain theme running through the 2012 Xperia range, judging by what we’ve seen so far. Whilst it doesn’t have the same LED notification strip as seen in the Nozomi and Nypon, it still seems to share the ‘chin’ feature of the aforementioned handsets. It also shares the same straight lines of the Nozomi/Nypon rather than the curves of the 2011 line-up.

The front of the handset has three capacitive buttons for back, home and menu functions and the front-facing camera sits next to the notification LED. The back of the handset shows the camera lens surrounded by an embossed plastic ring, with a small LED flash sitting on top. Near this you can see a noise suppression mic too.

We can’t be sure what is sitting next to the prototype label, but we’d guess it is a speaker of some kind. We’re not exactly keen on the two-colour back cover, however as this leak is clearly labelled as a prototype we won’t read too much into the design at this stage.

This handset is meant to be the successor to the Xperia neo V. We doubt there will be a true Xperia neo successor in 2012 as we expect Sony Ericsson to employ greater differentiation between handsets this year. In 2011, the Xperia arc and Xperia neo sat too closely together in terms of features. This could be one of the reasons (along with component shortages) why SE decided to discontinue the neo with 8MP Exmor R camera and release the neo V with 5MP camera. We’re not sure if the Sony Ericsson MT27i Pepper will be announced next week at CES, however if not, then expect a reveal at MWC in February 2012.

 Rumours, Sony Ericsson

Sony Ericsson LT26i ‘Nozomi’ benchmarked and sized up against Xperia arc S

by XB on January 6, 2012

in News,Rumours

We have already seen some high-resolution leaked pictures of the Sony Ericsson LT26i codenamed ‘Nozomi’ in the past, but we’ve now got another round of shots that are worth looking at. These hands-on pictures are from ITProPortal and include some angles not seen previously.


The top of the handset had not been pictured before, it holds the power button and 3.5mm headphone jack. We’re glad to see the headphone jack back at the top of the phone, like on the Xperia X10, versus the side of the phone like the 2011 flagships (Xperia arc and Xperia PLAY). One side of the handset has HDMI, volume control and a dedicated camera shutter button, whilst the other side has the micro USB port. The pictures aren’t the clearest, but it looks like all ports will be covered by a flap.

The picture of the back of the handset confirms the use of a micro-SIM, sealed battery and no microSD support. There are more pictures that show Nozomi side-by-side with the Xperia arc S. Nozomi is boxier, taller and marginally wider too. It will be interesting to see how that extra handset length feels in the hand ergonomically.

This particular version was running Android 2.3.7 (which all 2011 Xperia handsets are likely to be updated to) running the 2.6.35 kernel. The phone scored 2219 on the Quadrant benchmark. Strangely the Quadrant benchmark shows the handset as running only one core at 1.5GHz. The benchmark does list the chipset as MSM8660, which we know is a 1.5GHz dual-core chip.

Other confirmed details include 1GB of RAM and a 720 x 1280 resolution display. We also expect the handset to feature a 12MP camera and at least 8GB of internal storage. There are rumours that Nozomi will officially be called Xperia HD on release. We expect it to be announced at CES 2012 next week. Stay tuned.

Via ITProPortal.