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.

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.

Sony Ericsson LT26i Nozomi high-res images leak

by XB on December 12, 2011

in Featured Content,News,Rumours

 It was only last week that we were speculating that it won’t be too long before high-resolution images of the Sony Ericsson LT26i ‘Nozomi’ leak and here they are courtesy of GSM Arena. 

We have seen the front of the phone plenty of times, but now we get to glance the sides too. The left side has a micro USB slot (with cover) and the right side has HDMI slot (with cover), a volume switch in the middle of the phone and a reasonably sized camera button. The phone eschews the curves of the Xperia arc and has a very boxy design.

Strangely the glowing strip at the bottom looks like it is made out of see through plastic as the icons can also be seen on the back of the phone. GSM Arena’s tipster has verified a lot of the details we brought to you exclusively over three months ago.

This includes a dual-core 1.5GHz processor, 4.3-inch (720 x 1280) display, micro-SIM, no microSD slot, 1GB RAM, 16/32GB of internal storage, 12MP camera and sealed battery. The tipster also confirms what our sources have told us i.e. that the phone will launch with Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread and then receive Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich at a later date. We’ll bring you more details as we have it, but in the meantime check out the lovely pictures below.

Via GSM Arena. 

Black Sony Ericsson LT26i Nozomi spotted in the wild

by XB on December 7, 2011

in News,Rumours

The previous live pictures if the Sony Ericsson LT26i ‘Nozomi’ were of the white version, however as we revealed over the weekend a black version is also being planned. Now it appears that live pictures of the black Nozomi have been snapped in the wilds of Hong Kong.


The overall appearance looks similar to what we’ve already seen with the Sony Ericsson logo sitting above the ear-piece and a front facing camera to the right. We then have what looks to be a >4-inch display, with a slightly wider bezel than seen in the recent render.



The most revealing part of this new photo is the capacitive buttons which sit behind three small white illuminated dots, quite a nice touch in our view. Previously we had only seen the actual tiny icons (menu, home and back) that sit above the thin glowing strip at the bottom. We’re not sure what the small triangle towards that third capacitive button is (this could be a sticker and nothing related to the phone). We’re also not sure what the line of text is above the Xperia logo on the bottom. Although this could be a reference to this particular prototype, hence why it seems it has been blurred out.

Another photo has appeared from Concept Phones, but instead of being a render this seems to be a live model. It shows a silver trim on the side edge not seen in the other photos. Most of the features do seem very similar to the above photo, although there are small discrepancies when comparing both photos. However, the photo below may have been of an earlier prototype, or as the author points out, the guy that sent it in could have created this mould himself (must be a huge Sony Ericsson fan if true!) Either way, with leaks intensifying it shouldn’t be too long before we have some higher-res live shots of this beauty soon.

Via Techorz.

More rumours on Sony Ericsson’s next-gen devices – LT22, LT26 and ST25

by XB on December 1, 2011

in News, Rumours

We were recently sent some information on some of Sony Ericsson’s next-generation smartphones that we thought we’d share. This mainly came in the form of a list of high-level specs for three phones: Sony Ericsson LT26 (Nozomi), LT22 (Nypon) and ST25 (Kumquat). We should point out that the source of this information is from a new and unproven contact, so please treat the following firmly as speculation.


The specifications for Nozomi look largely similar to what we’ve seen already. However, what caught our eye is that our source says the phone will launch with Android Gingerbread and be upgraded to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich at some point later. This seems suspect to us, unless Sony Ericsson is planning to launch the phone within the next 6 weeks. Also, we imagine the phone is being designed sans hardware buttons (at least that’s what the leaked photos suggest) and we’re not sure how this would play out with Gingerbread.



Our source also says that Ice Cream Sandwich will be out in May 2012, which is certainly not what Sony Ericsson is saying. The dates rumoured so far are March (by SE Italy) and January (from a Sony employee). May 2012 seems just too far away. However, we’re hearing so many different things at the moment it’s hard to know who to believe.

Moving on to the other handsets, the Nypon will apparently come with a 1GHz dual-core processor and a 4-inch WhiteMagic qHD display. This is the phone that we have been told by a different source will come with the ST-Ericsson U8500 1GHz chipset, so at least that part tallies. The WhiteMagic display is interesting, but we weren’t aware that Sony were mass producing these yet. The press release a few months back only talks of a 3-inch and not 4-inch display. The Nypon will also get 1GB RAM, 16GB ROM and 8MP Exmor R camera. Interestingly the battery capacity is listed at a capacity of only 1320mAh, which seems strange to us considering that near enough every other Xperia phone to date has come with 1500mAh capacity batteries.

Lastly, we have what is likely to be the Xperia mini successor, the ST25 (supposedly codenamed Kumquat). This will also have a 1GHz dual-core processor and will come with a 3.5-inch display. It will also have a 5MP Exmor R camera capable of 720p video recording. See the full spec list below, but as mentioned previously, please treat this all for exactly what it is for now i.e. rumours.

Nozomi (LT26)
1.5GHz dual-core processor
4.3-inch Reality display with Bravia Engine & HD (720 x 1280) resolution
1G RAM & 32G ROM
12MP camera with Exmor R, 1080p full HD video recording & 720p HD front camera
Android Gingerbread on launch and will upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich later
1750mAh battery

Nypon (LT22)
1GHz dual-core processor
4.0-inch Reality display with Bravia Engine, WhiteMagic display & qHD Resolution
1G RAM & 16G ROM
8MP camera with Exmor R, 1080p full HD video recording & 720p HD front camera
Android Gingerbread on launch and will upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich later
1320mAh battery

Kumquat (ST25)
1GHz dual-core processor
3.5-inch Reality display with Bravia Engine
5MP camera with Exmor R, 720p HD video recording
Android Gingerbread on launch and will upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich later

Thanks X-Leaker!

New Nozomi pic surfaces; to be called Xperia Cloud?

by XB on November 30, 2011

in News,Rumours

A new picture of what is supposedly the Sony Ericsson LT26i ‘Nozomi’ has emerged. It is a tiny photo (which we have blown up below) and looks like it was taken from a crop of a Sony Ericsson spec sheet. The picture looks very similar to the recently leaked Nozomi photos at the beginning of the month.

Interestingly, this new picture seems to suggest that the name of the handset will be called the Xperia Cloud (at least that’s what it looks like to us). You can also half-see a list of specs on the right side which includes the fact that this handset will have a candybar form factor and come with a dual-core processor. The picture appears to show the handset running Android ICS with typical SE UI colours. This could very well be a fake, you can judge for yourself below. We’ll bring you more news as we have it. 

Thanks adsada!

Exclusive: Sony Ericsson Nozomi landing in March 2012 with a powerful 1.5GHz dual-core, 4.3-inch 720p screen.

by XB on September 2, 2011
in News,Rumours

One of our insider Sony Ericsson sources has been in touch recently to give us some more details on what will be the company’s hero phone for 2012. Nozomi will be armed with a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 1GB RAM, 32GB internal storage and a monster 4.3-inch display with 1280 x 720 resolution. This would give it a pixel density of 342 PPI, above that of the iPhone 4 at 326 PPI.

Nozomi will be the first Sony Ericsson phone to come with a micro-SIM and will have no memory card options. It will also come with NFC and a 1750mAh battery. The phone is currently scheduled for a March 2012 release , which would make sense as this is when the company normally launches its new ‘Hero’ phones i.e. the Xperia X10 was launched in March 2010 and the Xperia arc / PLAY was launched in March 2011.


It goes without saying that we’d classify all of this firmly under the rumour category for now and our source says that some of the specifications are subject to change. We wouldn’t normally speculate without hard proof but this source has given some credible information in the past so we have no reason to doubt.

Thanks tipster!

Rumour titbits: Sony Ericsson Nozomi is global phone

by XB on August 25, 2011
in News,Rumours

An anonymous tipster has got in touch with a few bits of information regarding future handsets. First up, he says that the Sony Ericsson Nozomi, the next Sony Ericsson flagship rumoured to run a 1.4GHz processor and sport a 4.3-inch 720p display, will not only see release in Japan (through DoCoMo with model number SO-02D) but will also be released globally. It will come with the model number LT26i / LT26a.


Secondly, we recently wrote about the Sony Ericsson SK19 suggesting it could be a Xperia ray pro. However, he says this model is now cancelled. It was a keyboard slide phone being developed for AT&T in the US and would have sat in between the Xperia mini pro and Xperia pro. The reason we trust him? He told us all about the Xperia neo V before today’s announcement including the difference between it and the Xperia neo. We’ll bring you more news as we have it.

Thanks tipster!