In a move that can be best described as badly timed, Adobe has finally brought out the Android Flash Player. As impressive as it may be to bring Flash support to Google’s Android operating system, the fact that only the Nexus One has version 2.2 of the OS is a sad reminder to many Android owners who are still eagerly awaiting an update.
Right now, the only smart phone with the new OS is Google’s very own Nexus One. The first third party handset that is confirmed to be getting the update is the HTC Desire which will be getting a patch in a matter of days, for other smart phones; the wait will take much longer.
Considering the Android’s position in the mobile phone industry right now, this is one delay that Google should not allow to continue. Despite recent reports that the patches will be available earlier than expected, they are still taking too long. Take the Sony Ericsson XPERIA handsets. For now, the X10 and the X10 Mini are waiting for a patch to Android 2.1 –so far, there has been no announcement when the 2.2 update will be released. While the original 2.1 patch has been moved from Q4 to Q3 the delay is still significant.
Most of the other handsets are expected a 2.2 update in the next month or by August. Devices such as the Motorola Milestone, Dell Streak and the Samsung i9000 Galaxy S are just some of the Android devices that would need to be updated.
The move from 2.1 to 2.2 Froyo is significant mostly because of the Flash support that it brings. While the additional performance boosts are indeed impressive (up to twice the current UI speed and up to three times faster web browsing), people are more interested in finally being able to see Flash content on their smart phones.
Posts Tagged ‘Sony-Ericsson-XPERIA-X10’
Flash Player is Out Android Froyo Still Not Available
Friday, June 25th, 2010Vodafone Offers Two More Androids
Friday, June 25th, 2010
It seems that mobile network operator Vodafone is going to keep Android fans happy with a wide range of handsets to choose from. The network operator has already confirmed that they have the HTC Wildfire as part of their Android line up and now, they are also two new devices on the list.
The first is the Vodafone 845. This unassuming smart phone is a basic touch screen device developed by the network operator for anyone who wants to enjoy a straightforward Android user experience. The handset brings a 2.8 inch TFT touch screen display, a 3.2 mega pixel camera and Android 2.1 Éclair. While it is likely that the handset would be getting a Froyo update eventually, no confirmation has been given by Google nor Vodafone.
The other device is the more well known Samsung i9000 Galaxy S. This smart phone is one of the best Android devices to be offered on the market today as it is able to match the specs of the HTC Desire and the Google Nexus One. While the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 matches these devices in terms of hardware, the fact that it only uses Android 1.6 Donut places it lower on the bar of the Galaxy S. Like the Desire, the i9000 makes use of the Android 2.1 Éclair operating system.
With a high speed 1GHz CPU, a 5 mega pixel camera and a 4 inch super AMOLED touch screen, there is plenty to like about this Samsung handset. The Korean manufacturer has also added in some special features such as the Samsung Social Hub, SmartLife, ThinkFree and various other proprietary applications.
According to Vodafone, the Samsung Galaxy S is available for free on a 35 Pound monthly tariff for 24 months. This contract will give users about 900 minutes of talk time, 1GB data allowance and unlimited texting.
Quick Preview: Sony Ericsson’s XPERIA X8
Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010
The XPERIA X8 is top notch handset hidden in the guise of a standard smart phone. Sure you’ve got other high end Android devices available right now, but having to shell out loads of cash on a smart phone is a heavy investment –especially when you will not get to use all the features. This is where the X8 shines, it is versatile, stylish and most importantly practical.
Sony Ericsson’s XPERIA series of smart phones have always been on the higher end of the spectrum. Even with the disappointing performance of the X1 and X2 Windows Mobile handsets, the company has been able to establish the brand as their ‘special’ set of smart phones. This later expanded with the XPERIA Pure, which is a concept GSM device that featured the very first transparent display and the announcement (and launch) of the XPERIA X10 –their first Android smart phone.
While the XPERIA X10 impressed many of us in terms of features and hardware, it was a very high end device. The smart phone had both killer specs and a killer price tag. The recent launch of the X10 Mini was supposed to be an answer to that, the Mini provided users with a very low end alternative. But with the jump from the high end device to the super small X10 Mini being such a big step, Sony left a big gaping hole in between –a niche that the XPERIA X8 is meant to fill.
Packed with a 3 inch TFT capacitive touch screen display, 128 MB of internal memory, a 3.2 mega pixel camera, a 600 MHz CPU and the Android 1.6 Donut operating system, the XPERIA X8 is a solid piece of work that people can rely on for its usability and more importantly, stability. It is also reported that it will be getting a price tag of less than 200 Euro –a great deal for an Android handset.
Milestone 2 Leaked, Promised to have Froyo
Monday, June 21st, 2010
The Android community certainly has plenty of new smart phones to look forward to. And among these upcoming devices is the Motorola Milestone 2.
So far, specifics on this handset have been vague and hard to pin down –especially when it was often mixed up with the Motorola Shadow (which is expected to be the next Nexus smart phone). Just recently, some leaked photos of the Milestone 2 were revealed and with it, promises of better specs and the new Android operating system.
The biggest news comes in form of a new processor for the smart phone; according to the rumors the Motorola Milestone 2 will have a faster 1GHz CPU –and it will also have a 5 mega pixel snapper too. This will put the smart phone on the same level as other high end Android smart phones released recently, such as the Google Nexus One, HTC Desire, Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10, Dell Streak (also known as the Dell Mini 5), and the Samsung i9000 Galaxy S. Aside from the new CPU and better camera, very little is still known about the Milestone 2.
The pictures reveal that the smart phone will still be packing two of the biggest hardware features it had before –a big capacitive touch screen display and a physical slide out QWERTY keyboard.
It was also stated that the phone will come with the new Android 2.2 Froyo (which is somewhat expected as the Milestone tends to herald new versions of the OS –the older Milestone came with 2.1 Éclair).
The advantages of having 2.2 Froyo include a faster Android OS and even faster browsing, support for tethering and allowing the handset to be used as a WiFi hotspot, and best of all, having native support for Flash content –this means that all Flash content on the web will be visible on the Android smart phone.
Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8
Monday, June 21st, 2010
The newest offering from Sony Ericsson – the XPERIA X8 – looks set to sit comfortably in-between the Xperia X10 and the Xperia X10 Mini Smartphone’s when it is released later on this year however will it really provide something different from the other Sony Ericsson Smartphone’s available on the market at the minute or is it just a midway point between Sony Ericssons other two recent Smartphone’s?
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8 is the ‘corner icons’ that a present on the 3 inch HVGA capacitive LCD touch screen which is also scratch resistant. These are the same corner icons that were present on the X10 Mini; not only are they an extremely conveniently way in which to access your most popular apps but they curved icons really look smart on the phones screen. However unlike the X10 Mini, the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8 only features a 3.2 mega pixel camera – the X10 Mini sports a 5 mega pixel one and the X10 a whopping 8 mega pixels – and it also, sadly, doesn’t have a flash feature. In saying this, the camera’s that are featured on Sony Ericsson mobiles have traditionally been very good so the 3.2 mega pixel offering here should be more than sufficient to snap away if you are not looking for a digital camera replacement or will be expecting to take high quality HD-esque images. Furthermore with the Android operating system you will have the option to have a direct upload to your Facebook account.
In another similarity to the X10 Mini, the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8 will have a 600 MHz processor. It was this processor that meant the X10 Mini zipped along so quickly so it is a welcome sight to see it here on the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8 and should mean that everything runs smoothly through the Android 1.6 operating system. It is, however, somewhat of a disappointment in that the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8 is still running on an old version of Android when many of its rivals are releasing mobiles with the 2.1 version of the popular OS, In saying that, Sony Ericsson have confirmed that the X10, X10 Mini and XPERIA X8 will receive an upgrade to the new 2.1 Android system around the third quarter of this year. Even so, it is a bit frustrating that we will have to wait for the 2.1 update when most Android Smartphone’s are now equipped with the 2.1 version.
Thankfully the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8 will have 3G compatibility – as well as the customary Wi-Fi, obviously. This should certainly give the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8 is the edge over the likes of the Samsung Wave 2 and Samsung Wave 2 Pro which both disappointingly did not feature 3G so any Wi-Fi black spots would results in sluggy and slow internet access. With 3G a feature of the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8, then internet browsing regardless of whether a Wi-Fi is available or not should be smooth and fluid and even the most content heavy of websites shouldn’t prove to be much of a problem. As with any Android based mobile the usual array of Google service are available – maps, bookmarks, Gmail, Google Talk etc… and the browser itself can store bookmarks and offer the user the option of zooming and resizing web pages.
Users of the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8 may also have the chance to double their phone up as an mp3 player. The phone comes with 2GB of external memory however this can be expanded to 16 GB with a microSD card and as the new Sony Ericsson is following on the trend of most mobiles these days and features a 3.5 mm audio jack then there is no reason why you can’t use the XPERIA X8 as a portable music player.
So what should we make of the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8? Well it is designed to be a midway point between the inexpensive and light X10 Mini and the powerful high end X10. The one major disappointment with this new model is that it will still run on the old Android 1.6 operating system; even though it is a great OS, the fact that Android 2.1 is now the newest Android based system it is a little surprising that the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8 will not feature the 2.1 straight from the box. Although Sony Ericsson should offer and update to 2.1 sometime later this year. In overall terms the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8 is, on paper, a great little phone. The camera, even though it doesn’t have a flash option, is more than capable of snapping some quality shots and has the option to link and directly upload your photographs to Facebook. The screen is also one of the high points of the new Sony Ericsson mobile and with the corner icons it certainly has a user interface and display to rival the best of them. Timescape is another major plus for the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8 and comes preinstalled. Timescape puts all your social networking statues, updates, emails etc… in tiles which can then be accessed and browsed with ease so that you are always in touch with your email, Facebook and Twitter accounts. Whether or not it will be able to replace the individual social networking apps that most users tend to use remains to be seen but is an interesting, creative and accessible way in which to keep in touch through social networking and the display and user interface of Timescape is enough on its own to convince you to start using it as your primary social networking access route.
The Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8 will be available in the UK later on this year with some great XPERIA X8 deals, and should prove to be a popular mobile to consumers who want something more than the X10 Mini but don’t want to shell out for the X10. You can leave your own thoughts and opinions on the new XPERIA phone on the XPERIA X8 reviews page.
Sony Ericsson Gives Out Details on Leaked Handsets
Thursday, June 17th, 2010
Sony Ericsson is coming out with a mini trifecta of mobile phones that are sure to grab the attention of any casual mobile phone user (with one that is geared for those who like to take their smart phones a little more seriously).
The handset we would like to focus on the most is the Cedar. This device is the very same handset that was announced earlier this week as the Hong and as you may remember, it is a Greenheart mobile phone.
For those not familiar with the term, the Greenheart series of mobile phones from Sony Ericsson are devices made which fit very strict environmental standards. While these standards are not applied to all of Sony Ericsson’s existing products, it does set a new goal for mobile phone manufacturers to follow. The Sony Ericsson Cedar will be made of over 50% recycled plastics and be processed using eco-friendly materials.
Next on the list is the Yendo; this device was mistakenly thought to be an Android handset because it resembles the newly launched X10 Mini smart phone. According to the initial reports, the device would be combining Sony’s Walkman technology with the Android operating system. However, it seems that fans will be disappointed to know that the W150 Yendo would not be running the Android operating system but will instead have a typical mobile phone user interface.
The third mobile handset in the Sony Ericsson list is the XPERIA X8. This handset was originally labeled as the XPERIA Shakira before it was given the X8 designation this Tuesday. According to Sony Ericsson, the device will be the handset in between the original XPERIA X10 and the X10 Mini smart phones. Expect to see this mid range smart phone made available in the coming weeks. As for the other two handsets, it is expected that they will be released within the third quarter of this year.
Android Smart Phone Wrap Up: Q2 2010
Saturday, June 12th, 2010With the first half of 2010 coming to pass, here is a quick look back at all the big Android smart phone releases with a bit of looking forward as well.
The year started with the launch of the Google Nexus One. There was plenty of hype and excitement over the handset since late last year and until the very end, there were even speculations that Google might not be making a device at all. The folks at Mountain View protected their secret till the very end and when the Nexus One finally came out, everyone was awestruck with the amazing device.
However, Google’s announcement about the Nexus One’s distribution saw a gloom fall over the crowd as everyone knew that being sold exclusively on the Google Online Store is a death sentence for the mobile phone. They were right; Google only sold 20,000 units during the first week.
Despite the rough start, Google was able to pick up the pace by April with the back to back release of the HTC Desire (which is very much similar to the Nexus One) and the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 (SE’s very first Android smart phone). The HTC Legend also came out in the same week as the two other devices providing the world with several new Android devices to choose from.
Just a while back, the HTC Wildfire and SE X10 Mini smart phones also came out –providing the mid range Android market with two extremely good choices for mobile phones.
The launch of the new Android 2.2 Froyo operating system also paved the way for the global re-launch of the Nexus One. The Google phone, now equipped with the new OS (with Flash support) is now becoming one of the top Android devices. In the meanwhile, manufacturers Samsung, HTC, SE and others are currently working on new Android handsets that will be released later this year.
Vodafone Offers Two Mid Range Androids
Friday, June 11th, 2010
The Android smart phone market is pretty much congested with high end smart phones. With handsets like the Google Nexus One, HTC Desire, Samsung i9000 Galaxy S, Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 and many others, it seems that getting to own an Android handset on a budget is a pretty hard thing to do. Fortunately, it seems that beyond these impressive devices and their 1GHz CPUs and large touch screen displays, there are still plenty of smart phones that are more reasonable with the balance of specs and cost.
Take these two new handsets that Vodafone is now offering its customers: the HTC Wildfire and the Sony Ericsson X10 Mini. Both handsets are based on more expensive high end counterparts, but they drop the pricey hardware and simply focus on delivering the basic Android smart phone experience to users, and it that sense, the phones are pretty successful.
Vodafone has announced that the plans for both handsets would make the mobile phones available for free on their various 20 Pound monthly tariff plan (good for two years/24 months). Since the phones vary in retail cost, the plan offers for the two phones vary a little. The X10 Mini gets about 100 minutes of talk time, 500 SMS and 500 MB of data. The HTC Wildfire on the other hand gets to have unlimited text messages, 300 minutes of talk time and also 500 MB of data. Either way, both plans are good.
The Wildfire comes with a 3.2 inch TFT capacitive touch screen display, a 5 mega pixel camera, and the Android 2.1 OS (it also makes use of the HTC Sense user interface). The X10 Mini has a smaller screen at 2.6 inches, but has a faster CPU than the Wildfire.
Both Android handsets are available right now from Vodafone UK.
XPERIA Meets Walkman in Upcoming Sony Ericsson Handset
Thursday, June 10th, 2010
Fans of the Sony Ericsson XPERIA series were happy to see the X10 Mini and X10 Mini Pro smart phones announced at the Mobile World Congress. It goes to show that despite the fact that the XPERIA X10 smart phone was only running version 1.6 of the Android operating system, it was still one of the coolest handsets available, and seeing it resized into the small 3 inch frame of the X10 Mini is very impressive.
With the X10 Mini pro confirmed to be coming out soon, Sony Ericsson is keeping their Android making machines busy with the announcement of the new SE W150 TeaCake. This new handset looks a lot like the X10 Mini in terms of shape and form, but the device also sports the Sony Walkman logo on the border –indicating that Sony’s music playback technology will be present in this new device.
The handset will also be using the Google Android OS –which makes it mostly likely to be the Android 1.6 Donut which is used in other SE devices (if it uses Android 1.5 Cupcake, the OS will be matching the name of the handset itself).
So far, initial specs on the TeaCake are still based on rumors and speculations, but if these are true, then it will certainly be a great idea to pass up on the X10 Mini and get this handset instead.
The W150 TeaCake comes with a 2.6 inch TFT capacitive touch screen (with a resolution of 240 x 320 pixels), a 5 mega pixel camera with flash, autofocus, geo tagging and video recording capabilities and of course, the Walkman digital player (TrackID music recognition software and more).
In other Sony Ericsson news, leaks of the new XPERIA Shakira reveals that the handset is going to be a medium sized XPERIA device with a touch screen that is about 3.3 inches.
Upcoming Android Smart Phones from Sony Ericsson
Wednesday, June 9th, 2010
It seems that Sony Ericsson is really showing some Android love these days. According to various rumors, three new handsets from the famous manufacturer will be using Google’s open source operating system.
This comes as to no surprise considering the success of the SE XPERIA X10 Android smart phone. Despite the fact that it only runs version 1.6 Donut, it still managed to perform well in sales (it also helps that the handset comes with a 4 inch capacitive touch screen, an 8 mega pixel camera and a 1GHz Snapdragon CPU).
The three upcoming phones have been revealed in a series of images that showed the devices themselves, and while little to no actual details about the phone’s specs has been given, it is clear that the handsets are indeed Android devices.
The most exciting phone in the group is the one that has not yet been given a name: an Android smart phone with a 5 inch screen. Sure, we have already seen how impressive the mini-tablet can be, Dell’s Mini 5 (Streak) has already shown that. But Sony Ericsson has also added in another important feature to this device –the ability to use it like a mini netbook. The phone has a slide out QWERTY keyboard and a tilting front face.
Another handset in the leaked images is the XPERIA Shakira. So far, actual hardware on this handset is still unconfirmed but since it has been stated that this device is the missing link between the X10 and the X10 Mini, it will come packed specs similar to the Mini (if not upgraded a little short of the original X10). Finally, we get to the W150i TeaCake. This handset is basically the same as the X10 Mini in terms of looks and size, but it does make use of the Sony Walkman technology.