PlayStation Phone spied in China
Sony Ericsson’s upcoming Xperia Play handset – aka the PlayStation Phone – has turned up for sale in China.
Taiwanese website ePrice says it was tipped off to the fact by a reader on the mainland, and promptly sent one of its Shenzhen-based correspondents to go and have a look.
The result: a wealth of hi-res snaps of the gadget – model number R800i – that would seem to be shots of a genuine device. Here are three – ePrice has a lot more.
The Xperia-branded handset has all the key PSP controls, which slide out like they do on the PSP Go. The layout isn’t identical, suggesting this isn’t a fake made by grafting bits of the handheld console onto a Sony Ericsson phone. The ‘joysticks’ are made from touchp
The site says the Xperia has a 4in multi-touch touchscreen and a 1GHz CPU and runs Android 2.3. The key application is PlayStation Pocket, but with no service in place and no content to download, the app doesn’t do anything now, ePrice claimed.
Playstation Phone Likely to be Called “Xperia Play,” Expected in Stores April 2011.
It’s always fun seeing the details come trickling out on a new phone — especially a phone as highly-anticipated as the upcoming “Playstation phone.” Well, some pieces of the puzzle are starting to fall into place. A European trademark was granted on the “Xperia Play” on December 1st. Also, the domain names “XperiaPlay.com,” “XperiaPlay.net,” and “XperiaPlay.org” have been registered. These factors lend a lot of credence to the rumor of the name. Pocket-Lint is also reporting on rumors that the device will be formally announced at Mobile World Congress this upcoming February, and will be available in stores in April.
Stay tuned, we’ll bring you more information as things become official!
Playstation Phone Shown Off Again
Rumors of a Sony Ericsson Playstation Phone have been around for a while, and recently more and more leaks with pictures, videos and specs have started to appear online.
Well now we have another video for you to check out of this as of yet unannounced device and if the rumours are right we could even see an official unveiling on the 9th December?.
In this video you can see that the OS version is Gingerbread which is 2.3 also due to be released any day now along with the Samsung Nexus S, it also uses the name Zeus in the device information, we will see what the official name might be if this is not it.
The Playstation phone is a touch screen phone with slide out Playstation controls, no QWERTY here just keys for gaming and it looks like there is a specific application installed for gaming.
Sony Ericsson CEO suggests February reveal, perhaps the PlayStation Phone?
Plausible deniability seems to be Sony’s strategy when it comes to the PlayStation Phone, and that apparently goes for Sony Ericsson as well — once again, without actually confirming the existence of the Android-based gaming handset, its manufacturer is hinting strongly at an impending reveal. “There’s a lot of smoke, and I tell you there must be a fire somewhere,” CEO Bert Nordberg told the Wall Street Journal, adding that some sort of new Sony Ericsson product will be unveiled at Mobile World Congress this Februrary. While that particular item could easily be the 4.3-inch Anzu slate rather than a PlayStation slider phone, the chief executive didn’t seem to shy away from video games in a series of additional quotes. “I haven’t dug into that history, but the future might be brighter,” he said when asked why the company didn’t make a PlayStation Phone years ago, and later suggested that gaming might be the ticket to help SE diversify its offerings. “Sony is of course a very strong brand, and why shouldn’t we use that?” he asked the Journal. We can’t think of a single compelling reason, Mr. Nordberg. Bring on the games.
Xperia X10 To Get Pinch-to-zoom in Q1 2011
Since the release of the Xperia X10, perhaps even before, there has been a lot of discussion as to whether the Xperia X10 would be capable of multitouch. As you know, the answer turned out to be a resounding no. At one point, Sony Ericsson declared that the hardware of the Xperia wasn’t able to handle multitouch. Today finds the handset maker issuing an about-face.
Yes, dear folks, you’re reading it right. Multitouch is on the way but it will take some time and it will be pinch-to-zoom only. You see, when the two fingers cross each other on the X- or Y-axis, the phone starts to behave weirdly. Those of us across the pond, and those of us on AT&T don’t care. It’s still brilliant, and welcome anyway!
Sony Ericsson Xperia X12 Anzu: Android 2.3 phone incoming
Sony Ericsson’s Android phones are no doubt great to look at. But their failure to play nice with the very latest versions of Google’s killer OS has caused problems. However, it seems things are all set to change with the arrival of the Anzu, also known as the Xperia X12.
This spanking new Android handset has been leaked on The Unofficial Xperia X10 blog, with pics showing a huge, but superslim device with a 4.3-inch panel. While the one snapped is running Android 2.1, word to the wise is that the X12 will be loaded up with Android 2.3 Gingerbread when it hits shelves early next year.
On top of that monster screen, there’s said to be HDMI out and 1080 HD video recording, putting this right up there with the Samsung Galaxy S. The X12 is expected to be announced alongside the much-hyped PSP phone in December, ahead of their New Year on sale dates.
Elsewhere the X10 Mini and Mini Pro are being lined up for a refresh, with Android 2.3 on board. The Vivaz and Vivaz Pro are also said to be getting the same treatment, with new models out in 2011.
The PlayStation Phone
We’ve gotten our hands on some more images of the PlayStation Phone, and gleaned a few more juicy details about the handset. Firstly, as you can see in the photos, the model in question does indeed seem to be codenamed “Zeus” (as we reported on the 27th). Furthermore, the handset pictured is running Android 2.2, though apparently there are multiple devices out there with different versions on board (including at least one packed with Android 3.0). Based on what we know, there’s little chance the phone will launch with Froyo — but it’s clear these have been worked on for some time with various versions of the OS.
The device appears to have an 8GB microSD card slotted, and at least 512MB of internal storage (though we’re hoping it’s the 1GB we’ve heard would be present). As you can see from the pictures in the gallery below, the device isn’t exactly thin — we surmise that the handset is around 17mm thick, or slightly thicker than HTC’s Touch Pro 2 (and funnily enough, about the same as the PSPgo). From a design standpoint, the device seems to have more in common with BlackBerry handsets than previous Sony Ericsson phones; that smoky chrome bezel which surrounds the device is definitely giving us Torch flashbacks.
The PlayStation Phone
It’s hard to believe that what we’re looking at is real — but we assure you, the picture above is in fact the PlayStation Phone you’ve long been waiting for. As we reported back in August, the device you see is headed into the market soon, likely boasting Android 3.0 (aka Gingerbread), along with a custom Sony Marketplace which will allow you to purchase and download games designed for the new platform. The device snapped up top (and in our gallery below) is sporting a 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8655 (a chip similar to the one found in the G2, but 200MHz faster), 512MB of RAM, 1GB of ROM, and the screen is in the range of 3.7 to 4.1 inches. Looking almost identical to the mockup we hit you with this summer, the handset does indeed have a long touchpad in the center which is apparently multitouch, and you can see in the photos that it’s still bearing those familiar PlayStation shoulder buttons. For Sony buffs, you’ll be interested to know that there’s no Memory Stick slot here, but there is support for microSD cards.
The particular model in these shots is still in prototyping mode. As such, the unit doesn’t have a custom skin (not even SE’s Timescape design seen on the Xperia devices), and is said to be rather buggy. We’re digging into more facts as we speak, but it’s likely that much of what we reported earlier is still accurate, and though the device could still be headed for a 2010 release, 2011 is looking much more realistic. Still, there’s a lot of time between now and the holidays… so keep your fingers crossed!
Sony Ericsson brings 16-megapixel Cyber-shot S006 cellphone to KDDI
KDDI may have done its best to bury it amongst the few dozen other phones it announced today (including that eye-catching X-RAY clamshell), but we’re not about to let the first phone using Sony’s new 16.4-megapixel CMOS sensor slip by. That honor naturally goes to Sony Ericsson itself, which has stuffed the sensor into the otherwise ordinary looking Cyber-shot S006 cellphone. In addition to all those megapxiels, you’ll also get ISO settings up to ISO 12800, and the rest of the camera’s specs aren’t too shabby either, including a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, a 3.3-inch screen (said to be VGA, though we’re assuming it’s actually HVGA or WVGA), and built-in WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS. Unfortunately, all of that is paired with Sony’s own proprietary non-smartphone OS and it’s, of course, exclusive to KDDI in Japan for the time being (and only being released next spring).
Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Android update teased (video)
Sony Ericsson has finally started to talk up its plans to give the much-hyped, but ultimately flawed Xperia X10 a bump to Android 2.1.
Having landed on the outdated Android 1.6 platform, SE has unleashed three new clips (seen below) which show the Xperia X10 playing nice with a version of Android which was first seen in January this year, months before the X10’s release.
As well as unified mailboxes, Google Goggles and Exchange support, Sony Ericsson has upped the homescreen count to five, added more icon spaces to each screen and a couple of new widgets for conserving the battery and checking out recent calls. There’s also continuous autofocus in HD video shooting. However, you won’t be able to get the software boost until the end of the month, and even then it depends on the networks giving the thumbs up.
It’d be polite to say this upgrade is long overdue, especially as most rival Android phones already have Android 2.2 sitting on board. Android 3.0 is widely expected to be unveiled before the year’s end, making the X10 obsolete once more despite its killer spec sheet.
AIVAnet 