Sony has released its first "Sony" branded Android phones onto the New Zealand market - that is, the first since it bought Ericsson out of their joint venture.
They are the Sony Xperia P (the hero model with a 4-inch display) and the more compact 3.5-inch Xperia U.
The good stuff: Unlike most phone makers, who are spreading their bets, Sony has committed to an all-Android, all-of-the-time smartphone focus.
And while review units won't wing in until next week, I expect they will carry on the Xperia tradition of excellent photo and video features, drawing on the expertise of the wider Sony group.
Good pictures, and video are more about more than the raw megapixel ratings (though the new Xperias are no slouch on that front - see tech specs below).
More good news: the pricing is pretty keen: $649 for the P and $399 for the U.
Based on Sony's track record in mobile phones, I'm picking you'll get some good engineering for your money. Sony is certainly stronger on the design and build front than some in the Android camp.
The not so good news: The P and the U will be Vodafone-only.
Sony will be hoping that means more focus from its exclusive telco. But good luck with that as Vodafone mixes it up with Telecom and 2degrees to push the big-name Androids of the hour (the Samsung Galaxy S III and HTC One X) and, of course, vies with Telecom over the iPhone.
For the consumer - and I would say the phone maker, too - it's always a case of the more telcos the merrier.
Android fanboys will also be quick to criticise the Xperia P and U for running on Android 2.3.
I'd have to agree. Google's latest mobile software, Android 4.0 (aka Ice Cream sandwich) is so much smoother in so many ways - none the least from the way it automatically loads all your apps, over the air, the first time you sign into your Google account.
It really jars to go back to an older version of the OS.
The good news here is that Sony says the Xperia P and U are upgradeable to Android 4.0. And update should be pushed out in the third quarter, a rep told NBR ONLINE.
RAW DATA: Tech specs:
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Xperia P specifications
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All services mentioned in this list may not be available in every market. |
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Colour |
Silver Black Red |
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Facts |
Size: 122 x 59.5 x 10.5 mm Weight: 120 grams 1 GHz STE U8500 dual-core processor Google Android™ 2.3 (Gingerbread), upgradeable to Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) |
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Camera |
3D Sweep Panorama™ 8 MP camera 8x digital zoom Auto focus Face detection Flash/Photo flash Flash/Photo light Front-facing camera (VGA) Geotagging HD video recording (1080p) Image stabiliser Red-eye reduction Scene recognition Self-timer Smile detection Sony Exmor R™ for mobile image sensor Sweep Panorama™ Sweep Multi Angle™ Touch capture Touch focus Video light Video recording |
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Music |
3D surround sound Album art Bluetooth™ stereo (A2DP) Clear bass Clear stereo Music Player PlayNow™ service SensMe™ TrackID™ music recognition xLoud™ |
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Internet |
Android Market™ Bookmarks Google™ search Google Voice™ Search Google Maps™ for Mobile with Street view and Latitude™ NeoReader™ barcode scanner Web browser (WebKit™) |
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Communication
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Call list Conference calls Facebook™ application Facebook inside Xperia™ Google Talk™ application Noise suppression Xperia™ Timescape™ Speakerphone Twitter™ (Timescape™ integration) Video chat ready |
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Messaging
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Conversations Google Mail™ Instant messaging Multimedia messaging (MMS) Predictive text input Sound recorder Text messaging (SMS) |
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Design
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Auto rotation Gesture input Keyboard (on-screen, QWERTY) Live Wallpaper Reality Display with Sony WhiteMagic™ technology Screenshot capturing Mobile BRAVIA® Engine Touch screen Contains post consumer recycled plastic and waterborne paint |
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Entertainment
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3D Album Accelerated Adobe Flash Video Media browser Motion gaming Radio (FM radio with RDS) Send to web Sony Entertainment Network TV launcher Video streaming YouTube™ |
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Organiser
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Airplane mode Alarm clock Calculator Calendar Contacts Document readers eCompass™ E-Manual Notes Setup guide Stopwatch Tasks Timer |
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Connectivity
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3.5 mm audio jack (CTIA) aGPS Bluetooth™ wireless technology DLNA Certified® HDMI support Media Transfer Protocol support Micro USB support Native USB tethering NFC PC Companion Synchronisation via Microsoft® Exchange ActiveSync® USB High speed 2.0 support USB host USB Mass Storage Wi-Fi® Wi-Fi® hotspot functionality Wisepilot™ turn-by-turn navigation
All services mentioned in this leaflet may not be available in every market. |
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Display
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4” Reality Display with Sony WhiteMagic™ technology 960 x 540 pixels (qHD) 16,000,000 colour TFT Hard coated shatter proof sheet on scratch-resistant mineral glass |
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Memory |
Internal phone storage: 16 GB (up to 13 GB user-accessible memory) |
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Networks |
UMTS HSPA 850 (Band V), 900 (Band VIII), 1900 (Band II), 2100 (Band I) GSM GPRS/EDGE 850, 900, 1800, 1900 |
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Battery life |
Talk time GSM: Up to 6 hrs* Standby time GSM/GPRS: Up to 470 hrs*
Talk time UMTS: Up to 5 hrs* Standby time UMTS: Up to 475 hrs*
Music listening time: Up to 80 hrs Video playback time: Up to 4 hrs
Battery: 1305 mAh typical, 1265 mAh minimum
*Values are according to GSM Association Battery Life Measurement Technique. Battery performance may vary depending on network conditions and configurations, and phone usage. |
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In the kit |
Xperia™ P, embedded battery, clear audio certified stereo headset, fast charger, micro USB cable for charging, synchronisation and file transfer, and user documentation, 4 x Xperia SmartTags, HDMI cable |
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Xperia U specifications
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All services mentioned in this list may not be available in every market. |
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Colour |
Black White |
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Facts |
Size: 112 x 54 x 12 mm Weight: 110 grams 1 GHz STE U8500 dual core-processor Google Android™ 2.3 (Gingerbread), upgradeable to Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) |
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Camera |
3D Sweep panorama™ 5 megapixel camera 16x digital zoom Auto focus Face detection Flash/Photo flash Flash/Photo light Front-facing camera (VGA) Geotagging HD video recording (720p) Red-eye reduction Self-timer Send to web Sweep Multi Angle Sweep panorama™ Video light Video recording |
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Music |
Album art Bluetooth™ stereo (A2DP) Clear bass Clear stereo Manual equalizer Music Player PlayNow™ service SensMe™ TrackID™ music recognition xLoud™ |
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Internet |
Android Market™ Bookmarks Google™ search Google Voice™ Search Google Maps™ for Mobile with Street view and Latitude™ NeoReader™ barcode scanner Web browser (WebKit™) |
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Communication
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Call list Conference calls Facebook™ application Facebook inside Xperia™ Google Talk™ application Noise suppression Xperia™ Timescape™ Speakerphone Twitter™ (Timescape™ integration) Video chat ready |
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Messaging
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Conversations Google Mail™ Instant messaging Multimedia messaging (MMS) Predictive text input Sound recorder Text messaging (SMS) Gesture input Voice input |
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Design
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Auto rotation Keyboard (on-screen, QWERTY) Picture wallpaper Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA® Engine Screenshot capturing Touch screen Live Wallpaper Contains post consumer recycled plastic and waterborne paint |
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Entertainment
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Media browser Radio (FM radio with RDS) Sony Entertainment Network Video streaming YouTube™ |
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Organiser
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Alarm clock Calculator Calendar Airplane mode 3D Album Infinite button Contacts Setup guide Stopwatch Timer |
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Connectivity
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3.5 mm audio jack (CTIA) aGPS Bluetooth™ wireless technology DLNA Certified® Media Transfer Protocol support Micro USB support Modem Native USB tethering Media Go™ Synchronisation via Microsoft® Exchange ActiveSync® USB High speed 2.0 support USB mass storage USB Host Wi-Fi® Wi-Fi® Hotspot functionality Wisepilot™ turn-by-turn navigation
All services mentioned in this leaflet may not be available in every market. |
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Display
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3.5” Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA® Engine 854 x 480 pixels 16,000,000 colour TFT Anti-reflection coating on scratch-resistant mineral glass |
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Memory |
RAM (for active apps and OS services): 512 MB System memory (for Android firmware): 2 GB Phone memory (for downl. apps and apps data): 2 GB Internal storage (for photos, music, videos and downl. apps): 4 GB
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Networks |
UMTS HSPA 850 (Band V), 1900 (Band II), 2100 (Band I) GSM GPRS/EDGE 850, 900, 1800, 1900
UMTS HSPA 900 (Band VIII), 2100 (Band I) GSM GPRS/EDGE 850, 900, 1800, 1900 |
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Battery life |
Talk time GSM: Up to 6 hrs 36 min* Standby time GSM/GPRS: Up to 260 hrs*
Talk time UMTS: Up to 5 hrs 36 min* Standby time UMTS: Up to 472 hrs*
Music listening time: Up to 45 hrs Video playback time: Up to 6 hrs
Battery: 1320 mAh typical, 1290 mAh minimum
*Values are according to GSM Association Battery Life Measurement Technique. Battery performance may vary depending on network conditions and configurations, and phone usage. |
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In the kit |
Xperia™ U, battery, exchangeable caps, stereo headset, charger, micro USB cable for charging, synchronisation and file transfer, and user documentation, audio adapter |
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First 'Sony' Androids hit NZ
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