SonyEricsson launched its first phone under the new phone Xperia sub-brand here at the Mobile World Congress, where it also showed three new models under the Walkman and Cyber-shot sub-brands.
The Xperia X1, a W-CDMA HDSPA/HSUPA worldphone with WiFi, is due in North America in the second half. Two camera-optimized Cyber-shot phones are due in mid-2008, and the music-optimized 8GB Walkman W980 is due in the third quarter.
The models are designed specifically for the North American market as part of an effort to build market share, the company said. As part of that effort, the company also unveiled its first ExpressCard-form wireless modems, which incorporate W-CDMA HSDPA/HSUPA high-speed wireless data for North American carriers.
SonyEricsson didn't say which carriers would offer the phones or data cards or whether they would be available in unlocked form outside carrier channels.
The Xperia X1 slider, equipped with touchscreen and arc-sliding QWERTY keyboard, is the company's first PDA phone based on a Windows Mobile OS, joining models available outside the U.S. with the Symbian OS. It's the first of multiple planned phones in the new premium sub-brand, which is designated for phones that seamlessly integrate multimedia entertainment and web communications, the company said. The Cyber-shot and Walkman brands, in contrast, are used for "single-focus products," a spokeswoman said.
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Interesting that so many people are comparing this new release against the iPhone. Whether they find it superior or not doesn't matter, the thing is everyone compares it to the iPhone.
Some people will say it's because the iPhone is the absolute new standard in phone design. I say it's just many people's way of saying: "See how the iPhone is such a scam."
Wheres the wifi, 3g, DVD quality screen, qwerty keyboard, microSD card slot, Ergonomics and Performance?! I still think iPhone is much better!