xperia play - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Jan

Grand Theft Auto III Updated To Version 1.3 With Expanded Compatibility, Improved Xperia Play Controls, And More

Posted by Liam Spradlin in Games, News

Grand Theft Auto III, the car-stealing, open world game that came to Android in celebration of the series beginning ten long years ago, got a nice update today, bumping it to version 1.3. Besides the usual bug fixes, the GTA update expands the game's compatibility to ASUS' Eee Pad Transformer Prime and the Medion Lifetab, while also adding support for Gamestop's wireless game controller, and enhanced controls for other gamepads and Sony's Xperia Play.

If that's not enough, users can now install the game to an SD card, enable haptic feedback, and adjust video display settings for better performance. Here's a full look at the version 1.3 change log.

May

Sony: Ice Cream Sandwich On Xperia Play? Denied!

Posted by Cameron Summerson in News, Xperia Play (Zeus, PlayStation Phone)

Sony was among one of the first manufacturers to be completely transparent about bringing Ice Cream Sandwich to its devices. Throughout the process, the company has posted numerous entries on its blog regarding the process, where they were at with various devices, and even offered up downloads of the beta product for advanced users and developers to test out.

With the most recent post, however, comes a bit of bad news: the Xperia Play has been dropped from Sony's ICS upgrade path. According to Sony, "after extensive in house testing with [their] developer teams and working with [their] partners, [they] have concluded that a consistent and stable experience, particularly with gaming, cannot be guaranteed for this smartphone on Ice Cream Sandwich."

The post goes on to say that this claim has been further verified by the development community, including "both experienced developers and advanced users, along with game content providers following [the] ICS beta ROM for unlocked Xperia PLAY smartphones."

It appears everyone was in agreeance: the Xperia Play just can't handle ICS and maintain a stable experience.

Apr

Verizon Xperia Play Updated To Version 4.0.2.E.0.57; It's Not Ice Cream Sandwich

Posted by Ron Amadeo in Gingerbread 2.3, Sony Ericsson, Xperia Play (Zeus, PlayStation Phone)

I know, I know. 4.0.2 sounds a lot like Android 4.0, but it isn't. It's actually Gingerbread 2.3.4, and Verizon Xperia Play owners who wish to rock out like it's May 2011 need only mash the update button.

The good news (in addition to the version bump) is that this update will let you take pictures with the right trigger (how did they not think of that earlier?), enable 720p video with continuous autofocus, and fix those crazy bugs like charging forcing landscape mode. You also get to take screenshots with the power button. The bad news is that it will install Verizon Video on Demand and Verizon Navigator.

Mar

Sony Releases Beta ICS ROM For Unlockable Xperia Play Models

Posted by Nate Kimmey in Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0, News, Xperia Play (Zeus, PlayStation Phone)

In a time when many users are wondering if an Android 4.0 update will ever come to their devices, it was a pleasant surprise that Sony was open enough to release a beta version of ICS for some of their devices - the Xperia Arc S, Neo V, and Ray. But they didn't stop there, as they have, "upon request," released a beta ICS ROM for the Xperia Play (or as you may know it, the PlayStation Phone).

As with the previous releases, this is certainly far from a final release. A number of features are missing, most notably Google Apps and Wi-Fi, though Sony says that most "basic functionality" is working.

Sep

Icebreaker Hockey Skates Into The Android Market - From The Creators Of Backbreaker Football

Posted by Ron Amadeo in Applications, News

Do you like Backbreaker Football? Would you like to do that, but with skates and a big stick? Well today the makers of Backbreaker Football have released Icebreaker Hockey. "Crushing checks, slick moves, and super-addictive gameplay" awaits -- should you choose to download. It also has Xperia PLAY support, achievements, online leader boards, and unlockable items. If you've got a device running 2.1 and up, give it a shot.

It's available now for $2.99. To help with your purchasing decision, we've helpfully embedded a video -- of the iOS version. Blame them; not us.

Icrebreacker Hockey

QR code for https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.naturalmotion.icebreaker

Sep

AT&T's Xperia Play 4G Hitting Shelves On September 18 For $50

Posted by Cameron Summerson in AT&T, News, Xperia Play (Zeus, PlayStation Phone)

Sony Ericsson's Xperia Play, also known as the Playstation Phone, will be hitting AT&T's HSPA+ network on September 18th for a mere $50, finally allowing gamers rocking Ma Bell to let go some of that envy towards VZW. This portable gaming/smartphone hybrid sports a 4-inch screen, 1GHz processor, 512MB RAM, 5MP rear shooter, and Android 2.3 out of the box; what really makes this device unique, though, it its slide-out Playstation gamepad and exclusive gaming content.

Aside from the already low pricetag, the Play will come bundled with the multimedia dock and MC100 music cable, adding even more allure to this deal.

Aug

Minecraft For Android Launches In The Android Market

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Games, News

Minecraft, a game that attracted almost 12 million players, over 3 million of whom paid for it, has long been teased for Android by its creator Markus Persson of Mojang. As of today, it's finally available on the Android Market for $6.92 or as a free demo. As expected, the game is currently limited to the Xperia Play - the rest of us will just have to do away with this trailer:

So, are any Xperia Play owners picking the game up? Be prepared for months of lost productivity ahead of you.

Minecraft - Pocket Edition Demo

QR code for https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mojang.minecraftpe.demo

Minecraft - Pocket Edition

QR code for https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mojang.minecraftpe

Aug

CyanogenMod Coming Soon To The Sony Ericsson Xperia Play, Xperia Neo, and Xperia Arc

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Development, News, Xperia Arc (Anzu, X12), Xperia Neo (Hallon), Xperia Play (Zeus, PlayStation Phone)

Good news, Xperia Play, neo, and arc owners: the worlds greatest custom ROM, CyanogenMod, is coming soon to a device near you! Thanks to some newly submitted code, support for these devices can be expected to hit the CyanogenMod repositories soon, and nightlies will be available shortly after that.

Let the celebrations begin!

[CyanogenMod [Play] [Arc] [Neo] via PocketNow]

Jul

"Minecraft - Pocket Edition" For Android Arriving In Fall 2011 For $6.99, Will Be Exclusive To The Xperia Play "For Some Period Of Time"

Posted by John Thompson in Games, News, Xperia Play (Zeus, PlayStation Phone)

We've known that Minecraft is coming to Android for some time now - we even witnessed a video of the game in action on the Xperia Play back in May. What we didn't know, however, was when it would become available on the Market and how much it would cost for eager gamers to take everyone's favorite pixelated game with them on the go.

Thanks to an interview conducted at IGN with Minecraft's lead developer, Markus Persson, we now have some more details about the upcoming title.

According to Persson, Minecraft on Android will be dubbed 'Minecraft - Pocket Edition', and although it will be launching as an exclusive to Sony's Xperia Play, it won't stay that way forever.

Jun

Sony Xperia Play Review: Finally, An Android Phone For Gaming - And Not Much Else

Posted by Nate Kimmey in Phone Reviews, Reviews, Sony Ericsson, Verizon Wireless, Xperia Play (Zeus, PlayStation Phone)

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

It's been quite some time since we first heard rumblings of the PlayStation phone. The concept - a high-end Android phone mashed together with familiar PlayStation controls - seemed like one that could revolutionize gaming on Android. In theory, this device could have done just that.

Unfortunately, in a world where dual core devices are becoming more and more the norm, the Xperia Play's single-core Snapdragon processor (as fast as it is) is already incompatible with some high-end games, such as those optimized for Tegra 2 devices. And it's hard to justify purchasing the phone when the rest of the device has taken a backseat to the all-important gamepad.