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Editorial: Sony, Get Your Smartphone Act Together, Please

David Ruddock — Thu, 10 May 2012 20:28:47 +0000

Sony, you really confuse me sometimes. The US is just about to get the Xperia Ion on AT&T, supposedly the Sony-branded flagship smartphone. The problem is that the Xperia GX just took that crown from the Ion - before it even came out. I'm not sure what Sony's grand master plan here is, but looking from the outside in, it seems like the company (that lost $5.7 billion last year - most of it in the fourth quarter alone) is flying completely and utterly blind.

Sony got into the Android smartphone game way back in 2009, with the announcement of the Xperia X10.

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Gossipy Google Ad Gives Away AT&T's Grand Announcement, Sony Xperia Ion May Be Launching In June

Eric Ravenscraft — Mon, 07 May 2012 18:09:36 +0000

An eager, eagle-eyed XDA member spotted a Google ad while searching for "xperia ion" that may be showing AT&T's hand concerning the release date of said device. One of a few ads that appear when searching for the device states that the Xperia Ion is "Coming Exclusively to AT&T in June." Well, that narrows it down a bit!

The ad doesn't give a specific date, but it does narrow down the date range significantly. It's worth noting that, if this is true, this device will be coming out very shortly after the EVO 4G LTE, and maybe even close to the release of the SGSIII, if Sprint doesn't drag its heels too much.

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

Ron Amadeo — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 19:39:59 +0000

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.

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Sony Begins Rollout Of Ice Cream Sandwich To The Xperia Arc S, Neo V, and Ray In Nordic Countries

Cameron Summerson — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 17:05:00 +0000

Sony has done an excellent job at being transparent with its progress on the bringing Ice Cream Sandwich to a number of Xperia devices. It has kept users aware of what's going on throughout the process, as well as shared alpha and beta builds along the way. Now, though, it looks like the beta days are behind them and the build is ready for prime time for a certain Xperia devices.

The rollout will being with unlocked variants of the Xperia arc s, neo v, and ray (seriously, Sony, stop with the lowercase device names. It looks awful) in Nordic Countries and will continue over the next four to six weeks.

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Ice Cream Sandwich Updates For 2011 Sony Xperia Phones Starting In Mid-April, But Carrier Restrictions May Apply

Ryan Whitwam — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 00:00:14 +0000

Before Sony Ericsson became Sony Mobile, the company seemed committed to developing an Android 4.0 update, going so far as to release alpha ROMs for a number of Xperia devices, and more recently a beta for the Xperia Play. Here we are, a quarter of the way into 2012, and Xperia owners are still gnawing on last year's official Gingerbread. Although, there may finally be a light at the end of the tunnel; the Sony Mobile blog has announced that the first Android 4.0 updates will roll out to select Xperia phones in mid-April. Don't get too excited when wireless carriers are involved though.

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Sony Releases Beta ICS ROM For Unlockable Xperia Play Models

Nate Kimmey — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 00:48:03 +0000

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.

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Sony Releases Android 4.0 Beta ROM For Some Unlocked 2011 Xperia Smartphones

Cameron Summerson — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 16:53:00 +0000

Back in December of '11, Sony [Ericsson] released an Android 4.0 alpha ROM for the Xperia Arc S, Neo V, and Ray. The Sony dev teams has now released an update to this ROM, bringing into its beta stages.

Since the previous release, Sony has made a number of improvements to the ROM, including an updated UI, improved lockscreen, activated GSM modem and FM radios, and a quick dialer.

Unfortunately, Google Apps are not available for this ROM, nor are Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, as they're both still waiting for approval before they can implemented into the product.

If you intend on flashing this ROM, however, you need to be aware that it's intended primarily for developer use, and there are still a lot of quirks.

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Sony Wraps Up Sony Ericsson Buyout, Launches Sony Mobile Communications

Liam Spradlin — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 06:13:42 +0000

Sony completed its $1.47 billion acquisition of Sony Ericsson today, launching an aptly-named venture, Sony Mobile Communications. The Japanese conglomerate stated the official goal of Sony Mobile Communications in a statement announcing the transaction back in October:

The transaction gives Sony an opportunity to rapidly integrate smartphones into its broad array of network-connected consumer electronics devices - including tablets, televisions and personal computers - for the benefit of consumers and the growth of its business. The transaction also provides Sony with a broad intellectual property (IP) cross-licensing agreement covering all products and services of Sony as well as ownership of five essential patent families relating to wireless handset technology.

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SFR Reveals Existence Of Android 4.0.5, Confirms ICS Update Roadmap For Galaxy Nexus, Nexus S, Galaxy SII And HTC Sensation In March 2012

Abhiroop Basu — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 10:08:00 +0000

Just days after hearing about the leaked release of Android 4.0.4 for the Nexus 4G, French mobile phone company SFR has not only announced (Google Translate) which devices will be getting ICS in the coming months, it has also confirmed the existence of Android 4.0.5.

According to its post, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus and Nexus S will be receiving an OTA update to Android 4.0.5 sometime in March, while the HTC Sensation and Galaxy SII will be updated to Android 4.0. In addition, a number of older Android devices, including the LG Optimus Black, HTC Desire S, Desire HD, Samsung Galaxy S, Galaxy Pro, and Motorola Defy+ will be updated to various versions of Android 2.3.

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[CES 2012] Video Hands-On With The Sony Xperia Ion And Xperia S, Including Their Speedy 12MP Rear Cameras

David Ruddock — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 21:42:00 +0000

We stopped by the Sony booth earlier this morning at CES, and got some hands-on time with the very first Sony smartphones (Sony-Ericsson is no more, subject to regulatory approval) - the Xperia Ion and the Xperia S. While these devices were designed before the Sony Ericsson breakup, they'll be marketed as Sony devices when they hit retail channels.

First up is the Xperia Ion, announced a couple of days ago by AT&T. As you may already know, Sony's upcoming flagship device (headed to AT&T in Q2) will be powered by a dual-core 1.5GHz processor, 4G LTE, and features a 720p display with a truly impressive 12MP rear shooter.

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