It is no longer news to know that the Symbian operating system is on the downward curve. Despite the fact that the platform has one of the highest degrees of market penetration thanks to Nokia’s long standing history in the mobile phone industry, it is also a platform that is quickly being overtaken by the Google Android OS.
The one advantage that the Symbian had over its rival systems was that it was widespread. Along with the Apple iOS and the RIM BB OS stuck to their respective developer-manufacturers, it was not surprising to know that the widely spread Nokia had more Symbian users.
This was not a limitation shared by Google’s Android. The open source mobile platform is used in a wide variety of mobile phones and is gaining plenty of ground. In just over two years, the Google OS has been able to overtake the market share of RIM and Apple. Industry experts see a bright future for the open source platform –starting with the fact that it will certainly overcome the Symbian.
Sony Ericsson’s announcement that it will no longer support the Symbian OS is not surprising. Despite the fact that the Satio, Aino and Kita handset were relatively successful, and that the Vivaz and Vivaz Pro were critically well received, nothing beats the success of the XPERIA devices which used the Android over the Symbian.
Even Samsung sees the point in Sony Ericsson’s announcement. In fact, Samsung’s decision to cut off ties with Symbian was a far more solid cut than one would think. Not only did Samsung choose to stop supporting the OS, but they also decided that the support for Symbian Samsung phones should also be ceased as well.
So far, it is hard to tell whether the upcoming Symbian^3 platform would be able to change things around for the faltering OS.
Posts Tagged ‘Sony-Ericsson-Vivaz’
In Case You Missed It: Sony Drops Symbian
Tuesday, October 19th, 2010Are Sony Ericsson’s Androids Taking Out the Symbian?
Tuesday, September 28th, 2010
According to various news sources, it appears that Sony Ericsson has made their last Symbian handset with the SE Vivaz Pro.
Now, for those wondering, the Vivaz Pro was a relatively successful handset. While it did not break new ground, it was certainly an impressive phone and everyone who got to try out the keyboard toting Symbian smart phone pretty much saw good value in the product. The same can also be said of the Symbian devices that Sony Ericsson made as well.
The U-series of SE handsets; the Kita, Aino and the Satio were all released last year and despite a few issues with the Satio’s firmware (that saw a very unfortunate delay for the device’s distribution), the fact of the matter is, Sony Ericsson still managed to make a successful revenue with the devices (though the company’s overall performance that year still put them deeply in the red).
Sony would later come up with the Vivaz and Vivaz Pro; the media-centric, HD video capable handsets that pioneered the HD field ahead of their competitors. And while the devices did not become as famous or as successful as the Android XPERIA phones, they were still impressive devices in their own right.
The bottom line for Sony however, is sales. Despite the fact that the company is now doing well financially, they have plenty of previously lost revenue to catch up on and as the industry trends go, the Symbian is not an OS they can afford to bank on. With the upcoming launch of the Windows Phone 7 and the ever growing Android operating system, SE is better off making next generation devices for these two platforms instead.
While the Symbian Foundation is far from shutting down, there is no doubt that this latest update will certainly be a crushing blow to the company.
Sony Ericsson Vivaz Pro Finally Launched
Friday, May 28th, 2010
It seems that Sony Ericsson’s much anticipated media smart phone is finally out. The second version of the SE Vivaz has been released recently and is already making its way to store shelves.
For those unfamiliar with this impressive SE smart phone, the Vivaz was first shown off last year in a series of leaked images detailing the very first HD capable smart phone from the Japanese-Swedish developer. The Vivaz was an instant hit among media fans who would like to try out the first smart phone with 720p video recording capability.
The device finally showed up in physical form at the Mobile World Congress last February at Barcelona, Spain where Sony Ericsson was able to show off the Symbian smart phone alongside the Android XPERIA X10 handset. It was not long before SE also announced a second version of the Vivaz –the Vivaz Pro which will have all of the key features of the original handset but with the addition of a slide out QWERTY keyboard (the X10 Mini Pro which was announced with the Vivaz Pro also showed the same pattern –same specs as the X10 Mini but with the addition of a physical keyboard).
Anyway, the Vivaz Pro sports an impressive mobile form factor along with Sony expected stylish hardware design. The screen has a resolution of 360 x 640 pixels. This 3.2 inch TFT touch screen comes with 16 million color display capacity, an accelerometer, and a scratch resistant surface. With only 75MB of storage, the microSD card support of up to 16GB will prove to be very useful.
As stated, the device runs on the Symbian OS, series 60, 5th edition –no word yet if this will be upgradable to the coming Symbian^4 Os though that is unlikely. The 720MHz PowerVR CPU does a great job at keeping the handset running fast and smooth.
Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro Review
Tuesday, May 18th, 2010
Announced in Barcelona on February 14th along with the Xperia X10 Mini and Vivaz Pro as one of the newest additions to Sony Ericsson‘s “communication entertainment” phones, the X10 Mini Pro is expected to be available sometime during the first half of 2010. Some estimates say it will be available before the end of June with a price tag exceeding £300 before taxes and subsidies, but no official numbers have been released yet. Nevertheless we are expecting some fantastic Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro deals on its release. Intended to be the beginning of a new standard in high-quality compact phones with an impressive set of features and no-nonsense specifications, loaded with stunning features, the X10 Mini Pro is largely like its cousin, the X10 Mini, with a few tweaks.
Also modelled around the design of the Xperia X10, the X10 Mini Pro features an additional slide-out QWERTY keyboard for added convenience. Similar in size to the X10 Mini, the Mini Pro weighs about 120 grams and measures a slightly-larger 9 x 5.2 x 1.7 cm—don’t let its size fool you though; the X10 Mini Pro offers a significant amount of features with a 600 MHz processor for fairly robust performance and smooth interaction that lends itself to easy use. Along those lines, the X10 Mini Pro runs on the same updated version of Sony Ericsson’s UX platform that the X10 Mini uses, with the four-corner touch screen. Drag and drop your favourite applications onto your homescreen, and they’ll always be within thumb’s reach for quick and easy access. With the Android 1.6 OS, the Mini Pro also has access to unlimited customisability and a huge selection of applications, as well as the ability to make your own. The X10 Mini is expected to be available in fewer colours than its cousin; have your choice between Pearl White, Black, and Red.
For the most part, the X10 Mini Pro is the same as its tinier counterpart. The same “four-corner” touch screen interface with auto-rotate capability and the slide-out QWERTY keyboard accent the simple design and offer a smooth, unfettered environment in which you can access a great set of entertainment features. The clever “Infinite” button also makes an appearance on the Mini Pro, allowing you to access information at the touch a fingertip. Get info about contacts, check on social networks, find what track you’re listening to, or search for a video on YouTube with the press of a button, depending on what you’re up to. The same vivid 240×320 pixel (QVGA) TFT display used by the Mini X10, capable of displaying more than 16.7 million colours, is used in the Mini Pro, serving as a stunning viewport to all of your media in such a small package.
If you’re in need of something to look at on the luminous screen, the Mini Pro offers a 5-megapixel camera capable of capturing images or video, along with convenient auto-focus, a bright photo flash and continuous video lighting, and support for geo tagging to allow you to tell everyone where you’re at in all your photos. You can quickly upload all of your handy camera work to share with friends and family using the integrated Facebook application. Customise your homescreen with picture wallpapers to make it yours. You can even arrange the convenient four-corner interface to allow you to get to all of your favourite hotspots with easy-to-access shortcuts in the corners of your screen.
All of this is powered by a moderately powerful 600 MHz processor that keeps things running smoothly, though not necessarily at breakneck speeds. As an added bonus of running on Android, the Mini Pro is preloaded with the Google application suite and there are always plenty of other applications available on the Android Market to fit whatever desires you might have in hundreds of different categories. If you still can’t find exactly what you’re looking for and you’re feeling industrious, you can even develop your own app and share it with the Android community. Being open-source, the Android allows for nearly unlimited customisation suited to your desires; change everything yourself or find changes packaged by other Android users to fit your needs. Mini Pro also has aGPS support and access to Google Maps to help you stay on track, and, the Wisepilot turn-by-turn navigation gives you live voice instructions will steer you in the right direction wherever you choose to go.
One of the major selling points of the X10 series, Sony Ericsson Timescape gathers all of your social networking communication and threads it through a single stream to bring all the latest messages and updates from your friends to a single application with an easy to use interface. Timescape offers the ability to check on Facebook and Twitter updates, send and compose text messages, or even check your call logs for any calls you might have missed. The Webkit web browser, 3G+ HSPA and Wi-Fi connectivity provide web access on the move so you can visit any of your favourite sites. Bookmark support is also offered, making it a snap to go through your web-surfing routine, checking all of your habitual stops along the way. With support for 16 GB of microSD storage as well as 128MB of internal memory, you can store plenty of music, videos, pictures, applications, and games. To help you keep track of all this data, you can synchronise your mobile device with your computer via USB connection, or use Bluetooth from up to 10 yards away to wirelessly interface with other devices.
Like a pocket-sized entertainment centre, the X10 Mini pro gives you immediate access to streaming video, with built-in support for YouTube streaming as well as a solid offering of some of your favourite FM radio stations to listen to on the move. Sony Ericsson Music player is a proper app for music playback and organization. Album art support gives you a quick visual of all your music as you browse your library, and you can easily turn your MP3 and AAC music files into a musical ring tone to create your own unique mobile experience. The “Infinite” button also makes it easy to check out new music, instantly gathering music information from the PlayNow music store and YouTube to help you find what you’re looking for. Likewise, using Sony Ericsson’s amazing TrackID software, you can get album, artist and song info in mere moments—just record a few seconds of a song you want to check out, let TrackID look it up for you, then have the information sent to your phone immediately. With quick access to the PlayNow network of music, applications, and games, you can easily buy the song you just heard and add it to your library. A 3.5mm headphone jack or Bluetooth stereo can be used to listen to all of your new-found music picks in high quality.
In keeping up with the “communication” end of Sony Ericsson’s philosophy, the Mini Pro features text messaging with a conversation layout for easy reading, the ability to sync with a Microsoft Exchange server using ActiveSync to get push updates on your business e-mails as you get them, general e-mail support for multiple accounts, instant messaging, and predictive text input along with the slide-out QWERTY keyboard to make keeping in touch a breeze. When it is released in the coming months we will bring you more Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro reviews to help you get a good feel for this phone that should prove to be one of the top phones of the summer months.
Is Sony Ericsson Back for Good?
Tuesday, April 20th, 2010
Mobile phone manufacturer Sony Ericsson has been in pretty bad straights in the past few months that it is almost hard to believe that the company is once again making a profit. According to reports, the first quarter of 2010 ended with Sony Ericsson making almost £20 million in profit. This is a big improvement of last year’s severe negative turnaround.
Of course, this is just the tip of the iceberg. If Sony Ericsson will truly become the giant that it was meant to be, it will have to go through a whole lot more than just one quarter. As such, there are several important factors that would contribute to the success of the company.
First off, the man at the helm, Bert Nordberg; the CEO of the Swedish Japanese joint venture has been pretty brave and optimistic in his recent interviews, stating heavily that there has been plenty of progress internally and that the company would keep pushing through as it is already on the right track. Regardless of his vague claims, it seems that Bert is the man for the job –successfully building up an excellent portfolio of devices.
The phone line up is definitely the main game for SE. With new devices such as the XPERIA X10, X10 Mini and X10 Mini Pro, as well as the Symbian powered Vivaz and Vivaz Pro, the company pretty much has good devices to offer both the mid to high range Android and Symbian phone users. The Greenheart series remains as one of the most successful line of eco-friendly devices being manufactured. It has also been confirmed that SE is currently working on an upcoming WP7 device as well.
All in all, Sony Ericsson’s current road is not a downhill run. With strong competition for products and a very fast paced industry, SE has plenty more to catch up with before they can once again rest easy.
Read more about Sony Ericsson’s future at Mobile Today UK.
New Sony Ericsson Handsets Coming to the UK
Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010
Last February, the Japanese-Swedish joint venture showed off several impressive smart phones at Barcelona, Spain. Now, it has confirmed that several of these devices are indeed heading to the UK and that we can expect the first few phones to be in store shelves as early as April.
The Sony Ericsson Vivaz and the XPERIA X10 are expected to be released around mid April. According to reports, Orange has snagged a special all white version of the XPERIA X10 while Vodafone will only get the regular all black version of the phone.
Mobile virtual network operator 3 will be offering the Vivaz to its clients. 3 will be topping off the deal with a sweet offer for high quality music streaming on Spotify for just £10 a month. The Vivaz is a Symbian smart phone with an 8 mega pixel camera and 720p video recording capability.
Back to the XPERIA X10, this is Sony Ericsson’s first Android device on the market and it will come packed with a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, a 4 inch capacitive touch screen and an 8 mega pixel camera. The device is also going to debut the Timescape and Mediascape tools to the public.
For a not-so-high end Android solution, Sony Ericsson also has a couple of other smart phones. Slated to arrive by May 24, the X10 Mini and X10 Mini Pro are more than just streamlined and trimmed down versions of the X10, but they are also well balanced mid range smart phones.
The devices come with 2.55 inch capacitive touch screens, 5 mega pixel cameras and Qualcomm MSM7227 600MHz processors. The devices are expected to be available on retail at £300 for the Mini and a £340 price tag for the Mini Pro.
Get to know more about the all white Orange exclusive X10 at Mobile Today UK.
Spotify Spotted on Sony’s Symbian Smartphone
Thursday, March 18th, 20103 mobile will be offering the Sony Ericsson Vivaz when the device comes out next month and it looks like they will be bundling the smart phone with the Spotify music streaming service.
3 has already offered Spotify along with the HTC Hero earlier and the offer is outright amazing, for a few extra pounds each month, users can enjoy Spotify Premium on the Android handset.
While the deal for the Vivaz will only deliver the standard Spotify service at an additional cost of £9.99 per month, it is still a deal worth going for particularly if you really enjoy listening to music. Spotify delivers high quality audio at 320 kbps –something that other music streaming services cannot always match. Their track selections are also pretty comprehensive and even those with much defined music tastes will certainly enjoy it.
This combination is pretty good, considering that the Vivaz is geared more towards the creative individuals with its 8.1 mega pixel camera and the ability to record videos –putting in music streaming makes perfect sense (and the deal is much more budget friendly than Nokia’s original Comes with Music deal for the X6).
The Sony Ericsson Vivaz was shown off last month at the Mobile World Congress along with several other Sony Ericsson devices. Among those other phones, only the SE XPERIA X10 is expected to be coming out their April along with the Vivaz. For those hoping for a smart phone geared for heavy texters, SE also showed off the Vivaz Pro. This new device comes with all the specs of the Vivaz with an additional slide out QWERTY keyboard. It has a 5 mega pixel camera and still retains the ability to record videos in HD quality.
Get to know more about 3’s launch of the SE Vivaz at Pocket Lint.
Sony Ericsson Vivaz Heading to Vodafone UK
Friday, February 26th, 2010
Looks like Vodafone UK will be the first to offer Sony Ericsson’s brand new Symbian smart phone.
For those who have yet to hear of the Vivaz, here’s a quick recap of the device. The Sony Ericsson Vivaz was originally announced (well, more like leaked) last year. The phone was originally announced as the SE Kurara. Aside from the change in name, not much has changed since then.
The main star of this smart phone is the 8 mega pixel camera. It is excellent when taking high quality images and the auto focus and LED flash certainly help a lot when it comes to making great shots. Of course, there is much more to this camera than taking good quality images, and the secret is in taking great quality videos. The Vivaz is one of the very first smart phones announced to be capable of recording video in 720p HD quality.
Aside from the impressive camera, this Sony Ericsson Vivaz also uses the Symbian operating system. No word yet if the phone will be receiving an upgrade to version ^3 but we are hoping to see that possibly happen.
SE was quick to show off this device at the Mobile World Congress along with the XPERIA X10, the X10 Mini, X10 Mini Pro and surprisingly, the Vivaz Pro. The Vivaz and the Vivaz Pro share similar hardware with the exception of the 8 mega pixel camera. The Vivaz Pro comes with only a 5 mega pixel camera, though it will retain the 720p video recording capability.
With Vodafone UK already offering pre-orders for the Vivaz, it is only a matter of time before we see the other devices (especially the XPERIA X10) made available on other operators as well.
Read more about the SE Vivaz and the Vodafone UK pre-order details on GSM Arena.
Sony Ericsson Expands Phone Lineup
Thursday, February 18th, 2010
There are already plenty of high end Sony Ericsson smart phones to look forward to this year. But if SE has something missing, it is a decent series of smart phones for the mid price range market. Unlike Finnish manufacturer Nokia and Korean company Samsung, the Swedish Japanese joint venture has very few phones with low price tags; and the current models they have in that range could hardly compete with the WinMo and Android devices of other companies.
The only upcoming WinMo phone from Sony Ericsson is the SE Aspen. It is a Greenheart smart phone that features a full QWERTY keyboard and the new Windows Mobile 6.5.3 Maldives operating system. For the Android and Symbian markets, Sony Ericsson has plenty more to offer.
It has already been confirmed that the SE XPERIA X10 will be released this March along with the Vivaz. The XPERIA X10 is an Android smart phone that uses the Snapdragon 1GHz CPU while the Vivaz runs on Symbian 5.0 OS and has an 8 megapixel camera with HD video recording capabilities.
Adding to this line of mobile phones are the Vivaz Pro, the X10 Mini and X10 Mini Pro. From what we have seen, the Pro editions of SE devices come with slide out QWERTY keyboards that will certainly attract mobile users who are heavy texters or email users.
The SE Vivaz Pro was previously announced as the SE Kanna (and the Vivaz was the Kurara). The device will have the exact specifications as the Vivaz with the exception of the 8 mega pixel camera. The Pro will only have a 5 mega pixel camera but will retain the HD recording capability.
The X10 Mini and X10 Mini Pro are watered down versions of the XPERIA X10 (and roughly half the size too).
Get more details on the Vivaz Pro at Stuff TV.
Sony Ericsson Vizaz Coming to T-Mobile
Monday, January 25th, 2010
Images of the Sony Ericsson Vizaz have appeared in the past few days revealing the device formerly known as the SE Kurara in its full glory. The Symbian smart phone will come packed with 720p video recording capability and all the specs listed for the Kurara.
The Vizaz will come with plenty of features in the form of applications. Web based apps such as Google Maps will make full usage of the device’s AGPS support. Thanks to the Google Map’s free navigation services, you can use this phone as your walking and driving guide. Social networking and media sharing applications are also present in the phone. There are applications for both Facebook and Twitter which would be very useful for anyone who loves to stay connected with friends. Applications for YouTube and Picasa will let you upload and share video and image files with your contacts. You can also geo-tag images before uploading.
As an HD capable phone, the Vizaz will play back a wide variety of video file formats such as WMV, Real Media, MP4 and 3GP. Naturally, the camera can take videos at 720p (1280 x 720). The 8 mega pixel snapper comes with both LED flash and auto focus as well as SE’s face and smile detection features. If the 3.2 inch TFT touch screen is a little too small of a viewing display, you can take advantage of the device’s TV-output port.
The internal memory of the phone is only 75 MB, making use of a microSD card will be crucial if you want to record HD videos –the phone can support up to 16GB microSD cards and an 8 GB card comes included with the device.
The phone will be available in four different colors, silver, red, blue and black. You can get this device this March when it gets released alongside the XPERIA X10 through T-Mobile.