Sony Ericsson Announces A Range of New Phones in India

Sony Ericsson has unveiled its six new phones, including smartphones, GreenHeart and walkman phones; comprising the Xperia X8, GreenHeart Cedar and Aspen,and Walkman phones – Yendo, Spiro and Zylo.

XPERIA X8
The Sony Ericsson Xperia X8 is an entertainment smartphone that extends the functions of the Xperia collection to new market segments.

The user interface is similar to that of the Xperia X10 mini, with the four-corners that give one hand use and can be customised for one touch access to preferred applications.

The Xperia X8 also includes Timescape for access to all social networking and the infinite button for one click access to a world of content. The open Android operating system delivers access to thousands of applications on Android Market.
X8 - Rs. 15,000

Personal take - It's being dubbed the X10 Mini and it really is. The UI was fairly smooth even for a prototype. It's a sleek handset that's designed to offer Android lovers who can't afford the X10 but are still looking for the same experience at a lower price. Design-wise it's a just a more compact version of the X10 and although the colors may seem a little on the girly side, I have to give it up to SE fro trying to spruce things up a bit.

ASPEN
Sony Ericsson Aspen is a business phone, perfect for any consumer or company who want to make a green choice in their daily work life. A GreenHeart phone with the latest version of Windows Phone, the Sony Ericsson Aspen has rich user interface and powerful productivity tools.

But it’s not all about work, stay in touch with the fun parts of life with Media Browser and PlayNow, with access to social networks and to media files. Also comes with a-GPS, Google Maps and snap pictures with the 3.2megapixel camera.
Aspen - Rs. 15,500

Personal take - The Aspen's keypad is definitely one of the better designs out there and makes for speedy typing. I would have liked the handset a lot more had there been a slightly more customized Windows Mobile 6.5 UI. The touchscreen was quite responsive but they could have reduced the price a bit by doing away with that feature. It's part of their eco-friendly GreenHeart range of handsets which means that it's made of recycled materials and has an eco-friendly charging system as well which SE says they will be incorporating into more handsets.  

YENDO
Sony Ericsson Yendo with Walkman, the first full touch Walkman phone which combines music, social networking and communication in one colourful phone.

The four corner touch UI also allows users to find the most important phone features. So whether it’s text messaging, Facebook or email, users can experience a touch experience on a 2.6’’ display.

Consumers have a number of color combinations to choose from so they can personalize their handset to suit their mood and make sure it stands out from the crowd.
Yendo - Rs. 8,000 - Rs. 9,000

Personal take - I'm a fan of the four-corner button UI as well as the Walkman brand. However, the prototype was running quite sluggishly and although the design is now quite generic to the X8/X10, it's still quite attractive. A few of the panels might be included with the package, while the others will be available for purchase separately. The only drawback could be that it's not of the Android variety. 

CEDAR
Sony Ericsson Cedar, the mobile phone for consumers looking for a way to stay connected at an affordable price. The phone offers consumers browsing capabilities with features such as 3G HSPA and access to e-mail and social networking sites. Part of the Sony Ericsson’s GreenHeart portfolio, the phone offers users a social networking experience with the Widget Manager 2.0 – an application which allows users access social networking via the stand-by screen. 

Cedar - Rs. 6,000 - 7,000

Personal take - I thought the Naite was a great handset and it seems like SE just might have another winner with the Cedar. Like the Naite, it's also an eco-friendly handset with 3G and built in social networking  features. At the kind of price it's being positioned at, it's going to give handsets like the LG Cookie Plus serious competition. The design with the Human Curvature concept is lightweight and very comfortable to use.

ZYLO & SPIRO
Sony Ericsson Zylo and Spiro provide consumers with the music experience they have come to expect from Walkman phones and also go one step further and marry music with social networking.

From Twitter to Facebook, consumers can catch up with friends at a touch of a button while still listening to their music on the Walkman player. Another key function available on both phones is TrackID – which allows consumers to access the name and artist of a track they hear playing wherever they are. This function has proved popular with music lovers world-wide with 129 million TrackID lookups in 2009 alone. 

Spiro - Rs. 5,000; Zylo - Rs. 8,000

Personal take - Both of these slider handsets are seriously funky and quite versatile feature-wise, for the price. Audio quality was pretty good even though these were just prototypes. The design is slick and these devices could fare very well with the hep crowd looking for cool handsets in a colorful range.

At the end of the day the only disappointment from SE was that the Xperia X10 was getting upped to Android 2.1 in October while the rest of the planet moves on to 2.2 aka Froyo. The company says there's a possibility that the X10 could simply skip Froyo and move on to Gingerbread,  which means if you're waiting for an update, you've got a long wait ahead of you. 

All prices quoted are approximate MOPs. Official prices will be issued later on. The handsets are expected to be launched by late September or early October.