[SLME]

http://gigaom.com/mobile/sony-bets-o...a-smartphones/

A trio of Sony Mobile’s newest Xperia smartphones are now available in the U.S., but you won’t find them in carrier stores. Instead, the company is selling the phones directly to consumers through Sony Stores, and various web retailers. That means these are unlocked, contract-free phones with non-subsidized prices, making them a hard sell in the U.S. where carriers still control much of the mobile hardware market.

None the models — known as the Xperia S, P and U — support fast LTE networks, which may be why there’s no carrier support. All three work on AT&T’s GSM and HSPA networks while the carrier is the midst of expanding its LTE coverage nationally. The three phones also launch with Android 2.3 at a time when new devices are arriving with Android 4.0 out of the box. Sony Mobile says that all three are upgradable to the newer operating system; without a carrier acting as a middleman, perhaps buyers will see that update faster than from a phone sold directly by a carrier.

Here’s a basic rundown of what Sony Mobile is offering direct with the new phones, all of which use Sony’s Mobile Bravia engine for the display:

Xperia S ($559.99) – 4.3-inch, 1280 x 720 display; 1.2 GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor; 12 megapixel camera, f/2.4 aperture; 1 GB RAM; up to 32 GB of storage; NFC support; 5.0 x 2.5 x 0.4 inches; 5.07 ounces.

Xperia P ($479.99) – 4-inch 960 x 540 display; 1 GHz ST-Ericsson U8500 dual-core chip; 8 megapixel camera, 1 GB of RAM; up to 16 GB storage; NFC support; 4.8 x 2.3 x 0.4 inches; 4.23 ounces.

Xperia U ($299.99) – 3.5-inch, 854 x 480 display; 1 GHz ST-Ericsson U8500 dual-core chip; 5 megapixel camera, 512 MB of RAM; up to 8 GB of internal storage; 4.5 x 2.0 x 0.5 inches; 3.88 ounces.

[SLME]

More here to order any of the phones. http://store.sony.com/webapp/wcs/sto...52921644850504

[Pyramid-3]

Related news:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/07..._guesstimates/

It costs $450 in marketing to make someone buy a $49 Nokia Lumia

[Beer Abuser]

Sony should've at least given cdma love lol.

_(¯`·._( My Ice Cream Is Better Than Yours )_.·´¯)_

[Gameross]

Sony is wasting their time on trying to sell already outdated phones. Anyone with a big enough clue to want to buy a smart phone most likely isn't going to buy one that doesn't even take advantage of the faster data speeds from LTE and better OS with 4+

What is wrong with Sony these days. They just can't seem to shake the stick of mediocrity.

[Beer Abuser]

On related news, man I remember using my walkman on a daily basis, and even the portable cd player version; the aiwa portable tape player was off the hook also, good ol' days...

"Update: Sony has announced pricing and availability. The F800 will be available starting in August (next month), and the 16GB version will start at $269.99, with 32GB costing $299.99. That's some seriously premium pricing, so let's hope these devices provide a real premium experience to go along with it.

Refusing the let the Walkman die, Sony just announced the newest iteration of the series: the F800. The newest member of the Walkman family runs Android 4.0, has a 3.5" multi-touch display, a Tegra 2 dual-core processor (why?), Bluetooth, S-Master MX digital amplifier, Clear Audio technology, and xLoud speaker system. It will also have access to the Play Store.

According to Sony, the F800 should offer up to 20 hours of audio playback, and four hours of video playback. There will be three versions available: 8GB, 16GB, and 32GB, though firm price and launch date hasn't yet been announced."

http://www.androidpolice.com/2012/07...-media-player/

_(¯`·._( My Ice Cream Is Better Than Yours )_.·´¯)_

[Pyramid-3]

SONY is going through a top to bottom reorganization of their own business. They've been losing out on the hardware side in EVERY sphere for years and years, from music players to PCs to phones. I've got to say, they must be listening to their media people on the other side of the house too much - the Hollywood and new media flacks. Because clearly they're pitching all these Windows 7 and 8 devices as social media tools first and phones second. They're clearly aiming at an 18-29 demographic. The problem is, those people like phones as a BRAND, like an iPhone, or, alternatively, they use prepaid/burners just to get to their own social media portals. If they lose the phone or switch it out next month, they don't care. And that's going to kill them with Windows 8 handsets on regular plans.

Moreover, if Nokia goes toes up and it probably will, that will be the end of Windows 8 for phones. Microsoft went all in with Nokia. That means that SONY will once again have made the wrong technology choice and will fail.

[TXi500]

Phones that don't support LTE, the maximum HSPA+ speeds, and won't even get 3G for T-Mobile.

Brilliant job Sony.

My Xperia X10i is getting old now and these replacements are actually a downgrade.