The Mobile World Congress kicked off a bit early with Microsoft and Sony Ericsson announcing a partnership that will bring Windows Mobile to new devices offered by the latter. And on the heels of that announcement, Sony Ericsson introduced the XPERIA X1, the first device in its new XPERIA family.
The XPERIA brand will focus on premium communication devices. “XPERIA is our promise to think foremost about user experience and to deliver on our goal of providing a true premium experience – anytime, anywhere, anything, with anyone,” said Rikko Sakaguchi, head of Portfolio and Proposition at Sony Ericsson.
The XPERIA X1 is an arc-slider phone powered by Windows Mobile 6 Professional. It features quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE and quad-band UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA (either 900/1700/1900/2100MHz or 850/1700/1900/2100MHz depending on configuration) connectivity, a 3-inch WVGA (800×480) touchscreen display, a QWERTY keyboard, up to 400MB of internal memory, aGPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, an FM radio, a 3.2MP camera, and both a Memory Stick Micro and a microSD expansion slots.
Sony Ericsson also introduced a patented panel interface with the X1. Each panel represents a different function (for example web or multimedia) that can be activated with a simple tap. The panel layout is fully configurable.
The XPERIA X1 will go on sale in the second half of 2008. Pricing was not disclosed.