Sony Ericsson Windows Phone prototype hits eBay, reminds us sliders existed

Sony Ericsson Windows Phone prototype slides onto eBay, wants us to call her Julie

eBay is as close as it comes to a genuine Aladdin’s cave, and we’ve seen plenty of ancient rarities, prototypes, sci-fi weaponry, and the odd killer robot go under its gavel. One of the latest artifacts of interest comes from eBay’s Netherlands site, which is hosting an auction for a Windows Phone prototype slider known to her friends as Julie (or Jolie, depending on where you look in the listing) from the now defunct Sony Ericsson partnership. The phone that never was from the company that is no longer is allegedly one of only seven units made, and is touted as having an 8-megapixel shooter and 16 gigs of storage. Some digging through the XDA Developers’ forum suggests the handset’s old Windows Phone 7 ROM is basically non-functional, so don’t expect to plug in your SIM and stroll out the door with a useable device. If that doesn’t put you off, however, there’s no exorbitant entry price, and bids remain sensible, for now. Head to the listing below for more pictures and to get in on the action, but bear in mind the only shipping options are for Europe. Nothing a PM with an outrageous offer won’t rectify, surely.

Update: The seller has been in contact to let us know that international shipping is now available, and while the WP7 ROM running on the handset is by no means a final build, there are no issues with voice calling, the camera or Bluetooth.

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Via: Windows Phone Central

Source: eBay (Netherlands)

Sony Mobile moving HQ to Tokyo, cutting 1,000 jobs in Sweden

Sony Mobile moving HQ to Tokyo, cutting 1,000 jobs in Sweden

Sony’s slow and painful transformation continues with a restructuring of its newly-minted mobile division. In October, it’s moving its headquarters from Lund, Sweden (presumably a holdover from its Ericsson days) to Tokyo — for deeper integration — and repurposing the duties of its facilities in Tokyo, Lund and Beijing. As part of the changes, Sony Mobile will slash 15 percent of its workforce, with 1,000 employees being let go by the end of March 2014, in a trend we’ve seen across the industry. Most of those affected are in Sweden, with 650 on-site staffers and up to 450 consultants being shown the door.

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Sony Mobile moving HQ to Tokyo, cutting 1,000 jobs in Sweden originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 23 Aug 2012 03:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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