Nov 18

Sony Ericsson closing four facilities, laying off 2,000 employees worldwide

Posted in: breaking news, BreakingNews, cellphone, ericsson, smartphone, Software, sony, Sony Ericsson, SonyEricsson, Today's Chili

Sony Ericsson has yet to make this public, but we’ve learned that the flagging handset maker has caved once more to the pressures of the modern phone market place. If you’ll recall, 450 employees were nixed from the company’s payrolls in September of last year, and now the entire Research Triangle Park facility is being shuttered. In an internal announcement made this morning, SE is fixing to close four total sites: RTP in North Carolina, a smaller Miami facility and operations in Kista (Sweden) and Chennai. All told, 2,000 employees will be trimmed, with severance packages being offered to those who qualify. As of now, the departing individuals have yet to be chosen, with employees in RTP given the opportunity to apply for jobs elsewhere (likely in Atlanta or California). We’re told that the cuts will happen “in stages,” with project teams being assembled as we speak to work out the logistics. Frankly, we aren’t as shocked as we are saddened to hear the news — SE has refused to keep pace with the other handset makers, and its decision to wait until next year to ship an Android device is indicative of the choices that have kept it in the shadows these past few years. Here’s hoping this restructuring effort actually gets things headed in the right direction.

Update: And it’s official. SE will also be shutting down small offices in Seattle and San Diego, with its North American headquarters shifting from RTP to Atlanta and its research and development operation transitioning from RTP to Redwood Shores, California.

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Sony Ericsson closing four facilities, laying off 2,000 employees worldwide originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nov 16

New XPERIA X10 hands-on video brings the snappy

Posted in: Android, Sony Ericsson, SonyEricsson, Today's Chili, video, xperia

Sony Ericsson’s Android-based XPERIA X10 was mighty sluggish when we played with it at the launch a couple weeks ago, but this new video from hdblog.it shows what looks like a much newer software build that’s dramatically faster and more responsive. There’s nothing much new here in terms of features, but just the fact that the X10 is in the wild and running well is encouraging — especially since we’re really digging that media playback interface. Now all we need is some Stateside shipping details and we’ll be all set. Video after the break.

[Thanks, Nils]

Continue reading New XPERIA X10 hands-on video brings the snappy

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New XPERIA X10 hands-on video brings the snappy originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nov 15

Xperia X10 launching February 2010 in UK, says Sony Ericsson site

Posted in: ericsson, sony, Sony Ericsson, SonyEricsson, Today's Chili, uk, xperia

Sony Ericsson UK’s got a new pre-registration page for the Xperia X10, and along with it what appears to be a brand new, February 2010 expected launch. It’s hard to say for sure, but as far as we can tell this page is new, and last we heard the target window was a much broader “first half 2010.” Can’t say we’re anymore excited about this than before, but far be it for us to get in the way of a truly die hard fan community. At least you have a better idea of when to break the bank now.

[Thanks, Matej]

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Xperia X10 launching February 2010 in UK, says Sony Ericsson site originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 15 Nov 2009 15:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nov 05

Sony Ericsson Kurara suffers leakage, reveals HD label?

Posted in: 720p, cellphone, leak, pictures, sony, Sony Ericsson, SonyEricsson, symbian, Today's Chili

Boy, we sure do love our early glimpses of pre-release hardware, and today we have not one, but two sources of purported pictures of the Sony Ericsson Kurara. Touted as a sibling to the Satio, the Kurara is mooted to have a 3.5-inch AMOLED touch-sensitive screen, 8.1 megapixel camera and, wait for it, 720p video recording. The image above seems to confirm this with a big “HD” inscription next to the camera lens, but that label is missing in the gallery below. We’ll just put that inconsistency down to the extremely early samples on show, and start getting all frothed up in excitement over the possible UX inclusion on this Symbian S60 device when it starts selling in the first half of 2010.

Gallery: Sony Ericsson Kurara leaks out

[Via My Sony Ericsson and SlashPhone]

Read – PhonesDB
Read – Sony Ericsson Club

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Sony Ericsson Kurara suffers leakage, reveals HD label? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 05 Nov 2009 07:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nov 04

Ears-on with Sony Ericsson MH907 Motion Activated Headphones

Posted in: audio, capacitive, cellphone, earphones, Features, hands-on, HandsOn, headphones, mobile, Music, phone, review, Sony Ericsson, SonyEricsson, Today's Chili, touch
What we have here today isn’t just another pair of ordinary headphones: Sony Ericsson‘s MH907s are button-free, minimalistic headphones that activate upon the magical touch of your skin. Well, your ears to be precise. You must bear in mind that the MH907s are exclusive to Fast port-equipped Sony Ericsson phones thus excluding the forthcoming XPERIA X10 — so chances are you’re already not interested. That said, we shall see if Sony Ericsson is really going to change things forever with these gleaming buds featuring SE’s SensMe Control technology, or by just stopping everyone from using their 3.5mm headphone jacks. Read on to find out how these €39 ($57) headphones fared.

Gallery: Ears-on with Sony Ericsson MH907 Motion Activated Headphones

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Ears-on with Sony Ericsson MH907 Motion Activated Headphones originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nov 03

Sony Ericsson lets XPERIA X10 videos and press shots loose

Posted in: Android, pictures, sony, Sony Ericsson, SonyEricsson, Today's Chili, touchscreen, video, xperia

If you weren’t up all night following Engadget (and why wouldn’t you be?), the first place you’ll want to visit this morning is our extensive hands-on of Sony Ericsson’s inaugural foray into Android territory. There you’ll find the full XPERIA X10 announcement details and spec sheet, which is highlighted by a 4-inch capacitive display and a deeply customized user interface. With plenty of time to go before that first quarter of 2010 release date, though, we thought we’d get the anticipation revved up a few notches with a selection of handsome images of the device below, and a pair of videos — one a spit-polished advertising promo, the other a useful demo of Speed Forge 3D — after the break.

Gallery: XPERIA X10 official pictures

Continue reading Sony Ericsson lets XPERIA X10 videos and press shots loose

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Sony Ericsson lets XPERIA X10 videos and press shots loose originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nov 02

Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 announced, we go hands-on

Posted in: Android, capacitive, feature, Features, hands-on, HandsOn, launch, motoblur, pictures, qualcomm, snapdragon, sony, Sony Ericsson, SonyEricsson, symbian, Today's Chili, touchscreen, wifi, xperia

The first Android device from Sony Ericsson may have undergone an upgrade in the naming department, jumping from X3 all the way to XPERIA X10 (probably to avoid confusion with Nokia’s X3 handset), but what lies under the hood is reassuringly in line with what we’ve been hearing. That is to say, a 1GHz Snapdragon chip from Qualcomm, wide 4-inch capacitive touch display, 8.1 megapixel camera with LED flash, and a thoroughly tricked out Android skin named Rachael. Sony Ericsson stressed to us the symbiotic importance of both the new flagship device and “open OS” UI — the X10 was presented as the patriarch of a whole new family of handsets, which we can expect to see in the first half of 2010, all sporting the beauty of Rachael and perhaps helping to bridge the gap between featurephones and, well, more advanced featurephones. So don’t be shy, come along past the break to see our uncensored first impressions of both, along with hands-on video and pictures.

Gallery: Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 announced, we go hands on

Continue reading Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 announced, we go hands-on

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Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 announced, we go hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 23:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 31

New Sony Ericsson Rachael UI video hits, still looks nothing like Android

Posted in: Android, Sony Ericsson, SonyEricsson, Today's Chili, ui, video

Calling this Rachael UI an Android “skin” is like calling Windows 95 a “DOS skin,” but that’s not to say there’s nothing to love about it. In fact, we’re rather relieved that Sony Ericsson seems to be addressing Android’s incredibly lackluster media playback interface, the SE “mediascape” version of which dominates this particular video — a sequel to the first Rachael UI tease we got back in July. You know what else is great? The video title name drops the same luscious screen resolution as the DROID, 480 x 854, which spells all sorts of good things for SE’s first Android entry. Video is after the break, and if that doesn’t do the trick for you, the Rachael hardware is being teased over on this end of the internet.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Continue reading New Sony Ericsson Rachael UI video hits, still looks nothing like Android

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New Sony Ericsson Rachael UI video hits, still looks nothing like Android originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 31 Oct 2009 23:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 30

Xperia Pureness unboxed, performs for the camera (video)

Posted in: cellphone, Sony Ericsson, SonyEricsson, Today's Chili, unboxing, video, xperia
As you are no doubt well aware, the launch date for the Xperia Pureness is looming. If you’ve been dying for a closer look, you’re in luck: the fashion icons over at MobileBurn have got their hands on one and have been kind enough to make us a short film of the reveal. At first blush, the phone doesn’t look any less impressive than it did in the shots and video we’ve seen before. There doesn’t appear to be any hint of a keypad before the thing when shut off, although that obviously changes once it’s powered on. As far as that transparent glass display goes, we can tell from here that it’s not likely to be visible in direct (or even some indirect) sunlight — but since you’re a jet-setting nightclub habitue’ who hasn’t been outside in the daylight in four years that probably shouldn’t bother you much. The UI is pretty much standard for an SE feature phone, and the battery is not removable. The price? Looks like it will run you a healthy £530 (about $875). Still interested? Peep the video in action after the break.

Continue reading Xperia Pureness unboxed, performs for the camera (video)

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Xperia Pureness unboxed, performs for the camera (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 15:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 30

Sony Ericsson Rachael teaser video plays with our hearts

Posted in: Android, Sony Ericsson, SonyEricsson, teaser, Today's Chili, video, xperia

The Motorola DROID might be at the forefront of the Android scene right now, but it looks like it’s going to have some high-end competition soon — Sony Ericsson’s been hyping the Rachael / XPERIA X3 launch on November 3, and today it’s put out this little teaser video. Nothing much here other than some fleeting glimpses of the handset in Luster White, but it’s looking quite sharp, and if the final specs are close to the DROID’s we could have a real battle on our hands — especially since SE’s crazy Android UI skin looks pretty sweet. Check the video after the break.

[Thanks, Lars]

Continue reading Sony Ericsson Rachael teaser video plays with our hearts

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Sony Ericsson Rachael teaser video plays with our hearts originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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