Sony Ericsson has launched a shot across Apple’s bow with its Experia X1 multimedia cell phone. Announced at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, the X1 features a three-inch VGA touch screen, an arc slider and a full keyboard. It supports the fast 3G networks HSDPA/HSUPA, as well as slower EDGE and GSM networks, and it supports WiFi. The X1 weighs 5.1 oz.
The phone is Sony Ericsson’s first Windows Mobile phone and will be available in the second half of the year.
“Our vision for the Xperia X1 is to deliver a seamless blend of mobile Web communication and multimedia entertainment within a distinctive design,” said Rikko Sakaguchi, the company’s head of portfolio and propositions. He called the Xperia line “our promise to think foremost of user experience and to deliver the premium experience — anytime, anywhere, anything, with anyone.”
If that sounds a lot like Apple’s value proposition for the iPhone, it’s not a coincidence. At first glance, the X1 looks remarkably like the iPhone, with a flashy nine-panel interface that lets users choose the programs and Web pages it displays. Past the initial screen, however, the interface is pure Windows Mobile. That makes the interface both familiar to American users and not as innovative as the iPhone’s.
The X1 dazzled the technology-chattering classes in Barcelona, Spain. They extolled its “luscious aluminum shell” and “amazingly sharp display” that would “put Apple’s [iPhone] to shame.”
It’s a serious product — more than an iPhone knockoff, said Tim Bajarin, principal analyst with Creative Strategies, in an email. “The new X1 is one of the most innovative products in the Windows Mobile space and it is a true iPhone competitor,” he wrote.
“Apple still has the edge in this space given its Web browser and better integration with Mac OS 10,”…