Sony Ericsson Drops into Extreme Action Sports with Billabong

Sony Ericsson today announced an expanded global strategic alliance with Billabong, a brand that promotes an authentic lifestyle and the true values of core boardsports (surfing, snowboarding, skateboarding and wakeboarding), which connects the Xperia smartphone brand to a new and highly influential consumer audience and extends to a retail offering for smartphone users. At the center of the partnership is the Xperia™ active Billabong Edition smartphones designed with extreme sports enthusiasts in mind.

“Billabong brings a new, enthusiastic and engaging audience who are early technology adopters and influencers in the areas of sports and technology,”said Stephan Croix, VP Head of Global Marketing Creation for Sony Ericsson. “This partnership is a perfect fit with our brand and the Xperia™ range of smartphones.”

The Xperia™ active Billabong edition is an ideal smartphone for extreme sports enthusiasts who can take it along on their shreds and surfs to capture all of the excitement up close and personal. This tough, scratch-resistant smartphone is packed with technologies such as wet finger tracking and has received some of the highest marks in dustproof and water resistance categories (IP67). Click here for more information on the Xperia active.

“The partnership is an expansion of our long term relationship with Sony and an extention of an Asia Pacific alliance developed with Sony Ericsson in 2011,” said Scott Wallace, Billabong’s International VP of Strategic Partnerships & New Media. “Our customers are very tech savvy and their top interests include music, photography, social media and, of course, action sports. Each of these interests can be captured or experienced through the Xperia™ active and we are working on some exciting apps and accessories that should add to the user’s experience. The first to benefit will be the athletes at our major international events who will be testing the Xperia™ active device in conditions as diverse as the snowfields in Austria, surfing the big waves of Tahiti and even skateboarding in Singapore.”

The partnership extends beyond the Xperia™ active as Sony Ericsson and Billabong have also co-created exclusive content for additional Xperia™ devices. The Xperia™ active Billabong Edition will feature preloaded Billabong screensavers, videos and Billabong LIVE, a mobile app now available in the Sony Ericsson channel in Android Market, and the Xperia™ PLAY will boast an exclusive surf game, Billabong Surf Trip.

Sony Ericsson Xperia smartphones will be featured in major Billabong events worldwide. In addition, Sony Ericsson has more to offer its retailer and operator partners with this unique alliance which gives way to an amplified retail strategy with assets, such as merchandise and event access, which will be used in retail promotions.

Source - Sony Ericsson

Xperia ion revealed - first LTE smartphone from Sony available exclusively from AT&T

Xperia™ ion, the first LTE smartphone from Sony®, was introduced today at the 2012 International CES and will be available exclusively in the U.S. from AT&T in the second quarter.

Xperia ion from Sony enables easy connectivity with multiple screens for consumers looking to share and enjoy content on whichever screen they choose, whether it’s TV, smartphone, laptop or tablet.

Xperia ion from Sony has a stunning 4.6-inch HD display (1280 X 720 pixels) that provides a visual brilliance for superior viewing experiences. For photo enthusiasts, Xperia ion features a new Fast Capture innovation to make sure life’s unexpected moments are not missed: the HD camera goes from standby mode to first shot in 1.5 seconds.1 The impressive images taken with the 12-megapixel rear camera are unmatched by any other Android smartphone. Additionally, both rear- and front-facing cameras deliver HD recording capabilities.

“With Xperia ion, we’re bringing together several firsts that will take users beyond the smartphone,” said Paul Hamnett, President, Sony Ericsson North America. “Designed to deliver a seamless experience across the multiple screens we use to play, watch, listen, and share, Xperia ion is the gateway to entertainment when and - most importantly - where you want it.”

Xperia ion users will be able to access the richest entertainment experiences from Sony Entertainment Network. Music Unlimited offers a global catalogue of 12 million unique songs while Video Unlimited has the latest Hollywood blockbusters and TV shows from all major studios.

Xperia ion is also PlayStation™ Certified, guaranteeing a high quality smartphone gaming experience.

Xperia ion is launching on Android platform 2.3 (Gingerbread).

Key Features for Xperia ion:

• 4.6-inch HD Reality display with Mobile BRAVIA® Engine with HD resolution screen (1280 x 720), as well as rear (1080p) and front (720p) cameras for HD recording.
• 1.5GHz dual-core processor for fast browsing and content download, which can be stored on the internal 16GB flash storage.
• 12MP rear camera with Sony Exmor R™ for mobile with fast-capture to go from standby to first shot in less than two seconds.
• HD sharing through DLNA, HDMI and BRAVIA Sync to quickly and easily stream content on other screens.

For full details on all products news, please visit the press room and the product blog: blogs.sonyericsson.com/products/

Xperia PLAY 4G Keeps Favorite Video Games At Your Fingertips Beginning Sept. 18

Only AT&T customers can choose the 4G-capable Xperia PLAY, offered in an exclusive “stealth blue” color.  The smartphone package is complete with bonus accessories including the Sony Ericsson Multimedia Dock DK300 and MC100 music cable. In addition to providing a convenient charging station, the DK300 converts the Xperia PLAY’s screen to a large clock display, and the music cable lets you connect to external speakers.** The DK300 and music cable come in the Xperia PLAY box, only from AT&T.

In addition, the device is pre-loaded with seven games, some of which are exclusive, at no additional cost including:

• Dungeon Defenders™ Second Wave by Trendy Entertainment
• Asphalt™ 6 Adrenaline by Gameloft
• Star Battalion by Gameloft
• Madden NFL™ 11 by Electronic Arts
• The Sims™ 3 by Electronic Arts
• Tower Bloxx™: My City by Digital Chocolate
• Crash Bandicoot® by SCEA/Naughty Dog/Universal

AT&T customers will have access to 150 PLAY optimized games including Minecraft™ Pocket Edition, Battlefield: Bad Company™ 2 and Dead Space™ 2 for download and purchase through the “Get Games” recommender screen, easily accessible when you slide open the Xperia PLAY’s game controller.

Handheld Gaming and Smartphones Converge

The Xperia PLAY 4G offers a gamer’s wonderland by providing the on-the-go capabilities of an Android smartphone with the immersive entertainment appeal of a portable gaming device.

• Snapdragon chipset including a 1GHz CPU and Adreno 205 graphics processor (GPU)
• Runs on the Android 2.3.3 (Gingerbread) platform
• Sight and sound: 4” 480 x 854 screen, up to 60 frames per second graphics, stereo speakers
• Dual camera: 5MP rear and VGA forward-facing, with video recording and chat capabilities over Wi-Fi
• Hundreds of Xperia PLAY optimized games through Android Market or directly from the publishers
• Pre-loaded with seven Xperia PLAY optimized games from publishers such as Gameloft and EA.

Along with the great gaming and Android capabilities, the Xperia PLAY 4G from AT&T includes Facebook Inside Xperia, a suite of Facebook functions integrated into various applications, such as friends’ birthdays in the phonebook, a “like” button in the music player, photo tags in the media gallery, and YouTube video recommendations from friends.

Pricing and Availability

The Xperia PLAY 4G arrives in AT&T stores and online on Sept. 18 and will be available for $49.99 after a two-year contract with minimum data plan.

Source - AT&T