Here it is, folks. Sony Ericsson's
newly official XPERIA X2 in the flesh. It's got a flashy (gimmicky?) home screen, along with a view for "snacking" on bubbled-up information. Lots of buzzwords, but we'll need more time hands-on to know how we feel. The hardware? It's still a heavy beast, but perhaps just a bit more loving in this incarnation. We don't love the resistive touchscreen one bit. After a strong caveat that what we're looking at is preproduction software, a Sony Ericsson rep admitted that Windows Mobile 6.5 isn't all it could be -- though we're unsure why Sony Ericsson didn't throw a bit more hardware at the problem,
Toshiba style. Still, the interface breaks down to stylus-friendly Windows Mobile-isms with just a few taps, and none of the "wow" of the floating Sony Ericsson home screen seemed to excuse any of the UI lag it introduces. Again, early software, but the X1
didn't exactly rise above its preproduction jankiness.
Update: Video is after the break!
posted Sep 2nd 2009 1:20PM
Thats one solid piece of hardware!
yes it is...now all i want is for them to put this on AT&T and price it under 500$ im ditching my iphone 3G asap
compared to x1 it has.
-better bigger flush screen
-smoother and faster software
-better camera
-tv out
-no info on the faster cpu yet
-accelerometer
-vastly improved keyboard
-a bit uglier but more practical design and less weight
very very good. but i expected more. i prefer the samsung omnia pro with its 800mhz 3.5OLED screen and much cheaper price of 500euro
If anything this is gonna be an even bigger failure than the X1.
500 euros is the price of the Nokia N900 , which will hit the market next month, and by the time this old fashioned thing will be available it will have to fight for attention with HTC's snapdragon powered Leo, Archos media phone, and a slew of new models eager to elbow it into oblivion.
I have here 3 cell phones (dont ask me why, it's a long story) : an HTC Hero, a Nokia N97 and an HTC TouchHD which is nearly an year old, and I would'nt change any of those for this X2: none of them.
SE should just concentrate on bringing out the Idou/Satio if it wants to have a chance at survival; this X2 would have been good enough one year ago (maybe) , now it justs highlights the sorry state of this once glorious company.
My aging TyTn II(resistive) with SPB Mobile Shell gives me no issues whatsoever using my fingers.
http://img193.imageshack.us/img193/825/tytn2.jpg
There's a pic, and as you can see by the sizeable icons, there is plenty of room for the finger to travel. With the hotspot area of a button on a resistive screen covering every available pixel, chances are pretty high when you press down with your finger you are hitting one of the hundreds of pixel-points that trigger the button's function. Works for me.
Essentially you don't need the stylus, but it's still there for old time's sake. :) They're redoing to code on a daily basis so don't let the UI sluggishness put you off. What sluggishness? That look when screen reorientation looks like it's done in "bullet-time."
Is this a joke??? What´s that clutter on the screen? Looks like some kind of jigsaw puzzle....
resistive for multimedia and internet = FAIL
Resistive is fine for the internet and multimedia.. Why does it seem that everyone associates resistive touchscreens with failure? I've had several devices with a resistive touch screen and have no issue using them and find that some can even be as sensitive as capacitive screens. Don't hate on something you don't know, that's immature
'Till the day you can use your finger for handwriting recognition then you'll see capacitive, so you sir = FAIL for failing to realize that. If you don't like the product, just breeze thru instead of wasting your keyboard battery typing nonsense
Resistive for internet, note taking and hand writing = WIN.
Capactive to me = FAIL, particularly during winter
Resistive is also higher resolution and produces much more vivid colours , as displayed by some of the new AMOLED resistive phones by Samsung.
Beastage, are you stupid? Resistive does not produce more vivid anything. The resistive layer lowers the quality and visibility of the screen. Also, screen resolution and the use of AMOLED are not dictated by the screen being resistive or capacitive, dumbass.
@iLoveApple
Woah, chill out dude, did you forget your medications or something? The guy made a simple mistake, you didn't have to be such a twat about correcting it.
capacitive wins whenever using your finger is more comfortable. Scrolling is definitely better on a capacitive screen. Virtual keyboards are 10,000x better on a capacitive screen. Handwriting is better on a resistive, so ask yourself if handwriting is actually important on a device this small... personally, I don't, but some might. Internet in general has been a much more pleasant experience for web browsing, as scrolling up and down pages is soo0o0o0o much better on capacitive. Also, pressing small links and small buttons can be done without a finger tip or stylus on capacitive, but not with resistive. The smaller the button or link, the finer the input has to be.
I prefer capacitive, but there are just certain things that resistive does better. At least until accurate capacitive styli become commonplace. Then it will be no contest :)
The reason resistive gets such a bad reputation is because we are yet to see a device that runs fluidly like the iPhone or the Pre using a resistive touch screen.
WM has not presented such a device, and Nokia isn't that fast either.
Slap the Pre or iPhone's touch algorithm, kinetic scrolling, and general smoothness with a good resistive screen, and you will forget that it is resistive.
Its all in the software implementation. And devices with resistive screens are not running OS's that have been refined enough for touch, meanwhile WebOS, iPhone OS, and Android are designed inside out for finger touch.
Hmm, it looks good, but not special or anything, I'll wait on judging this until I see a hands-on vid.
And everyone, here's the official ad (HD):
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqo3msjAY9A[/url]
Dammit, I keep forgetting you don't need URL tags here, if you're too lazy to copy paste the thing without the url tag at the end, here's it again:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqo3msjAY9A
I tend to expect a video when I see any article that has the world 'Hands-On' on the same line......whether it's first, second, third, fourth, 100th hands-on...
I tend to believe there's something different in each iteration of the "hands-on" ...or is it me expecting too much?
word**
same old cpu? if so, no thanks :)
It isn't.
Thanks. Do you know which one is it and what frequency?
i think it was snapdragon 1000mhz
"Just found 2 Xperia 2 hands-on videos on Youtube courtesy of SE-First.com. Looks like the X2 has the same “crappy” chipset as the old one (and all HTC phones, the MSM72xx)."
If so, dead on arrival.
http://www.mobiletechworld.com/2009/09/02/sony-ericsson-xperia-2-hands-on-videos/
I don't know, there is no evidence what so ever to what cpu is being used, for good or for worse.
Here's the (few months old evidence) but everybody seems to have forgotten this: http://www.gsmarena.com/sony_ericsson_xperia_x2_gets_snowwhite_prettier_than_before-news-966.php
Still uses the same old Qualcomm MSM72xx cpu so automatic FAIL and DOA. You can't squeeze blood from the dead-rock that is Qualcomm.
This means the exact same video and screen lagginess ALL HTC/Qualcomm devices experience and will CONTINUE to experience.
Just compare it to the Acer m900 and even that has much better scrolling/panning performance.
I was one of the few that jumped on the X1, I like the idea of the panels but in reality they are just a fad, you use them the first couple weeks and never touch them again. I finally jumped on the TouchPro 2 with T-Mob.
Can we get a confirmation that this doesn't have an OLED screen?
I believe boygeniusreports said it was TFT.
2 hands-on video : http://www.mobiletechworld.com/2009/09/02/sony-ericsson-xperia-2-hands-on-videos/
Here's to hoping the keyboard doesnt crap out. My HTC TyTN II's keyboard currently has problems with the a,c,l,r, and Fn keys... :~(
Ouh, tht must rey suk.
You shoud get new smtphone.
I had the same problem with my TyTN II as well. The keyboard one of mine also lost its "clickyness." Another got random keyboard keypresses when it was closed. So far I'm on TyTN #4 thanks to the warranty/no thanks to carrier subsidies and contracts.
I held the X1 in my hands for a long time before letting go and deciding not to purchase it. The hardware felt great - the panels UI was interesting, but not good enough for me to lay down $800 - not to mention buggy and slow.
From the vids I have seen with the UI on the X2, I'd say that SE is headed down the same path. The mobile UI market is getting harder to compete with; apple, palm, google, bberry - I do not think that the SE hardware will ever equal fail, but the UI certainly could
Yo this guy missed Mariah Carey's call? Wtf.
Nah dude, Eminem had the phone @ the time
Now we all have her number, eh Nick?
"home screen seemed to excuse any of the UI lag it introduces"
Uh? I don't see any lag in all the videos posted.
You guys are on Crack/Cocaîne maybe?
I saw zero lag as well. I also saw someone that doesn't know how to operate a touchscreen complain that it wasn't capacitive. Yeah, that must be why you couldn't get it to respond. The rep didn't seem to have any problem with it and he was looking at it upside down.
"It's got a flashy (gimmicky?) home screen"
Basically, Engadget thinks any home screen that consists of more than just 20 non-moving square shaped icons is "flashy" and therefore "gimmicky"? Give me a break...
http://www.gsmarena.com/sony_ericsson_xperia_x2_gets_official_holds_no_surprises-news-1101.php
btw, gsmarena mentions an X2a. Hopefully this'll be coming to AT&T!
Too gimmicky, what is their target market btw? Highschoolers?
And not to mention about the lag too.
The only thing that could make a Sony phone worse is putting Windows Mobile on it. Smart move Sony....
X2? When's the X1 coming out?
The GUI of the homescreen is just plain annoying. Animation of a series of unrelated boxes in the background? How does that add to the user experience besides slowing down the menu system, and adding distractions?
Clean that up a little, please. OW, that would be the first of the Sony programs to hit the trash can if I had this phone. There are much better choices for homescreens already available from Handago.
Awesome phone! Its too bad the "reviewer" decided it was a POS even before seeing it.
Not a Sony fan but nice! I really like the Interface with those block things.
*Wonders if XDA can port the interface to the TP2.* :p
Hmm... I had an X1 for about a week before selling it. With such great offerings from HTC, is there really much point?
Looks like the cameraman (Mr. Miller?) seems to have resistive screen-incompatible fingers. Either that or the phone only responds to the rep's fingers. ... DNA-controlled phone? Nice.
Ugh... disregarding what I said, I can't get over how stupid "snacking" sounds. "Snacking on information," "snaking on messages," "messages to snack..."
Did Sony come up with that? And here I thought "Sony Bean" was bad.
Assuming that the screen calibration routine hasn't changed from WinMo 6.1 the usual problem is that it instructs you to "press firmly with the stylus" - which means that the pressure threshold gets sets higher than you would like for finger operation. If you use modest pressure (or an appropriate tool to adjust the threshold value) then you can comfortably operate with a finger without having to press unreasonably hard.
Probably.
The phone runs on WinMo 6.5. They have removed the screen calibration routine so you dont have to do that anymore.
This phone is fantastic
i cant wait to sell my X1 and get the X2
I love WM, Resistive touch, and all that comes with it. Most people who dont like resistive touch dont know that you can set the sensitivity, and that many devices work differently with it. Some are MUCH better.
the x1 is great, especially with the many new roms. It makes the touch pro look like a joke.
I cant waitt for this to come out, hopefully it wont by 799$
definitely agree with tmarks11, that home screen is appaling, very convoluted, hard to read, unesesary cpu sucking block animations. The whole thing looks ugly to me....
It's very Playstation-like, and much more 3D programming skill and polish shown there than any HTC software. Probably the most show of usable 3D out of Qualcomm at any point and time.
The screen looks very snappy to me. Enough with your capacitive vs resistive crying!
Does anyone know what processor it has?
Its still unknown,
It is likely to be between 600-1ghz
winmo 6.5 (go android), resistive display, and the keyboard looks old + all the bits and dirt and stuff is gonna be stuck in between buttons. nothing for me.
The UI is everything in a phone to me. This blows. Well, all WinMo phones blow in my opinion. I say this because of how slow and unpolished almost everything seems in WinMo. I'm not a apple fanboy or anything but the iPhone is the best phone I have ever had, and quite possibly i'll ever have. I want to try something new but until something awesome comes out (possibly the Pre?) I will stick with my 8gig 2g.
"I'm not a apple fanboy"
Could have fooled me...
hmm.... "the iPhone is the best phone I have ever had, and quite possibly i'll ever have"
Closing your mind to other possibilities is definitely fanboy tendencies.
They let bob from accounts produce a phone again? :S
Original X1 was horrible and I was kinda hoping this was an improvement. The panels idea was a nice concept but really didnt work, this looks no better.
Either vanilla or touchflo, both good winmo concepts, but this looks a bit wrong.
Agree with what someone said above, they should be focusing on making the idou a better success, lord knows they don't have the cash to throw around in R&D for multiple smartphone platforms these days.
Not as sexy as the Xperia X1. :(
The interface is interesting, but practical? Not really. I wonder how much it will go subsidized.
Thank god XDA will port over all the good stuff from the X2 to our beloved X1's...
hmm...not sure.
I was lead to believe the X2 was not produced by HTC this time...so will XDA do anything about it as they only deal with HTC produced phones, right?
I really feel sorry for Sony Ericsson. That home screen is comical. It really is the worst one that I've ever seen.
'comical'? How so? I think it looks pretty slick.
Err www.se-first.com have confirmed that the X2 is using the old 528mhz cr@ppy Qualcomm processor again, just like was seen in a leaked blurry-cam a month ago.
So now all the X2 has that the X1 doesn't, is the 8mp camera instead of 3.2mp and the software... may as well give X1 owners a software update!
Even if SE made the processor run much better and smoother than before, that processsor is still to0 slow for a latest release flagship phone. Fail!
At least the Satio will be a lot better than this, even though it has the old Symbian made for stylus OS and the upcoming X3 with Android that had better be awesome or SE will be going down.
SE make the best featurephones, so why the hell do they get their smartphones made by HTC with old hardware. :(
Anyway what a good day this was for phone news and soon Motorola will be announcing some Android phones, like maybe tomorrow...
they are fraggin stupid if that is true. Right now, IMO, any smartphone that really wants to compete should be packing a processor of at least equal power to the 3GS or Pre. Anything else feels like laggy, stuttering, last-gen hardware after trying out both of those phones. It's like, "oh, this is how they are supposed to work!"
I also hope the X3 (AKA Rachael) will be good. I'm just wondering when there will be more news on it. At the moment theres really just rumors about it. Hopefully they'll announce something solid soon.
This will go well in Asia - cheap, resistive screen, thin stylus and funky UI.
Personally this wont be on my wish list any time soon.
Does it run doom android??
No?
Not interesting then...
i am just waiting for speed and price report
Shame they're not bucking WinMo though. Would seriously love Android on this - or the X1 for that matter. Yes, I know it can be hacked, but I prefer the software be factory implemented.
I'd say this phone would eat the most recent Android build [there are way too many codenames and version numbers floating in my head to remember the current Android lol] alive for breakfast and still have room for another sitting [which is of course, A good thing :P]
where can I buy this phone....
I believed Sony must be on somekind of the duges while they design for the next X2, here goes, X1 got 3 MP camera, 400MB internal memory, and Radio. X2 got 8MP camera, only 110MB internal memory and No " Radio" I'm repeat no Radio. I'll stick with my Nokia N97. Thank you.
slap android and an accelerometer on the X2 and i'll be all over it. but currently, while i am exited, software improvements must be made before I make my decision on my next phone. very tempting though.
I want this phone soooo bad!!!!!
very nice....but i think ill still be keeping my Iphone instead:)
just another smart phone, trying to get a bit of the smart phone money. lol what ever happened to passion, and innovations...
Put Android on it and im all over it!