In a bid to distinguish itself from rival mobile makers, the company is using PlayStation technology for its latest models, writes Ciara O'Brien
WHILE SMARTPHONES such as the Palm Pre and the iPhone are dominating the headlines at the moment, other mobile makers are taking a slightly different approach.
Sony Ericsson is continuing to push its mobile phones as alternatives to music players and cameras, with cameras that have eight megapixels and above built into its phones.
Rival manufacturers such as LG and Samsung have already strayed into the high-megapixel territory, which means Sony Ericsson may need something special to distinguish itself.
Not content with trying to turn phones into cameras and digital music players, Sony Ericsson is also setting its sights on winning over games fans through the PlayStation 3 (PS3). One of the mobile maker’s more ambitious phones this year is the Aino, which uses the same Remote Play technology developed for the PlayStation Portable (PSP) to connect to the PS3 console from remote locations.
This extra feature allows you to access media content stored on the PS3 through the internet.
Unfortunately, the media content does not extend to games, so PS3 users will have to be content with being able to access the content of their hard drive.
With the Play TV accessory, which Sony says will be available in Ireland, users will be able to view, pause and record live TV on their handset.
The Aino, which has a touchscreen and a keypad, also brings with it Media Home, an application that will automatically synchronise multimedia content with your PC through Wi-Fi.
The Aino’s three-inch screen may not rival the 42-inch LCD in your home, but Sony is promising extra features, improved audio and an 8.1-megapixel camera.
The high-end version of the Aino is the Satio, which is fully touchscreen and has a 12-mega-pixel camera and HD widescreen.
While in the past Sony Ericsson may have split its phones into music or camera capabilities, the new handsets take elements from both to give users a better all-round multimedia handset.
The W995 is Sony Ericsson’s video mobile, and has been optimised for watching multimedia such as TV, Sony’s Play Now movie service or YouTube clips. It features an 8.1-megapixel camera, has Media Go synchronisation, and comes with built-in Walkman functions.
The rest of Sony Ericsson’s offerings for the summer include the W205, a Walkman phone aimed at first-time users of music player/phone hybrids; and the W705, which connects to the internet via Wi-Fi to get music or video clips and plays them back using Sony Ericsson’s impressive audio system.
