February 14th, 2008
MWC08: The XPERIA X1 is one slick Windows Mobile device!
Probably one of the slickest devices being shown at the MWC event here in Barcelona is the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 Professional phone running Windows Mobile. HTC has made some strides in adding some flair to Windows Mobile, but SE looks like they took it even further with this latest device that is scheduled for release in the second half of 2008. Good news for us T-Mobile USA subscribers is that the 1700 MHz band is supported and this will be my next device from T-Mobile.
There is a video below showing the device demo being shown here at MWC. I have another video that I have to edit so it will fit in YouTube and I will get this up after I get back to the U.S. this weekend since connectivity is a bit spotty here. I asked and was shown Contacts and can confirm that this is a working model that has Windows Mobile at the core. SE wants to advertise the user experience though and not dive down into the WM details so they are really not focusing on that aspect at all.
The UI is very slick with a 9 tile active desktop where you will be able to put some of your favorite links, feeds,apps, etc. so you can turn it on and jump right into the content you personally want. Carriers could add tiles that could be used here as well, but the end user will have full control over what they want to show here on the display. They have a cover flow type of UI for switching apps as well that works with the directional pad, finger scanner type of scrolling, and touch with your finger or stylus. They also have a custom SE media player so you can use that or the Windows Media Player to enjoy your content.
The hardware is also very compelling with a keyboard that felt great when I ran my fingers across it since it felt like metal and each key had a bit of an angle on it so it was quite tactile. There is also a large space bar and the keys are well-spaced for text input. There is a 3.2 megapixel camera and I am hoping this will take decent photos, unlike other WM devices. There is something over 400MB of flash ROM available to the end user our of the box and you can use microSD expansion cards too. It runs on a 500 Mhz processor and has a beautiful 3 inch WVGaA 800×480 display. WiFi and Bluetooth are included, as well as an FM radio and GPS receiver. This bad boy has it all and even has a solid brushed metal finish and solid, yet light feel to it. I will start saving now since this will be one of my future purchases.
Matthew Miller is an avid mobile device enthusiast who works during the day as a professional naval architect in Seattle. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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