A report’s popped up on Vnunet, confirming that Sony Ericsson have been trying out Google Android on a couple of prototype mobile phones. However, it also confirms that there won’t be any Sony Ericsson Android mobile phones for the foreseeable future.
It would seem Sony Ericsson don’t like Android…
And the reason? According to Sony Ericsson chief technology architect, Mats Lindoff, it would mean giving away every single service to Google, and, well, Sony Ericsson aren’t prepared to do that! Or, in Lindoff’s own words, “If you want to give every service away to Google, then Android is the perfect solution.”
Pretty categorical, that! Consider that Google Android is linked to the Amazon MP3 Store, and that Sony Ericsson are now pushing their own music store; so there’s one example of what he means…
So, if they’re not going to use Android, what exactly are Sony Ericsson going to put in their high-end mobile phones? Well, for high-end feature phones, like the Sony Ericsson C905, it’s a pretty safe bet they’ll be using their standard interface, albeit with extra whizzy, shiny bits on. As for smartphones, though, they’ll need something a bit more powerful.
First up, Windows Mobile. That’s what’s powering the Sony Ericsson X1 (and incidentally, the same report confirms they put that in to crack the American market, and ten quid says it gets punted at the corporate market, as well), and it seems more than likely they’ll use it in future high-end mobile phones, probably in the Xperia line.
Plus, let’s not forget, they already have a high-end operating system to stick in high-end mobile phones. I should know, they use it in my Sony Ericsson P1. Yes, I’m talking about Symbian, and specifically, in this case, UIQ.
There’s just a tiny problem, there, though.
UIQ is on the way out.
But that’s ok, because it’s becoming part of the ever-growing Symbian Foundation, which means in future, really, really high-end Sony Ericsson mobile phones, stand a very good chance of being powered by the Symbian Foundation OS, whatever that turns out to be.
Oh, and on a related note, it seems that the current financial doldrums round the world have unexpectedly produced a good outcome, at least for me. Sony Ericsson have said that 2009 could be a tough year, financially, and that to survive, they need to focus on their strengths… which means not aiming for the low-end mass market, and concentrating on making mind-bendingly powerful, ludicrously high-end mobile phones.
Are the glory days of the Sony Ericsson P910 set to revisit us??
Gawd, I hope so!
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