#mwc12 – Sony unveils new Android UI with Xperia P and U smartphones

26 Feb 2012

MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS – Backed by the biggest marketing rollout in Sony’s history, the consumer electronics giant today at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona unveiled a new user interface for its Android-based Xperia P and U which will form part of the new NXT line-up.

The new NXT series is designed to make it easier for consumers to share content from their smartphones to TVs, laptops or tablet devices. The new phones will also come with Sony’s new ‘WhiteMagic’ display technology.

Designed to enhance the Android experience, the new user interface also include new album, video and music players and the ability for consumers to access their favourite apps directly from the lock screen.

A new Reality Display promises razor-sharp clarity and the ability to take a photo from sleep mode to snap in about a second via a single key press.

The new smartphones are also designed to make use of the Sony Entertainment Network for unlimited access to thousands of movies and millions of songs.

The Xperia U boasts a 3.5-inch Reality Display, a 5-megapixel camera and runs on the Android Gingerbread OS which Sony says will be upgradable to Ice Cream Sandwich (4.0) during the second quarter. It runs on a 1GHz dual-core processor.

Also sporting a 1GHz dual core chip, the Xperia P has a 4-inch Reality Display, runs on Gingerbread and will also upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich in the second quarter.

The P, however, has an 8-megapixel camera and can capture images in HD, 2D and 3D. It comes in a choice of silver, black and red and has an aluminium unibody.

Users can stream their music from either device to wireless speakers using DLNA technology and can connect to HD TVs using HDMI technology.

Read more on the Mobile World Congress 2012:

#mwc12 – Telefónica shows off download speeds of 100Mbps via LTE

#mwc12 – Samsung unveils new Galaxy Beam and Tab 2 series

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com