14 DAY TRIAL // Mobile phone maker Sony Ericsson has unveiled plans to offer support for developers working on the delivery of custom ROMs for its Android-based Xperia handsets.
The move follows shortly after CyanogenMod announced that they would offer support for the company's Android phones with the next CM 7.1 release, helped by the FreeXperia team, now part of the larger CM group.
In a recent blog post, Sony Ericsson explains that they are aware of the large number of independent developers who come up with new software for its devices, and says that it plans on helping them.
“The Sony Ericsson Developer program is following this community with great interest, and even though Sony Ericsson is not supporting all the activities by independent developers, we recognize that custom ROMs are a part of the Android ecosystem,” the company notes.
The FreeXperia team will see support from Sony Ericsson, including devices and more, the handset vendor announced.
“The FreeXperia group was supported with devices and technical know-how, and they are now in the process of creating custom ROMs based on the CyanogenMod for several of our latest Xperia phones, including Xperia PLAY and Xperia arc,” the company continues.
When it comes to end-users, the handset vendor notes that they should be careful when unlocking their handsets to install custom ROMs on them, since they might be voiding the warranty in the process.
However, Sony Ericsson did start to offer users the possibility to unlock the bootloader on their devices via its own website, as proof that they plan on supporting the openness of Android.
They also say that they plan on learning from the open community, and even provide their knowledge when needed.
“During some time now, the FreeXperia group of independent developers have been working on the CyanogenMod custom ROM for our latest Xperia phones,” Karl-Johan Dahlström, head of Developer Relations, explains..
“From a Sony Ericsson Developer program perspective, we were impressed by the passion shown and decided to help out with some bits and pieces, since we are aware that Sony Ericsson phones have been somewhat difficult to work with from an open developer point of view.”
Sony Ericsson already helped the team with explanations on the camera packed with the Xperia devices, as well as with a number of around 20 handsets, which should prove helpful in their quest.