Sony Ericsson TM506 is a phone that we haven't heard about before, or at least not under this name. The TM506 is a clamshell recently approved by the FCC and unveiled in several photos with T-Mobile's logo on it. Which means that the US customers of T-Mobile will soon have a brand new Sony Ericsson handset available for purchase.

Judging by the looks and the features found in its User Manual, the TM506 might be a new version of the Z780, the clamshell that Sony Ericsson should release this month in Europe. The known specs of TM506 include: tri-band GSM (850 / 1800 / 1900 MHz) as well as dual-band HSDPA (1700 / 2100 MHz) connectivity, GPS and A-GPS, Web browser, Web feed, Instant Messaging, Picture and video blogging, Music and Video players, MusicDJ, Bluetooth, photo camera (of 2 Megapixels, most probably) with video recording, USB, Voice command, embedded games, file manager, organizer, calendar and expandable memory (via a Memory Stick Micro card, as in the case of all Sony Ericsson phones).

When available, the TM506 will be the only Sony Ericsson phone from T-Mobile's line-up, and one of the few to come with 3G connectivity. The fourth largest carrier in the US only recently rolled-out its 3G network, hence most of its phones only offer 2G or 2.5G connectivity.

At the moment, the release date of T-Mobile's new clamshell is not known and neither is its price. But since the phone passed the FCC tests, users should expect it to be announced by T-Mo in the next few months (or maybe even weeks). As for the price of the clamshell, this will probably not be more than 350 - 400 USD, free of any contract. With a contract agreement, though, T-Mobile will surely make the TM506 cheaper.