Sony Ericsson Unveils the Aino Multimedia Phone

Sony Ericsson announced quite a while ago that it planned to make a new announcement regarding its Entertainment Unlimited project on May 28, and the company hasn't let us down, as indeed it announced new mobile phones on that day. One of them, already rumored and expected to be officially introduced, was the Idou, which will come to the market as Satio.

Another one is the Sony Ericsson Aino, which comes packed with a wide range of multimedia features, as well as with a high-end camera, though the company hasn't included it in its family of Cyber-shot cameraphones. The new handset also features touchscreen capabilities, as well as a sliding alphanumeric keypad.

“Sony Ericsson has established itself as THE Communication Entertainment brand and Aino highlights our commitment to bringing the latest communication technology to the market in fun and innovative ways for consumers to enjoy,” said Alexandre Cardon, market business manager at Sony Ericsson. “Media Home and Remote Play with PLAYSTATION3 are key steps in broadening the entertainment experiences users can enjoy on their Sony Ericsson phone and gives a taste of our vision of the future.”

Media Home is a feature that allows users of a Sony Ericsson Aino to pull media content from Media Go on their PC directly to the handset via Wi-Fi. All that users need to do is insert their Aino into its charging stand, and the phone will automatically synchronize all the new media files that are available on the PC.

In addition, the Remote Play feature allows users to “control and access media content on PlayStation 3.” At the same time, those who live in France, Spain, Italy, Germany or the UK can also access the PlayTV service on PlayStation 3 directly from the new Aino.

The specification list of the new phone shows quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE (850/900/1800/1900 MHz) and tri-band UMTS/HSPA (850/900/2100 or 850/1900/2100 MHz) connectivity, a 3-inch TFT touchscreen display that boasts a 240 x 432 pixel resolution and support for 16 million colors, an 8.1-megapixel camera with auto focus, image stabilizer and LED flash, accelerometer, Wi-Fi connectivity, Bluetooth, motion gaming and a MicroSDHC memory card slot for additional storage space.

The new Sony Ericsson Aino measures 104 x 50 x 15.5 mm and weighs 134 grams. According to the company, the handset should become available for purchase in the fourth quarter of the ongoing year, in two color variants, Luminous White and Obsidian Black. No details on the price of the device have been unveiled so far, but they will surface later during the ongoing year.