14 DAY TRIAL // Japanese-Swedish mobile phone maker Sony Ericsson has just announced that its Android-based XPERIA X8 smartphone started shipping. This is the fourth device the company brings to shelves with Google's Android OS on board, and should fit the lineup right between the X10 mini and the big X10 in size. The Android-based Xperia X8 was unveiled officially several months ago, when Sony Ericsson said that it would be the most affordable Android device from its offering.
The smartphone boasts a 3.2-megapixel photo snapper with fix focus, and should offer a bigger screen than the Xperia X10 Mini, though some of the appealing features that the latter comes with on the market might be missing on the new device.
According to Sony Ericsson, it just started shipping the XPERIA X8, “which is the new addition to our family of Android based phones. The key selling point of the X8 is of course it’s very nice form factor sitting right in between the X10 mini and the big X10 in size.”
At the same time, the company notes that it new smartphone comes with a wide range of capabilities, including support for 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity options, along with access to a wide range of applications.
Moreover, the handset sports built-in GPS receiver, as well as Google Maps, and the 4 corner UI that the X10 mini devices came to the market with.
At the same time, the mobile phone maker announced that the planned Android 2.1 OS upgrade that would hit X10 is set to arrive on X8 too.
“Since much of the discussions here are about the forthcoming Android update I’d also like to make clear that also X8 is Android 1.6 from launch and will get the planned Android 2.1 update later this year,” Sony Ericsson's Rikard Skogberg notes in a post on the company's product blog.
However, it seems that no specific info on when the OS update would land emerged for the time being: “Final timing is not fully set yet but I expect it to be a bit later than for the X10 family,” Rikard Skogberg added.
Some more info on the new Sony Ericsson Xperia X8 can be found in the video embedded below.
We should note that the Sony Ericsson Cedar, a new GreenHeart mobile phone from the company, also started shipping recently.