14 DAY TRIAL // Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY, the first Android-based mobile phone in the world to sport PlayStation certification, should make an appearance on the market in Australia on the airwaves of Telstra as soon as tomorrow, the wireless carrier has just confirmed.
The mobile phone would hit shelves at Telstra on the carrier's new Freedom Connect Plans. It would be launched on the $79 Freedom Connect Plan at $20 per month (min cost is $2,376), with $800 worth of calls, unlimited national text and 2GB of data in Australia. Outright, it would cost $960 RRP.
The mobile phone would arrive on the local market with pairing a large 4-inch touchscreen display with a slide-out PlayStation gamepad, as well as with specific games pre-installed.
The list of preloaded games includes Star Battalion (Gameloft), FIFA 10, Madden NFL 11 and SIMS 3 (EA Games), Bruce Lee (Digital Legends) and Crash Bandicoot (Sony Computer Entertainment).
At the same time, the handset would offer access to more than 60 games available for download at launch, including Assassin’s Creed – Altaïr’s Chronicles, Asphalt 6: Adrenaline, Worms, Need for Speed, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Conviction and Guitar Hero.
Running under Google's Android 2.3 Gingerbread operating system, and offer access to the over 200,000 applications available for download via the Android Market.
It also includes a fast 1GHz application processor, as well as with a microSD memory card slot for expanding the available storage space.
On the back, the handset would sport a 5-megapixel photo snapper with LED flash and video recording capabilities. It sports WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity capabilities as well, along with support for the carrier's 3G network. GPS receiver was included into the mix as well.
“Starting tomorrow Telstra customers will also be able pick up a Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY on the Next G network from the below stores (limited stock available),” the wireless carrier announced.
“Additional Telstra Stores across Australia will start selling Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY progressively from next week. Customers can check local stock availability by contacting their nearest Telstra Store.”