Sony Ericsson reveals 3 new devices – txt, Xperia active & Xperia ray

Update: Uploaded more pictures and videos

Sony Ericsson today has revealed 3 new devices – a featurephone and 2 Android smart phones. The first phone shown above the Sony Ericsson txt which is a QWERTY candybar device which is targeted for the youth market.

The Sony Ericsson txt is a feature phone with features inspired by Xperia at an affordable price. As the name, its dedicated SMS shortcut key and the very tactile QWERTY keyboard suggest the txt is built for messaging junkies. In addition, the txt also features an embedded “friends” application that gives users quick access to Facebook and twitter updates from their five favourite friends.

Other notable features include a 2.6 inch screen, a 3.2 MP camera with video support (don’t expect HD recording though) and connectivity comes in the form of b/g/n WiFi, and Bluetooth but there’s no 3G. Also, the txt packs a 1000mAh battery and comes in four colours (white, black, pink and a really nice blue).

Price of the txt is said to be around the US$100 mark without contract. That’s about RM300 at today’s exchange rate.

Next is the Sony Ericsson Xperia active which is designed for users with active lifestyles. This is somewhat similar to the Motorola Defy with its water and dust resistant capabilities. It also features wet finger tracking, barometer, pedometer, pulse meter, HD recording and runs on Android Gingerbread with a 1GHz processor.

The Android Gingerbread Xperia active is essentially an Xperia mini that’s built for the outdoorsy user. The active features a Bravia Mobile Engine enhanced 3-inch 320×480 Reality Display and a 5MP camera with HD-video recording. The device also meets the IP67 exposure rating standard which means that the device is dust and water resistant and can stand being submerged in fresh water up to a depth of one metre for a duration of maximum 30 minutes. Battery capacity for the active is 1200mAh.

In line with its active inclination, the Xperia active features scratch resistant screen enhanced not by Corning’s Gorilla Glass but from a competitor called Dragontrail which, we were told, offers similar protection to Gorilla Glass. The reason for the change is simply a matter of supply. Sony Ericsson needed the supply, Corning couldn’t keep up with the demand.

Colours include white accent option or an orange accented one. The active ships with both black and white interchangeable covers.

The third device is the Xperia ray. The Xperia ray is very much like the Xperia arc but with a smaller screen and a different design language. It uses premium materials like aluminium.

In its purest sense the Xperia ray is an Xperia arc reincarnated in a smaller form factor as both devices share virtually identical feature sets. This includes a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, an 8.1MP camera with Exmor R and 720p video recording capabilities. The ray’s 3.3-inch Reality Display is enhanced by Sony’s Mobile BRAVIA just like the Xperia arc.

The major differences between the arc and the ray is mainly in the size and thickness. While the arc is a svelte 8.7mm thin device, the ray is slightly thicker at 9.4mm but at 854 x 480 pixel it’s smaller 3.3-inch screen packs the same resolution as the arc but with a higher pixel density which means images a crisper. With what little hands on time we had with the device, the higher pixel density really shows on the Xperia ray’s display. Images are pin sharp!

The arc packs a 1500mAh so you can expect good battery life and there are four colours for you to choose from including black, gold, white and of course, everyone loves a pink phone.

Availability for all the devices is slated at Q3 this year, prices are yet to be announced. And also, both the Xperia ray and Xperia active feature active noise cancellation secondary mic, which is cool.

In addition to the phones Sony Ericsson also announced two new accessories. The LiveDock and the LiveSound. We’ll put up videos that explain what these two accessories are in a bit.

Official pics after the jump. More updates coming soon. Post updated with more details on the devices, official promo videos as well as some hands on pictures. All yours to view right after the jump.

Don’t forget to watch our hands-on video from the launch here.

Videos

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Specifications

Sony Ericsson txt

-2.6″ TFT Scratch Resistant Display
-240×320 resolution with 262K Colours
-100MB Internal Memory
-3.2MP Camera
-Bluetooth (A2DP)
-WiFi
-microUSB (Charging/Mass Storage)
-microSD slot (up to 32GB)
-GSM GPRS/EDGE
-1000mAh Battery
-106mm x 60mm x 14.5mm
-95g

Sony Ericsson Xperia active

-3″ capacitive display with Scratch Resistant mineral glass
-320×480 resolution with 16M Colours
-320MB Internal Memory
-microSD slot (up to 32GB), 2GB included
-5MP Camera (720p Video support)
-Bluetooth (A2DP)
-WiFi
-aGPS
-DLNA
-microUSB
-GSM GPRS/EDGE/HSPA
-1200mAh Battery
-Android 2.3 Gingerbread
-55mm x 92mm x 16.5mm
-110.8g

Sony Ericsson Xperia ray

-3.3″ capacitive display with Scratch Resistant mineral glass
-854×480 resolution with 16M Colours
-300MB Internal Memory
-microSD slot (up to 32GB), 4GB included
-8.1MP Camera (720p Video support)
-Bluetooth (A2DP)
-WiFi
-aGPS
-DLNA
-microUSB
-GSM GPRS/EDGE/HSPA
-1500mAh Battery
-Android 2.3 Gingerbread
-111mm x 53mm x 9.4mm
-100g