Sony Xperia sola offers floating touch interface and nifty NFC tags

Sony has just announced its new Xperia sola handset, set to stampede into Europe in the second quarter of 2012 with other territories to follow.

Wedged between the Xperia U and Xperia P models, the stupidly named sola (what’s with this lower case nonsense?) is a mid-range confection, sporting a 3.7-inch 854×480 LCD screen and Sony’s proprietary Reality Display technology.

The processor is a rather modest  NovaThor U8500 1Ghz dual-core number, backed by an equally modest 512MB of RAM and 8GB of internal memory.

There’s a 5MP rear camera on the back capable of 720p recording,  with the sola running Android Gingerbread at launch, with Sony promising an Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade in the summer.

The Xperia sola is NFC enabled and comes with two NFC Xperia SmartTags in the box. These can be personalised to set off tasks like  automatically turning on the wi-fi when walking into a certain room.

The handset also comes with Sony’s novel “floating touch” UI enhancement, which employs the front-facing camera to let users make taps and selections without physically touching the phone’s screen, and offers 6 hours of talk time, 6 hours of video or 40 hours of music playback .

There’s no pricing details as yet.

Here’s the full press release:

Xperia sola from Sony – the smartphone with a sense of magic

Tue Mar 13, 2012 5:01am EDT

• Introducing “floating touch” navigation for magic web browsing without touching the screen 
• Easily open apps and launch actions in an instant with NFC and Xperia SmartTags 
• Reality Display with Mobile Bravia engine and fast capture camera boosted by a powerful dual-core processor

13 March, London, United Kingdom – Sony Mobile Communications today announced Xperia(TM) sola* as the latest addition to its portfolio of Android powered Xperia smartphones.  Complete with Sony technology, premium entertainment and innovative floating touch^TM navigation, the NFC enabled Xperia sola comes equipped with Xperia SmartTags, allowing consumers to change their smartphone’s settings and applications to fit their lifestyle in an instant. Xperia sola will be available to consumers globally in black, white and red in the second quarter.

A floating touch of magic
Making its smartphone debut exclusively on Xperia sola, Sony’s unique floating touch lets consumers navigate the web by hovering their finger above the screen so it acts like a moving curser, without actually having to touch the screen.  Once the desired link is found it can be highlighted and a simple tap will load the page.  Floating touch will evolve with new user functionality and applications through software updates and engagement with developers.

Calum MacDougall, Head of Xperia Marketing for Sony Mobile Communications, commented; “Xperia sola comes with the power of Sony and a sense of magic with floating touch, giving consumers a fun new way to browse the web and latest technology to show off. With Xperia SmartTags out of the box and access to the latest content through Sony Entertainment Network, Xperia sola is perfect for consumers looking for ease of use and the best in entertainment in a smart and innovative smartphone.”

Simplify the everyday with SmartTags
Xperia sola is NFC enabled and comes with two NFC Xperia SmartTags in the box as standard to simplify consumers’ everyday smartphone experiences. By touching an NFC Android smartphone on a SmartTag, a pre-configured profile in the smartphone will launch. The two SmartTags included with Xperia sola can be personalized with up to 10 commands. Out of the box one is ready for the living room to turn on Wi-Fi(TM) and launch Google(TM) news and weather apps, and the other one for the bedroom, which turns on the alarm and switches to silent mode. Xperia sola supports NFC pairing, allowing consumers to enjoy great connectivity with other NFC smartphones, applications and services by tapping their smartphones together.

Powerful entertainment anytime, anywhere
Xperia sola boasts razor sharp clarity with Reality Display powered by Mobile BRAVIAR Engine, xLOUD(TM) and 3D surround sound audio technology delivering crisp and loud sound, and a 1GHz dual-core processor for super fast performance.  Xperia sola also comes with fast capture to take the camera from sleep to snap in a little over a second with a single key press.

Consumers can also access premium entertainment experiences with Sony Entertainment Network**, where they can watch the latest Hollywood blockbusters on Video Unlimited or listen to millions of songs*** through Music Unlimited.  

Key features for Xperia sola

• Floating touch navigation for an easy web browsing experience
• NFC enabled and Xperia SmartTags in the box to enable quick app loading and easy content sharing
• 3.7″ Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIA Engine gives razor sharp clarity
• Powered by a 1GHz Dual Core Processor for super fast browsing
• xLOUD and 3D surround sound audio technology for crisp and loud listening
• Direct access to Sony Entertainment Network* with pre-installed Video and Music Unlimited** apps
• Launches on Android platform 2.3, upgrade to Android 4.0 during summer 2012

* Xperia sola will be bought into the Italian market under the name “Sony Xperia(TM) sole” and in China P.R. under the name “Sony Xperia(TM) MT27i”

**Sony Entertainment Network services are subject to availability by region, please see www.sonyentertainmentnetwork.com for more details.

*** The number of available songs varies by region.

 – ENDS –

Xperia sola specifications	All services mentioned in this leaflet may not be available in every market.
Colours	Black White Red
Facts	Size: 116 x 59 x 9.9 m Weight: 107 grams 1 GHz STE U8500 dual-core processor Google Android(TM) 2.3 (Gingerbread), upgradeable to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich)
Camera	2D and 3D Sweep Panorama(TM) 5 megapixel camera 16x digital zoom Auto focus Face detection Flash/Photo flash Geotagging HD video recording (720p) Red-eye reduction Self-timer Send to web Smile detection Video light Video recording
Music	3D surround sound Album art Bluetooth(TM) stereo (A2DP) Clear bass Clear stereo Music Player PlayNow(TM) service SensMe(TM) TrackID(TM) music recognition xLoud(TM) Experience
Internet	Google play(TM) Bookmarks floating touch(TM) Google(TM) search Google Voice(TM) Search Google Maps(TM) for Mobile with Street view and Latitude(TM) NeoReader(TM) barcode scanner Pan & zoom Web browser (WebKit(TM))
Communication	2 speakerphones Call list Conference calls Facebook(TM) application Facebook inside Xperia(TM) Google Talk(TM) application Noise suppression Twitter(TM) (with Timescape(TM) integration) Xperia(TM) Timescape(TM)
Messaging	Conversations Email Google Mail(TM) Instant messaging Multimedia messaging (MMS) Predictive text input Sound recorder Text messaging (SMS)
Design	Auto rotation Gesture input Keyboard (on-screen, QWERTY) Live Wallpaper Picture wallpaper Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIAR Engine Screenshot capturing Touch screen
Entertainment	3D Album Accelerated Adobe Flash Video Media browser Motion gaming Radio (FM radio with RDS) Sony Entertainment Network Video streaming YouTube(TM)
Organiser	Airplane mode Alarm clock Calculator Calendar Contacts Document readers Notes Setup guide Stopwatch Tasks Timer
Connectivity	3.5 mm audio jack (CTIA) GPS Bluetooth(TM) wireless technology DLNA CertifiedR Micro USB support Media Go(TM) Media Transfer Protocol support Modem Native USB tethering NFC PC Companion Synchronisation via MicrosoftR Exchange ActiveSyncR USB High speed 2.0 support USB Host Wi-FiR Wi-FiR Hotspot functionality Wisepilot(TM) turn-by-turn navigationAll services mentioned in this leaflet may not be available in every market.
Display	3.7″ Reality Display with Mobile BRAVIAR Engine 854 x 480 pixels 16,000,000 colour TFT Scratch-resistant glass
Memory	8 GB internal storage (up to 5 GB user-accessible memory) microSD(TM) memory card slot (supporting up to 32GB)
Networks	Quad EDGE/GSM/GPRS 850, 900, 1800 W-CDMA Band I, II, V and VIII
Battery life	Talk time GSM: Up to 6 hrs* Standby time GSM: Up to 470 hrs*Talk time UMTS: Up to 5 hrs* Standby time UMTS: Up to 475 hrs*Music listening time: Up to 40 hrs Video playback time: Up to 6 hrsBattery: 1320 mAh (built-in) typical, 1265 mAh minimum *Values are according to GSM Association Battery Life Measurement Technique. Battery performance may vary depending on network conditions and configurations, and phone usage.
In the kit	Xperia(TM) sola, embedded battery, 2 SmartTags, stereo headset, charger, micro USB cable for charging, synchronisation and file transfer, and user documentation.

“Sony” and “Sony Entertainment Network” are registered trademarks or trademarks of Sony Corporation. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

FOR MEDIA INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
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Sony Mobile Communications, Global Communications & PR
General Press: +44 208 762 5858

About Sony Mobile Communications
Sony Mobile Communications is a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation, a leading global innovator of audio, video, game, communications, key device and information technology products for both the consumer and professional markets. Through its Xperia(TM) smartphone portfolio, Sony Mobile Communications delivers the best of Sony technology, premium content and services, and easy connectivity to Sony’s world of networked entertainment experiences. For more information: www.sonymobile.com