Newsletter
Last time we heard from the Sony Ericsson Xperia X8, the FCC brought us all the goodies: pictures inside and out, user manual, tests. The X8 (codenamed Shakira and released in South Africa under that name) has been asking for attention again, this time by showing up over at Engadget for a look-see. It’s got the physique of an old-style TV remote and it’s then further hobbled with Android 1.6 plus Sony Ericsson’s Timescape and Mediascape UI “features.” Then again, how much did you really expect from a 3 inch HVGA capacitive display with a 3.2 megapixel camera and a CPU clocking in at 600MHz?
The Sony Ericsson rep assured them that Android 2.1 was just around the corner in Q4, and that there may be other covers for this device than the white togs it’s been wearing in the US.
While the X8 may not look like much with all those superphones dominating Android news, it’s going to retail for less than $300 unlocked. Expect the handset to be a very affordable alternative when purchased with a contract. Given that its older and more powerful (4 inch screen, 1 GHz processor) sibling, the Xperia X10, retails at AT&T for $149.99 with a contract, the X8 should appeal to those on a budget.
