The Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 that launched today, and the soon to be launched Xperia X10 Mini and Mini Pro phones, all feature Android 1.6 as their operating systems.
The Android 2.1 platform was released a while back, and has already been adopted by many manufacturers. One has to ask the question why Sony Ericsson has decided to launch new phones with an aged OS. And this question was asked by Digit, in an interview with Hirokazu Ishizuka, the Corporate Vice President and Head of Asia Pacific Region, and Rajiv Sethi, Vice President and Head of Sales Asia Pacific. Stay tuned to Digit to read the full interview, which talks about Sony Ericsson’s plans in India, why they chose Kareena Kapoor as their brand ambassador, what makes the Indian market special to them, and lots more.
In the meanwhile, regarding the Android 1.6 vs 2.1 issue, we were told that the Android 1.6 OS was being used because the company wanted to provide a stable platform, and that the 1.6 OS seen in their phones has been enhanced with many of Sony Ericsson’s own additions, giving users a unique and exciting user experience platform, without compromising on speed and stability. “1.6 is just the foundation” and “we are adding our own layers on top”, such as the signature applications of TimeScape and MediaScape, which completely change the UX, and make it more “human and intuitive”. Customers also have access to the Android Marketplace.
However, Hiro San confirmed that the hardware will be compatible (in fact more than sufficiently on the flagship 1GHz and 1GB RAM Xperia X10) with the new Android 2.1 or 2.2 OS, and that the company will probably release firmware upgrades in time, depending on market demand. They might even go straight to Android 2.2, but only after rigourous testing of its stability.