Installation couldn’t be simpler, though you do have to have a rooted phone in order to apply the software, and it only applies to phones that have been updated to Android 2.3 Gingerbread. Download the free app from the Android Market, run the CWM installer and reboot your phone – bingo bango, instant mod time. Alternately, you can download the app from the original thread and install it via the standard non-Market method.

The other options included in the app follow the pattern established by ROM Manager, the official ClockworkMod Recovery app. You can reboot directly into recovery, make an automatic Nandroid backup via the app, and check your root status. This is a major boon for those who have a less popular phone that hasn’t made its way into the official support list yet. The app is now on its fourth revision, so most of the kinks have been worked out already.

Oh, and there’s a Nyan Cat in the background. Nice.

The deal will mark the end of a partnership that’s been going for ten years – but hasn’t been going all that strong lately. Sony Ericsson’s smartphones have seen only limited success in Europe and Asia, and are rare in the United States. The Sony Ericsson XPERIA Play is probably the company’s most well-known Android handset, thanks to its PlayStation integration. And the forthcoming XPERIA Ion, a local variant of the international XPERIA S, is the only high-profile Sony Ericsson product to find a home on an American carrier in months. The company announced losses of $318 million in their 4th quarter 2011 earnings report.

The XPERIA Ion and XPERIA S are likely to be the last flagship devices produced under the Sony Ericsson label, as the re-branding and absorption process is expected to be complete by late summer. Impressively, Sony has committed to updating every Xperia phone produced in 2011 to Ice Cream Sandwich, and even laid out late Spring timetables for the various models. That’s a good way to start building more brand loyalty. Sony announced an ambitious cloud directive for all of its consumer products at CES, covering mobile, gaming, HDTV (including Google TV) and PCs. Expect to hear a lot about integration across their various platforms as the acquisition is finalized.

[via SlashGear]

However, as you can see – the LT22i ‘Nypon’ is sporting three physical buttons. From the right photo, the curved shape leads one to believe it may pack quite the battery. Official specs are completely absent for this device, so there’s clue how the Nypon compares to the likes of the XPERIA S or even the newly named XPERIA U.

And then there’s the Sony Tapioca; a lower tier smartphone in Sony’s lineup. This smaller device is supposedly carrying a 3.2″ HVGA display, and running a currently unknown 800MHz processor. It is also said to have 4GB of internal storage, and 512MB RAM – so don’t expect the Tapioca to fly as fast as the others. We should see the device sometime around July.

[via AndroidGuys]

Other than the announcement at CES and us knowing it will be released sometime in Q2 we don’t have any other details or pricing information at the moment from our friends at Sony or AT&T other than “coming soon”. According to popular online retailer Negri Electronics you can get the fully unlocked version for only $569.

That $570 will get you an impressive smartphone with a 4.6″ HD display powered by Sony’s BRAVIA engine. A 1.5 GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, and a huge 12 megapixel camera for 1080p video and more. Not to mention this phone has HDMI out and AT&T 4G LTE. Basically it could put the Galaxy Nexus to shame but I’ll hold off on my judgement til I get some hands-on time — although we already know the camera will be a heck of a lot better. It also appears if you take this unlocked phone outside the US you’ll get more than 2G speeds from the 2100 Mhz bands on board too.

We’ll update once we see or hear more details on the Xperia ION.

[via PocketNow]

The recently leaked roadmap (linked to below) is to be believed then this would be one of the upcoming new devices although nothing has been confirmed. The obvious smaller screen on the image shown above is a clear indicator that not only is this not the Xperia S, but it also has a lower resolution screen by the large icons. According to Xperia Blog the leaked device above will be 3.5″ and have an 854 x 480 resolution.

The Sony ST25i will also sport a 1.0 GHz dual-core processor and have a 5 megapixel camera around back. Looking at the sheer size of the phone in the leaked photo you can see it’s not much larger than Xperia ray we reviewed late last year. This should come in as another mid-range phone for Sony Ericsson, something we’ve seen plenty from them already. Which apparently isn’t holding them over too well given their recent reports of huge Q4 losses of over 318 million.

Either way with this leak, and others we’ve seen over the past week most of these devices will be on display at MWC 2012 in Barcelona and we will get all the details live in Spain.

[via Pocket Now]

I say “new take on Android” for a few reasons. One being that Sony Ericsson has just sold their 50% to SONY giving the technology and electronics giant full control. Sony has recently announced that they’ll be going all in with Android in 2012 and plan to have a much better showing. Most devices from Sony Ericsson throughout 2011 were always slightly under the competition in terms of raw performance and hardware — although they do have impressive cameras.

Another factor could be the lack of traction in the US markets although SE phones were popular elsewhere in the world. Many of their devices just as I mentioned above fell short to the competition because they lacked the new specs the others had. Such as dual-core processors, larger displays, and HD screens. We reviewed the Xperia ray and while it was nice — I’d never own one. 2012 however shows a lot of promise for Sony. As they showed off the Xperia S and the ION at CES (links below) and we’ve recently seen a roadmap detailing 11 new smartphones for 2012 from Sony — many of which look to be high end devices such as the Hayabusa and MINT.

Sony Ericsson will announce their full report later this month and most likely it will look just as grim. I have a feeling they are patiently waiting for that $1.47 billion dollar payout and giving the reigns to Sony for good.

[via SlashGear]

The image above leaked last week is believed to be the Sony Ericsson Pepper, and now benchmarks today have confirmed the specs that were already being suspected. We have a 3.7″ 854 x 480 resolution display with a single-core 1.0 GHz processor and Mali 400 for graphics. Nothing special here but definitely a great little device for the budget friendly crowd. Here is the benchmark result:

While Pepper is only a codename, we are hearing this device will actually be the successor to the popular Xperia Neo that was released last year. The Pepper will also feature a 5 megapixel camera capable of 720p video. Earlier today Sony’s entire 2012 roadmap was leaked — slating the Pepper for an early April release for around 300 Euros. While nothing has been confirmed at this point, we’ll most likely be seeing this little guy come end of February at Mobile World Congress in Spain.

[via PocketNow]

Sony recently bought Ericsson’s 50% of the company and have also said they’ll be going “all in” with Android in 2012. All of the above phones will run on Android and will receive different names on launch as these are internal codenames. First off the Nozomi, which isn’t listed as it was announced at CES as the Sony Xperia S (see our hands-on below). It will be priced at €462 to give you an idea of its caliber and what we see listed. It’s fair to assume with that pricing that some of those higher priced devices will be flagship phones from Sony.

We aren’t sure what all will come to the US or not as this is only an early leak (or rumor) but Sony has been trying to tap into the US market more as of late. The Kumquat and Nypon we’ve heard before but details are still scant. On the other hand the others are all new to us here at Android Community. I’m particularly interested in the Hayabusa. For one their motorcycles are blazing fast, have style, and are unique. And two, because it has a beefy price along the lines of the Xperia S.

The rest seem to be priced differently to hit different levels of the smartphone market. Then we also have that MINT being the most expensive on the list. This could be their next big thing and is slated for a September release. The last thing I want to mention is the Tapioca_DS. Could this be dual-screen? or maybe dual-sim. Either way they have two Tapioca phones listed.

It’s safe to assume we’ll see the top 3 all slated for an April release at Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Spain late next month. We’ll be there live to capture all the details so stay tuned.

The teaser video seriously doesn’t reveal much other than some sort of universal infrared or other powered remote control system — being demoed on a Sony Ericsson Xperia handset shown in the image above. This appears to be a very simple application that will power on and control things like TV’s, music players, an old gramophone and more but they show it off in a different light then you’d expect. Check out the video so you can be as confused as I am.

You can see they aim the Xperia handset towards each device making us believe this is a Infrared type system but it really could be anything. The user interface appears to only be a “dot” on the screen for simple on/off toggle or switching these devices on but that is about all it reveals. According to the splash at the end this “new entertainment” will be announced on February 21st — a day before the Sony PS Vita. IR isn’t too popular on US handsets but many of Sony’s other markets have the feature so we aren’t fully sure what to expect — but will be sure to follow along for more details.

[via SlashGear]

Both have NFC, HDMI outputs capable of 1080p Full HD video, and 12-megapixel main cameras that can record Full HD too. Front-facing 1.3-megapixel cameras are used for video calls and vanity shots, and there’s the usual WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS along with Sony’s Timescape interface.

Sony Xperia ion hands-on:

Sony also revealed some compact NFC tags, which can be used to launch apps or to instantly switch the Xperia handsets into different preset modes; you could have one on your nightstand, for instance, and automatically toggle the smartphone into silent mode before bed. The Xperia ion will arrive on AT&T sometime in Q2, while the Xperia S will arrive in the same quarter on various carriers. No pricing as yet.

More information in our full Xperia ion hands-on and Xperia S hands-on over at SlashGear.

While this all will be unveiled next week we can sit and wonder right? The earlier images from Sony (linked to below) suggested a possible Windows Phone device, but they’ve previously stated to be going “all in” with Android. The leaked images we’ve recently seen of the Arc HD (Nozomi) could have been prototypes that have since been redesigned — or the image above from Sony themselves is an entirely different device. The Arc HD leaks show the camera and flash both to be centered on the rear of the phone and the image above is clearly different.

We have a feeling Sony Ericsson will have multiple new devices on display at CES and we will be sure to capture them all on video to show our readers. With Sony buying Ericsson’s half and aiming to hit Android hard in 2012 we expect big things from team SONY. The image above comes straight from the Sony Ericsson Facebook page and hints of at least one Xperia device at CES. Stay tuned for more details all coming in early next week.

[via PocketNow]

Included will be the XPERIA Live, Pro, and Active; to access the files directly visit the CyanogenMod mirror network here, and navigate to your device. Do note, that you must have root access and CWM recovery installed to make use of the files – but those of you following this far into the post probably already knew that. These new CM builds will most likely be very unstable, as this will be their first nightly.

But over time, it will undoubtedly become just as polished as other officially supported devices. This is not CM9 running off of an Android 4.0 base, but rather CM7 running off of Gingerbread. So those of you hoping to see ICS may just have to wait it out a good bit longer.

[via Android Police]

This is actually a pretty great added bonus for Xperia owners and I can imagine a few people are happy to hear the news. Sadly there is a small catch and this isn’t available for everyone. This deal or freebie actually only applies to France, Germany, Spain, Italy, the UK and Australia. We could see more added later but for now that is all we get. Hopefully Sony will open this up for all their users.

The image above shows the dates and more information but basically if you purchase or own an Xperia device from November 1st to January 31st 2012 you are eligible for this deal. We aren’t sure if this has been available since the first of November or if Sony is just offering this to a wider audience of buyers. Sony’s Music Unlimited is a great service and getting 90 days free will give many a first hand look at what their missing — although things like Spotify are a great alternative too. Head down to Sony Ericsson to get started if this applies to you and your Xperia.

[via Phandroid]

A few crucial details about the updates can be gleaned: one, Sony is following in Samsung and HTC’s footseteps by bringing their own proprietary UI layers to Ice Cream Sandwich. I guess they just don’t think it’s as pretty as we do. This is confirmed by the following language: “developers are now busy merging our current Xperia™ software with the new features in Android 4.0.” Second, the updates will use the standard staggered rollout, likely contingent upon carriers in the case of subsidized models.

While of course we’d like to see ICS updates as soon as possible, it’s refreshing to see Sony commit to updating each and every model from the last year. And considering all the headaches surrounding Eclair, Froyo and Gingerbread updates, a minimum of four and maximum of six months wait is relatively speedy. In the meantime, advanced users can try any one of a number of early ports, or simply wait for Sony Ericsson’s first phone with Ice Cream Sandwich, rumored to be the Arc HD “Nozomi”.

[via SlashGear]

The special offer is running from December 15, 2011 through December 31, 2012 and is available for any Xperia user worldwide. To access the free 50GB of storage the user needs to log in only once during that special period to gain access to the 50GB for the life of the account. The offer is even good on Xperia that launch next year as long as the log-in is done before December 31 of 2012.

The company says that the 50GB of storage is enough space for about 50,000 docs, photos, and presentations. I am sure that Box is hoping all these users sign up for additional storage or services to offset the cost of the free storage.

More interesting is the fact that the company plans to only manufacture smartphones, leaving the thinner margins and shrinking market of feature phones behind. Since Sony Ericsson now uses Android exclusively and is likely to stay that way for the foreseeable future, that’ll make them an important contributor to the Android ecosystem, especially in Europe and Asia. ” A lot of planning goes into getting the branding right but we will be done by middle of next year. It will also mean that the marketing and advertising investments will go up,” said Sony executive Kristian Tear. After rumors of a Sony Windows Phone 7 device earlier this year, a Sony CEO said that WP7 wasn’t as good as Android, and didn’t factor into the company’s immediate plans.

Now that Sony’s mobile future is dependent upon Android, you can expect the company to expand its already aggressive production and marketing. That should manifest in at least three primary product lines: the core XPERIA phones, PlayStation-enhanced products like the XPERIA Play, and possibly a more media-focused line centering around the Walkman branding. We’ll likely see the first fruits of any new initiatives at Mobile World Congress in February.

[via MobileBurn]

Activating the offer is simple: just download the Box.net Android app on your Sony Android phone and log in. According to Sony’s post, that’s all you need to do, though apparently some users are experiencing early issues. The offer is valid until December 31st 2012, so a lot of Sony customers will be able to take advantage of it. The 50GB offer will follow your account for life, even if you don’t keep your XPERIA phone.

The move mirror’s HP’s decision to partner with Box.net, giving TouchPad owners 50GB of free storage back in August. Between free could storage and the promise of upcoming Ice Cream Sandwich updates, the XPERIA line is starting to look even more attractive. Box.net is becoming a serious competitor in its own right, thanks in no small part to the word-of-mouth that the company is generating from these partnerships.

UPDATE: It looks like Sony jumped the gun a little bit. In another blog post, the company told customers that the Box.net addition isn’t quite ready yet. It looks like they still intend to go forward with the promotion at some point in the future, but XPERIA owners won’t see the additional storage at the moment.

[via Phone Arena]

The Xperia arc S is an updated and expanded version of the original arc, with a 3.7-inch, 854 x 480 screen. The phone uses a speedy 1.4Ghz processor and 512MB of RAM, though unfortunately you’ll need a MicroSD card if you want more than the phone’s paltry 1GB of built-in memory. Connectivity options are impressive, with HDMA, DLNA and, USB host functionality (via the dock – not included). The camera is a full 8MP, with 72-p video recording at 30Mbps.  The arc S costs $549.99 unlocked with AT&T HSPA+ bands.

The Xperia neo V (seriously, Sony, you’re killing me with this selective capitalization) uses the same 3.7-inch screen, but a slower 1Ghz processor. Elsewhere it has the same RAM and on-board storage specifications, though the camera is downgraded to a 5 megapixel model. The neo V gets a much lower price of $349.99.The phone will run on AT&T’s HSPA+ network.

Both phones run Android 2.3.4, just a few versions off of the latest available. It’s worth noting that Sony has said on multiple occasions that its current phones, including the arc S and neo V, would be receiving an Ice Cream sandwich update. The company did not mention when this update would be made available.

Sony didn’t give any timeframe on when to expect the updates, but for those who bought their phones on contract, remember that they’re largely contingent upon carriers’ cooperation – a particularly belligerent carrier might choose not to update their phone at all. Other major manufacturers are quoting between six weeks and four months for the first ICS updates, but given the unfortunately spotty history of Android rollouts, it may be quite a while longer before some see any new software. Sony’s reputation on the matter isn’t the best in the Android business, but it’s far from the worst – we’ll see how Sony’s proposed acquisition of Ericsson affects software development.

Sony joins the major Android manufacturers in reiterating to its customers that they’ll be seeing Ice Cream Sandwich at some point. HTC and Samsung have promised updates for those devices that can handle the increased system requirements, and Motorola said that phones running ICS would begin appearing just six weeks after the source code was released. (For the record, that’s right around New Years’s, Moto. Just sayin’.) If you’re brave and at least reasonable technical, community-authored ICS ROMS and mods should begin appearing this week, with more stable and reliable versions to follow.

[via UnwiredView]

The Nozomi will be Sony’s next flagship phone with two important specs both hitting a Sony device for the first time. That is a dual-core processor, and a 720p HD display. The Nozomi is rumored to be packing a 1.5 GHz dual-core processor and a 4.3″ 1280 x 720p HD display, front and rear cameras and more. Along with the leaked photo shown above, and in the gallery below, we also see a quadrant benchmark that has us worried about the dual-core rumor being accurate. Those results look more in line with first rumors of a single-core 1.4 GHz processor but you never know until final hardware and software are released.

Sony has slowly but surely been producing some mighty impressive smartphones lately and I have a feeling this will be an awesome device. A big and bright display, fast processor, powerful 8 MP camera on the rear and super thin — what more could you ask for? It will come with Android 2.3 Gingerbread but most likely receive some sort of timely update to Ice Cream Sandwich, but nothing has been confirmed. For now all we have is the leaked information and now these nice and clear leaked photos of the Arc HD (Nozomi) in the wild. No pricing, availability, or carrier details have been outlined or announced. Stay tuned for more details.

[via Justanothermobilephoneblog]