Publications
Partners
Johannesburg - Swedish mobile handset vendor Sony Ericsson will launch a new range of handsets and services this year in an attempt to get the company back on track, after it reported a net loss of $385.9 million (around R3bn) for the first quarter.
The company has announced a new naming scheme for its mobile phone devices, doing away with the Walkman and Cybershot brands.
The company said its new Satio, Aino and Yari devices will leapfrog the rest of the industry in terms of features and align them more closely with other Sony products, such as the Playstation 3. The Aino, for example, allows users to remotely control their Playstation 3 devices and access content, including games.
Another new model, the Naite, is made from recycled plastic.
A service called PlayNow was also unveiled. This is an online content service that is Sony Ericsson's answer to the likes of the Apple iPhone App Store and Nokia Ovi.
Sonja Shear, head of marketing at Sony Ericsson South Africa, said that PlayNow is expected to launch in South Africa in the fourth quarter of 2009.
One of the new devices, Yari, includes gesture gaming, allowing users to play games by using the phone as, for example, a virtual tennis racquet or golf club - similarly to the Nintendo Wii style of gaming.
The Satio device is focused on communications, while the Aino is focused on media playback.
Local pricing for the new products have been confirmed. The Satio will retail for R9 000, Aino for R7 000 and Yari for R4 000.
- Fin24.com
