Sony Ericsson rumored to be moving away from HTC for WinMo phones
By Chris Ziegler 
posted Dec 23rd 2008 6:40PM
posted Dec 23rd 2008 6:40PM
We tend to think Sony Ericsson and partner HTC pretty much nailed the X1 -- at least to the extent a WinMo 6.1 phone can be "nailed" -- but for whatever reason, it looks like the company might be looking elsewhere to continue development of its Microsoft-based lineup. DigiTimes (which, granted, doesn't have a spotless record when it comes to this sort of stuff) is quoting a Chinese paper in saying that SE is cheating on HTC with Mobinnova to produce its second XPERIA model, and what's more, they're suggesting that Sony Ericsson's entire business partnership with HTC will draw to a close when the final X1 rolls off the assembly line. We're seriously unsure why they'd go their separate ways after creating one of the most beautiful phones of the year, but hey, business is business.[Via the::unwired]
I still don't get why they don't just make their own phones.
I'd never heard of Mobinnova before, but they are allegedly the OEMs behind imate's Ultimate 8502 and 9502. Like HTC they are also keen to break out of the OEM mold, and have launched a Windows Mobile 6.1 phone called ICE. This looks pretty cool, has a 3" WQVGA screen and am interesting navigation pad.
http://www.mobinnova.com/en/ice_spec.html
I can see why Sony-Ericsson want to work with them.
hehe... Nailed...
" pretty much nailed the X1 -- at least to the extent a WinMo 6.1 phone can be "nailed" -- "
COLD
maybe its because the x1's are cracking around the stylus holder and the recall on the x1a's. Htc nailed there devices but i have yet to find out why the Nam versions have been recalled.
maybe its because of all the delays with the x1.
Also i imagine HTC charges a pretty penny to develop anything for others.
It's probably due to the release of the Touch HD. They’re been compared against each other in several reviews, with the HD coming out on top. Having tested both devices myself, I’m in agreement with the majority and now own a HD.
Not only that, the HD is selling like preverbial hot cakes. Its feature set and (almost) iPhone identical form factor are a winning combo, it’s the closest competition the iPhones' had yet and many are referring to it as an “iPhone killer”.
In my testing of the X1 I found it to be less than I’d hoped for/overhyped. The keyboard was mediocre with not enough travel, the screen was recessed and resolution was too high for its size, and althought the build was solid it wasn’t consistent. Also I couldn’t help feeling that a larger part of the price was paying for the SonyEriccsson name when compared with the HD.
Maybe the blown USA launch of the Xperia (delayed two months now) due to alleged manufacturing defects. Also, working with HTC is like sleeping with the enemy as shown with the higher quality Touch HD and Touch Pro comparisons between the keyboard, screen, etc.
Probably really doesn't help that HTC is in bed with Qualcomm, and only low-end Sony-Ericsson devices have scraped the bottom of GLBenchmark for multimedia and graphics until the Xperia. Sony will never have a comparable quality device to previous high-end SE devices nor high-end Nokias if they keep it tied-up with HTC/Qualcomm.
$800 USD also prices the Xperia out of pretty much the entire market when the Touch Pro gets subsidized on AT&T.
Amen brotha. Those are the reasons for sure!
Damnit you are an anti microsoft person eh Ziegler? Have you ever made a WinMo related post WITHOUT being a sarcastic bastard?
It's not Chris. This site HATES WinMo. Now, granted, there's a lot to dislike, but you can't blame Chris for his opinion when I believe anti-Windows is part of the Engadget creed.
As for SE's move- I think the more logical one would be to focus away from WinMo completely. Android's out & they own UIQ. why put a third in the mix? SE's known for a clean interface. WinMo's certainly not.