2012 Xperia rumour roundup: What we (think we) know so far

With CES 2012 just around the corner, we thought it would be useful to bring everyone up to date on the Sony Ericsson handset rumours. We expect at least a couple of new handsets to be announced along with new details on how Sony eyes its mobile strategy post the Sony Ericsson era. This is likely to include convergence and utilisation of Sony’s key technologies and media content.

As things stand, it’s pretty much a dead cert that we’ll see the Sony Ericsson LT26i ‘Nozomi’ make an appearance at CES. The phone is likely to use the Xperia HD marketing namesake and we’ve seen too many leaks for this to be a no-show. The main features of Nozomi are rumoured to be a 1.5GHz dual-core chipset, 1GB RAM, 12MP camera, 4.3-inch (720 x 1280 resolution) display and 32GB internal storage (no external memory).

Apart from Nozomi, we’re not entirely sure what other handsets will be formally announced next week. We thought the Sony Ericsson LT28at for AT&T would be shown off, it is said to include a 4.55-inch 720p display, 1.5GHZ dual-core processor and 13MP camera. However, we’ve recently heard that this phone may not be released until September 2012 or later.

Then there is the 4-inch LT22i Nypon, which shares similar specs with Nozomi but will come with a smaller display qHD resolution and an 8MP Exmor R camera. Rumours also point to this phone using the ST-Ericsson U8500 NovaThor chipset, which would mark a move away from Qualcomm for at least some of its handsets. Then there are the mid-range handsets such as the ST25i ‘Kumquat’ and MT27i ‘Pepper’, although we’ve not heard a great deal about these two. They may be set for a MWC reveal in Barcelona in February 2012.

Whatever will be announced it is set to be an exciting week for Xperia fans. Be sure to check back for the latest developments. We’ve posted the summarised specifications of the six rumoured handsets below. Which one are you looking forward to the most?

Rumoured Sony Ericsson Android smartphones for 2012

Sony Ericsson LT22i
Codename: Nypon
SoC: ST-Ericsson NovaThor U8500
Processor: 1.0 GHz Dual-Core
RAM: 1GB
ROM: 16GB
OS: Android Gingerbread (2.3.7)
Display: 4.0-inch (540 x 960 resolution) WhiteMagic display
Camera: 8.1MP (1080p video recording) Exmor R back-illuminated sensor + LED Flash
Bluetooth: 2.1+EDR
Wireless: IEEE 802.11 b/g/n (2.4GHz and 5GHz)
Network: GSM, W-CDMA

Sony Ericsson LT26i
Codename: Nozomi
SoC: Qualcomm MSM8660 Snapdragon
Processor: 1.5 GHz Dual-Core
RAM: 1GB
ROM: 32GB
OS: Android Gingerbread (2.3.7)
Display: 4.3-inch (720 x 1280 resolution) Reality Display with BRAVIA Engine
Camera: 12MP (1080p video recording) Exmor R back-illuminated sensor + LED Flash
Bluetooth: 2.1+EDR
Wireless: IEEE 802.11 b/g/n (2.4GHz)
Network: GSM, W-CDMA
Media: HDMI port

Sony Ericsson LT28at/LT28i
Codename: Aoba?
SoC: Qualcomm APQ8060 Snapdragon
Processor: 1.5GHz Dual-Core
RAM: 1GB
ROM: ?
OS: Android Gingerbread (2.3.7)
Display: 4.55-inch (720 x 1280) Reality Display
Camera: 13MP (1080p video recording) Exmor R back-illuminated sensor + LED Flash
Bluetooth: 2.1+EDR
Wireless: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n (2.4GHz and 5GHz Dual-Band)
Network: LTE IV/XVII, W-CDMA I/II/V, GSM 1900/1800/900/850
Media: MHL port

Sony Ericsson MT27i
Codename: Pepper
SoC: ST-Ericsson NovaThor U8500
Processor: 1.0 GHz Dual-Core
RAM: ?
ROM: ?
OS: Android Gingerbread (2.3.7)
Display: 3.7-inch FWVGA (480 x 854 resolution) Reality Display
Camera: 5MP (720p HD video recording ) camera sensor
Bluetooth: 2.1+EDR
Wireless: IEEE 802.11 b/g/n (2.4GHz)
Network: GSM, W-CDMA

Sony Ericsson ST21i
Codename: Tapioca
SoC: ?
Processor: 800MHz single-core
RAM: 512MB
ROM: 4GB
OS: Android Gingerbread (2.3.7)
Display: 3.2-inch HVGA (320 x 480 resolution)
Camera: 3.2MP camera sensor
Bluetooth: 2.1+EDR
Wireless: IEEE 802.11 b/g/n (2.4GHz)
Network: GSM, W-CDMA

Sony Ericsson ST25i
Codename: Kumquat
SoC: ?
Processor: 1GHz Dual-Core
RAM: ?
ROM: ?
OS: Android Gingerbread (2.3.7)
Display: 3.5-inch FWVGA (480 x 854 resolution) Reality Display + BRAVIA Engine
Camera: 5MP (720p HD video recording) camera sensor
Bluetooth: 2.1+EDR
Wireless: IEEE 802.11 b/g/n (2.4GHz)
Network: GSM, W-CDMA

Tagged as: CES, Rumours, Sony Ericsson