A Windows Mobile-powered Sony Ericsson phone?

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This CNN news report is a puzzler:

High Tech Computer Corp has secured a contract from Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications AB to design and assemble the latter’s first smartphone running Microsoft Corp’s Windows Mobile platform, the Commercial Times reported, without citing sources.

The order is estimated to exceed 1 mln units, and the smartphone is due to hit the market in the second half of 2008, it said.

The Taiwan company currently ships some 10 mln smartphones per year, and the Sony Ericsson contract is expected to expand shipments by 10-20 pct, it added.


A Windows Mobile-powered smart phone from Sony Ericsson?

As Ubergizmo opines, SE owns a part of Symbian (it owns UIQ too). What is happening here? Is SE getting ready to drop UIQ and Symbian? With the current reputation of SE UIQ 3 phones (not good), this is an option for SE.

Current SE UIQ phones are: P990, W950, M600, P1, W960.

No, I don’t think SE is going to abandon Symbian and UIQ at this point (they might at a later date); it is just too stupid to abandon such investment in capital and technology. Symbian and UIQ are not in the red; SE UIQ3 phones are selling well, despite the not-so-good reviews. SE is probably going to introduce a new line of handsets (the word for this move is diversification), labeled the M series. Yes, there is an M600, but that is just the first in that line. Maybe we will see Sony Ericsson M1 soon enough.

4 thoughts on “A Windows Mobile-powered Sony Ericsson phone?”

  2. I know, it’s [part-] Sony, so they have to be self-sufficient without cooperating towards industry “standards”, right? (I know Windows Mobile is not a an open “standard”, but that’s another issue). Guess what, they’re working with Blokia Nokia in coming up with an open mobile card format standard. Funny, eh? Maybe Sony’s changin its ways and is starting to realize they can make more moniez by playing with the other vendors

  3. Hi, Symbian, SE is not addressing the issues with Symbian UIQ; in the end, it’s their own fault. The P990 is a case in point. Multi-tasking with only 64MB memory? That was stupid. As for lack of software, Symbian and UIQ are supposed to be open; the lack of software is more about motivation on the part of developers – since UIQ users won’t pay for software, developers have no incentive in creating new ones.

    Hi, Jeff, as I have said, they are diversifying. They want some share of the WinMo pie.

  4. Pingback: Motorola buys into UIQ « TechWatch@AWBHoldings.com

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