Sony Ericsson XPERIA X3 Android phone to drop in January 2010?

Sony Ericsson still haven’t admitted to the existence of the XPERIA X3, their Android smartphone previously known by its “Rachel” codename, but that hasn’t stopped the speculation about when it might drop. According to MobileCrunch, it’s likely to be sometime in January 2010.

They’re quoting an unnamed source who has it on “good word” that the 4-inch touchscreen smartphone will arrive early in the new year. Previous leaks have tipped the XPERIA X3 as having an 8-megapixel camera, dualband 900/2100MHz HSDPA (10Mbps) and HSUPA (2Mbps) as well as Bluetooth 2.1, WiFi b/g and A-GPS.

There’s also a distinctive new UI, which Sony Ericsson are tipped to have developed in-house to sit on top of Android; you can see a video demo of that here. It’s all certainly possible – and as we’ve said before, we’ll never argue with new Android devices – but until we hear word from Sony Ericsson themselves (or another well-connected mole) we’ll have to take all this with a pinch of the proverbial.

Expansys exposes Sony-Ericsson Xperia Android phone

Remember those leaked screenshots of Sony Ericsson's Android interface, rumoured to appear on a product code-named Rachael? Mobile phone retailer Expansys appears to have completely spilled the beans by putting up the said phone for pre-order under the name Sony Ericsson Xperia, complete with pictures.

As previously speculated, it will come with a 1GHz processor and an 8-megapixel camera. What's also interesting is its 10Mbps HSPA support, which is faster than most other smartphones out there. Here's a summary of its specifications:

* 4-inch WVGA (800x480) display
* Quad-band GSM and dual-band WCDMA
* 8-megapixel camera with autofocus and LED
* HSPA (10Mbps uplink/2Mbps downlink)
* 3.5mm audio connector
* Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, A-GPS

So far, all Android devices come with HVGA (320x480) resolution screens. It will be interesting to see how the Google mobile OS will work with so many more pixels at its disposal. No details on pricing and date of availability were listed, so we'll just have to wait for the company's next move.

More pics and video of Sony Ericsson Android phone leaked

Earlier this week leaked photos of the upcoming Sony Ericsson Android phone, dubbed Rachael and part of the XPERIA line, hit the Internet, along with some specs on the smartphone.

Among its excellent features, the phone uses an Android interface, Qualcomm's Snapdragon platform (allowing processor speeds of up to 1GHz), an 8.1 megapixel camera with auto-focus, 3D supporting GPU, 7.2Mbps HSDPA and a 800 x 480 pixel 4" touchscreen.