The question of the week comes from Pax and is: “What do you think is lacking the Sony Ericsson portfolio?”
This is quite a tough question as it is not very specific. The question is not really what’s lacking in the portfolio as I think they’ve recently come with a portfolio that covers pretty much all segments, but perhaps it’s more a question of how many different phones there should be for each segment. In my opinion there are too many similar phones in the mid-end segment, but as some have pointed out it’s nice to have different designs to choose from. On the other hand, the process of manufacturing a single phone is rather expensive, despite how much it might resemble another phone.
Anyway, I shall get back to the question. What is think is lacking right now is smartphones – and not just high-end smartphones. The G700 and G900 did very well and I think Sony Ericsson could easily do with a few mid-end S60-based smartphones. Yes, S60 – not Windows Mobile. Perhaps Android, but mid-end Android phones aren’t the company’s prime focus on that front. At least not for now. The first Android-based handset will be a high-end device, and I’m sure most of you already know its name. If not, you will soon.
So, I think they should focus more on smartphones. Like I said earlier on, it’s not as much about what’s lacking as it is about to what degree it is lacking. Sony Ericsson have already got smartphones in their current portfolio, high-end ones at that, but they’ve got a very limited selection of smartphones. Android and S60 are definitely going to be the prime sellers of the future and I’m hopeful that Sony Ericsson has spotted the trend 
I’m on a weekend of leave, so sorry about the relatively short post. I’ll try to make up for it next week. In the meantime you can always come up with new questions for me to answer as the “Question of the week”.
As always, submit your questions using the “Contact us” page and put “Question of the week” in the subject field.
Have a great Sunday everyone!
An android phone with physical qwerty keyboard (like the Motorola sholes tablet).
And I forgot: more phones with xenon flash (even for the professional orientated phones). Xenon flash + led light for videos must be the new SE standard.
I think SE is lacking a candybar QWERTY phone like the Blackberry Bold or Nokia E72. Give me that with 5MP Autofocus camera with flash and all the goodies like WiFi, GPS, 3G, and nice screen and I will be all set. Also we need a new feature phone with Xenon flash. C905 is getting old and still has issues.
I think we all would agree: more mid-range touchscreen models, especially music-oriented. I love walkman-branded phones! Someone on Esato said a touch interface based on A200/A300 is in development presently….
Cheap touchscreen phone, need not to be smart. Midend touchscreen smartphone. New innovations in software, not just new hardware designs.
hi.. i am a huge fan of sony ericsson.. they need a good midrange touchscreen phone like nokia 5800 and good midrange smartphone like e72.. i want them to launch a good walkman branded mid range touchscreen phone and a good midrange qwerty smartphone.. and plus a cheap entry level touchscreen phone.. i dont have a problem with their charger port but they should make 3.5mm jack standard on their phones.. the recently launched satio, aino and yari phones are not overpriced atleast in india and i think that is pretty good and surprising.. i have a x1 and i soo want to buy the satio now.. the only thing it lacks is 3.5mm jack but the rest is just perfect.. they have to keep their prices and features competitive.. the entertainment unlimited series phone are on the right direction and they have to be fast now to launch good phones.. they can beat samsung and nokia very easily as sony has a very good brand value and they just have to launch good phones with competitive prices.. their high end line up is good but i think they have to focus now on mid-range and low-range phones.. se rules! se for life!
I agree with FMW890i. SE needs a low-mid end touchscreen that’s more looks than paper specs. Something that can rival the Samsung Star and the LG Cookie and to a lesser extent, the Nokia XM 5530. Hell, the latter two have been selling by the bucketloads and it’s impossible to ignore such a lucrative market.
I won’t pretend to be an expert, but a full touch phone with these specs:
- 3-3.1 inch screen, resistive. Yes, RESISTIVE as the low end customers who buy these don’t really care. As long as it’s touch, they’re happy.
- 3.5mm jack.
- A200 OS. Yes, the 5530 is a smartphone, but only a small majority of the users actually buy it for those reasons. Nokia cannot (Or does not) want to make a non-smart touch phone, but SE can and should. Tonnes of people love the A200 and a touch version of it is only logical.
- Neat styling, bold colors. Maybe replaceable panels with graffiti inspired art and all that. SE can do this just fine, so I have no worries on that. Add a strip of metal if they can!
- LOUD speakers. As much as I hate these, the youth really seem to love this. If they can afford to add stereo speakers to the W395, they can add them to this phone too.
- Add WiFi, take out 3G, GPS. Young people do use WiFi a lot. They don’t care about 3G and GPS as much.
- A decent 3.2MP AF camera with maybe a single LED. It doesn’t have to be exceptional, but it should be adequate and better that the Cookie/ Star cams.
- Lots of widgets for social networking. This is going to be a booming segment and SE SHOULD jump on the bandwagon right now.
- Market it as a Walkman. Yes, the brand still has pulling power despite all the hard times. If the styling is reminiscent of the X1000, all the more better!
- Price it at the exact same level as the Nokia 5530. I know this is a tough ask, but if the numbers are great, this would turn out to be a wise decision.
- Have some great tie-ups with operators and try to give this phone as free or at heavily discounted to teen-oriented plans.
yup android based + mid range.
Please not S60. To be honest, S60 is not the future. Unless something big happens (im liking what they are doing with the satio’s openGL) like what occurred with the apple and the app store… (Nokia trying something with Ovi Store) :se: needs something in that field.
As saidc before (i think the open letter) a camera alone is not going to cut it.
ohh and say no to lags
What SE needs is a candybar QWERTY phone like the Blackberry Bold or Nokia E72. It will need a 5MP autofocus camera with Flash, VGA 30FPS video recording, WiFi, GPS, and a nice 16 million color 2.6″ screen with HVGA resolution.
also messenger phone for youngster. SE a little bit late to develop the touch (finger friendly) UI, and has so many dumb phones
Super power Windows device.
Agree+1.
I think SE should also come out with some waterproof cells,
however Sunny and Susan are not my type.
Oh, and don’t forget the Bravia phones.
SE needs a low/mid-range touchscreen phone.
Sony Ericsson’s own version of cookie/tacco/x5800…
They have the new SE Aino, but its still too expensive to be adopted world wide.
I personally wouldn’t want any more S60 devices: Android has a lot more potential, especially with Sony Ericsson. Android for mid-high end smart phones, and market Windows Mobile for high end premium smart phones.
Wee!
Thanks for answering my question