Sony Ericsson announce two new handsets

At a press conference at MWC last night Sony Ericsson announces their latest handset, the W995 from the Walkman range and a new handset concept under the name of "Idou" which promises to merge the best of Cyber-shot and Walkman technology in to one fully-featured handset.

Full information can be found in the press releases below:

Sony Ericsson today unveiled the next step in its evolution. The Entertainment Unlimited consumer proposition is the pinnacle of what the company has been working towards since the start of the joint venture in 2001 – the true fusion of communication and entertainment.

Bringing together rich content, unique applications and best in class entertainment experiences, the new consumer proposition is based around three key promises:

1. Uniting best in class entertainment experiences into one offering such as the Walkman™ music experience, the Cyber-shot imaging experience, Java gaming and messaging integrated with services and applications.

2. Broadening entertainment experiences by seamlessly integrating the mobile phone into other devices in the home letting consumers share and enjoy top quality entertainment content through a variety of channels including TV, PC and Hifi systems.

3. Fusing communication with entertainment by removing barriers and offering unlimited sharing opportunities, multiplying the value of people’s entertainment experiences through a host of innovative web applications and Sony Ericsson’s unique Play Now offering.

Sony Ericsson is unveiling the W995 Walkman™ phone at Mobile World Congress offering the most complete communication entertainment package to date. The launch of this phone exemplifies the excellence that Sony Ericsson has achieved in both the music and imaging categories and enables the evolution into Entertainment Unlimited. The company is also showing a mobile phone under the concept name Idou* giving a glimpse of one of a number of projects that will be launched this year under the umbrella of Entertainment Unlimited.

“Entertainment Unlimited lets us reinforce our position as THE communication entertainment brand,” said Lennard Hoornik Head of Global Marketing and Vice President at Sony Ericsson. “Everything that we have done to date has brought us to this point – we created the music phone category in 2005 selling over 100 million Walkman™ phones and we are now ready to unveil the next chapter in the evolution of the company – Entertainment Unlimited – giving consumers unlimited opportunities to share their entertainment experiences.”

Idou encapsulates the future of mobile entertainment in the palm of your hand delivering visual communication like never before.

Capture moments, talk through pictures and share all your experiences like never before with the 12.1 megapixel camera, intuitive touch features and Xenon flash. Tap directly into your favourite videos and tracks with the full-touch media menu and feast your eyes on movies, TV-series and video clips in true 16:9 widescreen format. Based on what will become the Symbian Foundation operating system, thousands of applications are available online letting you install new applications and download exciting content from PlayNow™ to make the Idou truly yours.

Dick Komiyama, President, Sony Ericsson said, "Entertainment Unlimited is at the core of Sony Ericsson’s philosophy, building on the strength of our great entertainment assets such as Walkman and Cyber-shot phones and our unique service and applications integration. Many of the strategic initiatives we’ve announced in the past year have laid the internal framework to launch this new consumer proposition to the market and Sony Ericsson is now ready to drive the next wave of market development with Entertainment Unlimited."

Keep amused like never before on one powerful video mobile phone; watch news, TV shows or blockbusters in premium video quality or check out the latest videos from YouTube™ using Turbo 3G or Wi-Fi™. Complete with an 8.1megapixel camera and Walkman™ player, with clear audio experience, the W995 Walkman™ is the ultimate mobile phone to keep you entertained when on the bus, lunch break or waiting for a train.

With Media Go™ it’s easy to bring your media with you. This unique Sony application makes its worldwide debut on the W995 Walkman™ and lets you effortlessly and automatically transfer any audio, photos and videos between your phone and computer. You can even find podcasts with exciting content easily from the directory – just two clicks and you’re away, and watch the action in all its glory on the bright clear 2.6” screen.”

“With Media Go™ there’s no need to worry about format, resolution and ‘frame per second’ anymore.” said Alexandre Cardon, Global Marketing Business Manager at Sony Ericsson. “No longer will the video you transferred from your PC to your phone play in low resolution or bad quality. With Media Go™ and the W995 the experience is as good on your phone as it was on your PC.”

“The W995 Walkman™ phone brings together the very best music experiences of any phone, augments this with best in class video and sharing capabilities to offer the most complete communication entertainment package to date.” said Alexandre Cardon. “This powerful mobile phone delivers the best possible video resolution that can fit in your pocket and with enough battery stamina to watch two full length feature films. The W995 also comes complete with the award winning clear audio experience and an 8.1 megapixel camera for the highest quality picture and sound available in a mobile phone.”