Robot Wars, Transformers, the Terminator vs T-1000. Who doesn't love it when tech monsters fight for our love?
In our last phone face-off we pitted two highly anticipated media playing mobiles against one another, the iPhone and the N96. Apple have since announced some exciting business related expansions for the iPhone to be included in their June firmware update, including compatibility with Microsoft's Exchange servers via Active Sync.
The Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 is the new kid on the Windows Mobile block. Announced at the 2008 World Mobile Congress in Spain, the X1, with HSPA and an iPhone-esque touchscreen interface, could be the new handset to show off in the boardroom.
We've thrown their specs together to see which looks better on paper. Let the virtual arm wrestle begin!
The details for both phones, particularly their prices, may change before we see them in stores.
For business users, the inclusion of push email via Microsoft Exchange on both devices makes the decision very difficult. Editable Office documents (Word, Excel and Powerpoint), the QWERTY keyboard and HSPA data speeds will be very important to some users, and may edge the Xperia X1 out in front.
At the end of the day the real battle may come down to the 3rd party applications available. If the Apple App Store fills with cheap and useful applications then there's no telling how business-friendly the iPhone could become. There's already a wealth of 3rd party apps already available for the Windows Mobile platform.
We'd like to hear your thoughts on the iPhone versus the competition. Leave your comments below or jump on the forums and let us know what you think.
Will Apple's iPhone reshape the mobile phone market? Are there better devices actually available already? We put the iPhone head-to-head with its competition to see how it stacks up.
While we can't tell you just yet whether the iPhone will live up to the hype just yet, we can tell you what features the iPhone will offer and whether those features are the first of their kind.
Since its release, the iPhone has had more than its share of press. Love it or hate it, everyone's been talking about it and looking at its sleek, colourful interface, it's hard not to fall in love with it. But like most decisions based on emotion, buying one may not be the smartest thing to do -- at least, not yet.
The Sony Xperia is actually manufactured by HTC not SonyEricsson, hence why a MicroSD slot instead of a MemoryStick slot. I note there has been no comparison of the LCD as to how many colours. The Xperia only has a 65,000 colour screen.
I dont see how iphone gets a plus for maps. You can download google maps or windows live search free. Live search will probably be included since it is by MS. Besides that you can purchase a wealth of gps/mapping software. Also, windows mobile 6.1 does included threaded sms. And windows mobile should get a plus for third party apps. Sure apple will release an sdk but the platform is still closed. jobs will control what software gets published. I can compile a WM program right now and distribute it however i want.
An important point has been missed: iPhone is reality whereas X1 is virtual. iPhone is a real past product whereas X1 is a future speculation.
The comparison illustrated that a future product by SE might be comparable to a past product by Apple.
I would not buy an Apple purely due to their business model. Technically, Apple is far superior.
This is a great review, par for par.
I'm an SE lover and can't wait to rip apart the X1 with third-party mods and hacks. The P1i is my current tech love child.
Suppport for A2DP is now as standard for SE allowing operators to pair up their Bluetooth stereo headsets to their phone for in-call conversations as well as music, this is a huge bonus if deployed in a business VoIP-enabled environment using Fring to integrate with existing infrastructure.
The X1 will support Maps through third-party suppliers, expect Tom Tom and other major players to jump in especially with internal A-GPS and cell-tower location-tracking (not yet in Australia).
My only sigh with SE on the X1 is their choice of Windows Mobile over Symbian and the UIQ 3 platform, maybe they're waiting for Motorola to push some new innovation into the product before releasing an X1-S (Symbian)! :)
Reading the comment given here and elsewhere this article needs to be amended.
one word. HSDPA. Hello Steve? What were you THINKING?! At the moment, I have faster downloads onto my HSDPA enabled phone than I do for my home PC network. Douchebag.
id go for the sony, i have and iphone right, jailbroken running lots of 3rd party apps, its pretty glitchy sometimes, but its good overall im just annoyed by edge. The xperia looks kool and in europe it costs about the same as the iphone 400 to 500 dollars
id go for the sony, i have and iphone right, jailbroken running lots of 3rd party apps, its pretty glitchy sometimes, but its good overall im just annoyed by edge. The xperia looks kool and in europe it costs about the same as the iphone 400 to 500 dollars
Hey CNET!!! Can you please point me to the glossary on your site?!!? Really like these new smartphones but researching is pretty hard when i dont know what POP3/SMTP/IMAP/HSPA etc means. Cheers!
Planning trips on your Nokia smartphone is about to get a lot easier with Nokia announcing Maps on Ovi, a Web component designed to complement its mobile mapping software.
Opera has sewed up a short beta run of Opera Mini 4.1 declaring the mobile phone browser build stable enough to institute as the latest product standard.
Widespread iPhone shortages, combined with an explosion in carrier deals, point to the launch of the next-generation iPhone as right around the corner, according to US technology investment firm, Piper Jaffray.
Today Optus announced plans to expand its 3G network coverage next year to 98 percent of Australia and will bring mobile speeds up to 42Mbps by 2010, in a direct challenge to rival Telstra.
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After twisting a few arms and issuing some idle threats our colleagues at CNET Asia have scored a some sexy hands-on pics with Sony Ericsson's Xperia X1.
In response to an online greener gadgets competition, Dutch designer Gert-Jan van Breugel has conceived a fantastic looking phone with components made from completely recyclable bio-plastic and bamboo.
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While Research in Motion shows off the latest Curve and Pearl at CTIA 2008, it's leaked pictures of the upcoming BlackBerry 9000 which are causing the biggest stir amongst BlackBerry fans.
It's not the Android phone we'd been hoping for, but HTC's Diamond looks like a real gem. The team from CNET.co.uk were on hand at the launch, armed with a camera, to bring us this exciting first look.
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Widespread iPhone shortages, combined with an explosion in carrier deals, point to the launch of the next-generation iPhone as right around the corner, according to US technology investment firm, Piper Jaffray.
With two batteries and a separate charger, the SGH-i780 could be a wise choice for the mobile professional, although it's a bit bulky and the screen is a touch small for some applications
With HSDPA, GPS and Wi-Fi packed into a very sexy-looking handset, it's difficult to find flaws or omissions in what we know of the BlackBerry Bold 9000 so far.
Maybe it's because we've never actually sat in a Porsche, but we're struggling to find the similarities between the P'9521 and Porsches of the past; except perhaps the exorbitant price tag. With no 3G or Wi-Fi there's very little to justify the expense.
A swanky new 3D interface is just the tip of the iceberg for HTC's latest mobile. Add HSDPA, Wi-Fi, GPS, 4GB of storage and you have a handset worthy of challenging this year's strongest smartphones.
A swanky new 3D interface is just the tip of the iceberg for HTC's latest mobile. Add HSDPA, Wi-Fi, GPS, 4GB of storage and you have a handset worthy of challenging this year's strongest smartphones.
With high-speed data, a three-inch touchscreen and A-GPS, Sony Ericsson's Xperia X1 looks to be the Windows Mobile equivalent of a hamburger with the lot.
Spb Mobile Shell 2.0 gives Windows Mobile an extreme makeover, giving the drab WM interface some flare and making the operating platform easier to use.
dogarms
20/03/2008 02:08 PM
You lost me in this article straight up when you marked Windows 6.1 as an advantage. Hahahahaha! That. Is. Funny.
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adslnerd@bigpond.net.au
20/03/2008 03:46 PM
The Sony Xperia is actually manufactured by HTC not SonyEricsson, hence why a MicroSD slot instead of a MemoryStick slot. I note there has been no comparison of the LCD as to how many colours. The Xperia only has a 65,000 colour screen.
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theman
21/03/2008 12:08 AM
I dont see how iphone gets a plus for maps. You can download google maps or windows live search free. Live search will probably be included since it is by MS. Besides that you can purchase a wealth of gps/mapping software. Also, windows mobile 6.1 does included threaded sms. And windows mobile should get a plus for third party apps. Sure apple will release an sdk but the platform is still closed. jobs will control what software gets published. I can compile a WM program right now and distribute it however i want.
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russo
21/03/2008 09:18 AM
Read the Full Whitepaper on the Xperia X1 for it full list of features. http://developer.sonyericsson.com/getDocument.do?docId=100340
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Rooster
21/03/2008 11:57 PM
An important point has been missed: iPhone is reality whereas X1 is virtual. iPhone is a real past product whereas X1 is a future speculation. The comparison illustrated that a future product by SE might be comparable to a past product by Apple. I would not buy an Apple purely due to their business model. Technically, Apple is far superior.
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bulldogss
22/03/2008 09:20 AM
I dunno... maybe it's just the preview pics but the Sony looks extremely ugly... i'd go for iPhone not just for features but also for looks
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illumini
24/03/2008 01:42 PM
This is a great review, par for par. I'm an SE lover and can't wait to rip apart the X1 with third-party mods and hacks. The P1i is my current tech love child. Suppport for A2DP is now as standard for SE allowing operators to pair up their Bluetooth stereo headsets to their phone for in-call conversations as well as music, this is a huge bonus if deployed in a business VoIP-enabled environment using Fring to integrate with existing infrastructure. The X1 will support Maps through third-party suppliers, expect Tom Tom and other major players to jump in especially with internal A-GPS and cell-tower location-tracking (not yet in Australia). My only sigh with SE on the X1 is their choice of Windows Mobile over Symbian and the UIQ 3 platform, maybe they're waiting for Motorola to push some new innovation into the product before releasing an X1-S (Symbian)! :) Reading the comment given here and elsewhere this article needs to be amended.
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Fridl0r
24/03/2008 04:26 PM
one word. HSDPA. Hello Steve? What were you THINKING?! At the moment, I have faster downloads onto my HSDPA enabled phone than I do for my home PC network. Douchebag.
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anney
25/03/2008 07:56 PM
i need the price 4 the sony its awesome
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samjackson
25/03/2008 10:16 PM
as long as the sony isnt slow it will be better than the iphone i my view. . . but im a sony lover :)
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philip
28/03/2008 11:29 PM
just wait for the iphone 2.0...
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ivan
05/05/2008 04:31 PM
id go for the sony, i have and iphone right, jailbroken running lots of 3rd party apps, its pretty glitchy sometimes, but its good overall im just annoyed by edge. The xperia looks kool and in europe it costs about the same as the iphone 400 to 500 dollars
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ivan
05/05/2008 04:34 PM
id go for the sony, i have and iphone right, jailbroken running lots of 3rd party apps, its pretty glitchy sometimes, but its good overall im just annoyed by edge. The xperia looks kool and in europe it costs about the same as the iphone 400 to 500 dollars
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andre.lovett@hotmail.com
15/05/2008 01:52 PM
Hey CNET!!! Can you please point me to the glossary on your site?!!? Really like these new smartphones but researching is pretty hard when i dont know what POP3/SMTP/IMAP/HSPA etc means. Cheers!
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