Sony Ericsson is launching its first Windows Mobile phone, a business-oriented, touchscreen “arc slider” device called the Xperia X1.

Dee Dutta, Sony Ericsson head of marketing, said Xperia is “the first grade that is truly borne from within Sony Ericsson,” and it delivers a “seamless blend of mobile Web communication and multimedia entertainment with a distinctive design.”

Big Win for Microsoft

The new device features a wide-pitch QWERTY keyboard and is the first in a new line bearing the Xperia name. It has a 3-inch VGA screen, a 3.2-megapixel camera with video recording, an FM radio and a slight arc when the keyboard slides out. The company said typing is fast and easy considering of the “ample distance” amoung keys. The phone offers quad-band GSM/EDGE and UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA 850/1700/1900/2100MHz, as well as Wi-Fi connectivity.

The phone has four kinds of interactive navigation — touch, the keyboard, a 4-way keypad and an optical joystick — and adjustable interface panels for different

applications. The X1 will be available in the second half of that year.

“This is a big, big win for Microsoft,” said Avi Greengart of Current Analysis. He noted that the software giant now has “four of the top five handset manufacturers” — Motorola, Samsung and LG in addition to Sony Ericsson. “Everybody,” he said, “but Nokia.” Windows Mobile opens up the U.S. smartphone market to them, he added.

IDC’s Chris Hazelton said the new X1 will be particularly appealing to IT departments considering it can immediately support Microsoft Exchange and other common business software such as Office Mobile. It plus has well-tested remote control management.

Consumer and Business Devices

Hazelton noted that Sony Ericsson had a number of “prosumer” devices with the UIQ interface on top of a Symbian operating system. He and Greengart said the U.S. enterprise market was not receptive to UIQ-based devices.

With the release of…

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