Sony SmartWatch 2 apparently shipping starting with the week of July 15 in the UK

Sony’s recently announced SmartWatch 2 is apparently going to arrive in stock with Clove starting with July 15, according to the UK retailer.

The device is already available for pre-order with Clove, which basically said in a blog post that it will ship the first units as soon as they arrive.

Furthermore, Clove’s pre-order page now lists the new smartwatch for £120 (VAT included) or around $181, and has shipping pegged down to the “week commencing 15th July.”

That’s certainly surprising considering that Sony said in the official SmartWatch 2 press release that the device will ship at some point in September.

Not long after it was made official, the device was confirmed to arrive in France also in September, where it would cost €199, or around $258. From the looks of it, UK buyers interested in smartwatches are definitely getting a better deal, and an earlier ship date.

The Sony SmartWatch 2 sold by Clove will come with a black leather wristband in the box. As for the other features of the device, here’s what you can expect:

  • Splash proof (Not suitable for showering, bathing, swimming, diving, snorkeling, water related work or fishing)
  • Easy calling
  • NFC capabilities
  • Versatile accessory ideal for the active person
  • Connects via Bluetooth to your compatible device
  • Transmits key information from the mobile device to the SmartWatch without the need to touch the phone itself
  • Can be clipped to clothing, bags or worn on the wrist
  • More applications being developed at all times to give greater personalization and functionality

Source: Android Authority

Introducing Sony SmartWatch 2 - the world’s first water-resistant smartwatch with NFC connectivity

  • A multi-functional message notification device, Android app interface and music remote, all in a sleek and water-resistant design
  • Combines Sony’s technology and design expertise with one-touch connectivity and premium build quality
  • Next-generation Sony SmartWatch offers improved performance, intuitive interface and standalone capability
  • Reaffirms Sony’s leadership in smartwatch and wearable technology segment** 

25th June 2013, London – Sony Mobile Communications (“Sony Mobile”) today introduces Sony SmartWatch 2 SW2, the most advanced smartwatch available*.

Sony SmartWatch 2 is a second screen for your Android smartphone that, as well as enhancing existing phone functionality, offers unique new benefits. Combining form and function in a sleek design, it serves as a multi-functional watch, notifier, Android app interface and phone remote control, all-in-one.

 

Openness with Android

App expandability is key to Sony SmartWatch 2. It can be personalised with more dedicated apps than any other smartwatch* to seamlessly suit your needs, whether you are on the go, keeping active, in business meetings or simply at home.

Download a host of SmartWatch apps and experience a range of unique functions - many of which can even be enjoyed without ever needing to reach for your phone: 

  • Handle your calls by a simple touch of your wrist
  • Take a photo remotely from your SmartWatch, using a smart camera app
  • Control your presentations remotely using Presentation Pal
  • Taking a run or on the bike? Select a mapping app on SmartWatch to check your route with a quick glance at your wrist
  • Read previously downloaded e-mails when not connected to your phone
  • Use lifestyle apps like Runtastic to map and instantly track your fitness activities on the go
  • Quickly and easily adjust the tracks and volume on your music player, without ever taking your phone from your pocket

SmartWatch 2 is also both sleek and reassuringly robust thanks to its water and dust resistant design, giving you the freedom to enjoy it on the beach or simply on the go – come rain or shine.

 

An increasing market in wearable tech

A typical smartphone user reaches for their phone many times a day to read messages, check the time, view and make social media updates, use their favourite apps, take photos, listen to music and play mobile games. SmartWatch 2 addresses this need by offering you a convenient touch screen device so you no longer need to remove your phone from your pocket or bag 

“Sony is the proud leader in the smartwatch market** since introducing our first Bluetooth watch in 2007,” says Stefan K Persson, Head of Companion Products at Sony Mobile Communications.

“Competitors are only now launching first generation devices, while we are already launching a 3rd generation device with all the insight gained from over half a million customers combined with Sony’s wealth of technology expertise to create the best ever smartwatch experience.

“The future of wearable devices is incredibly bright with analyst research predicting 41 million ‘smart’ watches will be sold by 2016,” continues Persson. “We have over 200 unique apps dedicated for Sony SmartWatch with over one million downloads to date and we are continuing to work with our strong developer network to deliver ever more compelling smartwatch experiences.”

 

The best of Sony in a SmartWatch

If you use Android, on either smartphone or tablet, Sony SmartWatch 2 is your ideal smartwatch partner.

It’s easy and convenient to access notifications from your wrist such as messages, calls, email, Facebook™/Twitter™, Calendar, or use it as a remote for your Walkman™ or other digital media player. This wireless accessory is ideal for pairing with large-screen devices, such as the newly announced Xperia™ Z Ultra, in situations which call for discrete usage.

SmartWatch 2 introduces new features as a natural successor to the current Sony SmartWatch such as NFC connectivity for one-touch pairing, stunning premium design and a range of technologies including higher resolution for sharper viewing, better visibility even in sunlight, longer battery stamina, more intuitive interface, standalone watch functionality and a wide range of pre-installed and recommended apps.

When not connected to your phone, SmartWatch 2 works as a standalone digital watch. Read previously received notifications, access the time, set your alarm or even use as a light when searching for your keys.

SmartWatch 2 can also be personalised with any standard 24mm wristband and new Sony watchstraps will soon be available for further expression of your personal style. 

Using groundbreaking design, Sony continues to introduce new technologies and has the largest range of NFC accessories available from wireless headsets to portable speakers, TVs, SmartTags and SmartWatch.

 

Key features for Sony SmartWatch 2

  • Screen brightness (sunlight readable)
  • Longest battery life for a smartwatch* (battery level indicator shows low battery warning)
  • Water-resistant (IP57)
  • Easy setup (NFC pairing and connecting)
  • Standalone watch functionality
  • Standard micro USB cable for charging
  • User interface similar to Android UI so it is more intuitive  
  • High quality materials (aluminium body and stainless steel wristband)
  • Extended compatibility (works with most Android phones)
  • Swappable wristbands – personalise with any standard 24mm strap

 

Sony SmartWatch 2 SW2 will be available worldwide from September 2013.

For all the latest news, views and info on Sony Xperia products, follow @SonyMobileNews on Twitter.

Sony unveils 30-and 56-inch professional 4K OLED monitor prototypes

The 56-inch OLED TV Sony trotted out at CES may not be headed to the consumer market, but it is becoming a reality, at least in the professional sector. The company showcased a pair of 4K OLED prototypes at NAB 2013, outing a 4,096 x 2,160 30-inch model as well as a 3,840 x 2160 56-inch display. Both panels boast of wide viewing angles and low color shift, promising accurate signal reproduction for industry professionals working with 4K content. No word yet on pricing, but professionals can look forward to upgrading sometime in next year. Sony also announced a refresh for its existing line of professional OLED displays. The A series will replace seven older skus, again promising better viewing angles and color shift than the previous generation. Hit the break for the official press release, item skus, and a quick break down of what products the A series will be replacing.

Update: The 30-inch 4K OLED prototype is looking at a 2014 release date, while the A series monitors will be available in May.

[Source: Engadget]

Sony Computer Entertainment to fuse Asian and Japanese units into one

As part of recent restructuring and cost-cutting efforts, Sony's Computer Entertainment (SCE) division will merge its Asian and Japanese operations into a single entity. The company said that it would result in a new management unit, with SCE Japan president Hiroshi Kawano taking the helm and the Asian unit's ex-chief, Hiroyuki Oda becoming his deputy. Departments like marketing and finance will also merge in an effort to save cash, as the company hopes to stanch all the recent bleeding and try to make its fiscal 2012 a throwback to the glory days.

[Source: Engadget]

The Walking Dead Coming to the PS Vita Sometime This Year

TellTale’s award winning spin on The Walking Dead will arrive on the PlayStation Vita sometime this year. According to PlayStation’s Director of Product and Platform Software Innovation, Don Mesa, the game will definitely make the jump over to Sony’s strugglinghandheld, though no release date has been determined.

Mesa mused on the thrills of Telltale’s successful adventure game, and admitted getting a series like The Walking Dead is a huge boon for the platform. Mesa believes the Vita in particular will provide a special experience, calling Vita’s portability important.

Sony’s Vita has seen a slight resurgence in Japan over the past month thanks to a price dropbut, overall, it hasn’t quite been the runaway success Sony would have liked—so far. The Walking Dead will surely be a big incentive to dust the old Vita off, even if you’ve already taken Lee and Clementine for a spin.

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]

Sony's 2013 HDTVs start shipping, quantum dots are on the way

We got a peek at Sony's 2013 HDTV lineup during CES in January, and now the company has announced they're starting to roll out and confirmed official pricing. The new sets add features like NFC, MHL and Miracast support to certain models, while the top of the line W900A is its first to use Quantum Dot technology in combination with edge LED lighting. Sony's brought back its old Triluminos brand name for the technology, which it claims provides a wider color gamut while keeping prices quite a bit lower than its last TVs to rock the tag, the now-retiredXBR8 series.

There's no word on the XBR series, but in the lower W- and R- lines the KDL-W900A is the only one with Triluminos. It also brings an extra long internal speaker duct for improved sound and standard NFC remote, and the 55-inch model will carry an MSRP of $3,299. The step down W802A version keeps MHL standard, has the NFC remote as an option and comes in 55- and 47-inch versions that start at $1,799. The 32-inch W650A will ship for $799. The R-Series dodges some of the higher end features, but some still include 3D, WiFi, RVU and the Sony Entertainment Network suite of apps including Netflix, Hulu Plus and more. The R550A has all that and is available in 70-, 60- and 50-inch versions that start at $1,399. Hit the source link for info on more models, or just keep an eye out on (digital) store shelves as these leak into retail.

[Source: Engadget]

All PlayStation 4 Games to be Available Digitally

Gaming on the PlayStation 4 will not necessarily require going out to a brick and mortar shop to grab a copy of a new game. In fact, unless you live in a part of the world with less than stellar internet, news has come that suggests Sony will make it possible for you to buy each and every one of your PlayStation 4 games without any physical transaction at all.

The word comes from Sony Worldwide Studios President Shuhei Yoshida in an interview with The Guardian. Here’s the bit about game releases as digital downloads:

We’re shifting our platform more and more to the digital side – PS4 will be similar to PS Vita in that every game will be available as a digital download, and some will also be available as a disc.

The “some” that Yoshida mentions will, of course, be standard retail titles. Stuff like Uncharted, Killzone and LittleBigPlanet will ship with physical discs. The digital download exclusives will be the titles that you’d expect to see only on the system’s online store. The Witness, for instance, will be a PSN game.

What do you think about this push towards digital? Personally, as long as physical games still exist, I don’t mind it at all.

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]

Sony Says it Will Introduce Phone Running Firefox OS in 2014

In partnership with wireless carrier Telefonica, Sony said it wants to introduce a phone running Firefox OS by next year. The multi-year agreement will see Sony flex its Android muscles, but more interesting is how the partnership wants to explore development of the fledgling Firefox OS—not something in the Windows Phone camp—which has more freely reared its head at Mobile World Congress.

Sony said the decision to explore Firefox OS is so it can “deliver the premium user experience that Sony’s consumers expect.” We won’t know how, exactly, Sony’s Firefox efforts will translate into a premium experience until 2014, but the company’s backing of Mozilla’s OS is certainly a big one, and shows it wants to capture emerging markets.

[Source: TechnoBuffalo]

Sony announces global availability of Xperia™ Tablet Z – the world’s slimmest tablet

At Mobile World Congress, Sony Mobile Communications (“Sony Mobile”) today announced that Xperia Tablet Z – the slimmest* tablet available – will launch globally in Q2 calendar 2013. Additionally, Sony’s flagshipsmartphone, Xperia Z will be available to buy in stores from March 1st.

Since it was announced in January, the Xperia Z has won 13 awards and received the widest ranging of any Sony smartphoneto date with 140 sales channels in 60 markets across the globe.

Both the Xperia Z smartphone and Xperia Tablet Z combine premium specifications with the best of Sony technology, entertainment, design and connectivity.

Premium Tablet Design

Xperia Tablet Z is the most premium, high performance 10.1” LTE Android tablet available. Built from quality materials and featuring the same stunning OmniBalance design as its smartphone sibling, Xperia Tablet Z is also incredibly slim and lightweight at 6.9mm and 495g. Available in black or white and in LTE and WiFi versions, it is the first tablet to run on Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ S4 Pro asynchronous quad core processor and has the highest levels of water resistance (IP55 & IP57) ever delivered in a tablet, making it immune to accidental spills and splashes.**

”Xperia Tablet Z sets new standards in entertainment by matching premium specifications and Sony technology with cross-device connectivity and a consistent user-experience,” said Kaz Tajima, Corporate Vice President, Head of UX Creative Design and Planning, at Sony Mobile Communications. “Xperia Tablet Z reinforces our intention to be a leading player in the premium Android device market, by building on the principles established by Xperia Z and perfectly optimising them for the tablet form factor.”

Integrated Sony Technology

Xperia Tablet Z includes the very best of Sony technology. With a 10.1” HD WUXGA Display, powered by Mobile BRAVIA Engine 2, it delivers enhanced colour reproduction for a brilliant TV-like viewing experience. It also draws upon Sony’s camera expertise with an 8MP rear camera featuring “Exmor R for mobile” as well as a 2MP HD front-facing camera for capturing the best images in any condition. Sony’s S-Force Front Surround 3D, guarantees soul-shaking audio performance alongside Sony’s Clear Audio+ mode and the innovative use of two in-built speakers with four ‘speaker halls’ on the left and right corners delivers amazing sound no matter how it is held. Xperia Tablet Z also includes Battery STAMINA mode, Sony’s unique battery management technology that can significantly improve standby time. The WiFi variant also offers up to 64GB of storage with an optional mircoSD card.

Seamless One-touch Connectivity

Xperia Tablet Z includes more connectivity options than any other tablet. It also includes Sony’s One-Touch functions that let users transfer content seamlessly from HD tablet to TV, tablet to speaker or phone to tablet just by touching them together. One-touch functions are a key component of Sony’s device range this year and no other consumer electronics company is bringing as many NFC-enabled products to market. The tablet’s Universal IR Remote allows users to control the TV and other Sony devices - as well as products from other manufacturers - directly from the tablet placing the device at the heart of the home. TV SideView is a new application that gives users an entirely new way to interact with the TV.

Sony’s media applications

Sony’s signature media applications - “WALKMAN”, Movies and Album - allow users to enjoy, control and view content regardless of their device. The Sony Entertainment Network can also be accessed from these applications and includes Music Unlimited with more than 18 million songs and Facebook social integration as well as Video Unlimited with access to over 100,000 movies and TV series.

Xperia Tablet Z Accessories

Xperia Tablet Z will launch with a number of accessories including a charging cradle, an LCD Screen Protector and Leather Carrying Cover that comes in Black, White or Red. These will be available from Sony stores or registered retailers.

PlayStation 4's UI and inner workings detailed: No more booting, games download as you play them

We've heard some hardware numbers, but now we're hearing more how thePlayStation 4 will actually work in practice. Alongside connections to other Sony hardware, the highlight that caught our attention was that you'll be able to leap back into your game by pressing the power button. From off. Better still, there's also a secondary custom chip for uploads and download and with that, the PS4 will let you play your new titles as you download them. The rest of the game will continue to be piped into that ample hard drive. You can also share (with that new button) 10 seconds of video, trimming and uploading your own gaming highlights to your buddies -- heck, you can even stream it, with allies 'tagging' in and taking over the controller.

In fact Sony will make social networks far more integrated, with "real people", photos and companion mobile apps to augment this. In fact you'll be able to browse video remotely from the likes of your smartphone, tablet or Vita. The system itself will also learn your preferences and download content it reckons you'll like. Personalization is shaping up to be a big focus for Sony.

[Source: Engadget]

Sony's new DualShock 4 controller official: all-new design, touchpad, share button and more

We had a hint or two about its imminent arrival, but Sony's now made its next-generation DualShock 4 controller official at tonight's PlayStation 4 event in NYC. The company's Lead System Architect Mark Cerny took to the stage to reveal the all-new companion, which has been redesigned and now features a more rounded form factor as well as what appears to be a slightly rubberized grip with "enhanced rumble capabilities." There's also a touchpad now (clearly taking a cue from the Vita), a headphone jack, the long-rumored share button, a light bar that, according to Cerny, will be utilized as a "more friendly way to identify players" and a stereo camera which is used to track the 3D position of the Move-compatible controller.

Not surprisingly, Sony's touting the addition of the "Share" button as one of the biggest features of the DualShock 4, allowing players to easily send tidbits like video clips and screenshots to places such as Ustream, Facebook and, naturally, the firm's own PlayStation Network. That's all we know thus far, but we''re sure to hear more about the DualShock 4 in the coming future -- for now, head on past the break and enjoy the gallery from Sony's presentation.

[Source: Engadget]

PlayStation 4 will not have native PS3 backwards compatibility

During today's PlayStation event Gaikai's Dave Perry revealed that the PS4 will not natively support PS3 games and that Sony's next-gen console will instead stream PS1, PS2 and PS3 games from the cloud -- something that the company has already confirmed on Twitter.

[Source: Engadget]