Sony Ericsson Create Now Tour
Yesterday, I was invited to the Sony Ericsson Create Now Tour in London.
Unfortunately, I can’t say much because it was all under NDA. While it was a great event and Sony Ericsson were open about their plans, I do wonder how much of it they could have revealed without an NDA. Talking to other developers during and after the event, I know some things that were said really catalysed people to start thinking about developing for Sony Ericsson phones and more specifically for their PlayNow store. Unfortunately, it was a very small group and I think Sony Ericsson need to extend to greater audiences in order to get their message across. In contrast, Motorola’s App Accelerator Program gives similar early-access information to a much greater number of people.
Developers left with Sony Ericsson’s new Symbian (essentially S60 5th) based Satio due out next month. For someone familiar with phone models, the Satio feels strange because it’s essentially Nokia software within what seems like a OSE (Sony proprietary OS phone) case. Nevertheless, it feels a quality item and the UI has been tweaked (e.g. icons changed) and added-to (extra home screen tabs and functionality) to make it less obviously a Nokia. While I won’t be using it as my ‘day phone’, it’s arrival is timely because one of my existing customers is already asking about non-Nokia (Samsung and Sony Ericsson) S60 compatibility.
Related Articles: