Xperia E: Sony's First 2013 Budget Phone

The past 24 hours has seen a surge of interest in Sony's Xperia offerings with the announcement of the Xperia Z at CES 2013, quite possibly Sony's most attractive offering since entering the smart phone market and most definitely the most popular Xperia announcement at first glance since Sony's buyout of Sony Ericsson. Indeed, Sony seem to have set the standard early on for what is in store for smart phone enthusiasts across 2013.


As attractive as the Xperia Z is however, it's price tag may appear less attractive especially to those looking to buy their first smart phone, or those who require less horse power for their money spent. Sony, as always, have that covered with a budget handset set to enter the market in the first quarter, the Xperia E.

The Xperia E makes its entrance in two flavours, the standard Xperia E, and the Xperia E dual. The difference between the two devices is minimal. Whilst the Xperia E will be available in black pink or white, the Xperia E Dual will come in black or gold. Asside from the dual sim capabilities and available colours, the two models seem identical so it's interesting to note that whilst the Xperia E will launch on Android 4.1 (Jellybean), the Xperia E Dual will launch on Android 4.0 with an upgrade to 4.1 to follow later on.

It's worth pointing out that whilst these devices are expected to both be running android 4.1 at some point, it is unlikely they will see anything beyond that. Owners of Sony's budget offerings has in the past felt duped by Sony's decisions and most notoriously last year when they took the decision not to provide the next android release to the Xperia J, Miro, Tipo or Sola regardless of those phones only being recent on the market.

To the right audience, this is not a big deal, however if you are looking for a phone which is likely to go far in terms of android version updates, then budget phones should not really be considered as a viable option as they are least likely to be given priority in terms of future development.

In terms of hardware, these models will feature a 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S1 (MSM7227A) 4GB internal storage with the ability to expand this up to 32GB via. microSD, a 3.5" screen with 262,000 colours (320x480), a 3.2MP camera and a 1500mAh removable battery.

The Xperia E looks to be sitting just below the Xperia J in terms of features and specs, pitting the Xperia E's 3.2MP camera against the Xperia J's 5MP, and settling for a 3.5" screen instead of a 4" screen.

As with any budget handset, the Xperia E will not bring a revolutionary experience like no other, but stands out as a viable option in the market place for those that don't need their smart phone to be decorated with bells and whistles. In terms of pricing and availability, the Carphone Warehouse are expecting to ship the device in february and, whilst UK pricing is yet to be announced, the €159 listing in germany means we can expect to see the Xperia E shipping in the UK at aproximately £130.