Device Arena

Connectivity, superb picture and sound quality, and a unique mix of electronics, content and network services are just some of the features that distinguish Sony’s dazzling array of technology at CES 2012.
Sony is introducing consumers to a new world of connected products, from TVs, Blu-ray players, and home A/V receivers to tablets, smartphones, and PCs to camcorders, mobile audio devices and more. Combined with a broad range of online services for movies, TV shows, and games, as well as a cloud-based music service, Sony is giving consumers more access to more content whenever and however they want it. Through this convergence of hardware, content and network services, Sony is offering a new user experience.
“Sony is committed to designing technologies for every aspect of consumer entertainment – in or out of the home, on the go, in the air, at work, at play, or wherever life takes you,” said Kazuo Hirai, Executive Deputy President, Sony Corporation. “When these products are combined with Sony Entertainment Network (SEN) which offers innovative services like Music Unlimited and Video Unlimited, as well as PlayStation Network, the user experience is truly unmatched and only made possible by a company like Sony.”
Bringing this experience directly to consumers are Sony’s TVs, personal computers, smartphones and tablets — the primary four devices people use to play, watch, listen and share. Combined, they let consumers enjoy immersive content and unique applications across various screen sizes and devices.
“Our newest products continue Sony’s track record of ground-breaking innovation,” said Phil Molyneux, President and COO of Sony Electronics. “Sony’s goal is delivering the highest level of consumer entertainment, and we’re not satisfied with just making the best electronics. Our movies, music and games, combined with our development of emerging technologies like glass-less 3D and 4K technology, further demonstrate our commitment to consumers.”
At CES, Sony is also demonstrating a revolutionary new display technology called “Crystal LED Display.” This unique device is the industry’s first 55-inch Full HD self-emitting display using LEDs as the light source, and will be capable of much higher contrast, wider color range and superb video image response times. Sony is featuring a 55-inch prototype at CES.

Television/Home A/V
Sony’s expanded BRAVIA® television lineup focuses on three series – the entry-level BX, the step-up EX, and the flagship HX. The new models each deliver the best picture quality available and give consumers flexibility in choosing the right entertainment solution.
Select models incorporate and deliver a brilliant Full HD (1080p) picture with increased brightness and outstanding contrast. Sony’s OptiContrast panel elevates the picture to the front surface of the TV and creates a dark background for rich, vibrant, high contrast pictures even in well-lit rooms. Picture quality is further enhanced with Sony’s X-Reality PRO and X-Reality digital video processors, and Sony’s newest version of Motionflow XR technology helps to reduce blur caused by quick camera movements.
Sony is expanding its line of products using the Google TV platform, with a new network media player and a new Blu-ray Disc™ player. In addition, select 2012 BRAVIA models will link seamlessly for easier use of Google TV features.

Sony Tablet
One of Sony’s newest product categories, tablets elevate the user experience to entirely new levels. The first out of the gate, Sony Tablet S, is optimized for dynamic media entertainment on a large 9.4-inch display. Now, Sony Tablet P pushes the design of a tablet even further. Its unprecedented dual-screen layout allows its two 5.5-inch displays to be used for different functions such as playing video on one screen while using the other as a controller, or checking email on one screen while using the other as a keyboard. Users can also combine the displays into a single large screen and its unique folding design means it can fit easily into a jacket pocket or purse.

VAIO
Sony’s VAIO line of PCs continues to evolve to include more entertainment options and new designs to complement consumers’ productivity and mobility. At CES 2012, Sony is highlighting several new technologies as well as prototypes ranging from slate design PC and Ultrabook to all-in-one computers with BRAVIA technology and glass-less 3D capability.

Smartphones
One of Sony’s highest priorities is increasing its smartphone presence in North America. Sony Ericsson will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony under the new company name of “Sony Mobile Communications,” and new smartphones will be delivered under the “Sony” brand*.

Sony’s newest models combine sleek, slim designs and features to deliver a full HD experience. Users can enjoy movies, TV or Web content, capture HD memories and share them on any screen, and play HD gaming on any screen they choose.
The new Xperia™ ion is Sony’s first LTE smartphone with a stunning HD 720p Reality Display powered by Sony’s Mobile BRAVIA technology. Its thin, lightweight and durable aluminum body houses a 12 MP camera with blazing fast response times. The new Xperia S also provides a full HD experience plus 3D image capture, and more.

Digital Imaging
Sony is unveiling 13 new Handycam camcorder models. The newest Handycam enhancement is the world’s first stabilization system called “Balanced Optical Steady Shot.” By controlling the entire optical path, including the lens and the image sensor, as one floating unit, this technology cancels hand shake blur by up to 13 times more effectively than previous models.
Sony is also evolving its line of camcorders with built-in projectors by introducing a new, higher brightness model and accessories with enhanced audio capabilities, as well as a the world’s smallest and lightest camcorder 3D camcorder (HDR-TD20V). And “Bloggie Live” is the world’s first MP4 full HD pocket camera capable of live video streaming with built-in Wi-Fi. Sony is also introducing new Cyber-shot digital still cameras featuring high performance and compact, stylish designs, as well as a new after-shooting digital imaging solution named “Play Memories.”

Audio
Sony’s Walkman line of MP3 audio players is adding the Z Series. This flagship product adds a multi-application interface and new connectivity options to Sony’s Music Unlimited service and the Android market. Content from Z Series players can be sent wirelessly to certain DLNA enabled devices, or via HDMI to BRAVIA TVs.
Sony is offering up to 11 of its new Balanced Armature line of headphones, which deliver a wide variety of listening experiences. These micro-sized earbud style products are specially designed for style, comfort, sound insulation, sound leakage prevention and noise canceling.
Additionally, a focus on environmental sustainability will continue to result in new products that consume less power and energy and require fewer natural resources both in their design and packaging.
Sony has it all: products, content, services and connectivity to technologies for 2D, HD, 3D, and 4K, plus games and Grammy- and Academy Award-winning music and movies, as well as new releases and upcoming blockbusters like “Men in Black 3.”
“Sony creates and delivers more entertainment experiences to more people than anyone, anywhere,” said Sir Howard Stringer, chairman, CEO and president of Sony Corporation. “We will continue to create the best products in the world, the kind of things that make people say, ‘I have seen the future…and it’s a Sony.’”

sony.com

At the 2012 International CES, HTC Corp. today introduced the HTC TITAN II as the company’s first Windows Phone to run on a 4G LTE network. Available in the coming months to AT&T customers, the smartphone includes the largest display among Windows Phones, an advanced 16-megapixel digital camera and access to 4G LTE* speeds.

“HTC’s history of innovation in 4G technology includes delivering the first 4G-powered devices to each major carrier in the U.S., so it is exciting today to continue that leadership with our first 4G LTE Windows Phone, the HTC TITAN II,” said Peter Chou, CEO of HTC Corp. “This full-featured smartphone combines HTC’s design with AT&T’s high-speed 4G LTE network and Microsoft’s powerful Windows Phone software, giving people more of what they crave.”

The HTC TITAN II comes equipped with a brilliant 4.7-inch super LCD capacitive touchscreen display for an optimized viewing experience when watching movies, playing games or enjoying photos and videos. The HTC TITAN II offers quick and easy access to the latest movies and TV shows via HTC Watch and on-the-go gaming with Xbox LIVE.

Packed with advanced imaging technology, the HTC TITAN II features a 16-megapixel camera with a wide-angle lens, autofocus, dual LED flash, red eye reduction, image stabilization, a backside-illuminated sensor and a physical camera button, offering a viable replacement for digital point-and-shoot cameras. The HTC TITAN II delivers a number of features that HTC has developed to help consumers capture photos in a variety of conditions; for instance, panoramic shot for sweeping landscapes and burst shot for action photography. The smartphone also enables 720p HD video recording with the rear-facing camera, as well as on-the-go video chat over Wi-Fi with its 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera.

Access to AT&T’s speedy 4G LTE network paired with Qualcomm’s 1.5 GHz Snapdragon™ S2 processor, enables the HTC TITAN II to deliver fast Web surfing, streaming and downloading. This new powerful smartphone will also feature a 1,730mAh lithium ion battery to support the robust mobile experience on one of the fastest 4G LTE networks.

Featuring the latest version of Windows Phone, the HTC TITAN II enhances connectivity, efficiency and productivity for busy consumers with its large on-screen keyboard and instant access to Windows Phone Office Hub, Microsoft Exchange 2010 and Outlook Mobile. The Live Tile display brings friend and family groups to life and delivers the latest updates and news from popular social networks directly to the home screen. HTC TITAN II customers will also be able to download a number of exclusive HTC applications for free within Windows Marketplace through HTC Hub.

The HTC TITAN II is expected to become available exclusively from AT&T in the U.S. in the coming months.

htc.com

Sony Corporation (“Sony”) and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (“Samsung”) today announced that the two companies have signed agreements to transition the current business relationship with respect to LCD panels.

Under the agreement, Samsung will acquire all of Sony’s shares of S-LCD Corporation (“S-LCD”), the two companies’ LCD panel manufacturing joint venture, making S-LCD a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung. In consideration for the share transfer, cash consideration of approximately KRW 1.08 trillion* will be paid to Sony by Samsung. Concurrently, the two companies have entered into a new strategic agreement for the supply and purchase of LCD panels with a goal of enhancing the competitiveness of both companies. The agreement also allows Sony and Samsung to continue cooperative engineering efforts focused on LCD panel technology.

For Sony, this transaction will enable it to monetize its shares in S-LCD and aims to secure a flexible and steady supply of LCD panels from Samsung, based on market prices and without the responsibility and costs of operating a manufacturing facility. With whole ownership of S-LCD, Samsung anticipates heightened flexibility, speed and efficiency in both panel production and business operations.

Established in April 2004, S-LCD has continued to deliver advanced and cost-competitive LCD panels to both of its parent companies, contributing to the expansion of the respective parties’ TV businesses, and the large-sized LCD TV market overall. However, LCD panel and TV market conditions have now changed. In order to respond to such challenging conditions and to strengthen their respective market competitiveness, the two companies have agreed to shift to a new LCD panel business alliance.

The share transfer and payment are targeted to close by the end of January 2012, subject to necessary approvals from regulatory authorities.

As a result of this transaction, a non-cash impairment loss of approximately JPY 66 billion is expected to be incurred by Sony in the third quarter of the fiscal year ending March 31, 2012, due to the reevaluation of its S-LCD shares. This loss includes an impact from the fluctuation of exchange rate. Despite this one-time loss, Sony estimates that the transaction will result in substantial savings on and after January 1, 2012 in respect of costs associated with its procurement of LCD panels. The current estimate of the yearly savings in respect of such costs is approximately JPY 50 billion, compared to LCD panel procurement costs estimated for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2012. Neither the one-time loss nor the estimated cost savings were included in Sony’s forecast of consolidated financial results for the current fiscal year ending March 31, 2012, announced on November 2, 2011. Sony is currently reevaluating this forecast, taking into account this transaction and other factors that might affect its full year FY2011 consolidated financial results forecast.

Facts about S-LCD
Established
:April 26, 2004
Capital
:KRW 3.3 Trillion
(Samsung Electronics: 50% plus 1 share, Sony: 50% minus 1 share)

Representative
:Donggun Park, CEO
Location
:Tangjeong, Chung Cheong Nam-Do, South Korea
Production Items
:7th and 8th generation Amorphous TFT LCD
*Note: The final amount of such payment will be determined based on S-LCD’s financial statements as of the end of December 2011.

sony.net

HP Enterprise Services and Microsoft Corp. today announced a global, four-year initiative to deliver Microsoft’s leading communications and collaboration applications via global private and public cloud services.

Under the agreement, HP and Microsoft will offer private and public cloud solutions designed to help organizations rapidly scale new users, shift IT resources from maintenance to innovation and change IT from a capital to operating expense. The solutions include the following:

•
Private cloud: HP Enterprise Cloud Services – Messaging, HP Enterprise Cloud Services – Collaboration and HP Enterprise Cloud Services – Real-Time Collaboration deliver Microsoft Exchange Server 2010, Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 and Microsoft Lync Server 2010 productivity applications as a service from HP datacenters around the world.
•
Public cloud: Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft’s Office collaboration and productivity tools, will be delivered by Microsoft through the cloud.
•
Hybrid solution: HP will resell Microsoft Office 365 with HP Enterprise Cloud Services – Messaging, HP Enterprise Cloud Services – Collaboration and HP Enterprise Cloud Services – Real-Time Collaboration.1
HP and Microsoft engineering resources will collaborate to deploy, support and enhance the new solutions. The solutions will launch globally, with initial availability this month in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States.

“Large organizations, particularly those in regulated industries like financial services and public sector, have demanding functionality and service level requirements,” said Brandt Faatz, vice president, Workplace Services, HP Enterprise Services. “HP and Microsoft help meet these needs with a flexible range of global, cost-efficient, cloud-based productivity solutions running on the latest technology.”

“Microsoft is committed to putting the unique and ever-evolving needs of customers at the core of cloud innovation,” said Mark Hill, vice president, Enterprise Partner Group, Microsoft. “This alliance with HP not only broadens Microsoft’s geographic reach, it gives customers maximum flexibility to choose a cloud computing solution that meets their organization’s specialized messaging and collaboration needs.”

HP and Microsoft have delivered technical innovation together for more than 25 years. They offer joint solutions that help organizations around the world improve services through the use of innovative technologies.

www.microsoft.com

First Smartphone to Combine Android™ 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and the Power of America’s Fastest, Most Reliable 4G Network

BASKING RIDGE, N.J. – Verizon Wireless, Samsung Telecommunications America (Samsung Mobile) and Google™ announced the Galaxy™ Nexus™ is available starting today in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores and online at www.verizonwireless.com for $299.99 with a new two-year customer agreement.

Customers can browse the Web, stream music and more at blazing speeds using the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE network. Galaxy Nexus customers can enjoy access to the 4G LTE network in 190 markets covering over 200 million people across the United States, and fly through the Web with fast download speeds of 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps within the 4G LTE Mobile Broadband coverage area.

Galaxy Nexus runs Android™ 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, which brings an entirely new look and feel to Android. Galaxy Nexus offers customers a redesigned user experience with improved multi-tasking, notifications, Near Field Communications (NFC) sharing with Android Beam™ and a full Web browsing experience. The lock screen, home screen, phone app and everything in between has been rethought and redesigned to make Android simple, beautiful and useful. Galaxy Nexus also features an ultra-thin 9.47mm design with a 4.65-inch HD Super AMOLED™ Contour Display to watch movies, view pictures and play games that come to life in 720p (1280×720) resolution.

Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) features:
• Redesigned user interface with software navigation buttons—a first for Android smartphones—and a dedicated recent apps button to make multitasking easy.

• Face Unlock – use state-of-the-art facial recognition to unlock Galaxy Nexus

• Android Beam™ – quickly share Web pages, apps, contacts and YouTube™ videos with friends by simply tapping two compatible phones together

• Redesigned Camera – introduces panorama mode, 1080p video capture, zero-shutter lag for instant photo capturing, and effects like silly faces and background replacement

• People Application – browse friends, family and coworkers, see their photos in high-resolution and check their latest status updates from Google+ and other social networks

• Cloud Services – keep email, contacts, photos, music, browser bookmarks and other data synced to the cloud and across multiple devices so customers never lose important data

• Google Music – upload up to 20,000 songs to the cloud, discover and buy new music from Android Market™, and stream it instantly on Galaxy Nexus and from the Web, free

• Google+ – Create a Google+ account right from the phone and check status updates, manage circles, quickly share updates and photos, video chat with up to ten friends with mobile hangouts, and chat with groups of friends with Google+ Messenger

• Support for Google Mobile™ Services – Gmail™, Google Maps™ with 3D maps and free turn-by-turn navigation, Google Earth™, Movie Studio, YouTube, syncing with Google Calendar™, a redesigned Google+ app and access to more than 300,000 apps, millions of eBooks, thousands of movies to rent, and millions of songs available to download from Android Market

Additional features:
• Dual-core 1.2 GHz application processor and HTML5 Web browser – optimized dual-core processing with Android 4.0 combined with lightning fast 4G LTE connectivity for fast downloading of graphics, applications processing and Web browsing

• Mobile Hotspot capability – share 4G LTE or 3G connection with up to 10 Wi-Fi-enabled devices

• 5-megapixel rear-facing camera with zero-shutter lag for instant photo capturing, autofocus and LED flash with full 1080p recording

• Front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera for video chat

• Textured soft-touch back cover enhances the ergonomic feel and makes the phone slip-resistant

• Bluetooth® 3.0 technology – support for headset, hands-free, stereo, phonebook access, human interface device (HID) and object push for vCard and vCalendar

• 1 GB RAM and 32 GB on-board memory (actual formatted capacity will be less)

Pricing and data packages:
• Galaxy Nexus is available now in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores and online at www.verizonwireless.com for $299.99 with a new two-year customer agreement.

• Customers that purchase a Galaxy Nexus by Samsung will need to subscribe to a Verizon Wireless Nationwide Talk plan beginning at $39.99 monthly access and a smartphone data package starting at $30 monthly access for 2 GB of data.

samsung.com