Sony Ericsson’s upcoming Xperia ray smartphone has been steadily gathering quite a collection of admirers since its announcement last month, which isn’t too surprising as it’s a phone with a good deal to admire. The attractive, super-slim chassis was of course the first thing that caught our eye, but we were pleasantly surprised on further examination to find a solid set of components under the hood. From the nippy 1GHz Snapdragon processor to the 8 megapixel Exmor R camera, the Xperia ray looks set to break the trend of smaller sized Android phones housing disappointing hardware.
So when can you expect to be able to get your hands on this bit of kit, and how much are you likely to pay? We did some digging to find out…
| CONTRACTS: | Availability | Screenshots:
|
|---|---|---|
 |
N/A | |
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September |  |
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N/A | |
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N/A | |
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September |  |
As you can see, so far only O2 and Three are laying claim to the Xperia ray. Both networks are expecting to have the handset available in September, though neither could provide us with any information on pricing just yet. We spoke to representatives from Orange, T-Mobile and Vodafone, but none of them would comment on whether the Xperia ray would be coming to their networks. We’ll just have to wait and see, it seems!
| SIM FREE: | Price | Availability |
|---|---|---|
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£329.95 | “According to our suppliers, we are expecting this handset on 29/08/11. We too are also accepting pre-orders at the price of £329.95.” Pre-Order Now |
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£329.98 | “we have been told to expect the first UK stock in September, and that was direct from Sony Ericsson this week” |
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£329.99 | “Due in soon” |
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£349.99 | “Due for release on 15 August 2011.” |
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£499.99 | “2nd September” |
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£499.49 | “pre-order price will be amended once we have a better idea of what it will cost us and a confirmed release” |
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Price Not Announced | “we will update this information as soon as it is available.” |
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Price Not Announced |
In the SIM free world, there’s a little more information to be found. Quite a number of online retailers are offering the Xperia ray at a range of prices, from £329.95 to nearly £500. Worthy of note are MobileFun.co.uk, who are currently offering the lowest pre-order price available for the Xperia ray – £329.95. They’re expecting to have the handset in stock from the 29th of August. Play.com, on the other hand, are charging £349.99 for the Xperia ray but are expecting to have it available two weeks early – on the 15th of August.
That’s all the information available on the Xperia ray for the moment, but we’ll keep you posted as soon as we hear more.
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