Sony Ericsson Xperia mini pro deals & review

After the launch of the Xperia X10 in 2010 Sony Ericsson decided to release two mini versions as well. The Xperia X10 Mini and Xperia X10 Mini Pro, as they were known, provided a smaller alternative to the X10 flagship with the option of having a sliding keyboard. Roll on one year and Sony Ericsson have decided to update these phones with the latest developments in hardware and software although they have dropped the X10 moniker and simply named them the Xperia Mini and Xperia Mini Pro. The two phones are very similar in physical design and software features although the Xperia Mini Pro comes with a sliding keyboard and some additional software to cater to professional phone users.

Screen & Keyboard

The Xperia Mini Pro features the same great screen as the Xperia Mini, with a 3" LED backlit LCD screen providing some fantastic visuals and multitouch support. This is one of the smallest smartphones to come with support for HD video playback as well as HD video recording. The Mini Pro also makes use of Sony´s BRAVIA screen technology that has until recently been reserved for their range of top of the line televisions.

The QWERTY keyboard is the main feature that sets this phone apart from the standard Xperia Mini. The phone is of a miniature nature and as such the keyboard is slightly smaller than one you would expect on a larger touchscreen phone such as the Motorola Milestone 2, but it does provide much more finger freedom than compact QWERTY keyboards that are typical on most BlackBerry-style phones. This keyboard is not just great for professional phone users as it enhances all forms of written communication.

OS and Messaging

The Mini Pro runs on Android Gingerbread and the Sony Ericsson Timescape interface that provide fantastic messaging options such as threaded SMS and support for many email clients including Gmail. The Xperia Mini Pro also comes with Type and Send. This feature allows you to begin typing straight from the phone´s homepage and then decide what you want to do with it. You can post the text as a Facebook status and send as an SMS or email at the same time without the need to open up separate applications one by one.

Like the Xperia Mini the Pro version comes with fantastic integration with Facebook. Photos from your online photo albums can be displayed directly into the phone´s photo gallery with the option of commenting on them from there. Birthdays for your contacts can also be stored in the phone´s calendar so that you never forget to buy a present again. The Mini Pro also allows you to easily ´like´ or ´recommend´ things directly from the phone´s media player or while browsing online with the phone.

Web Browsing & Entertainment

The Xperia Mini Pro comes with an excellent web browser that supports the latest Adobe Flash so that you can have seamless video content online. The phone also supports YouTube and HD video streaming, and you can even upload your own videos that you may have recorded on the phone´s camera.

The 5 megapixel camera with LED flash features excellent features like touch focus, face detection and geo-tagging. It also supports 720p video recording which is in keeping with the HD status of this phone. As well as being able to upload videos to YouTube you can upload photos and videos to other services like Facebook, Flickr and Twitter.

Unlike the Xperia Mini the Pro version also comes with a secondary front facing VGA camera for video calling, and this is no doubt due to the Pro version being aimed more at professionals than the non-pro.

The Mini Pro comes with an excellent media player with great support for music and video, music features like TrackID and even an FM radio to play around with. The phone also comes with access to Android Market where you can get your hands on thousands of apps and games to make the phone more enjoyable. You can also get quick access to the apps of your choice through 4 corner icons placed on the phone´s homescreen.

Along with the additional QWERTY keyboard and front facing camera the Mini Pro comes with some software and apps installed to make it better suited to professional phone users. These include OfficeSuite and Exchange ActiveSync.

Summary

The Xperia Mini Pro is very similar to the standard Xperia Mini, but the QWERTY keyboard and video calling camera will make it sit more easily with professionals. There is still plenty of entertainment on offer here with HD video recording and playback, games and apps from Android Market and some exceptional Facebook and social networking integration. The Xperia Mini Pro is an ideal choice for consideration for professional phone users who want a touchscreen phone while at the same time enjoying a physical means of typing and are conscious of pocket space.