Sony Ericsson have just announced a November release date for the first of it’s new generation of multimedia phones, the Satio. It will feature a staggering 12.1 megapixel camera and run on the same Symbian operating system as the Nokia 5800 and N97. Until now, most phones have either concentrated on being primarily a music or camera phone but the Sony Ericsson Satio seems to do it all. The camera is not only a staggering 12.1 megapixels but also features a xenon flash as well as smile and face detector features. The operating system, which is all new to Sony Ericsson, is run on a 3.5″, 16 million colour, 360×640 resolution touchscreen with an accelerometer controlling the orientation.

With full HSDPA and HSUPA support alongside WiFi, Bluetooth, A2DP and GPS the Sony Ericsson Satio also covers every base when it comes to connectivity and the external MicroSD card slot allows easy memory expansion as opposed to the less readily available memory sticks used in previous Sony Ericsson models.

With all the above features packed into such a good looking handset, Sony Ericsson seem to have all the bases covered with their new top end multimedia handset. With an already proven, functional and easy to use operating system will this be the handset to give the iPhone a run for it’s money?

After announcing a November release of their first new generation multimedia phone, the Satio, Sony Ericsson have released details of another device – the Aino.Unlike the totally touchscreen Satio, the Aino has a slide out keypad as well as touchscreen functionality. The Aino also seems to pack a heavy punch in the multimedia department with a Playstation 3 inspired touch-menu, WiFi and GPS but most exciting of all is the Remote Play feature. This software was originally developed for the Sony PSP and will allow the user to control and access content on their PS3 using the Aino! Another superb feature of the Aino is the MediaGo software which allows you to download any media and content from your PC or laptop directly to your phone! As if that wasn’t enough, the Aino will also allow you to watch, pause and record live TV on your handset. When it comes to multimedia functionality, this phone is looking second to none!

The Aino also features a more than adequate 8 megapixel camera with LED flash, geotagging, face and smile detection and autofocus. The phone’s design is far from groundbreaking and the lack of a standard 3.5mm headphone jack is disappointing but with the inclusion of Sony Ericsson’s two trademark features, Cybershot & Walkman, alongside the impressive multimedia functionality I’m certain this phone won’t fail to impress.