sony

Slayer Pinball.  We’ll just let that sink in for a moment as the absurdity of these two things colliding may cause your head to spin.

Anywho, the pinball game landed on the Windows Phone Store over the weekend and fetches for $2.99 without a trial. Because of that we’re taking one for the team and we’re going hands on to let you know if it’s worth it.

Slayer Pinball is released by Sony Music, which is similar to Sony Pictures Television. That latter company recently released Wheel of Fortune and JEOPARDY! to Windows Phone also without trials. We’re not sure what Sony has against trials but it’s not because their games are bad—they’re just a bit overpriced (we actually really like JEOPARDY! and WoF a lot).

Slayer Pinball ain’t half bad—the graphics are good, stuttering is at a minimal and it has Slayer thrashing in the background as you play on what has to be the most demonic board ever. In that sense, as a straight up pinball game it’s a lot of fun.

It’s always nice to see when official apps or even games arrive for Windows Phone and such is the case for Sony’s full Wheel of Fortune game. The game just landed on the Store today and we take it for a…spin. (Yes, bad puns are free folks, stay for the drinks).

The game is actually well done—snazzy graphics, smooth gameplay, some wicked guitar riffs but it’s the price that has us reeling: $4.99. Yup and mind you, this is not an Xbox for Windows Phone game, so no achievements. But hey, we took the bullet for you guys so you can watch our video review above.

Sony went big at IFA 2012 yesterday by unveiling a 20" Windows 8 table-top PC, which (when laid on a flat surface) looks something like a battle overview screen from Star Wars. The device is set to sport an Intel i7, i5 or i3 processor, accompanied by a maximum of 8GB RAM, 750GB or 1TB HDD, USB 3.0, SD card slot, HD webcam and Intel HD 4000 graphics. Powering Windows 8, the Sony VAIO Tab 20 will definitely turn heads.

Hold onto your seats, this is a big one. Sony has unveiled a 20" table-top Windows 8 PC today at IFA Berlin, titled VAIO Tap 20. The battery-powered PC features a stand allowing the user to adjust the device to suit immediate needs, whether it be tablet photo viewing (on the lap as it weighs in at a sturdy 11 pounds) or desktop-style web browsing. It's a Windows 8 PC that's surely going to turn some heads, so what's included in the package?

Crackle, a digital network and studio, has released an official app for Windows Phone. The service offers commercially supported streaming of video content in Flash format. Owned by Sony Pictures, its primary collection is Sony's library of films and television shows. Crackle (crackle.com) provides its content through a web syndication network, which includes YouTube, Huhu, AOL, MySpace, and mobile service providers.

Without requiring to signup and register an account, Crackle enables Windows Phone owners to enjoy content for free from its expansive collection. According to the company, twenty new movies and television episodes are added monthly. Genres include the likes of action, comedy, crime, horror, thriller, sci-fi, and anime. There's bound to be a title for everyone.

We're almost at the point where we're going to start leaving flowers at the grave of the poor Sony Ericsson (now Sony Mobile) Jolie Windows Phone, which has had prototypes circulating throughout the web for a good number of months now. We last looked at the black version of "Jolie" when a hands-on video was published on YouTube.

Back to the white / silver version, and an owner of said Windows Phone has sent in some more photos to Windows Phone Italy. Not only does the slide-out keyboard look inviting, the overall look and design of the device itself is unique, compared to the Windows Phones we had when the platform launched almost two years ago.

It's a shame that such a stunning 2010-esque Windows Phone simply never came to be. But the tractor beams installed on the Android mothership appeared to be too advanced for Microsoft to best (and too expensive to acquire), which led to Sony ditching Windows Phone for the green droid. Check out some more shots after the break.

Whether or not Sony Mobile Communications (previously Sony-Ericsson) will commit to a Windows Phone has been a back and forth for some time now. They dipped their toe into the ecosystem back on 2010 with the "Julie" prototype which was then canceled and since then, have been open but not committed to the platform.

A recent rumor suggested that they would make a device but not till late 2012 i.e. when Windows Phone 8 "Apollo" hits--a reasonable decision in our mind. However, Phone Arena, in a meeting with Sony Mobile Communications during Mobile World Congress, managed to get a little more info from the company and it doesn't sound too positive on the prospects.

While Sony are still "open" to the idea evidently they're not too keen on it either. If you wonder "why not" Sony's answer is "Because no one really cares about WP".

Harsh words from a company struggling to turn a profit in 2011 and 2012 (they're down 20% in shipments from a year ago and lost 247m Euros, according to the BBC). While they will still push forward with Android, the prospects for a Windows Phone from them still seems slim, at least for the near future.

Of course in a mobile world dominated by Samsung, HTC, Nokia and Apple, one has to ask: Does anyone care about Sony anymore?

Source: Phone Arena; via PocketNow (Image via Phones4U)

Seems like people want Sony to make a Windows Phone even if they don't seem keen on the idea. Take these latest images being reported tonight at XDA Developers (main site) which purport to show a device that looks like an Xperia Arc S running Windows Phone 7.

Although we'll say "anything is possible" and clearly Sony was working on Windows Phone back in 2010 (e.g. "Julie" prototype), we're doubtful that this is legit. Reasons? Well obviously it is missing the three keys near the bottom: Back, Windows and Search which have been on every single Windows Phone since day one and are a hardware requirement. Sure, that "arc" near the bottom could double as those (they're buttons on Android) but we find it odd that Sony would get rid of such a defining feature, let alone modify it to such a degree by removing those icons.

Going further, we don't see evidence for a side camera button. Now in fairness, these aren't the best shots and perhaps the button is there and just really flush, but it's one more thing we see that makes us question the validity of these images.

So while we really want to see Sony enter the Windows Phone game, we're calling this one fake. Plus we'd hate to think that Sony would, pardon the pun, phone it in this badly with their first Windows Phone i.e. just recycle an Android device. But hey, we'll see what happens at Mobile World Congress in a few weeks.

Source: XDA Developers

We've seen an image or two of the old Sony Ericsson prototype Windows Phone that was canceled before. The device, code-named 'Julie',  was a qwerty-slider and looked quite tantalizing at the time. Since then, SE has jumped on the Android bandwagon while leaving the door open for Windows Phone. We thought for a moment that SE was teasing us with a new Windows Phone for CES, but alas it was more Android.

Now, two new images have leaked of a Sony Ericsson Windows Phone device. Clearly a prototype not much is known about this phone but we're taking a guess that it is just the same qwerty-slider that we've seen previously. If you look closely at the top photo, the thickness of the device and "break" midway suggests that this is a slider.

What does this all mean? Unfortunately, we don't have any evidence that SE (or just Sony going forward very soon) has any plans for a Windows Phone. But Mobile World Congress is coming up at the end of February, so who knows maybe Sony will have something to present.

The site NokiaWP, who received the photos, claim that this is running Windows Phone 7.5 "Mango" which would definitely indicate active development. However, we cannot verify either claim at the moment.

Stay tuned..

Source: NokiaWP; Thanks, Juddy, for the tip!