Just over a month ago, Android 2.3.4 began rolling out to Xperia phones in Nordic countries but, Sony Ericsson have now confirmed that the update is rolling out for the rest of the world.
Android 2.3.4 will be available for the Xperia Arc, Play, Neo, Ray, Mini, Mini Pro, Active, Pro, Neo V and Arc S as well as the non Xperia Sony Ericsson Live with Walkman.
The update adds Google Video Talk but, only to handsets with front facing cameras, such as the Xperia Play while the Xperia Arc will not get this due to the phone not featuring a front facing camera. It will however receive a 3D panorama sweep feature along with the other handsets, apart from the Xperia Play. Sony Ericsson have confirmed however that 2.3.4 does add HD video recording to the Play, something which was discovered shortly after the update became available in Nordic countries. Another much awaited feature is the ability to zoom in video mode. When the Arc was released, it wasn’t possible to zoom in the camera unless using the 2 megapixel mode, or in video. An update later added zoom for the camera but, left video zoom out.
Here’s the list of new features included with the update:
- Google Talk with Video Chat for smartphones with front-facing cameras
- Updated Facebook inside Xperia™ functionality for enhanced like, share and discover abilities.
- Xperia™ smartphones introducing world’s first 3D Sweep Panorama functionality powered by Sony.
- 16x video zoom
- The software upgrade will enable consumers to turn their Xperia™ smartphone into a mini-mobile PC by connecting USB peripherals (mouse, keyboard or game controller) to Sony Ericsson LiveDock™ multimedia station. Connect the smartphone to a TV via HDMI to get a big screen experience.
- Gesture input – text input by swiping the finger from one letter to the next.
- WiFi DLNA
- Screen capture – allows the user to share a screen grab from anywhere in the phone.
