Hands-on with the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1

Sony Ericsson may have been a sleeper at CTIA, but one good thing came out of it: I finally got my hands on the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1. Unlike at GSMA where you had the battle the crowd and public relations folks just to get a picture of the darn thing, I was able to spend a few minutes with the highly anticipated smartphone and all I've got to say is "me-ROW."

It's pretty easy to see why there's so much buzz about Sony Ericsson's first Windows Mobile device. The hardware is elegant and strong, and it is more compact and sleeker than I originally thought. When you slide open the phone, the curved shape really helps to make for a comfortable typing experience. The full QWERTY keyboard was also pretty spacious. My only gripe would be that the navigation keys on the exterior of the phone felt a bit stiff.

Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1

(Credit: Sony Ericsson)

Of course, a lot of the phone navigation will be handled via the touch screen. Sony Ericsson's represenatives stressed that the software on the demo unit wasn't final (which thank God for that because it certainly was buggy), but we did get a glimpse of the XPERIA's panel interface. It's cool; it's flashy; and it's pretty easy to use. The company also confirmed at the show that the XPERIA X1 will ship with Windows Mobile 6.1 when it becomes available during the second half of the year.

Check out the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 in action for yourself in the video. Let us know what you think about the phone in the comments.