Sony Brings Unlocked Xperia Tipo, Tipo Dual Smartphones to U.S., for Cheap
It’s not very often that Sony’s smartphones are offered by U.S. carriers, which means you usually have to pony up a few Benjamins if you fancy one of its handsets. Now, however, the company is offering a couple of wallet-friendly options.
Today, Sony announced two new Android smartphones for the U.S. market, the Xperia Tipo and the Xperia Tipo Dual, for an unlocked price of $179.99 and $189.99, respectively.
At that price, don’t expect to find the latest and greatest features. Both have a 3.2-inch, lower-resolution touchscreen, an 800MHz processor and a 3.2-megapixel camera, but they do free you from carrier contracts.
The Tipo and Tipo Dual are quad-band GSM phones, so, here in the States, you can use them on either AT&T’s or T-Mobile’s network, though you’ll only get 3G data speeds with AT&T.
If you travel overseas, you can swap in a local prepaid SIM card for voice and data, so you don’t rack up expensive roaming charges on your cellphone bill. The Tipo Dual has dual SIM card slots; you can switch between the two by pressing a dedicated button on the phone.
Both smartphones are running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and are available for preorder today. The Xperia Tipo comes in black, white, red or blue; the Xperia Tipo Dual is available in black or white. Sony did not say when the phones would start shipping, but we’ll update you as soon we have more information.