Sony Ericsson has yet to make this public, but we've learned that the flagging handset maker has caved once more to the pressures of the modern phone market place. If you'll recall, 450 employees were nixed from the company's payrolls in September of last year, and now the entire Research Triangle Park facility is being shuttered. In an internal announcement made this morning, SE is fixing to close four total sites: RTP in North Carolina, a smaller Miami facility and operations in Kista (Sweden) and Chennai. All told, 2,000 employees will be trimmed, with severance packages being offered to those who qualify. As of now, the departing individuals have yet to be chosen, with employees in RTP given the opportunity to apply for jobs elsewhere (likely in Atlanta or California). We're told that the cuts will happen "in stages," with project teams being assembled as we speak to work out the logistics. Frankly, we aren't as shocked as we are saddened to hear the news -- SE has refused to keep pace with the other handset makers, and its decision to wait until next year to ship an Android device is indicative of the choices that have kept it in the shadows these past few years. Here's hoping this restructuring effort actually gets things headed in the right direction.

Update: And it's official. SE will also be shutting down small offices in Seattle and San Diego, with its North American headquarters shifting from RTP to Atlanta and its research and development operation transitioning from RTP to Redwood Shores, California.

Sony Ericsson UK's got a new pre-registration page for the Xperia X10, and along with it what appears to be a brand new, February 2010 expected launch. It's hard to say for sure, but as far as we can tell this page is new, and last we heard the target window was a much broader "first half 2010." Can't say we're anymore excited about this than before, but far be it for us to get in the way of a truly die hard fan community. At least you have a better idea of when to break the bank now.

[Thanks, Matej]

Bad news, good news, and potentially great news time, folks. First with the bad: Sony Ericsson posted another loss for its fiscal third quarter, to the tune of 164 million euro (about $244 million US), blaming a large chunk of that on a drop in sales. Sales dropped year-over-year 40 percent to 1.6 billion euro, and unit shipments comparably down 45 percent. That's the bad, now what's good for SE is that its secured more financial backing to reshape its future into something more profitable. External financing totals a reported 455 million euro ($676 million US), 255 million of which is already in the company's position and 200 million as a two-year backup. SE also managed to beat analyst estimates, losing less than anticipated, and that's gotta induce some bittersweet smiles in the corporate boardrooms... oh, the potentially great news? Well, SEMC blog has boldly announced that the Android-imbued Rachael (a.k.a. XPERIA X3) is due out this November, same specs as we heard before and two color options, Sensuous Black and Luster White. Unfortunately, we're not seeing exactly where this news is coming for, so until SE speaks the magic words, we're considering it a rumor for now -- but we're hopeful.

[Via GSM Arena; thanks, Gillz and Christo]

Read - Rachael in November?
Read - Sony Ericsson 3Q loss widens
Read - XPERIA X3 in the wild

We know Sony Ericsson's PS3-lovin' Aino would be hitting European shelves at some point during the month, and now Sony itself has stepped forward to confirm that the handset is on sale. We're hearing that it's selling for £399.99 ($639) sans a contract, and just in case you're wondering why you and your PlayStation 3 should care, the Aino is capable of turning your console on and off, browsing the XMB user interface, accessing DRM-free content on the HDD, shopping for items in the PS3 Store and watching live TV via PlayTV. Hit up the read link for all the nitty-gritty, and be sure to hit your British friend up if you're stuck yearning here in the States.

[Via Joystiq]

We'll confess - Sony Ericsson's XPERIA X2 is going to have quite the time attracting attention now that the Android-equipped X3 is all but confirmed, but those who aren't yet ready to ditch Windows Mobile may be interested in seeing the first video unboxing of the Q4-bound smartphone. Unfortunately, the actual box that it's emerging from is one of those ultra-plain units given to employees and the like when carrier testing is in full swing, but hey -- a box is a box. Have a peek in the read link below, but be sure to bring a cup of patience. You'll see.

[Via Slashgear]

As always, Mr. Blurrycam isn't doing us any favors here, but we're cautiously optimistic that the image you see above is one of the first real glimpses at Sony Ericsson's forthcoming XPERIA X3. Granted, the WinMo-packin' X2 is still in its infancy, but every true SE fanboy knows that Android is where it's at. The skin, which is obviously early in development, is definitely unlike anything we've ever seen, and while we can't make out much about the hardware, the general shape certainly jibes with what we'd expect an X3 to look like. Le0n_Pro's original post is down there in the read link, but we just couldn't leave well enough alone; thankfully, he was kind enough to gift us with a gallery's worth of (admittedly shaky) shots. Dig in!

[Thanks, Le0n_Pro]

Update: Looks like someone actually got ahold of a white version. Real? Fake?

We've already seen Sony Ericsson's new Aino smartphone (and its wireless headphones) pass through the FCC once before, but we've only just now been treated to the first proper photo shoot of the device, including the usual peek under the hood. What's more, the new filing also offers yet more (fairly indisputable) evidence of the existence of a US 3G version of the phone, and those interested can get another look at the phone's manual if you missed it last time around. Hit up the read link below to dive in.

Details are exceedingly light (almost dangerously light, in fact), but the Modula color therapy lamp is simply too soothing to overlook. The three-ringed lamp is built with a slew of multi-color lights (LEDs, we're guessing), all wired up to be controlled via Bluetooth. The video demonstration shows a Sony Ericsson W880i doing the dirty work, but there's no indication of how exactly end users are supposed to accomplish the color changing once it arrives. Those in the camp of "buy now, ask questions later" can get their pre-order in through the read link, but considering that only an EU-friendly 230V version is currently available, those on this side of the pond will need to invest in some serious converters to make it all compatible. The pain? Just €199 ($281) for hours upon hours of endless entertainment.

HTC's been on somewhat of a hot streak here lately, but word on the street has it that the aforesaid outfit may not be able to ship all of its forthcoming handsets on time. A new Wall Street Journal report on falling revenue in the HTC camp notes that an undisclosed amount of delays, a larger-than-anticipated drop in contract orders and lower-than-expected sales in China could lead to drooping income in the short term, and some analysts are pointing out that the company's average selling price per phone is sliding due to looming Android competition from the likes of Motorola and Sony Ericsson. Aside from the Touch Pro2 that'll probably never, ever land on Sprint, HTC has about a gazillion other rumored handsets on the horizon, but it's hard to know for sure which "product launches" are expected to be stalled. So, is HTC secretly retooling a smattering of its handsets in order to stay one step ahead of SE and Moto? Or are old fashioned supply chain inefficiencies to blame?

Don't act surprised -- AT&T already told you that these two would go on sale this fine Sunday in July, and lo and behold, the carrier looks to have kept its promise. Starting today (officially, anyway), customers looking for a camera that doubles as a cellphone or a Walkman that occasionally makes calls can bring home the C905a or W518a, respectively. As expected, the C905a (which is available in silver only) will run you $179.99 after rebate and two-year agreement, while the W518a (which arrives in any color you like, so long as it's black) goes for $49.99 under the same conditions. Any takers? Or are all you SE fanboys waiting to court Rachael?

[Thanks, Jazzdoc]

The good news, if you want to call it that, is that Sony Ericsson's most recent quarter loss is not as bad as its epic $382 million tab prior, and at this point there's no talk of further en masse job cuts. That said, this new report isn't exactly sunshine, and the Q2 results show a 213 million Euro ($299 million) net loss. Product shipments were around 13.8 million, down 43 percent compared with last year. Some blame is attributed to the focus on mid-tier feature phones in lieu of a greater smartphone push -- SE says it's working to correct that direction, but its higher end devices won't hit until fourth quarter. One interesting note is that one of those late-year handhelds is said to "integrate with PlayStation," but before you get excited over the oft-rumored PSP phone, we'd venture to say it's more likely that description's referencing the Remote Play-supporting Aino. From what we can tell, there's no indication of what's in the cards to improve Q3, so we won''t exactly be surprised if the story repeats itself three months from now.

While one could argue that Sony Ericsson should really be focusing its efforts on getting a Rachael / Android-based handset out on the double, it's evidently content with digging up a year-old phone, slapping an "a" on the end of it and passing it along to AT&T. The 8.1 megapixel C905 that we were so jazzed about in June of 2008 has indeed been certified for AT&T as the C905a Cyber-shot (left and center), offering the same 8.1 megapixel sensor, face detection, AutoFocus, Xenon flash, GPS tagging and 3G support. In related news, SE is also offering up the 518a Walkman (shown right) on the same carrier, which features a 3.2 megapixel camera, an obsession with Facebook, Shake Control and OTA music downloads from Napster and eMusic via AT&T Music. Both sets will be available on July 19th for $179.99 and $49.99 (respectively) after mail-in rebate and a two-year agreement, which sounds "way too high" and "too high" to us (also respectively).

Granted, most of the pizzaz in Sony Ericsson's Naite GreenHeart phone is within, but there's still something special about peering at the exterior of a phone and just envisioning all that tree-hugging magic that's going on within. We know the full-on teardown will happen soon enough, but 'til then, feast your eyes on the gallery waiting in the read link.

Sony Ericsson's finance team may figure that it needs a wheelbarrow full of cold, hard cash in order to steamroll through the next decade, but we know better than that. What it needs, friends, is Android, and in the worst possible way. At a launch event over in Taiwan this week, SE Asia-Pacific's vice president of marketing Peter Ang was quoted as saying that the outfit's first Android-based smartphone would actually be humming along on Android 2.0. So, there are two ways to take this: one is that Android 2.0 is just around the bend, which would totally rule, but is absolutely unrealistic to believe. The other, more feasible possibility is that SE's first Android-based phone won't hit the market until your next grandchild is born, which definitely doesn't bode well for a handset maker that can't possibly reinvent itself soon enough.

[Via Slashphone]