That black LG Shine we'd heard AT&T would be picking up is finally starting to trickle into stores, along with a green rendition of the Sony Ericsson W580i -- a phone that's no stranger to new paint jobs. Neither device is up on AT&T's site yet, so as of now, it looks like the only way to pick these two up is going to be to mosey on down to your local retailer. Sorry, couch potatoes!

[Thanks, BrainsOnTheMonitor]

Anyone hoping for another UIQ-based superphone can avert their eyes right now, but otherwise, hold on -- Sony Ericsson might just be onto something with its upcoming G502. The sleek black candybar should freshen the dead center of SE's lineup with a QVGA display, 2 megapixel camera, HSDPA, Memory Stick M2-expandable storage, and the NetFront browser that's become a hallmark of Sony Ericsson's better non-smartphone devices. Rumor has it it'll get official on the 24th -- just two short days from now -- so get your popcorn ready, or whatever it is that you and your family do when you're gathering around the computer in anticipation of a new handset announcement.

Step aside Universal Music, Sony BMG is now offering its catalog of music on Nokia's Comes With Music service. You know, the freebie, all you can eat music download service expected to launch mid-2008 (oops) "second half" of 2008. Remember, you'll have to buy a Comes with Music device first and the free download period from the Nokia Music Store (to your PC or phone) only lasts for 12 months. Still, consumers keep the downloaded (and DRM'd) tracks at the end of the period and "can transfer their downloaded material by substituting their new [Comes with Music] device or computer for the original devices" later on. While no Comes with Music devices have been announced yet, we certainly wouldn't be surprised if Nokia's touch-screen Tube or some other S60 touch device was first.

Sony Ericsson's leaky enough so that we've had no problem believing that the BeiBei is dead real, but as we've seen with the M610i, a very real and very well-developed Sony Ericsson prototype by no means guarantees a release. That being said, we're starting to get pumped that this one might live long enough to see a store shelf or two -- particularly considering that it's said to rock UIQ 3.3 and looks a heck of a lot better now in its dark, handsome color scheme that the last time we saw it. So, anyone want to get a launch date pool going? This quarter? Next? 2009?

[Via Unofficial Sony Ericsson Blog]

Man, if this phone turns out to be real, we can only imagine the cringes on the faces of Sony Ericsson execs knowing that its precious new UIQ superphone is in the process of being scooped in the most excruciatingly long, drawn-out process imaginable. The "Paris" is making yet another appearance over on se-nse, this time slid open to reveal a sliver of its QWERTY keyboard. It uses the same operating principle as the P1 and the M600, with two letters assigned to each side of each button; on the Paris, the buttons appear to be half black and half white. Could be hot, could be shockingly ugly, but we really won't know until Sony Ericsson's willing to either debunk this whole charade or give us some actual press shots.

Update: Yep, they're all black; light is reflecting off one side of the concave buttons. How boring!

Okay, seriously, Sony Ericsson, it seems pretty clear-cut that your closely held secrets have leaked out into the public domain here -- either that, or there's a pretty extensive conspiracy in the user community to fleece everyone with similar-looking fake shots -- and either way, it's about time you step forward and clear the air. This here is the latest shot of the so-called Paris that's floating around the interwebs, and while the screen looks more fake than ever, the phone itself matches up nicely with what we've seen before. With UIQ 3.3 in the cards, this could be the phone that finally takes the "other" Symbian platform from niche to glamor and glory, but only if the mothership can get it released in a timely fashion. That's you, Sony Ericsson, so get to it.

se-nse is spilling some more beans on its supposed leak of the P5 "Paris" smartphone, and put simply, UIQ fans are (or should be) salivating uncontrollably right now. And when we say "salivating uncontrollably," we mean like to the point that they're unable to present themselves in social situations because there's just this really disgusting stream of spittle constantly flowing out of their mouths. Got that visual? Okay, now check it: the blog is reporting that the Paris will sport a touchscreen display (capacitive, it seems), a semi-QWERTY keypad in the same vein as the M600 and P1, WiFi, 3G (maybe in a global flavor for once?), GPS, and preinstalled Google Maps, all sitting atop UIQ 3.3. If this is real, it gives the XPERIA X1 a nice little run for its money atop the Sony Ericsson food chain, does it not?

[Via Slashphone]

We're still smarting from the apparent cancelation of the fabulously powerful K850 from AT&T's 2008 lineup, but as consolation prizes go, the Z750a ain't bad. That being said, it's solidly seated in the midrange, which seems like an unusual place for Sony Ericsson's very first carrier-launched 3G handset for the US to be; the 2 megapixel camera isn't going to "wow" anyone, and the choice of colorful, ultra-gloss shells definitely limits the phone's appeal to a certain demographic. On the bright side, the music player has an XMB appeal to it -- users of other recent Sony Ericssons will feel right at home with the app -- and it's one of the better built-in players currently available on any handset. The Memory Stick Micro slot makes that player just a little trickier to use for anyone that isn't already using Sony Ericsson kit, but c'est la vie, we suppose. Check out some shots in our handy dandy gallery here.

It's not a surprise, but it's still overwhelmingly refreshing to see Sony Ericsson finally (and we do mean finally) bringing some 3G action onto AT&T. The "a" variant of the glossy, colorful Z750 clamshell will be hitting AT&T in an official capacity come early April, featuring an OLED external display cleverly concealed by the phone's translucent shell, a 2 megapixel camera and media player both backed up with Memory Stick Micro M2 expansion, stereo Bluetooth, and of course, that lovely HSDPA 850 / 1900 that's eluded Sony Ericsson's AT&T offerings for far, far too long. Look for it to go out the door for $49.99 after a $100 rebate.

Sony just revealed a bit more about AT&T's Mobile TV service launching in May. We now know that one of the two exclusive AT&T channels will be called PIX, Sony's new feature film channel for cellphones. The service is a first of its kind in the US... for good reason. Oh, it's not that we have anything against the roster of films including "Ghostbusters," "Philadelphia" and "Karate Kid." It's more the prospect of sitting in front of that tiny mobile screen to watch a full-length film without the ability to pause, fast forward or rewind. This is live broadcast folks. Nevertheless, Sony Pictures claims to understand the risk. According to Eric Berger, VP Mobile Entertainment at Sony Pictures Television, "We recognize that people are on the go with their mobile phone and coming and going. This isn't for people looking to view a movie for the first time. It's OK to miss the beginning." Films will run on PIX for a month with new additions added weakly weekly.

We've just received a fresh round of release dates on AT&T, and if we had to pick a single word to describe the theme here, it'd be "colors." Shades upon shades of phones -- both new and old -- will see a release on AT&T in the next couple of months, starting with the Sony Ericsson Z750a, the first 3G Sony Ericsson to be released by a carrier in the States (but not in North America -- that honor belongs to Rogers); it'll hit in your choice of gray, pink, or purple in early April. The now-ancient UTStarcom 5700 finally sees release toward the end of April more than a year after we first saw it in the FCC's business, giving a lower-end choice to the Windows Mobile faithful. Finally, May should bring about the LG CU720 Shine in black, following its initial offerings of silver and red.

Oh, and it looks like the Motorola Z9 and the black Centro should be widely available pretty much any minute now -- stay tuned. Strangely missing from the list is the Vu, though that doesn't necessarily mean it won't be released by the end of May, it merely means that AT&T's not sure yet. Surprise, surprise.

[Thanks, Kal]

Okay, first, a word of caution: we've heard some conflicting reports that the K850 may have been canceled from AT&T's roadmap because it missed its "launch window." That being said, this poster -- spotted in an actual retail location, not deep in an AT&T workshop somewhere -- sure makes us believe it's still very much in the works. Come on, guys, you're not going to let Rogers show you up, are you?

Also, what's this business about "video phone" and "video calls"? Sounds an awful lot like honest-to-goodness two-way video instead of that whole Video Share thing, doesn't it?

[Thanks, brainsonthemonitor]

Update: Several sources at AT&T stores have told us that they've been commanded by corporate to toss their K850 promotional materials in the trash. Doesn't sound like a good sign, and if the device is indeed canceled, we think it's a tragedy both for AT&T and for Sony Ericsson's North American presence.

What the heck is going on here? Despite the overwhelming popularity of gizmo-heavy mobile devices in Japan, working with megacarrier NTT DoCoMo must be a losing proposition for many of its manufacturing partners, because just days after Mitsubishi's announcement of its withdrawal, a fresh Nikkei report indicates that Sony Ericsson is raising the white flag as well to divert attention and resources to less saturated and more profitable markets. Apparently, DoCoMo will bear the brunt of the downsizing, while Sony Ericsson's partnership with KDDI -- a CDMA carrier -- will continue. [Warning: subscription required]

Update: It turns out that Sony Ericsson intends to continue working with DoCoMo by initially delivering new models through mid '08, at which point it will start buying handsets from other manufacturers and rebranding them. In other countries this would be truly egregious, but as our Japanese bureau points out, DoCoMo lays out very strict requirements for each of its lines that would probably make it difficult to distinguish a true Sony Ericsson model from a rebranded model sourced from, say, Sharp or Toshiba.

Update 2: Sony Ericsson's Japanese PR folks have denied Nikkei's report, although they did mention that they are "reevaluating" their DoCoMo line without going into any detail. Whether the report was actually false or Nikkei just managed to out the info well before Sony Ericsson wanted it out, though, remains unclear.

Update 3: The official Sony Ericsson response, and while it says that they're taking a good, hard look at their DoCoMo business, it also mentions that they'll continue to develop new handsets for the carrier. Clear as mud? Good!

Read - Nikkei report [subscription required]
Read - Sony Ericsson response

So it seems the X1 being shown off at CeBIT following its MWC debut last month is equipped with a particularly curious panel in its software load. Anyone care to take a guess? No cheating and looking at the one we've circled now. Yeah, okay, it's that big AT&T logo front and center, which makes an appearance in several of PHONE Magazine's shots of the interface. We'd like to believe that means that AT&T is a lock to pick up one of the hottest Windows Mobile devices ever manufactured, and indeed, it probably does -- its 3G radio is certainly ripe for the job -- but it's entirely possible to think that Sony Ericsson is still in the process of selling carriers on the device, and is simply trying to get 'em to crack a smile by loading their logo. Keep your fingers crossed, ladies and gentlemen.

[Thanks, Jake]