Friday, February 24, 2012

Sony Xperia ICS beta ROM adds radios, new UI and more

www.tech-sanity.com


Sony has released an updated beta ROM for a selection of its 2011
Xperia phones, based on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. This latest (and unsupported) release builds on the alpha version released back in December with new functionality. This includes elements of the "UXP NXT" user interface powering new phones like the Xperia S -- you'll notice the new app dock and live wallpaper in today's video -- and familiar ICS features like camera shortcuts and music controls on the lockscreen.
Certain radio firmware has also passed certification since Sony released the alpha ROM, meaning mobile data and FM radio support is now enabled, though Wifi and Bluetooth are still unavailable. And needless to say, as it's a pre-release ROM, Google apps (including face unlock) are not included. Nevertheless, we expect it won't take too long for enterprising hackers in the Android community to shoehorn this functionality back into the device.
If you want to get in on the pre-release action, you'll need an
Xperia Arc S, Xperia Ray or Xperia Neo V that's fully up-to-date with the latest official software. For download and installation instructions, check the source link -- or if you want to see how the ICS update is shaping up without messing with your device, we've got the official preview video after the break.


Source: Sony Developer World

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