A survey has recently been conducted in Korea by Smartphone Now, the only dedicated smartphone news channel in Korea which asked 202 consumers what they thought was the worst smartphone. The Xperia X1 had a bad start in Korea with several complaints, but over all it was a sucessful launch. Based on the survey, 22% of the respondants voted the handset as the worst smartphone available in Korea, where as 18% voted for the HTC touch screen smartphones. While 22% isn’t great, the Xperia X1 from Sony Ericsson fairs much better than the Nokia 6210 smartphone. A resounding 50% of voters chose the 6210 as the worst handset.

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It wasn’t that long ago that Xperia X1 owners in Korea were making complaints about the handset from Sony Ericsson, after waiting so long for it. However it seems the handset has been a hit, with nearly 24,000 sold in the first three months. Korea had high WIPI standards, which meant many phones, including smartphones like the X1 and HTC Diamond, were hard pushed to be launched in Korea and took some time for them to arrive. A month later after the X1 was released, WIPI standards were relaxed, but some companies are still struggling to bring their handsets to Korea. The X1 was also the first phone in Korea, that didn’t have the WiFi removed for market, which is sure to be one of the reasons for it’s success. Along with the initial complaints, the X1 also had a hefty price to contend with for success, but it clearly didn’t stop the sales of the X1.

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While the Xperia X1 from Sony Ericsson has been out for quite a while now, it’s only recently seen release in Korea. The release and reception from Korean owners hasn’t seem to gone all that well though. This time though, it isn’t the well known complaint of the cracked casing. Issues the Korean X1 is facing however, is a weak reception on the handset. Sony Ericsson have denied it being an issue, but many independent reviews of the Xperia have highlighted a poor reception being an issue. Slow data rates are also an issue, but most likely linked to a weak reception.

More common issues include a long boot time and slow navigation, which are normal among Windows Mobile based phones. The QWERTY keyboard design has also come under criticism with the keyboard having two keys for a semi colons, perhaps in case one stops working, but how many semi colons do you use on a daily basis?

The video support of the X1 is also described as poor along with the battery life.

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Less than two weeks ago, Sony Ericsson officially launched the Xperia X1 in the land of Korea. And with three new panels to boot. Now, the very first user review has finally been published, courtesy of our oft reliable friends at Telecoms Korea. According to Sony Ericsson, retail Xperia X1 units are going to have a free 4GB microSD card with the the Spiderman 3 movie preloaded, an additional battery and a charging dock, but the reviewer noted that none of these were present with his review unit. Initially, he says, his impressions on the Korean Xperia X1 weren’t good, mainly because of the slow Windows Mobile 6.1 OS. However, he came to like the Xperia X1’s performance as a phone, as it performed quite well especially with all the panels. To learn more about the Korean version of the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1, head on down to the link below for the full review.

Via Telecoms Korea

Sony Ericsson Korea has officially launched the Xperia X1 to the Korean market.  Yup, you read it right, despite being available to other countries for a couple of months now, it is only now that our friends from Korea would finally see, touch and use the Xperia X1.

The launch was made possible in partnership with SK Telecom which shall also be the distributor of the Xperia X1. And through this cooperation with SK Telecom, the Xperia X1 Korean version would have 3 additional panels aside from the default panels it already has. These 3 panels are  My Smart Panel, DAUM Panel, and My PC Panel. In addition, the SPB panel will be localized to fit the Korean market.

My Smart Panel will provide Korean users easy access to online services including mail, messenger, and internet browsing. DAUM Panel will provide users instant access to services offered by the DAUM portal including web search and mail functionality. My PC panel will connect users to PC content through WiBRO. 

Aside from these three new panels, the Xperia X1 Korean version will also come with a 4GB micro SD card preloaded with Spiderman 3. In addition, the first 1,000 buyers of the Xperia X1 can have their name engraved on their unit for free. 

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While some countries have been able to get hold of Sony Ericcson’s Windows Mobile smartphone, the Xperia X1 for quite some time now, Korean’s haven’t been as lucky. The Xperia X1 will finally launch in Korea next week. The X1 isn’t the only phone not to hit Korea soon after European and US release, the Touch Diamond from HTC only made it’s way to Korea last week and not the newest HTC Diamond either.

The lack of non Korean smartphones is set to change from April when the WiPi restriction ends. While this is good news, it will mean year old smartphones, like the HTC Touch Diamond, should become available. I’m sure many wish this happened sooner though, especially with missing out on such great devices like the X1, for quite some time.

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