Watch phones didn't really take off. But Sony Ericsson just announced LiveView - it's small, can be worn as a watch and it gives you access to the basic functions of your Android phone, while it's also highly customizable. It has all the advantages of a watch phone, but non of the disadvantages.
The Sony Ericsson LiveView measures 35x35x11 mm, weighs 15 grams and comes with a clip or better yet, a wrist strap so you can wear it as a watch. But it's much better than those first Sony Ericsson Bluetooth watches.
The screen on the LiveView is an OLED unit - it's a 1.3 inches big screen with 128x128 pixels resolution. The screen is touchable - it has four touch-sensitive areas. The battery should last 4 days of normal usage. That probably doesn't include keeping the screen on all the time but still.
The LiveView is compatible with Android 2.0+ devices (and not just Sony Ericsson either) and here's what it can do - control the music player, read SMS, Facebook and Twitter messages, RSS feeds, calendar reminders and display time and date (duh!).
But that's just the beginning - it's customizable with apps. The LiveWare Manager will keep an eye out for Sony Ericsson LiveView compatible apps. So, developers can include support for LiveView in their apps and make it all the more useful. For example, the LiveView would be perfect for displaying instructions for walk navigation.
The Sony Ericsson LiveView will be available in black starting Q4 of 2010. There's no information on pricing or alternative color versions yet. In the box you get a microUSB charger, a clip and a wristband.
