Experience it the Sony Ericsson Xperia Way in Tokyo

The unique Sony Ericsson Xperia ray comes hand-in-hand with a signature concept and design. Check out our behind-the-scenes story in Tokyo on the handphone as well as the Xperia marketing efforts in Japan.

By Wong Casandra - 19 Aug 2011

Breaking Down the Ray

The smartphone market is indeed a competitive one, with many manufacturers jostling to take a sizeable bite of the huge and profitable pie. The availability of different user interfaces like the iOS, Windows Phone 7, RIM BlackBerry and Android is a double-edged sword that adds that extra level of complexity when it comes to creating the phone consumers want.

Take the Android platform for example. As we all know, the open-source UI (check out our Google Android 2.3 guide here) allows different manufacturers to leverage on its platform without compromising their own individual style in terms of design, hardware and software. But that's where it gets a little tricky here - with increasing numbers of manufacturers adopting the Google Android UI, the question here is: which is the Android smartphone for you? Admittedly, the Sony Ericsson Xperia ray is not made for everyone, but it abides by a driven set of concept and design principles.

Meet the Japan team behind the Xperia ray (from left to right): Tetsuya Okuchi, Mechanical Design Leader; Linda Lissola, Color and Material Senior Designer; Shigeaki Suzuki, Design Manager, Industrial design; Kozue Tanaka, Product Planner; Tatsu Nishumura, Product Manager; Yoshio Kawahara, Electronics Design Leader; Ryuichi Arai, Radio Design Leader.

Concept

The Xperia ray starts off with targeting a niche crowd:

Consumers who are used to the small and well-designed feature phones but are looking to hop over to smartphones
Group of consumers who are typically design/size-oriented users and are not as interested in the latest in technology compared to those who are looking at the Xperia arc as an option
Females

As such, there were three major aspects that the team had to contend with for the ray to be taken seriously as a bridging product between feature phones and smartphones, which is to balance superior electronic performance with design and miniaturization.

It is important to note that the Xperia ray sports the same reality display with the Mobile BRAVIA Engine, a black glass front and an 8.1-megapixel Exmor R camera that the high-end Xperia arc comes with. At the same time, the phone is much smaller, showcasing a thin 3.3-inch touchscreen and a body that only weighs 100g and measures 9.4mm in thickness. The concept behind the Xperia ray explains the reason why Sony Ericsson has decided to downsize its screen when everyone else is rushing to push forward smartphones with bigger screens.

The phone's size and thinness makes it easy for users to reach buttons or type with just one hand, especially necessary for commute during rush hour in Asian countries like Japan.

Design

Shigeaki Suzuki, Design Manager, Industrial design, elaborated further about the Xperia ray's "human-centric" design. Past Xperia phones like the arc is known for its curved body, and a similar concept is explored on the ray. There's an inclined "line" that sits on each side of the phone, divided by a top that's made out of metal and a back cover made out of plastic. The inclined lines represent a ray of light and is one of two reasons for its name. The other reason? "Kirei" in Japanese stands for beautiful or pretty, and as such, the team felt that it was a suitable name for the Xperia ray.

The Xperia ray is available in four shades: black, white, gold and pink. Linda Lissola, Color and Material Senior Designer explained that these colors catered to users with different preferences. The black is the collection's signature color, and the only one of the gang to come with a matte cover which not only emphasized on the premium metal portion of the phone but also creates a certain "softness" about it. The rest of the colors come with high gloss covers, with white being the neutral and discreet color; gold adding a touch of sophistication and pink for the young and energetic.

Engineering

To keep phones small and compact isn't an easy task when you are looking to cram in top-end specifications. The ray, as seen below beside the arc, is 31% smaller in volume and has a PBA (Printed Board Assembly) that is 20% smaller in area compared to the arc, despite sharing similar high-end features. The ray's screen is also 25% higher in brightness than the arc's. All in all, the engineers had to work at optimizing the component layout in the phone based on ID sketch, with particular attention paid to its width since the phone is intended for easy one-hand usage.

The ray's components and battery on the left, with the arc's on the right. The former's battery is visibly smaller despite the fact that it shares the same 1500mAh capacity as the arc.

The ray sports a clear black glass front, especially discernible when placed next to the Xperia X10 - the latter does not come with the same glass material.

As mentioned in our preview article, the Sony Ericsson Xperia ray is slated for a Q3 launch in Asia Pacific, including Singapore, in four colors: black, gold, white and pink, local pricing is yet to be available at the point of writing. The Japanese market will get it slightly earlier with official sales starting from 27th August onwards, priced at ¥37,000 (approx. S$582.657) with a 2-year contract. Pre-sale orders for the smartphone at Docomo (black is not available in Japan) has already started from the 12th of August.

Selling It Right in Japan

Overview of Smartphone Market Trends in Japan

According to Ritsuya Oku, Deputy Director, Media Business Innovations Department, Dentsu Innovation Institute, Mobile Internet is more prevalent in Japan compared to surfing on the PC with the main driving forces being mobile devices like smartphones and tablets. Social networking (Twitter and Facebook) is part of this movement; aside real-time interaction, consumers are also looking towards mobility and contact intentions.

The smartphone penetration rate is very high in Japan, with 2.3 units per extended family and 0.8 unit per core family.

Smartphone manufacturers target those who are looking for the latest in technology but they are now going after the fairer sex. Statistics and research have show that they are a viable and growing market. According to Dentsu Research, females use mobile phones more often than males.

Some example of marketing efforts include adding female-oriented apps, decorated email formats, focusing on the design aspects of the phone and building up a steady portfolio of accessories.

According to Sony Ericsson, the smartphone customer group comprises of 35% to 40% females in Japan. Similarly for iPhone users, there is a 45% (female) to 55% (male) spilt.

Creating the Xperia World

Sony Ericsson is looking to position Xperia smartphones as the number one Android smartphone brand in Japan. How will they be doing this? This include collaborations with 3rd parties for accessories, launch events, intensive peripheral product (Live View, Bluetooth headsets), application and service promotions. Part of the Xperia 2011 marketing objectives, Sony Ericsson has adopted a youth-centric marketing campaign that targets the younger generation and females. The 2011 branding activities include collaborating with MTV, music festivals, dance workshops, and the Kobe Collection 2011 Autumn/Winter fashion show. These events will be integrated with digital marketing strategies through social networking channels like Twitter, Foursquare and Facebook.

Sony Ericsson has also worked closely with publishers to publish Xperia arc guide books to increase public awareness of their smartphones. These books are sold in bookshops, and include tips and interviews with relevant personnel involved with the developement of the arc.

Part of a collaboration with Kobe Collection, Sony Ericsson introduced a rear cover campaign for the Xperia ray. This is part of a female-oriented marketing campaign that includes commercials and print ads targeted towards the fairer sex.

Sony Music Japan has plans for new content distribution with the Sony Music app. Seen on the Xperia ray, the app comes with a widget (located at the top here) that allows users to listen to music with lyrics, stream videos and so forth.

And this brings us to the end of our first part of our article. Next stop - the docomo Smartphone lounge, where we were given a tour of the NTT docomo Smartphone Lounge, a private area dedicated to smartphones and tablets.

A Smartphone Haven

Next up, we headed down to the famous Sony Building in Ginza. The building features Sony shops, product showrooms and an area that introduces the Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium in 3D.