Sony, Other Vendors Plan MT6589-Based Handsets for 2013

Japanese mobile phone maker Sony has been long rumored to plan the release of a nice range of high-end smartphones next year, but it seems that the company will focus on the low end of the market as well.

In addition to flagship handsets such as Odin, Yuga and Dogo, Sony is also said to plan the release of a quad-core smartphone for the budget-friendly users. Furthermore, the latest reports on the matter suggest that the company might actually pack the handset with a MediaTek MT6589 quad-core chipset inside, while including it in the popular Xperia series. The Chinese chip maker has already made its new product official, and various smartphone makers, Sony included, were fast to pick it up. Rumor has it that Sony has already received MT6589 samples for testing, and that it decided to build a platform for its mobile devices based on the new chip.

Sony won’t be the only phone maker to adopt the chipset, it seems. Huawei, ZTE, Lenovo, TCL and LG are also said to have plans for devices powered by the processor. TCL, for example, is said to plan the release of a 4.5-inch smartphone capable of HD resolution and which would also include 2GB of RAM, while running under Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. Lenovo’s quad-core smartphone should be released as an entry-level device as well, packing a 4.5-inch 960 x 540 screen and a clock speed of 1.2GHz. Furthermore, Zopo is rumored to pack the processor inside its so-called “Leader Max” device, which will boast a 5.7-inch 1080p HD display, 2GB RAM, 8MP or higher camera, and Android Jelly Bean.

A certain Neo N03 smartphone is also rumored to arrive with a quad-core 1.3GHz MT6589 CPU inside, 1GB of RAM, and a 5.3-inch touchscreen display. It should pack a 12-megapixel photo snapper on the back. For the time being, there’s no confirmation available on the upcoming availability of these devices, but more should emerge soon.

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Image credits to Sony

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