ICS update now rolling out for the Sony Xperia arc and Xperia Neo

Two more members of the Xperia family are joining the Ice Cream Sandwich club - congratulations to the Sony Ericsson (well, technically Sony now) Xperia arc and Xperia neo.

What they're getting is Android 4.0.4 - the latest available from Google - but they're sticking with an older kernel - 2.6.32. The update is being rolled out in stages, so it might not be available for your unit just yet.

Owners of an Xperia arc can check this page to see if the ICS update is available for their unit (you need to check the phone's SI number printed under the battery) and Xperia neo owners can have a look here.

The remaining Xperia phones from the 2011 lineup - Xperia mini, Xperia mini pro, Xperia pro, Xperia active and Live with Walkman - are also to get the 4.0.4 update starting some time this week, though we haven?t seen reports of updated phones yet (post in the comments if you do get the update). The Xperia PLAY will not be updated as previously reported.

Xperia phones that already got the ICS update (arc S, neo V and ray) will also be getting the Android 4.0.4 treatment soon (what they received was 4.0.3).

The NXT series will take a bite of the Ice Cream Sandwich starting with the Sony Xperia S (update expected in late June), with the Xperia P and Xperia U following in Q3.

Source 1 . Source 2

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Upcoming Sony smartphones to support the Russian GLONASS

Sony has announced that their newly announced Xperia smartphones, the Xperia S and Xperia Ion, will come equipped with the GLONASS satellite navigation system built-in.

What's more, they have also revealed that some of their previous smartphones on sale right now have had GLONASS support built-in since launch. These other handsets include the Xperia arc, Xperia arc S, Xperia ray, Xperia neo, Xperia pro, Xperia PLAY, Xperia active and Live with Walkman.

In case you weren't aware of it, GLONASS is to Russia what GPS is to America. Most of the phones have just GPS on-board, which restricts them to 31 satellites but having both, GPS as well as GLONASS on-board, you have access to 24 additional satellites, which not only speeds up lock-on time but also ensures you get a lock-on in trickier places, such as when you're surrounded by tall buildings.

Sony is not the only company to have GLONASS along with GPS built-into their phones. Apple, Nokia, Samsung and Motorola too have a few models that include this functionality. Hopefully, more phones will include this feature in future.

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