Japanese consumer electronics giant, Sony officially unveiled the water-proof variant of the mid-range smartphone Xperia M2 on Tuesday (19 August).
"Xperia M2 Aqua is a significant milestone in our product portfolio as we bring yet another of our signature technologies to a new category of smartphones," said Calum MacDougall, Director of Xperia Marketing at Sony Mobile.
"The popularity of Xperia M2 showed us that there was a huge demand for premium Sony features at an affordable price-point. Following consumer feedback, we've now taken this a step further by bringing our waterproof expertise to a mid-range smartphone for the first time with Xperia M2 Aqua. It is a smartphone that lets customers take the best of Sony technology and entertainment with them wherever they go – come rain or shine – and we are excited to bring it to market," he added.
The new Xperia M2 Aqua features pretty same specifications seen inside the original Xperia M2 (got released in India in April) model, sans the inclusion of water-and-dust repellant certifications and camera specifications.
It sports 4.8-inch qHD (540x960p) display and runs on the latest Android 4.4 KitKat powered by the 1.2GHz Snapdragon 400 series CPU, Adreno 305 graphics engine, 1GB RAM, 8GB inbuilt memory (expandable up to 32GB).
As the name suggests, Sony Xperia Aqua comes with water-proof (IP65/IP68) and dust-tight (IP65) certifications, where in the phone can perform normal functions 1.5 meter (close to five feet) underwater for up to 30 minutes [Provided that all the open ports are closed with flaps, which comes with the package].
The company has confirmed that Xperia M2 Aqua will hit stores this autumn 2014 in select markets, including Latin America, Asia Pacific and Europe. However, the details regarding the price-structure and specific release time line of the device are still under wraps.
Checkout the official Sony Xperia M2 video:
Key specifications of Sony Xperia M2 Aqua:
| Model | Sony Xperia M2 Aqua |
| Display | 4.8-inch qHD (540x960p) screenPixel density: 230 ppi (pixels per inch) |
| OS | Android v4.4 KitKat |
| Processor | 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 series quad-core CPU |
| GPU | Adreno 305 |
| RAM | 1GB |
| Storage capacity | 8GB, expandable up to 32GB |
| Camera | Main: 8.0-megapixel camera with auto-focus, full HD (1920x1080p) video recording, Exmor RS sensor, HDR, 4x digital zoom, Red-eye reduction,Front: 1.1-megapixel camera |
| Battery | 2330 mAh;Talk time: up to 11 hours 23 minutes
Standby time: close to 641 hours |
| Network | 3G & 4G-LTE (in select markets) |
| Add-ons | Water-proof (IP65/68) and dust-tight (IP65) certifications, Bluetooth v4.0, Wi-Fi Miracast, NFC, A-GPS, DLNA certified, |
| Dimensions | 140.0 x 72.0 x 8.6 mm |
| Weight | 149 g |
| Colours | White & Black |
[Image credit: Sony Mobile]
