// Pocket Picks //

Sony Ericsson has been threatening to release a gaming phone for longer than we can remember and though a Playstation branded Sony Ericsson is still only available in a parallel universe filled with unicorn derbys and talking pies, the company has taken a step closer with a new gaming focussed handset, with motion controls at its core.

The Sony Ericsson F305 is a GSM/EDGE slider and has dedicated gaming controls as well as Motion Gaming, which you can use to control games with ‘ the flick of a wrist or the swing of an arm’. Indeed the F305 comes packaged with the motion controlled trio, Bowling, Bass fishing and Jockey straight out of the box and Gameloft has pledged support for more motion controlled games for the handset (and its sibling) in the future.

Besides the fancy control options the F305 also has the PlayNow services heavily integrated into its set-up (via a gaming shortcut key) with a range of 2D and 3D games already available for purchase. The device is being aimed squarely at a younger audience so the option to choose between a range of interchangeable face plates is an uninspired and predictable inclusion. It’s what the kids want apparently though so who are we to contradict what’s super hip and pop and fresh etc. Innit.

Anyway, on the phone side there is a media player, 2.0 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, Stereo FM radio and a pair of stereo speakers (which should never be included in a phone aimed at young-uns if you ask us, cantankerous though we are).  There is also an 8-hour battery life with an optional CPP-100 backup battery pack to extend its life a bit.

It’s all a little underwhelming as far as spec sheets go but it does help to maintain the device’s tight focus on gaming, which we are all about.

So not the reveal we have all been hoping for, and those O and X buttons combined with a sign that looks not unlike a Playstation controller are an almighty tease, but it’s a step in the right direction nonetheless and a nice stop gap until the real deal arrives (we live in hope).