Sony Xperia S first hands-on

Want to know what a Sony Ericsson phone looks like without the Ericsson? Here you go: the Xperia S, presented here today at CES 2012. Oddly, the live phone still has the old-school Sony Ericsson branding, so it’s hard to say what’s going on here — it’s entirely possible that this prototype was made prior to the Sony-only press photos we’ve seen today.

We just had a few brief seconds with the phone so far, but stay tuned for more shots and impressions and soon as we can get them. We’ve played a bit more with the phone (video below) and it’s a very handsome device, especially with the transparent strip at the bottom, which isn’t actually touch-sensitive — the labels are for the touch-sensitive soft buttons on the screen above. The transparent panel is hiding a secret, though: if you look closely you can see the mesh of the radio antenna hidden within. (Check out the macro shot in the gallery below.) The soft-touch feel of the device should keep it from slipping out of the hand, but even with the 720p Reality Display we’re not entirely sure that the Xperia S can hang with the top of the line Android phones of December 2011, much less 2012. Naturally, we’ll need to give it a full review before we pass further judgement.