Sony Ericsson today announced the launch of the Z520, a global phone aimed at the fashion conscious who want the functionality of an up-to-the-minute device in an appealing, stylish design. The Z520's high-tech features are wrapped inside the smooth sleek body of an elegant clamshell, creating a small and inviting handset that fits in the hand as easily as it does in the pocket or bag.

The Z520 fits into any fashion scheme, although this Bluetooth-enabled device is a fully featured phone that works all over the world. It comes in a wide choice of colour schemes based on white and silver frames, and additional Style-Up covers in a multitude of patterns allow for ultimate personalization, making the Z520 fit for any occasion.

The VGA camera can take pictures or video clips with the phone open or closed. The camera lens is on the same side as the external screen, which acts as a reference viewfinder, so you can easily frame shots of yourself or with friends. When the phone is open, the 1.8 inch TFT display shows the full resolution pictures. Images can be linked to contacts, shared around locally using infrared or Bluetooth, or sent to friends as an MMS message.

The built-in game, "New York Nights" from Gameloft is an entertaining way to discover the fun of city life. Players can find out how they would fare if they arrived in New York with just a few dollars in their pocket. Downloading more games and ringtones is easy with PlayNow?, where users can preview games or pre-listen to ringtones from a frequently updated selection, then just click to download. The phone?s 16MB memory can store hundreds of ringtones, pictures or video clips.

Style-Up covers are available in Pale Blue, Sandy Grey, Ceramic White, Espresso Brown, Peach, Mint, Pale Yellow and Pale Pink.

Z520 will be available from 3rd quarter 2005 onwards in the Americas, Asia Pacific region, China, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

The Z520 will come in the following editions:
Z520i Quad Band GPRS 850/900/1800/1900MHz for EMEA, APAC, HK, LAM
Z520a Quad Band GPRS 850/900/1800/1900MHz for Americas
Z520c Quad Band GPRS 850/900/1800/1900MHz for Mainland China