Both the Sony Ericsson W712a (W710 variant) and Z712a (Z710 variant) has now show up in FCC list. What's odd is the extra antenna, is this a requirement to get in to US phone market?

Although it is known that W710i and Z710i will be set for Americas with its Quadband capability, variant of the 2 phones are found in the FCC list. Sony Ericsson looks like creating a hearing aid compatibility version with a dual band network support (850 / 1900 MHz) plus an extra antenna.

Flipping through the manual draft we can see more info on the 2 phones. The manual said the phone is designed for Hearing Aid Compatibility (HAC) and uses many settings for optimized use with hearing aids. With the extra function, you can choose the setting in the phone to match the setting in the hearing aid before making or receiving calls in
HAC operation.

• T-coil Mode–if your hearing aid has a T-coil.
• Mic. Mode - if your hearing aid does not have a T-Coil
• Off–turns off HAC operation.

What's the use of the extra antenna? You can fully extend the antenna to answer the phone calls instead of open the flip. Of course, you can still answer the calls by opening the flip in traditional way.

via engadgetmobile

See more photos at next page. Read more about W710 and Z710 here

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