With the Sony Ericsson Vivaz being our first model enabling HD-video recording I decided to try to learn some more on how this has been developed by our development department and if there were special difficulties or challenges around this. I found a colleague that has been heavily involved and asked him some questions.
Here he is – Fredrik Ågren
- Who are you?
My name is Fredrik Ågren and I am the software architect for video support on Sony Ericsson phones based on Symbian OS. I have been working with software platforms for mobile phones since 2000 and first joined Sony Ericsson as a consultant for the P800 model back in 2002. Through the years I have been involved in many of our platforms and products. Most recently I have focused hard on introducing HD video support in the newly launched Vivaz model.
- What was your responsibility when it came to the Sony Ericsson Vivaz
My responsibility in general is to lead the requirement analysis regarding video related features for upcoming models and identify feasible implementations. This means a great deal of interaction with our R&D sites around the world and also close contact with our suppliers which of course is great fun. When Vivaz was still in the analysis phase I worked pretty much full time on leading the HD support analysis. As the feature moved from prototyping into the implementation phase, I’ve also been leading other improvement work for Vivaz, for instance related to video streaming and video telephony.
- How good is Vivaz really when it comes to capturing HD-video, can you share things like average fps and things from analysis you’ve done?
The HD support on Vivaz is great. Vivaz can record HD video at 24 frames per second and we’ve focused quite hard on the picture quality as well. However, it is not a trivial task to secure such heavy processing all the time in a pre-emptive multitasking environment where the phone functionality always has the highest priority. One cool thing though is that we have equipped Vivaz with golden sample CPUs. These are special units from the production line that can run at significantly higher clock speeds when required. This provides the customer a sufficient margin for an always great HD experience with Vivaz.
- What was the biggest challenge in the development?
Sony Ericsson work with high standards so the most challenging part was not to deliver the basic functionality as such but to deliver it with the overall quality our brand requires and to make that happen in time for the product launch. There are many factors affecting the overall end user experience such as frame rate, bit rate, camera startup time, power consumption and the ability to maintain performance while multitasking. We have investigated HD support in previous models but Vivaz is the first opportunity we have had where we could deliver this feature all the way.
- What was most fun?
Most fun for me has been the international cooperation to get this support in place. For a long time we have worked closely with colleagues in Japan and China, so in the end this is really an international feature from Sony Ericsson. I have gained a lot of experience in foreign social and professional working culture and made good personal friends along the way as well.
- Any surprises along the way?
Yes, for sure things happen that you have not anticipated. Still I have worked with projects like this for such a long time so I try to keep that in mind. One example is the cost of getting our golden sample CPUs which in the early days was so high that it was not really an option for us. Still, we continued to focus on optimizations in software so that when the units eventually came at a more reasonable cost, we really had a great platform to work with. This was the time I realized we were actually looking at what would become an HD video enabled product. We work in a highly variable hardware, software and business case environment, so limiting factors one week may not be significant the next. One needs to have a long term goal focus with a short term agile mindset to take advantage of that.
- What kind of videos do you shoot yourself?
I especially use Vivaz for those spur of the moment situations when my two daughters Agnes (3) and Linnea (5) do funny stuff. Sony Ericsson has the slogan “Never miss a shot” and that is definitely valid for video as well. When the kids are all grown up, that’s when I will truly appreciate these clips.
From Vivaz Pro | Symbian Blog
15th February 2010.
00:14
[...] give you a great sense of the look and feel of the device that the Pro is based on. And an interview with Fredrik Ågren, architect responsible for video support in Sony Ericsson phones. Fredrik has said that the biggest [...]
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By Linda
21st February 2010.
04:54
Can you install software to make the Satio take HD Video because of its 12MP Camera? The Satio does have a good processor and the vivas does not still have a good processor as the Snap dragon 1GHertz processor. Why did you not put the 1GH processor in the Vivaz made by Qualcomm ARM-based CPU? was there issues with it being in the X10 and you could not use it. Why does the Vivaz not have full Flash Player support, Flash Lite is crap, nearly 60% of web sites use full flash player, so it is stupid not to have full Flash Player support on the Vivaz. Why have you chosen Symbian S60v5 which does not support avi’s, DivX, Xvid, wmv, flv etc playback support when the Vivaz will be taking HD Video this is also stupid. Are you not listening to the Customers on what they would like in a smart phone and what they use their phones for nowadays?
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By Linda
21st February 2010.
05:14
Totally forgot about the Mini USB charging facility how will we Satio user use our TV out cable on the Vivaz, hope SE puts a TV out cable in the Packaging and also an extra Stylus, why was it not housed in the phone like the P series phones, Satio’s pen is stupid hanging off the phone like a dangling thing. Why have these SE developers not thought of any of these things, why customers actually bought the P Series phones over any other smart phone on the market which has touch screen etc. (HTC, Nokia)
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From Vivaz Pro | SymbianTweet
21st February 2010.
07:11
[...] – Fredrik Ågren ( software architect for video support on Sony Ericsson phones based on Symbian OS) [...]
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From Symbiania.com :: The SYMBIAN Planet » Blog Archive » Vivaz Pro
12th March 2010.
02:41
[...] give you a great sense of the look and feel of the device that the Pro is based on. And an interview with Fredrik Ågren, architect responsible for video support in Sony Ericsson phones. Fredrik has said that the biggest [...]
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By mohammed
22nd April 2010.
15:13
plz how can i download flash player in Vivaz.. i really need and id really appreciate if someone replies???
Thank u!
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By Tomas
12th May 2010.
16:35
hello Frederik,
how come that a lot users are complaining about VIDEO playback on Vivaz? Either the video is laging and missing pixels, or in the “newest” firmware up to date, the playback video is stuttering at the beginning of playback. I am talking about this FW:
Soft vers.: 1224-4699_R2AK006 18-02-10
User version: 1232-1978_R2AK006 18-02-10
WHEN will Sonyericsson release some FINAL FW, with all bugs sorted out? (out of memory, when taking video or photos, locking memory for some reason, not possbile to store messages on mem.card, battery quickly draining, vivaz is taking uglyer photos than k850i, not mentioning the ‘poor’ led mini-torch – which has no meaning. The led driver could be taken over from the x10mini..)
Shouldn’t be Vivaz the ultimate High-end video mobile??
I think, the SE is missing the point in QUALITY ORIENTED company… 
Would be nice to have you reply on my question, about the firmware, including a lot better video and camera driver.
kind Regards,
Tomas
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By Khaled
22nd June 2010.
14:10
Unfortunately I bought a VIVAZ PRO. I made my decision based on many feedbacks and specifications published. Till now ad after 10 days from continuous searching; I still can’t figure out how to resolve 3 major problems supposed to be straight forward. 1) don’t can’t connect to the TV. why? simply because Vivaz doesn’t come with a tv cable and there is nothing in the documentation tells you how to connect it. Regular Vivaz comes with a cable; I bought exactly similar cable but it didn’t work. Actually the documentation says about the 3.5 it is for audio. 2) the published specifications says it has a push email, when I configured my gmail account it chooses to download only specific number of email headers then stops, and i’ve to connect to try updating my inbox, not to mention I never got any push email notification or got all the email headers downloaded. 3) the major advantage was the battery extended life that can last one complete day as published with most extensive usage of all kinds; actually it hardly can last for 2 hours only if you try to use it extensively.
I regret buying this phone and investing wiht sony ericsson, which is a mistake will never happen again.
1. Any display on the
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By sherrie
1st July 2010.
22:52
how do u connect the vivaz to the tele. we have plugged in the lead but dont know what channel to select on tele or which option on the phone please tell us how
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By LEMOS
4th July 2010.
00:58
It would be helpful for consumers and developers alike you indicate the precise type of TV out cable required for SONY Ericsson Vivaz to play videos on a tv. No information is provided in the manual, some third-party video on YouTube is suggestive a 3.5mm AV cable is required but I tried at home and it did not work. Frustrating for such an expensive mobile phone.
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By Evelyne Furness
13th July 2010.
09:37
Hi buddy, your blog’s pattern is basic and clean and i like it. Your weblog posts are excellent. Please hold them coming. Greets!!!
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By Mc^. =]
5th September 2010.
05:08
Hi, am wondering if anyone could help me
The question is, does sony Ericsson vivaz have ovi store?
Because I reviewed the nokia N97 and I liked the ovi store in the software
Thanks 
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By Mc^. =]
5th September 2010.
05:21
Pleaseee help me asap!
1) Will the Vivaz/Vivaz Pro be able to use the Ovi Store?
2) Does Sony Ericsson (SE) have its own store?
Thanks
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By santoosh.k
18th September 2010.
11:19
hi…i m using sonyericsson vivaz pro. i am unable connet exchange mail in my mobile. i want know how it. i am using vodafone.. any one can tel abut dis…
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By download free dvd movies
9th November 2010.
18:36
I have browsed every word you have indicated here. It gives me a good outlook in a lot of topics now. I’m certain it can do the same for your audience as well.
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By gaurav
6th January 2011.
20:03
this phone is crap.
no secondary camera, 8.1 mega-pixel video camera is useless as a slight shake blur the video or image,
gps is crap(never able to detect the signals),
os software is too slow and hangs every time,
i had it 4 7 months and it was send to service center 18-24 times(even cant remember),
its motherboard was changed twice nd whole mobile was replaced once…
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By RICHARD
2nd March 2011.
20:58
WHERE DO I BUY A RF CABLE FOR VIVAZ U5 ?
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