The clunky name of the XPERIA X10 Mini might work against the phone when it arrives, but it has some compelling arguments in its favour in the form of decent hardware, dinky styling and the Android operating system onboard. It will be available in a rainbow of colours if Sony Ericsson follows through with its intentions, although it should initially hit the market in black and pearl white. The styling borrows heavily from its full sized namesake, although the 5 megapixel camera and flashlight are mounted slightly differently and there are a few modifications made to accommodate its small construction.

The reason that the X10 Mini is tagged as such is clear from looking at its vital statistics. With a 2.55 inch touchscreen display it has a lot less screen space than most other Android-based smartphones on the market. It weighs just 88 grammes, which is lighter than many entry level handsets that cannot match up to its processing might. With a 600MHz CPU under its skin, the X10 Mini is able to power Android adequately and even Sony Ericsson's flashy overlaid interface looks as if it will run smoothly here. The lower resolution screen should help it keep up as well.

The X10 Mini supports 3G networking with HSDPA for downloads and as with a full sized smartphone it has Wi-Fi for an alternative way to get online, along with GPS for mapping, navigation and geotagging. This allows it to outclass virtually every other mobile of the same size, although since the X10 Mini is a smartphone full of powerful components, it will also be one of the most expensive mobiles in its weight class.

The XPERIA X10 Mini has integrated social networking features, with Facebook and Twitter given centre stage as is usually the case. Multimedia playback will be provided with extensive support for common formats and a basic 128MB of onboard storage space can be expanded up to 16GB using a separately purchased microSD memory card.

Sony Ericsson has spruced up Android with its own Timescape application. Timescape represents Sony Ericsson's attempt to offer a converged messaging and contacts system that integrates elements of social networking. It is all about organisation and it will draw together messages received from the same contact across multiple mediums and manage them in a logical manner. This allows conversations to flow between two people without the artificial restrictions of a traditional inbox system interfering with the process. Sony Ericsson is not the first firm to create this kind of system, but it is a welcome addition to the X10 Mini and it really shows off the capabilities of the processor as it is graphically intensive with plenty of flying photographs and smooth-moving screens.

The real issue with the X10 Mini is its screen. The full-sized XPERIA X10 sports a display that measures 4 inches across and has a high native resolution. This makes web browsing and multimedia playback easy for everyone to view. However, with the X10 Mini you get the potential to perform all of the same functions, but with a screen that just does not lend itself to them quite as naturally. There is no doubt that the X10 will have appeal in the youth market, as its diminutive frame will fit into the skinniest of jeans, but the price of this tiny powerhouse will probably be a little too high for teens to pick up.

The X10 Mini will be available SIM-free from early in June for an RRP of just over £300 and a UK network will probably subsidise this with a contract deal, although no firm has announced the X10 Mini yet.