Troubled handset vendor Sony Ericsson today named Japan’s NTT Docomo as the first operator customer for its debut Android smartphone, the Xperia X10. Docomo will support a localised version of the X10, called SO-01B. It will be available from April and comes with an 8.1 megapixel camera and Qualcomm’s 1GHz Snapdragon processor. Pricing details were not released. In November Sony Ericsson said that the X10 will be the first of a family of Android-based phones that it will launch over the next year. Meanwhile, at a news conference in Tokyo unveiling the Docomo deal today, chief executive Bert Nordberg noted that Google’s conflict in China will not affect Sony Ericsson’s plans to launch the X10 in the country this spring. Google this week postponed the launch in China of two mobile phones from Motorola and Samsung which use the Android platform, in the first sign its business there is starting to be affected by a dispute over hacking and censorship.

In other Sony Ericsson news, the vendor today launched another Symbian-powered smartphone – the Vivaz – which supports high definition video and has an 8.1 megapixel camera. “Vivaz follows on from the Xperia X10 announced in November 2009 and is the second phone in the new family of communication entertainment phones coming to market in the first half of 2010,” notes a statement. Vivaz will come to market this first quarter. Pricing details were not disclosed. Sony Ericsson is attempting to return to profitability after losing market share in recent quarters (the firm announces fourth quarter results tomorrow). At some stage this year it is believed the company will also announce it is to drop support for one of its many operating system partners (most likely, Windows Mobile).