Sony Ericsson has announced a new mobile phone which is its first to run on Google's Android operating system.

Android has been doing well among other handset makers as a tool for successfully countering the Apple marketing machine. Four of the top five vendors in the world having now announced an Android product and roadmap with only Nokia giving it a miss.

Sony Ericsson, the world's fourth largest handset maker, has suffered since 2008 from a lack of attractive high-end models in its offering, and saw overall third-quarter sales shrink 45 per cent year-on-year. Many analysts think that the X10 is a high-value smartphone that will help Sony Ericsson back on the road toward profitability.

It will not go on sale until early next year. IT will have a 4-inch-wide touch screen, will use Qualcomm Snapdragon processor and will come with an 8.1 megapixel camera.