Sony Ericsson is developing a new type of touchscreen which detects the finger’s pressure on the Z axis in addition to the X and Y position on the screen.

Sony Computer Science Laboratories (Sony CSL) Inc. gave a live demonstration of the new panel at an open house event. The panel was fitted into a small device for the demonstration. The icons moved faster or slower depending on how much pressure was exerted on the screen.

Sony is aiming to reduce power usage and cut down manufacturing costs before making it available for mobile devices. According to Sony, “commercialization is not far of”, and the technology could make it to mobile devices really soon.

Sony Ericsson has launched two new Bluetooth headsets – the VH110 and VH410. The two devices are made entirely from recycled plastic and covered in water based paint, and will join the GreenHeart range of devices.

They are the first products to be launched under Sony’s Extras Talk category. Both headsets offer 10 hours talktime and 350 hours standby. The VH110 measures 22.7 x 18.7 x 49.0 and weighs 9.5 grams. The VH410 measures 25.2 x 18.0 x 50.4 and weighs 11.6 grams.

The VH110 comes in black while the VH410 will be available in black, red and silver.

Sony Ericsson is planning to launch a new phone in the Walkman series. The company is developing a Walkman phone on the Android platform and plans an official announcement sometime this month.

The phone is rumored to have similar specifications to the X10 Mini. It will have the same 2.6 inch touchscreen as the Mini.  It will also have the same 5MP camera without LED flash. Other specs include 3G, Bluetooth and GPS. The phone will have a 600 MHz processor. There is no news on whether the phone will run on Android 1.6 or Android 2.1.

An update for several Sony Ericsson handsets has been released. The update makes it the second update for the Sony Ericsson Satio and Sony Ericsson Aino. The Satio update brings in extra features, which allow you to upload to YouTube and Facebook. You can also shoot widescreen videos with WVGA and watch them in increased resolution (864×480). It’s also possible to connect the phone to gaming systems and home entertainment systems through DLNA. Unfortunately, there’s no information on whether this has fixed any of the ongoing issues with the handset. Let us know if you’ve noticed any differences/improvements after updating.

Two new phones have been announced today for those living in Japan. First up is the Cyber shot S003 which, from the looks, is a cross between the C905 and the Satio. On the front, it features a slide out keypad (like the C905), with a 3.2 inch display. The handset can display up to 16.7 million colors and display in 480×854 resolution. Where as on the back, the S003 looks very similar to the Sony Ericsson Satio, including the 12.1 megapixel camera. It also features a Sony Exmor image sensor. It appears to be available in white, black, pink and purple.