Sony Ericsson today broke newer ground with the launch of the TM506, the company's first ever cellphone for T-Mobile's US branch. The clamshell is pitched as a fashion device but is also one of T-Mobile's few 3G phones, supporting faster UMTS data speeds and better call quality over the 1,700MHz band. Faster-still HSDPA access is also promised, though whether this applies to T-Mobile's network or only on the 2,100MHz band is unknown.

Outside of its connection rates, the TM506 is considered a mid-range media phone with a two-megapixel camera, Sony Ericsson's normal media software suite and a Memory Stick Micro slot to hold content. Assisted GPS is built-in and can use TeleNav or similarly-designed services for its mapping.

Unusually for such a launch, neither Sony Ericsson nor T-Mobile has revealed a price for the handset, which goes on sale in early September with support for T-Mobile's MyFaves service.