Release dates surface for Moto Droid X2; Sony Ericsson Xperia Play

A little red birdie has passed on possible release dates for some of Verizon Wireless's most-anticipated smartphones. And since that birdie gave us reliable information before (mainly, the HTC Incredible 2's April 28 debut), we're inclined to believe that the following dates will hold up. So here's what we know.

The HTC Trophy is scheduled to arrive May 12. Verizon promised late least year that it was bringing Windows Phone 7 to its handset stable, but the carrier has yet to show us the goods despite earlier false alarms. Bonnie Cha has reviewed the unlocked GSM version of the Trophy so we at least have a taste of what's to come. Our tipster tells us, however, that Verizon's Trophy will be geared to users of Microsoft's Xbox Live Network.

Also on tap for May 12 is the Motorola Droid X2. As Scott Webster told us on Monday, the handset is an update for the current Moto Droid X. It should offer a 1GHz dual-core Tegra 2 processor with 768MB RAM, but we don't think that it will support Big Red's 4G LTE network. We've expected for a while that the handset would land this spring, and now it looks like it will really happen next Thursday.

Finally, we should also get the long-awaited LG Revolution on the same day. We first saw the handset way back at CES so it's not an understatement to say that we've been waiting for it on the edge of our seats. As a reminder, the Revolution's features should include Wi-Fi, 4G LTE, a mobile hotspot for up to eight devices, an HDMI port, and HD video.

Jumping ahead two weeks to May 26 (apparently, Verizon really likes its Thursday releases) the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play should finally get its game on. Though the release of the Xperia Play was no surprise last February at Mobile World Congress, it was a shock that Verizon would be one of the first carriers to get it. The first rumored release date of April 14 has since passed and it now looks like early May (the next rumored date) won't happen either. Honestly, by this point we've waited so long and seen it so much that an extra couple of weeks won't really matter. Yet, we will say that Sony Ericsson and Verizon are coming close to making the "PlayStation phone" somewhat irrelevant for the U.S. market.

Keep in mind that any of these dates could change. Our source, however, isn't expecting a Samsung Droid Charge-style delay. We'll see in a week so hang on to your hats!

Thanks, VZW_Rep