Hands on with the Sony Xperia P and U (photos)

BARCELONA, Spain--Sony kicked off Mobile World Congress today by introducing two new handsets for its Xperia line. The higher-end model of the two, the Xperia P has a 1GHz dual-core processor, support for NFC, Gingerbread (sadly), and an 8-megapixel camera. It comes in several colors including the red hue seen here. Also, notice the transparent bar at the bottom of the phone.

The 4-inch display is up to Sony's usual vibrant standards. All navigation on the phones is through the touch controls on the screen and just below.

You can customize the Xperia P's home screen with various widgets like a social media feed and photos of your favorite contacts.

There are no physical controls on the Xperia P so you'll use the virtual keyboard for messaging and e-mail and a virtual dial pad for making calls.

The design is standard but not unattractive. Rounded edges and a smooth finish give the phone a nice feel in the hand. The camera lens sits on the back side.

The Xperia P also has a trim profile. Several external controls including the volume rocker and camera shutter sit on the right side.

The Xperia U has a smaller 3.5-inch display. It shares the Xperia P's 1GHz dual-core processor, but it has a 5-megapixel camera. And don't expect Ice Cream Sandwich here, either.

The photo gallery app organizes your images into virtual "piles." Tapping each pile will display all photos in a grid format. The Xperia U also has the lighted band below the display.

After tapping an individual photo you can send it to a friend or access editing tools.

The media player has a simple interface with touch controls and album art.

In typical Sony style, the Xperia U also comes in several colors. Besides the white version (pictured here), we also spied a bright-yellow handset.

On the back you'll find the Xperia U's camera lens.