Apple fans have the new iPhone to look forward to.

HTC fans expect to have Froyo rolled out very soon.

Sony Ericsson fans are feeling a bit left out.

In fact, owners of Sony Ericsson’s range of smartphones have chosen to officially register their displeasure at being left out of the latest Android OS update with an online petition.

While there is no doubting that the Xperia X10 range are all excellent phones, they all come with version 1.6 of Android.

Most reviewers would agree that the Xperia X10 and Xperia X10 mini can compete with the HTC Desire and Wildfire respectively on most fronts. However, because they come with a more outdated version of Android, some people have been put off going for the Sony Ericsson smartphone, while those that have bought them have been left somewhat disappointed.

This disappointment has been compounded by the fact that although Android have promised that an OS update will be coming later this year, it will only be up to version 2.1, which most HTC phone’s already come with.

As HTC phones are set to be upgraded to Android 2.2 in the next few weeks, Xperia X10 owners will have even more reason to feel that they are being neglected by Android.

This has lead a group of such owners to post a petition online. It reads as follows:

To: Sony Ericsson
We would like to suggest a path for the future development of the Sony Ericsson (Xperia X10, Xperia X10 mini and Xperia X10 mini pro)

Some recent developments on the Android platform have made the current OS software 1.6 outdated. Most of the current products sold by your competitors (e.g HTC, Motorola and Samsung) are currently running on 2.1 and some are already getting the new OS software 2.2.

The OS software version 2.1 has been announced for the end of the current year to be available on your Xperia x10 line, but the 2.1 update will still put your product behind the competition since even older devices will be running OS software 2.2 at that time.

The hardware specification of the X10 line is clearly impressive and should in theory be able to be quite competitive. Sadly, the hardware is extremely limited by the software, preventing us users from being able to utilise the full capacity of your device. Furthermore we are unable to make most of the applications available to Android users, since the minimum requirement for many applications is version 2.1.

Wireless technology is an integral part of everyday life and we as the consumer would like to request the new Android OS version 2.2 to be implemented instead of the 2.1.

We believe it would serve Sony Ericsson’s interest as well, making your product competitive and expend your user base. As you know the Android platform is rapidly growing and update is the key of that success.

We hope you will understand our concern and deman

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

On my last check, the ‘Undersigned’ numbered a staggering 7296.

This impressive number probably reflects what I believe is justified anger from Xperia X10 owners.

Ignoring the fact that the Xperia X10s haven’t even got version 2.1 yet, the list of improvements that HTC owners will be receiving when they get their update to 2.2 shows exactly what those with Xperia X10s will be missing out on.

If you click below you will see the extensive list of improvements that ‘Froyo’ users will get to enjoy

With another update currently codenamed ‘Gingerbread’ expected to be launched in time for Christmas, it could be the case that Xperia X10 owners will have only just got the 2.1 update when others are already being upgraded beyond Froyo.

One of the huge benefits of Android over Apple is the regularity with which they bring out software updates. The extent of the improvements will breathe a breath of fresh air into HTC phones, so it feels very unfair that Sony Ericsson phones are missing out.

You can sign and view the petition here.

You can check out the range of Android phones available to buy now here.