Sony's Xperia Projector could be the best home gadget you never knew you wanted

Xperia Projector
Xperia Projector

Alongside its new Xperia X and Xperia XA smartphones, Sony has also revealed a new number of concept ideas it has been working on including the Xperia Ear, Xperia Eye, Xperia Agent and - potentially the most exciting – the Xperia Projector.

It might have the dullest name of the four, but the Xperia Projector was the Sony product that caught my eye at this year's Mobile World Congress this year.

It's a little box, no bigger than your average computer, that does a lot more to a blank wall than your average movie projector.

Xperia Projector

The Sony Xperia Projector runs apps and works as a central hub in your home for assistance and keeping up to date with the outside world. While I was inspecting the box I saw apps such as weather, calander and contacts among others.

Perhaps most impressively, the projector works also works as a virtual keyboard, allowing you to give it voice and gesture commands. There are a variety of different menus that turn any white service into a screen of your choosing.

Xperia Projector

This is still in the development phase so everything was a little laggy when I tried it, but considering this is such an early concept I was surprised by how well it seemed to work.

The good news is that it's not just for those with large blank walls. It works just as well on a table, too. In fact, this way it's easier to play games on even let the kids draw over the surface with their fingers rather than pens.

Xperia Projector

Watching the demonstration of how the Xperia Projector works I started to understand why this could be a really useful device.

It's not just about giving you a way to watch the latest episode of Game of Thrones on a bigger surface. When it comes to apps, there are so many possibilities.

Xperia Projector

The projector itself, although not final, looks great and wouldn't look out of place in the home living room. It's compact, so it wouldn't stick out when not in use.

Sony was demonstrating this as a home phone-style device where you can tap the wall and ring your mum, but personally I think this could be used for bigger and better things.

Gaming, education and any number of creative tasks could be enhanced by having a this type of technology in your home. That's not even to mention the possibilities if it were to be used in schools.

Xperia Projector

For now this is just a concept, and there's no sign from Sony that it will actually be available to buy one day. But I hope Sony sees what potential it has on its hands here, and gets it on the market sooner rather than later.

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James Peckham

James is the Editor-in-Chief at Android Police. Previously, he was Senior Phones Editor for TechRadar, and he has covered smartphones and the mobile space for the best part of a decade bringing you news on all the big announcements from top manufacturers making mobile phones and other portable gadgets. James is often testing out and reviewing the latest and greatest mobile phones, smartwatches, tablets, virtual reality headsets, fitness trackers and more. He once fell over.