While Sony Ericsson have the top-notch Xperia X10 lined up for release in February next year, they also have queued their environment friendly mobile phones - the Sony Ericsson Elm and the Sony Ericsson Hazel for a market launch in 2010. The Elm and the Hazel are part of the phone maker's GreenHeart venture. They will come packed in eco-friendly material, are made from recycled plastic, are free from hazardous chemicals and are supposed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Moreover, unlike many of the 'green' handsets, they offer interesting features, which will encourage consumers to as well go green.

The Sony Ericsson Elm mobile phone is a candybar with a 2.2", 240 x 320-pixel resolution screen. It features a 5MP snapper, a music player, FM radio with RDS, a microSD card slot and 280MB of internal memory. The NetFront web browser is integrated within, and you'll be able to check your emails, use instant messenger, Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync and watch YouTube videos. You can even send and receive SMS and MMS. The battery life quoted is about 10 hours for talk, 430 hours for standby and 3 hours for video calls. GPS is also supported. Turn-by-turn navigation can be had with Wisepilot as well. The Elm will be available in two colour schemes - pearly rose and metal black.

The Sony Ericsson Hazel mobile phone is a slider, which shares plenty of common features with the Elm. This mobile handset too has a 5MP camera, a music player, FM with RDS, microSD card slot, the NetFront browser, support for emails, SMS, MMS, IM, Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync, access to YouTube and GPS. The battery life claimed is similar to that of the Elm again. The Hazel has a 2.6" display with a resolution of 240 x 320 pixels. It will be available in superior black and passionate rouge shades.

Both these eco-friendly mobile phones might be retailed by network operator O2. The Sony Ericsson Elm might start shipping in Q1 next and the Sony Ericsson Hazel might step into the market in Q2.