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Xperia Z/ZL |OT| Experience the best of Sony in a smartphone
- Thread starter Canis lupus
- Start date
I think the waterproofing kinda muffles the sound. The xperia zl suffers from low in call volume as well. There are mods on xda forums that increase the volume a great deal
vivftp
Member
This add-on lens thing is fracking amazing. I mean think of the possibilities! If they don't abandon this thing and keep building up the sensor/lens ecosystem you could one day have a full frame sensor you can slap onto your phone whenever you feel like it.
I wonder where Sony plans to eventually go with this tech. Is this part of the future of their digital imaging division as a whole? Or just something that will mostly be relegated to mobile devices?
The lens/sensor using the components from the RX100 II is something I'm almost certainly going to get (unless of course they come out with APSC or full frame variants relatively soon after launch). I'm willing to bet the battery used in this will be the NP-BX1 Sony uses for the RX100 and many of its other cameras. It's quite small, and as a 1240mAh capacity. Considering the fact that it would not have to power a screen or flash, it should be able to give very decent battery life. It will of course have to maintain the wireless connection to the phone though.
It is a shame it's highly probable that using any of these lenses with Honami will mean it's no longer water, dust or shock resistant but it is understandable. IF they could somehow make these lenses rugged enough to give them all those features, I'll be amazed.
So... any of the insiders here know any more about this new feature?
I wonder where Sony plans to eventually go with this tech. Is this part of the future of their digital imaging division as a whole? Or just something that will mostly be relegated to mobile devices?
The lens/sensor using the components from the RX100 II is something I'm almost certainly going to get (unless of course they come out with APSC or full frame variants relatively soon after launch). I'm willing to bet the battery used in this will be the NP-BX1 Sony uses for the RX100 and many of its other cameras. It's quite small, and as a 1240mAh capacity. Considering the fact that it would not have to power a screen or flash, it should be able to give very decent battery life. It will of course have to maintain the wireless connection to the phone though.
It is a shame it's highly probable that using any of these lenses with Honami will mean it's no longer water, dust or shock resistant but it is understandable. IF they could somehow make these lenses rugged enough to give them all those features, I'll be amazed.
So... any of the insiders here know any more about this new feature?
Yea the clip on camera sounds amazing. I looked up the RX100 after Zomg mentioned it and seeing it on engadget and even though I don't know much about camera's I've seen a couple of shots and they're amazing for a camera that size
However, I can't drop £400 on a camera just yet so this sounds like a good substitute.
Just one question though, If it's using the same lens and sensor as the RX100 II then what features will be missing from the clip on camera that are in the RX100 II.
Also I got round to flashing my XZ, It's sad that Sony hasn't still pushed out on update still.
Anyways I'm loving the improvements.
-My LED notification light works for whatsapp with stamina mode on.
-Battery life since to be better since it went from 17 hours to 4 days standby time
-I love the transparent Nav and Status bar but are they only transparent on the homescreen?
-Screen looks saturated, have any of you guys calibrated it with the white balance settings?
-I love the quick settings options and the option to add more widgets to the lock screen.
Pretty happy with the update even though I had to do it myself.
However, I can't drop £400 on a camera just yet so this sounds like a good substitute.
Just one question though, If it's using the same lens and sensor as the RX100 II then what features will be missing from the clip on camera that are in the RX100 II.
Also I got round to flashing my XZ, It's sad that Sony hasn't still pushed out on update still.
Anyways I'm loving the improvements.
-My LED notification light works for whatsapp with stamina mode on.
-Battery life since to be better since it went from 17 hours to 4 days standby time
-I love the transparent Nav and Status bar but are they only transparent on the homescreen?
-Screen looks saturated, have any of you guys calibrated it with the white balance settings?
-I love the quick settings options and the option to add more widgets to the lock screen.
Pretty happy with the update even though I had to do it myself.
zomgbbqftw
Banned
The i1 is in London. :O
I'm due for a phone change for the first time in a long time and I had a few questions regarding the Xperia Z:
Firstly, I remember reading something about a screen lottery with a bunch of Sharp screens and some cheaper variants - is this still an issue? Am I going to end up with some substandard shit screen even though I'm paying for a premium phone?
Secondly, the phone came out a good while ago (by phone standards). Is it a good idea to get the Xperia Z now with a 24-month contract now or should I wait some time for the next Xperia which has been hyped up a good bit if I'm understanding things correctly?
Any other impressions and suggestions are always welcome.
Firstly, I remember reading something about a screen lottery with a bunch of Sharp screens and some cheaper variants - is this still an issue? Am I going to end up with some substandard shit screen even though I'm paying for a premium phone?
Secondly, the phone came out a good while ago (by phone standards). Is it a good idea to get the Xperia Z now with a 24-month contract now or should I wait some time for the next Xperia which has been hyped up a good bit if I'm understanding things correctly?
Any other impressions and suggestions are always welcome.
Have the previous leaks been accurate as to its looks?
I love the my Xperia Z but hearing about the rumored spec for Honami, I would wait.
Is there any ETA for when it'll be out?
zomgbbqftw
Banned
I wouldn't know. I was just told that it has arrived here for networks to test before the September launch.
vivftp
Member
Nice
BTW, any idea how long the delay from announce to release will be for i1?
I'm still amazed at this lens/sensor combo talk. I've come to realize that they basically have this tech already in the RX100 II with NFC and using the phone as a remote viewfinder for the camera. I've seen some videos of it in action and there are some delays so I'm hopeful they can get it to the point where there's no noticable delay.
I wonder what other accessories Sony may be planning. Expandable battery with camera grip like the Lumia 1020?
I'm guessing with all this camera tech they're almost certainly going to have a xenon flash for the i1. So excited
Any impressions on the device? Or is this one of those routine tests to confirm everything works with the carrier?
I am most concerned with camera quality and audio / video features.
zomgbbqftw
Banned
Nice
BTW, any idea how long the delay from announce to release will be for i1?
I'm still amazed at this lens/sensor combo talk. I've come to realize that they basically have this tech already in the RX100 II with NFC and using the phone as a remote viewfinder for the camera. I've seen some videos of it in action and there are some delays so I'm hopeful they can get it to the point where there's no noticable delay.
I wonder what other accessories Sony may be planning. Expandable battery with camera grip like the Lumia 1020?
I'm guessing with all this camera tech they're almost certainly going to have a xenon flash for the i1. So excited
I doubt they will have any expandable battery, the phone is already too big as it is.
The delay will be less than a month from official announcement to the first units hitting shelves, they are aiming for two weeks. But as you can see from today's leaks the device is basically finished, and testing for final production right now.
I have absolutely no idea about this lens+sensor accessory, as an educated guess I would say it's an "innovation product" from Sony's advanced tech division who are tasked with coming up with new business areas they think may take off. They also brought you great devices like the Rolly. D:
The camera quality is very, very good.
I have only ever had one hands on, but that was a long time ago and it looks slightly different now from today's leaks. Back then it was decidedly unfinished, the magnesium shell had sharp edges and the screen was significantly worse than what was pencilled in for production grade.
I'll try and get a hands on in the coming days, I think someone might bring one to the office soon so I'll post up some impressions if I can.
zomgbbqftw
Banned
That's the internal codename, the final name will probably be Xperia Z II or something like that.
September is what I've heard but others here can give better answers
Xperia Z II in the same year as the first Xperia Z and also with the Ultra.
Surely not?
EDIT:
New pics and rumored specs:
Sony Honami rumoured specifications
5-inch 1080p AH-IPS with “Triluminous”
1/2.3-inch 20.6MP Exmor RS BSI sensor
28mm equivalent Sony G lens
LED flash
16GB internal storage with microSD
Snapdragon 800 at 2.25GHz
2GB LPDDR3 RAM
3030mAh battery
~9mm thickness
So Good
http://www.xperiablog.net/2013/07/23/honami-pictures-leak-again-looks-like-the-real-deal/
Well damn. I was really stoked to get the Z but that's looking pretty good. I guess I can ride out this crappy old clamshell for a few more months.
Perfect timing. My HTC One X contract runs out in early October but I can upgrade from August 23rd.
Tallshortman
Member
Why is the bezel on the bottom so big? Only thing I don't like about the design.
vivftp
Member
I would assume because they needed more space to fit in the larger battery and hopefully larger speakers. The new speaker design has them firing downwards so one can only hope they've put some monster speakers in there (for a smartphone that is).
The lack of a xenon flash does have me puzzled though. I suppose it's not as big a deal for the on-board camera to me as I'm thinking about those add-on lens accessories, but for THOSE cameras it would probably be nice to have a xenon flash. I wonder if that means there will either be add-on flashes, or if those add-on lenses will actually have a flash built in.
Damnit, IFA can't come soon enough as I want answers damnit!
Also, zomg can you confirm what we're seeing there is in fact Honami and not just some other phone? A Z refresh was talked about by others, and I'm just curious if you can confirm we're just not seeing that.
Thanks!
EDIT.
One more question zomg. Since you stated i1 is just an internal name, then isn't it odd for it to have two internal names Honami and i1? How certain are we that both devices are in fact the same? It's just that I can't recall if any previous phones had two seperate internal names.
vivftp
Member
After playing with a friends Xperia Z and anothers ZL I don't think I would have regretted it so much if I had gotten that since it's highly likely the external lenses will work with it. Still, I held out and even though my x10a has a cracked screen I'm so close to finally upgrading with Honami!
The ONLY thing that might even give me a seconds pause is if rumors of a Playstation Phone start circulating, but I don't think anything like that is going to be seen anytime soon. I figure Honami should hold me over quite nicely until such a thing does become a reality.
yeah the specs are better and stuff, i just think that sony really knocked it out of hte park when it came to design and looks on the ZL. the honami is nice looking, but it just doesn't compare to the ZL. dat bezel.
also since 4.2.2 all of the issues with like camera were sorted, so i can feel like i can last another year or two. living in south asia has really put my zl to the test, and most of the pictures look pretty awesome.although obviously i am not a professional photography or know anything about cameras.
also since 4.2.2 all of the issues with like camera were sorted, so i can feel like i can last another year or two. living in south asia has really put my zl to the test, and most of the pictures look pretty awesome.although obviously i am not a professional photography or know anything about cameras.
zomgbbqftw
Banned
Accommodates a stereo speaker I think (it has L/R channels in a single grill) and it allows for a larger battery while keeping it thin overall. Plus it will allow easy use in landscape mode because people with large hands can just hold it with one hand and not cover any of the screen.
The design is well thought through, but personally I would have taken a ZL sized device and not bothered with waterproofing and being thin.
Personally I'm on board the Ultra train, I just hope Sony release a Wi-fi version of it with APQ8074 and 802.11ac wifi because for me it is the perfect small tablet and has no drawbacks. It's so thin and that makes it easy to hold.
Off topic - in 2013 these are the Sony products worth buying, to me at least:
RX100Mk1/2
RX1 with or without the AA filter
NEX-5R
NEX-6
Xperia Tablet Z
Vaio Pro 11/13
Vaio Duo 13
Xperia ZL
Xperia Z Ultra
Xperia "i1"
Bravia X900 4K 55" or 65"
PS3
PS4
Out of the whole Sony portfolio of over 500 products, these are the only ones worth buying right now. I count that as 16 products.
In other news, I got a rumour from a new source about the i1 Mini which is due in the first quarter of next year. Spiritual successor to the Xperia S, 4.3" 720p, v.small footprint and S800 using "A Touch of Quartz" design, whatever that means.
I think the intention is to have every market covered in 2014, small form factor flagship, large flagship and phablet/mini-tablet all with top grade specs.
The Xperia Z Ultra is the one with a 6,4 inch screen right? Isn't that a bit too small to use as a tablet? I'm currently using the first Galaxy Tab 10.1 and I might consider going a tiny bit smaller to maybe 8 inch but below that it won't satisfy my needs of a tablet any more. I use it mainly for watching TV shows or reading comics which will be much less fun with a small screen.
CurlySaysX
Banned
isn't it a little pointless having stereo speakers so close together? when in landscape mode they'll just act as a single mono speaker.
zomgbbqftw
Banned
Yup, but I don't make the decisions at Sony. I would have liked to see a slightly smaller speaker at the top and bottom for proper stereo, but it probably would have made the phone even bigger.
That's actually a really interesting list, zomg. Especially if you consider all areas that they are covering here: digital imaging, mobile computing, tv and gaming. Even though they've been getting killed with their tv division, interesting that you would pick out the 4K tv, which I would assume would have higher margins. Plus since they are setting themselves up as having a whole unified ecosystem for ultra hd, that could really serve them well if it takes off in the next few years.
Seems incredible that there would be 500 products though. Clearly they could stand to trim a chunk of that, one would think.
you are aiming only for the flagship devices, and then saying that you would buy literally all of them.
So thats like 100% success for Sony.
Last year list was almost 0.... maybe their best Bravia was rated well, but no Vaio and no Xperia were rated great.
I was just reading review on cheap Bravia's, and they seem to be very competitive these days... same goes for Vaio Fit. Xperia SP? Xperia L? All great products when you look at value/price.
So big improvement for Sony actually.
Canis lupus
Member
Why is that bezel so big... phone is gonna be bigger than Z. Hope the rumors about Honami 4.3'' with Snapdragon 800 is true.
i honestly doubt it... that wont sell.
Right now, people are equating price with size... so Galaxy S2/S3/S4 Mini sells great for Samsung as it is significantly gimped/cheaper.
If they just make screen smaller, then price would be very similar... and probably nobody but internet posters would buy it.
at least imho.
Sleeplessnights
Banned
Updated the phone to 4.2.2 and it was incredibly slow and sluggish but I didn't think much of it.
While I was cleaning the phone from some water drops I accidently held the volume up and power button. A quick google search reveals that's for clearing the system cache.
Now the phone works like a charm.
While I was cleaning the phone from some water drops I accidently held the volume up and power button. A quick google search reveals that's for clearing the system cache.
Now the phone works like a charm.
H_Prestige
Banned
So far the Z looks better. The new one looks too chunky and I don't like the metal sides. The glass frame with the bluish tint on the Z is so sexy.
vivftp
Member
It appears Honami may have paid a visit to the FCC. Got this from esato.
Click this link:
http://transition.fcc.gov/oet/ea/fccid/
Put PY7 in the first box and PM-0450 in the second box. All the docs that come up supposedly have to do with Honami. I haven't gone through them yet, but others have said it at least mentions a magnetic charging connector.
The question to ask now is, if Honami has a magnetic charging connector, why does the phone in the leaked photos not have one? Either that means it's not a final product that's been photographed, it's a regional variant that does not have the charging connector, or that's not Honami.
I suppose it's POSSIBLE the dock could be there, but isn't visible in the pics. Compared to the Z Ultra pics tho, I think we should be able to see it.
So... speculation?
Click this link:
http://transition.fcc.gov/oet/ea/fccid/
Put PY7 in the first box and PM-0450 in the second box. All the docs that come up supposedly have to do with Honami. I haven't gone through them yet, but others have said it at least mentions a magnetic charging connector.
The question to ask now is, if Honami has a magnetic charging connector, why does the phone in the leaked photos not have one? Either that means it's not a final product that's been photographed, it's a regional variant that does not have the charging connector, or that's not Honami.
I suppose it's POSSIBLE the dock could be there, but isn't visible in the pics. Compared to the Z Ultra pics tho, I think we should be able to see it.
So... speculation?
Does the Xperia SP get some love around here?
I've been looking for new phones and since I love Sony's and my contract ends in October I said.. why not.
I really like what I've seen so far from the Xperia SP and Xperia L as a mid-high end smarthphones but I've heard mixed comments about XL.
I want to see if there are some impressions about these two around here.
I've been looking for new phones and since I love Sony's and my contract ends in October I said.. why not.
I really like what I've seen so far from the Xperia SP and Xperia L as a mid-high end smarthphones but I've heard mixed comments about XL.
I want to see if there are some impressions about these two around here.
I see 4.3 has been announced for the Z range, perhaps as soon as August.
What do the Xperia-Z users here think of the overall durability? Has anyone's phone gotten cracks in the glass from normal usage or carrying it in jeans pockets? I've been looking over Sony's mobile forums (sonymobile) and quite a few complaints about cracks in the glass, either from drops or even carrying it around in the pocket apparently.
Worse, it seems Sony service centers will not repair the glass itself and replacements cost 50% of the original price.
I was looking to get this phone because I'm in love with the design, but am wondering if the Galaxy S4 is a better deal (though significantly pricier) with its removable back etc. I'm upgrading off the vintage Galaxy S
Worse, it seems Sony service centers will not repair the glass itself and replacements cost 50% of the original price.
I was looking to get this phone because I'm in love with the design, but am wondering if the Galaxy S4 is a better deal (though significantly pricier) with its removable back etc. I'm upgrading off the vintage Galaxy S
What do the Xperia-Z users here think of the overall durability? Has anyone's phone gotten cracks in the glass from normal usage or carrying it in jeans pockets? I've been looking over Sony's mobile forums (sonymobile) and quite a few complaints about cracks in the glass, either from drops or even carrying it around in the pocket apparently.
Worse, it seems Sony service centers will not repair the glass itself and replacements cost 50% of the original price.
I was looking to get this phone because I'm in love with the design, but am wondering if the Galaxy S4 is a better deal (though significantly pricier) with its removable back etc. I'm upgrading off the vintage Galaxy S
I've been using it with the Roxfit official case, had it in my coat pocket with USB sticks and headphones and whatnot, not a scratch.
around here SP and L are still not on all carriers (europe), so not many have them
zomg: any inkling on if a US carrier will carry the Honami?
As for all the hoopla about the bezels, I will wait to judge it until the press pics are released. It looks better in the more recent pics that compares it to the Z. Personally I'm surprised it looks so thin compared to what I was expecting.
As for all the hoopla about the bezels, I will wait to judge it until the press pics are released. It looks better in the more recent pics that compares it to the Z. Personally I'm surprised it looks so thin compared to what I was expecting.
zomgbbqftw
Banned
T-Mobile. Exclusive. Starts at $249 with a two year $20/m phone plan commitment I think, available in October. The HSPA+ version may be sold via Sony unlocked for $699 and will work on AT&T.
Rogers finally sent the 4.2 update and damn.. its so much better now.
Phone doesnt heat up as much when doing simple stuff.
Battery lasts a crap tonne longer. Dont lose over 15 - 25% just leaving the phone overnight. Now it doesnt seem to lose more than 5%.
Battery drain for games/apps isnt anywhere as much as it used to be.
Looks a bit cleaner with the clear menu buttons.
Seems a little bit snappier.
Camera i cant comment on as i dont really use it as much as i thought i would, but it seems that bringing up the camera is a smidgen faster.
Phone doesnt heat up as much when doing simple stuff.
Battery lasts a crap tonne longer. Dont lose over 15 - 25% just leaving the phone overnight. Now it doesnt seem to lose more than 5%.
Battery drain for games/apps isnt anywhere as much as it used to be.
Looks a bit cleaner with the clear menu buttons.
Seems a little bit snappier.
Camera i cant comment on as i dont really use it as much as i thought i would, but it seems that bringing up the camera is a smidgen faster.
source?
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