***The Official Sony Xperia Z Thread ***

Just received my xperia z, seems like a lovely phone, a nice upgrade over my galaxy s2, comes in a big box with the headphones and phone in their own separate boxes inside, get your usual stuff in the box plus 2 protectors, one for the front screen and one for the rear.

I think the screen angle issues some reviews have talked about are a bit over exaggerated, sure it's not brilliant viewing at 179 degrees but it's not like you can't tell what's going on.

Will be interesting to see how the battery stacks up though, first real test for myself will be tomorrow when I'm back at work and using it 'normally'.

First impressions though are very good and the flaps are pretty easy to get on and off too.
 
Is this worth upgrading to from an SGS3, main reasons are camera, water/dust proofness. I know the SGS4 is coming out but fancied a change from a samsung. Had an ARC S sometime ago and loved it.

thanks
 
Just picked mine up from CPW. Strangely, the guy asked me what deal I was going to be on, and he was surprised, like he'd never heard about it...

Comes with screen protectors in the box too :)

Oh yeah and I also got the headphones.

Edit: the wall charger is ass. Why does it have to stick out so much.
 
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Nikh23 said:
Was going to sell the docking station that comes with the ASDA preorder, if thesis the case I may keep it!
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Haha. Well I presume the same plug/cable just goes into the back of the dock rather than a new wall plug/cable :( Obviously it's not a big issue, it's just a squeeze getting even a normal plug into the socket next to my bedside unit thing never mind this thing...
 
Doohickey said:
Haha. Well I presume the same plug/cable just goes into the back of the dock rather than a new wall plug/cable :( Obviously it's not a big issue, it's just a squeeze getting even a normal plug into the socket next to my bedside unit thing never mind this thing...
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What are your views on the device itself? Very interested in the phone, but want to get a full view of it before making any final decision.
 
well i've just rung asda and they said they have now received their stock and will be delivered on the 1st of march. (so they say )
if not then i'll be demanding some asda vouchers

that'll teach me to buy a phone from a grocery store !!
 
A few first thoughts- (note: I have never owned an Android phone before, and coming from iPhone 4)

It's not as un-ergonomic as I thought. Yes it's not as comfortable as a SGS3, but unless you have puny hands, it's absolutely fine. It feels very 'premium' indeed. It really is such a slick design- it's as close to an 'edge to edge' screen as I've ever seen. If you don't like bezels on your phone, this is for you.

The glass front and back are inevitable fingerprint magnets- however while I don't know how oleophobic other devices' screens are, this isn't that bad. I installed the supplied screen protectors, and they're rather good.

The wall charger is weird, as I mentioned before. It looks like a nice design, but it sticks out miles :-/ Why can't everyone just make chargers like Apple's.

The loudspeaker is a bit rubbish compared, more tinny compared to my iPhone.

Audio output- sound quality is really really good (as per the history of most Sony portable music players), full equaliser settings present, really nice Walkman interface. Headphone output is not as loud as on my iPhone, and there isn't a volume limiter to blame for that. Still, very good. I think many people use apps like PowerAmp?? Maybe volume output can be tweaked? I'm not saying it's too quiet- this depends on the user and the headphones used, it's just not AS loud as the iPhone can drive.

The all important screen! Again I must reiterate I'm not used to SAMOLED or whatever others have- I have played with SGS3s, Nexus 4s, for example and my instinct is that the contrast/blacks are better on them.

Firstly the screen is undeniably stunning. There are pre-installed photos in the album which show off the display pretty damn well.

Now onto viewing angles- in terms of clarity/legibility, it's absolutely fine. What isn't as fine are colours at an angle. Blacks become grey, colours/brightness don't fade as such, or even change (e.g. like you might see on a TN LCD monitor with poor angles), they're just less vibrant, if that makes sense. This is what people are talking about when they say washed out, I suppose.

E.g. on my iPhone 4, colours stay absolutely true and consistent at every angle, I can't say the same for the Z. And this 'change' does seem to happen at relatively shallow angles actually. This is disappointing. This might be a deal breaker for a lot of people, and that's understandable, but I don't think it's too big a deal for me at the moment (even though I'm coming from a better screen, in terms of viewing angles).

That's it for the moment, still playing around. :)
 
Also, the position of the loudspeaker is stupid. If you're holding the phone in portrait orientation with your right hand, the meaty part of your hand/base of the thumb is likely to block the speaker port.

And I haven't held a HTC One yet, but on aesthetics alone, despite the 'unibody', I still think I prefer the Xperia. It's just stunning from every angle. The HTC looks a bit more industrial in design (e.g. front facing speaker grills, machined body) etc but this is just stunning from every angle.
 
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Bit more feedback- just as I read on a review (possibly BGR or Engadget), the camera app is pretty remarkable. First thing that stands out is the live view refresh rate/frame rate. There is barely any delay in tracking what you're pointing at. As I say I'm coming from an iPhone 4 so I don't know if this the norm now, and it's very subtle, but very impressive nonetheless. Also, 'Superior Auto' mode is very very neat. There are so many features and functions, but the app is not overloaded and is not hard to use at all. Really good camera app.

^ I haven't used a Nokia 920 to be able to compare photo quality with I'm afraid. Battery life, we'll see over the next 24-48 hours.
 
Doohickey said:
The all important screen! Again I must reiterate I'm not used to SAMOLED or whatever others have- I have played with SGS3s, Nexus 4s, for example and my instinct is that the contrast/blacks are better on them.

Firstly the screen is undeniably stunning. There are pre-installed photos in the album which show off the display pretty damn well.

Now onto viewing angles- in terms of clarity/legibility, it's absolutely fine. What isn't as fine are colours at an angle. Blacks become grey, colours/brightness don't fade as such, or even change (e.g. like you might see on a TN LCD monitor with poor angles), they're just less vibrant, if that makes sense. This is what people are talking about when they say washed out, I suppose.
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Sounds like some good unbiased info on the screen there - bottom line IMO is that the screen is great and that the not so great blacks and viewing angles will put a select few people off this phone.

Congrats on your shiny new purchase :cool:
 
I have to agree with the Camera, there is zero lag when panning with it and something that you just didn't realize could be improved but it just feels silky smooth and this is comparing it to my SGS3!

There is nothing wrong with the screen, coming from the SGS3 the colours are more vibrant but the Z still pulls its weight and looks incredible. I full HD is subtle but again you really appreciate especially when browsing.

I feel it was given some harsh reviews from some, i don't think the grey/washed out theme has helped thats standard as it giver the homescreen a washed out look when infact its not the screen its the theme.

I have to say i'm overall impressed, it feels like a really premium product and looks absolutely gorgeous!
 
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