Sony Xperia Z review: Zero hour

introduction

Whether they had a point to prove to the ex or simply kept themselves busy to get over it, Sony were hard at work in the last year or so. They can look back at a prolific period, though somewhat lacking in brilliance. Keen to quickly build a lineup from scratch, the company was consciously avoiding fights that were impossible to win. Steering clear of the premium end, Sony positioned its flagship devices just below the Samsung Galaxies and the iPhones.

   
Sony Xperia Z official photos

Now with solid backup in the midrange, returning to the fiercest battle in the mobile market is Sony's top priority. The Xperia Z, which leads the charge, got us properly impressed in a recent hands-on and if it walks unscathed from a complete review, we'll know the Japanese have hit the form of their life. Sony is the first of the major manufacturers to bring 5 inches of 1080p goodness to the market, which not only is a morale booster, but will get cash registers chiming too.

Key features

• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support; 3G with HSPA; LTE
• 5" 16M-color 1080p capacitive touchscreen with 441ppi pixel density; Bravia Mobile Engine 2
• Android OS v4.1.1 Jelly Bean with custom UI
• Quad-core 1.5 GHz Krait CPU, 2 GB RAM, Adreno 320 GPU; Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro chipset
• 13 MP autofocus camera with LED flash and geo-tagging, HDR
• 1080p video recording @ 30fps with HDR mode, continuous autofocus and stereo sound
• 2.2 MP front-facing camera, 1080p video recording
• IP 57 certification - dust resistant and water resistant
• Wi-Fi a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct and DLNA; Wireless TV out
• GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS
• 16GB of built-in storage; microSD card slot
• MHL-enabled microUSB port
• Bluetooth v4.0
• NFC
• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
• Accelerometer and proximity sensor
• Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic
• Glass front and back panels

Main disadvantage

• Low contrast display with below-par viewing angles
• Non user-replaceable battery
• 13MP camera hardly any better than some competitors' 8MP units
• Feeble loudspeaker

The Sony Xperia Z is stuff geeks' dreams are made of, it's designed and built to the highest standard and has raw processing power to spare. IP57-certified - on top of that - for dust and water resistance, it's tougher than most competitors. High-end smartphones aren't quite fit for the beach or white water rafting, but the Xperia Z won't be at odds with your active lifestyle.

   
Sony Xperia Z studio shots

The Xperia Z seems to have all the best technology currently available under the hood, so no wonder it's been at or near the top of our interest chart ever since it was announced at CES. And now, just one week away from 

Retail package is par for the course

The Sony Xperia Z comes in a slim retail package that contains the smartphone itself, a wall mount plug a USB cable and a pair of headphones. Unfortunately, you have to use the USB cable with the dedicated charger as it has no cable of its own. Our unit also came with a 2GB microSD card preinserted, but we expect the size of the card (and its presence altogether) to vary from region to region.

 
The Sony Xperia Z retail packge

Sony Xperia Z 360-degree spin

Ever since initial rumors of the Sony Xperia Z and its 5" screen surfaced, many have expressed concerns that the smartphone will be impossible to handle, even before having seen it. However, once more details started to appear, it became clear that Sony has done an excellent job of minimizing the bezel and the Xperia Z is only about a millimeter wider than the 2012 flagships. They also managed to keep the weight under control as the Xperia Z tips the scales at the perfectly reasonable 146g.

Sure, it's a tad taller than the Galaxy S III or the One X, but it's certainly not unmanageable. And if over 50 million pockets and palms were big enough for the flagships of old, then the Sony Xperia Z has nothing to worry about - particularly when you take into account that the tradeoff is a gorgeous fullHD screen.

   
The Sony Xperia Z sized up against the HTC Butterfly and the Oppo Find 5

Design and build quality

The Xperia Z is instantly recognizable as a Sony device with its sharply angular design, but it departs from the arc-inspired back of its predecessor, instead featuring a more modern looking flat back. There's no denying that the smartphone is a real looker - the glass covered front and back panels go along excellently with the rubberized edges and the glossy blue plastic bits on the sides. It's a handset that you'd be proud to be seen with.

There are several flaps on the sides that not only helped the Sony Xperia Z achieve its IP57 certification, but also conform to its design. There are no ugly gaps and openings to spoil the smartphone's profiles - it all looks consistent and stylish. The only exception is the rather big lanyard eyelet at the bottom right corner, but even that doesn't look too out of place.

 
The Sony Xperia Z is certainly a looker

The choice of materials has just one negative side - with twice the amount of glass used, there's that much more area to cover in smudges and fingerprints. Indeed the Xperia Z turns into a greasy mess quite quickly, causing it to lose some of its brilliance. Fortunately, the good news is that cleaning it isn't particularly hard. Besides, you can always opt for the white version, which will certainly make fingerprints harder to spot than on our black review unit.

The build quality seems excellent as well - there are no squeaks, creaks or any other disturbing sounds to be heard when handling the smartphone and it generally feels quite sturdy. We can't do a proper test of the back panel scratch resistance, but Sony claims it's the same as the one on the front so it should be quite durable.

by via GSMArena.com - Latest articles