Sony Xperia Z

The Sony Xperia Z is a touchscreen enabled full HD Android flagship high-end smartphone designed, developed, and marketed by Sony Mobile.

The phone was announced by Sony at CES 2013 and was released in February 2013. The Xperia Z runs the Android 4.1.2 (Jelly Bean) software. The smartphone has Ingress Protection Ratings of IP55 and IP57, making it dust protected, water-jet protected, and waterproof in up to one meter of water for up to thirty minutes, and features a 13.1MP Exmor RS camera sensor as well as a full HD (1080p) display, encompassed in Sony's Industrial 'Omni-Balance' Design. A cheaper variant called the Sony Xperia ZL uses the same hardware as the Xperia Z, but sacrifices water resistance for a smaller frame. Another cheaper variant the "Sony Xperia ZR" was announced on 13th May 2013 and is slated to release in "Q2 2013".

Specifications

This is a listing of Xperia Z’s main features and functions.

Camera and video

•           13.1 megapixel Exmor RS camera with Auto focus and Burst Mode

•           16x digital zoom

•           HDR for both picture/film

•           Face detection

•           Flash/Pulsed LED and Photo light

•           Front-facing camera (2 MP 1080p Exmor R)

•           Geotagging

•           HD video recording (1080p)

•           Image stabiliser

•           Picture Effect

•           Quick Launch

•           Red-eye reduction

•           Scene recognition

•           Self-timer

•           Send to web

•           Smile detection

•           Sony Exmor RS for mobile image sensor

•           Superior Auto

•           Sweep Panorama

•           Touch focus

Display and design

•           5", 1920x1080 pixels (441 pixels per square inch), 16.7 color TFT Opticontrast Display

•           Sony Mobile BRAVIA Engine 2

•           Scratch-resistant, shatter proof sheet on mineral glass

•           Capacitive touchscreen with on-screen QWERTY keyboard

•           Screenshot capturing

Pre-loaded applications

•           Google Chrome*

•           Google Play*

•           Google search*

•           Google Voice Search*

•           Google Maps for Mobile with Street view and Latitude*

•           Web browser (WebKit)

•           Google Talk application*

•           Google+*

•           Messenger+*

Memory

•           RAM: 2GB

•           Flash memory: Up to 16 GB

•           User available up to 11 GB

•           Expansion slot: microSD card, up to 64 GB

Networks

•           UMTS HSPA+ (Bands 1, 3, 5, 8 or bands 1, 2, 4, 5, 8)*

•           GSM GPRS/EDGE 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz

•           LTE (Bands 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 20 or bands 4, 17)

Entertainment

•           3D Surround Sound (VPT)

•           Album art

•           Bluetooth stereo (A2DP)

•           Clear Audio+

•           Dynamic normalizer

•           Music tones (MP3/AAC)

•           PlayNow service*

•           TrackID music recognition*

•           “WALKMAN” application

•           xLoud™ ExperiencE

•           3D games

•           Motions gaming

•           Video streaming

•           Facebook application*

•           Twitter*

•           YouTube*

Connectivity and communication

•           3.5 mm audio jack (CTIA)

•           GPS

•           Bluetooth 4.0 wireless technology

•           DLNA Certified

•           GLONASS*

•           HDMI via MHL support

•           Media Go

•           Media Transfer Protocol support

•           Micro USB support

•           Native USB tethering

•           NFC

•           PC Companion

•           Screen mirroring

•           Synchronisation via Exchange ActiveSync, Facebook, Google and SyncML

•           USB charging

•           USB High speed 2.0 support

•           Xperia Link

•           Wi-Fi and WiFi Hotspot functionality

•           Wi-Fi Miracast

•           Infrared Blaster (Japanese only)

Design

 Xperia Z's distinctive power button,Sony Xperia Z is a rectangular slab that marks a departure from Sony's 2012 design. The design is "OmniBalance", according to Sony, which is focused on creating balance and symmetry in all directions.Xperia Z has subtly rounded edges and smooth, reflective surfaces on all sides, which are held together by a skeleton frame made from glass fibre polyamide. The phone features tempered glass covered by shatterproof film on front and back. The distinctive hall mark of Sony's mobile devices in the form of the aluminium power button is placed on the right side of the device. The location enhances the one-hand operation for the device with 5 inch display. The metallic look and positioning of the power button is inspired by luxury watch crown design.[9] The phone is available in three colors; black, white and purple.

Hardware

The phone dimensions are stated to be 139 x 71 x 7.9 mm and weight is 146 grams (including battery). It comes with a Lithium-ion battery of 2,330mAh capacity. The Xperia Z will ship with a 1.5Ghz quad-core Snapdragon S4 processor and have 2048 MB of RAM (1.5 GHz Qualcomm APQ8064+MDM9215M Quad Core) . The phone is 4G capable, supporting LTE. The Sony Xperia Z has a 5.0" 1080p TFT display (1920x1080) with a pixel density (PPI) of approximately 440.6. The screen uses a Reality Display with Mobile Bravia Engine 2, which enhances the picture. The phone has a 13 MP primary rear-facing camera with Sony's Exmor RS sensor with high dynamic range imaging (HDRI) full HD video[10] and a front facing camera with 2.2 MP. The phone is covered on the front and back by durable tempered glass, where the front is Dragontrail Glass from Asahi Glass Company resin-bonded to the LCD (Opticontrast), and the back is Corning Gorilla Glass.

Features 

The Xperia Z runs Android 4.1.2, with Sony's custom skin laid on top. Other notable additions to the software include, Sony's Media applications - Walkman, Album and Videos. NFC is also a core feature of the device, allowing 'one touch' to mirror what is on the smartphone to compatible TVs or play music on a NFC wireless speaker. Additionally, Xperia Z includes HDR video recording capability, battery stamina mode which increases its standby time up to 4 times.

The body is made from a glass-fibre polyamide.[14] It is certified to IP55 and IP57 standards and is dust and water proof, allowing immersion under 1 metre of fresh water for up to 30 minutes.

Reception and sales

Xperia Z has received mostly positive reviews from critics. Damien McFerren of CNET gave the phone 4 and a half stars out of five and said "The Sony Xperia Z combines looks, power and connectivity to supply one of the most impressive Android experiences we've seen in quite some time. The lack of Android 4.2 at launch is unfortunate and that 5-inch screen isn't going to suit everyone, but there's little room for complaint elsewhere. This is easily Sony's best phone yet, and one of the best Android phones ever released". Android Central also gave the phone a positive review saying "For Android fans, the Sony Xperia Z was one of the highlights of a fairly quiet CES. A 5-inch, 1080p phone with a bold new design language and fancy new camera technology, the Xperia Z was probably the most compelling phone of the show. And just a couple of months later, it's now available to buy in the UK. Without a doubt Sony Mobile's new baby is one of the largest, specciest Android phones around". Like the critics the audience reactions to the phone has been very positive. At CES 2013, the Xperia Z won the ‘Best Smartphone' and ‘Best of Show' awards..According to a Sony executive, Mcdougall, early Xperia Z sales have been strong. He states, "It (the Xperia smartphone) sold over 150,000 units in its first week in Japan, taking a 24 percent market share straight away." "It may be a bit too early to say but the first signs are very positive."