Sony Xperia E dual

SONY XPERIA E DUAL REVIEW

Sony had released the Xperia Tipo Dual in the market, a device that received a fair deal of acclaim and praise. So it only made sense for the company to roll the affordable dual SIM device once again, this time with the Xperia E Dual, an Android device that might be running an older version of Android but comes packed with features. There are two things that we can say about the appearance of the Xperia E Dual. First, it is very different from the block-like design that marks other Xperia handsets. Secondly, that in spite of this, the Xperia E does not exactly stand out in a crowd. This is mainly because the design is largely conservative and familiar – the unit we received was all black with a silver strip running along the sides. The front is dominated by the 3.5-inch touchscreen, while the back is made of textured plastic, which makes the phone easy to grip. The SIM card and microSD card slots are located below the battery, and thus not hot swappable. There are three touch panels below the display and three hardware buttons (volume rocker, power/ screen lock and camera) on the right side of the phone. The 3.5mm audio jack is on the top of the phone, and the left side houses the microUSB port. All in all, the phone looks decent enough, but we honestly expected more from Sony. In terms of hardware, the Xperia E Dual delivers pretty much what one would expect at this price point. The phone is powered by a 1GHz processor and comes with 512MB RAM. The 3.5-inch touchscreen comes with a disappointingly low 320 x 480 resolution, and does not utilise the Mobile Bravia engine that is seen in high-end Xperia handsets. Internal memory stands at 4GB out of which 2GB is available to the users – of course, one can store more using a microSD card. The phone’s dual SIM connectivity supports two GSM networks, and you can designate either SIM as the master SIM from the SIM manager which is available in the notification bar itself. It should be noted that one can make calls and use Internet connectivity only from the master SIM – the secondary SIM can only receive calls. Connectivity options include 3G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. When it comes to software, we were disappointed to see the Xperia E Dual running on Ice Cream Sandwich, especially when its single SIM counterpart, the Xperia E comes with the newer Jelly Bean version of the Android OS. That said, ICS is extremely user-friendly and Sony’s Timescape interface does add a fillip to it by bringing social network connectivity right to the users’ homescreen. You get a total of five homescreen panels whose number cannot be increased but which you can customise using widgets and app shortcuts. You can also customise the four buttons in the menu bar as per your needs and requirements. The phone also comes pre-loaded with a number of applications, including WhatsApp Messenger, TOI and Hungama TV. The Xperia E Dual comes with a music player and FM radio for music lovers, as well as a 3.15-megapixel camera with fixed focus. The camera does a decent job of taking pictures as long as light conditions are good (no, there’s no flash either) and you don’t get too close to the subject. Video too was adequate rather than exceptional. However, the sound quality more than compensated for this. The Xperia E Dual comes with Sony’s traditional Walkman player, with enhancements and equaliser settings. The quality of sound is excellent especially on the bundled headphones. The FM Radio is easy to use but comes with limited options. One can use the Track ID option with which one can download songs playing on the radio, but this does not seem to work that well with Hindi songs. Sony has bundled a pair of headphones worth Rs. 1,490 with the phone, which makes the phone a sound investment, literally. Our experience of the Sony Xperia E Dual was a mixed bag. We liked the dual SIM functionality of the device and the sound experience was definitely good. Battery life was exceptional, with a single charge taking it well beyond a day of usage. However, in terms of design and performance, it did not really come up to the high benchmarks set by Sony – there were occasional lags in performance.

SPECIFICATION & FEATURES

SONY XPERIA E DUAL PRICE

Price in USA $244

Price in UK £121

Price in EURO €180

Price in PAK Rs.19,800

Price in INDIA Rs.10,990