Another 6 months passes and another Sony flagship is released this time its the Xperia Z3 (the 4th Xperia Z phone, following the Z,Z1,Z2) it's compact sibling the Z3 Compact, which unlike other minis does a smaller phone properly, and last but not least Sony doing what Sony does best, a great product with a terrible name, the Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact, yup, that's the official name folks.
Xperia Z3
The Xperia Z3 is everything the Z2 should have been, which in and of itself was everything the Z1 should have been, which is what the Z should have been, so less than 2 years after the Zs first introduction (just) , we have the Z3.
With a much more refined design, a slightly tweaked screen (the thing they majorly fixed with the Z2 over previous Sony phones) improved front stereo speakers and updates to the battery and software, the Xperia Z3 has very much been about refinement over innovation, Sony had the right idea with the "omni-Balance" design with the Original Z,but needed time to smooth out the bumps, the Z1,Z2 and now Z3 seem to have done that for them, if you put them all next to each other, you can tell they all come from the same OEM, and internally 2 of them are nearly identical and one having only 1GB less of RAM.
Gone are the big bulky flaps that extend all the way to the front and back, now we have smaller flaps that feel like they were designed to fit in, rather than just tweaked to fit the rest of the phone, since the Z1 Sony has gotten rid of the flap over the headphone jack and i am pleased to report that it's still gone here, the Micro USB, Micro SD and Micro SIM slots are all covered behind flaps though, but Sony still has their magnetic charging port, and if i were you, I'd pick up either a microUSB attachment for it, or just the magnetic dock to make your life easier, pseudo-wireless charging.
the 5.2" 1920x1080p screen from the Xperia Z2 is here and they've somehow tweaked it even more to brighten it up, colours still pop and viewing angle issues on Sony devices are a thing of the past, it could still get a bit brighter I've heard, but the display is no longer a sore point for Sony phones. A Snapdragon 801 clocked at 2.5Ghz is present, so 4 Krait 400 CPU cores and an Adreno 330 GPU, easily enough power to push the Z3's screen without issue and play even demanding games with ease. Sony has bought the 20.7MP Exmor R sensor back with the Z3 but made yet more improvements on the software side to improve low light photography, they've managed to get the camera to register ISO up to a whopping 12,800, my dedicated camera even go that high (probably). it still Shoots 4K, and the (probably) wont be able to cook bacon on the back of this one after 30 seconds.
The Battery is still a sealed unit, a non-removable 3100mAh battery pack that Sony claims will last you 2 days of use, while I'm usually sceptical of OEM battery claims, Sony usually seems to get pretty close to their claims, there isn't any fast charge like Samsung or Oppo use on their flagship phones, so that massive battery will still take a good while to charge. That battery is no small feat, seeing as the Z3 is only a measly 7.3mm thin (the iPhone 5S is 7.6mm) and weighs in at a dainty 152g. Android 4.4.4 with Sony's Xperia UI on top are back again, the Xperia UI is pretty unobtrusive, it still gets in the way here and there, but its not as much of a visual departure as Sense or Touchwiz from stock.
No Pricing, but Sony said it should be available in Japan "and other regions" in Autumn (fall for you American folk).
Xperia Z3 Compact
Take everything i just told you about the Flagship Z line, and shrink it to a size normal hands can actually use, that is the Z compact line, the Z3 Compact builds on last years Z1 Compact, with a bigger screen (but not a bigger body) a better battery,better SoC and better camera optimisations.
The Xperia Z3 Compact is just that, it's a more compact Z3, the device only really differs in 2 areas: the screen, and the battery. the screen has been swapped out for a 4.6" 720p panel that from what i read looks astonishing, the drop in pixel density isn't really an issue when everything looks as nice as it does, and the battery going from 3100mAh to 2600mAh, now you'd think that losing 500mAh will take a massive hit on battery life right?
Wrong.
Sony still is estimating 2 days of use, because the lower resolution screen off sets the smaller battery, and because of the lower resolution screen, the GPU doesn't have to work at hard, therefore saving you power, Thanks Sony.
The Same 3GB of RAM, the Same Snapdragon 801 at 2.5Ghz, the Same 20.7MP camera, are you getting the gist here? the only major depart is the frame is no longer metal, but a translucent plastic, a big deal for some but not for others, i don't really mind but then again i haven't had the chance to hold one, other technology reviewers at IFA with hands on have said there is no issue with how it feels.
No pricing or release as always, but you can probably expect it pretty soon, i mean hey, with Sony's 6 month Flagship deadline we're going to see the Z4 at MWC in Barcelona, they have to sell this before they show that, I'd say November time we will see the Z3 and the Z3 Compact go on sale.
Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact
I think you can probably guess what I'm going to say here, take the Xperia Z3 and scale it up to 8 inches, while that is mostly true, there are a few more differences here, the camera on the back is downgraded to 8mp (don't take photos on your tablet) snapper and the front is a 2mp camera that's acceptable for Video calls, but you're probably going to take selfies on it, the batter has been given a boost to 4500mAh for a battery life of 13 hours.
All the Xperia Devices I've talked about so far are waterproof for up to 30 minutes at 1.5m which is around 5ft ish, and even though they have to use flaps to gain their waterproofing, Sony's Omnibalance design is very generous is not making it look like crap, quite the opposite really, the Sony devices are staggeringly gorgeous and these new ones feel even better than they look from what i hear.
Again a trend for Sony seems to be engineering marvels, the Z3 Tablet Compact has a 4500mAh battery, yet only weighs in at 270g, even crazier? this thing is sub 7mm thin! at 6.4mm this tablet could probably give you a shave if you aren't careful enough, along with engineering marvels Sony seems to go hand with terrible naming and the Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact most certainly fits there, unfortunately, at least it isn't the Sprint Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch,so there is that.
Did i also mention that phone calls and texts are a thing on the Z3TC? yeah they are, but please don't hold this up to your ear.
As you're probably used to now, now price or release date, but expect it to be soon after/with the Xperia Z3 and Z3 Compact.
Smart watch 3
Those of you that follow me on Twitter or Google+ know that i have and use a Sony Smartwatch 2 on a daily basis, i love it apart from 2 minor annoyances, neither stop me using it, but they'd be welcome improvements.
The first is the screen, the SW2 has a 1.6" 220x176 Transflective LCD screen, it's an okay screen, and it's pretty amazing is broad daylight without the back light on, but its noticeably pixelated and the fact its a rectangle kind of irks me. The second annoyance i have with the SW2 was the OS it used, its a special OS made by Sony to run on the SW2, it's meant to mimic android in certain ways, it even has a home,back and menu button, a notification pull down and more, but the fact is, it just wasn't very good, it's functional and easy to use ,but its not particularly full featured, and people need to make apps for the watch, for instance i use Hangouts a lot, but there isn't a first party app by Sony for hangouts, and every single 3rd party on sucks, I've settled on the best one of a crap bunch, but thats not exactly high praise.
With the Smartwatch 3, Sony fixed those 2 main annoyances i had with the Smartwatch 2, they swapped out the 220x176 1.6" screen for a 1.6" 320x320 Transflective screen, Yes! a square screen and a higher resolution one at that, they've apparently also increased the colour reproduction when the back light is on, a gripe many had with the SW2 but one that didn't bother me too much. They also changed the software, they moved to the much more functional and awesome Android Wear from their proprietary Smartwatch OS, there is now an always on mic, listening for you to say "OK Google" and open up Google voice search, Google Now is of course present with its predictive abilities, scaring the bejeebus out of some people, but i enjoy it, and of course, good hangouts integration along with good Gmail integration, Google Play Music All Access integration and much more, all the stuff i use and want.
So you'd think I'd be ecstatic about the Smartwatch 3 wouldn't you, i mean after all they fixed the two things that bothered, me, what could go wrong?
They messed what didn't need to be messed with, that's what.
Sony changed the design, that gorgeous Aluminium body with chamfered top edges, that nice big (if slightly mushy) power button on the right edge have been replaced by a cheap looking, nasty silicone strap, and the watch itself is now a module that you just pop out, it's just pretty nasty, it looks like something you'd give to an 8 year old, "My first smartwatch" or something like that, they changed the one thing no one asked them to change, the SW2 looks lovely from a hardware perspective, you could throw any strap you wanted on there thank to the 24mm band, you cant do that any more, silly,nasty, neon Sony silicone straps now, the classy SW2 has gone to crap with this, with the leather band i can wear my SW2 with a nice suit, there is not a single place i could wear this apart from the beach where it wouldn't look out of place, what a step down Sony, I'm disappointed (not that you care, you're a company and I'm a single blogger) i was gearing up to sell my SW2 for the SW3, but after this, it looks like I'm saving up for an Asus ZenWatch instead.
Like every other Android wear watch, the Sony Smartwatch 3 utilises a Snapdragon 400 (Cortex A7) and 512mb of RAM, it has a 410mAh which while sounding unimpressive is the largest Android wear battery is my memory serves me well (it probably doesn't) it has the usual pedometer apps, Sony adds a Walkman app like it does with everything else, price was 160 Euros , no release date if i remember correctly.
Smartband Talk
Picture the Gear fit from Samsung in your mind, now take that gorgeous curved OLED screen out and slap a curved E-Ink one in there, now scratch out the Samsung Name and write Sony in with a sharpie, you've got the Smartband Talk.
Now that is a bit mean, you can actually take calls on the Smartband Talk, seeing as its in the name, it's a fitness tracker like a fitbit flex, but a curved E-Ink screen, it's kind of cool, and i guess if you didn't want a fully fledged smartwatch ,something like this might be cool
At 24g you'll barely feel it and at 9.5mm you might not even realise its there, the 1.4" Curved E-ink screen has a resolution of 296x128, so not the highest, but most certainly high enough for reading emails and texts on this and telling you who is calling.
The Smartband Talk is also a sleep tracker as well as a fitness tracker, like all the other new wearable trackers, forgive if i seem a bit bored on this, because i am, so lets move on, No price or release yet.
Xperia E3
The Xperia E3 is a forgettable mid range phone, a 4.5" WVGA Screen 5MP rear camera, Snapdragon 400 and 1GB of RAM, not much to say, it'll probably be super cheap, sub 150 euros is my guess
Lens Cameras, we got more of them
Remember those lens camera's we started selling last year? sure you do the point and shoot that clips on your phone and took forever to do almost anything, you don't? oh well, we have 2 new models, the QX1 and the QX30, the QX30 is basically last years QX10 but with a nice super zoom lens, take your iPhone and stand it up, that's how tall the lens is when it's fully extended.
And the QX1, well you know you have one of our pretty awesome NEW /Alpha Cameras? take the important "camera" bits out of there and put it in a cylinder now that clips to your phone, and you Can use your super expensive lenses with your phone, because , why not.
Xperia Z3
 |
| Image credit goes to the Verge from the Xperia Z3 hands on |
With a much more refined design, a slightly tweaked screen (the thing they majorly fixed with the Z2 over previous Sony phones) improved front stereo speakers and updates to the battery and software, the Xperia Z3 has very much been about refinement over innovation, Sony had the right idea with the "omni-Balance" design with the Original Z,but needed time to smooth out the bumps, the Z1,Z2 and now Z3 seem to have done that for them, if you put them all next to each other, you can tell they all come from the same OEM, and internally 2 of them are nearly identical and one having only 1GB less of RAM.
Gone are the big bulky flaps that extend all the way to the front and back, now we have smaller flaps that feel like they were designed to fit in, rather than just tweaked to fit the rest of the phone, since the Z1 Sony has gotten rid of the flap over the headphone jack and i am pleased to report that it's still gone here, the Micro USB, Micro SD and Micro SIM slots are all covered behind flaps though, but Sony still has their magnetic charging port, and if i were you, I'd pick up either a microUSB attachment for it, or just the magnetic dock to make your life easier, pseudo-wireless charging.
the 5.2" 1920x1080p screen from the Xperia Z2 is here and they've somehow tweaked it even more to brighten it up, colours still pop and viewing angle issues on Sony devices are a thing of the past, it could still get a bit brighter I've heard, but the display is no longer a sore point for Sony phones. A Snapdragon 801 clocked at 2.5Ghz is present, so 4 Krait 400 CPU cores and an Adreno 330 GPU, easily enough power to push the Z3's screen without issue and play even demanding games with ease. Sony has bought the 20.7MP Exmor R sensor back with the Z3 but made yet more improvements on the software side to improve low light photography, they've managed to get the camera to register ISO up to a whopping 12,800, my dedicated camera even go that high (probably). it still Shoots 4K, and the (probably) wont be able to cook bacon on the back of this one after 30 seconds.
The Battery is still a sealed unit, a non-removable 3100mAh battery pack that Sony claims will last you 2 days of use, while I'm usually sceptical of OEM battery claims, Sony usually seems to get pretty close to their claims, there isn't any fast charge like Samsung or Oppo use on their flagship phones, so that massive battery will still take a good while to charge. That battery is no small feat, seeing as the Z3 is only a measly 7.3mm thin (the iPhone 5S is 7.6mm) and weighs in at a dainty 152g. Android 4.4.4 with Sony's Xperia UI on top are back again, the Xperia UI is pretty unobtrusive, it still gets in the way here and there, but its not as much of a visual departure as Sense or Touchwiz from stock.
No Pricing, but Sony said it should be available in Japan "and other regions" in Autumn (fall for you American folk).
Xperia Z3 Compact
 |
| Image credit goes to the Verge on the Xperia Z3 Compact Hands on |
The Xperia Z3 Compact is just that, it's a more compact Z3, the device only really differs in 2 areas: the screen, and the battery. the screen has been swapped out for a 4.6" 720p panel that from what i read looks astonishing, the drop in pixel density isn't really an issue when everything looks as nice as it does, and the battery going from 3100mAh to 2600mAh, now you'd think that losing 500mAh will take a massive hit on battery life right?
Wrong.
Sony still is estimating 2 days of use, because the lower resolution screen off sets the smaller battery, and because of the lower resolution screen, the GPU doesn't have to work at hard, therefore saving you power, Thanks Sony.
The Same 3GB of RAM, the Same Snapdragon 801 at 2.5Ghz, the Same 20.7MP camera, are you getting the gist here? the only major depart is the frame is no longer metal, but a translucent plastic, a big deal for some but not for others, i don't really mind but then again i haven't had the chance to hold one, other technology reviewers at IFA with hands on have said there is no issue with how it feels.
No pricing or release as always, but you can probably expect it pretty soon, i mean hey, with Sony's 6 month Flagship deadline we're going to see the Z4 at MWC in Barcelona, they have to sell this before they show that, I'd say November time we will see the Z3 and the Z3 Compact go on sale.
Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact
 |
| Image Credit goes to the Verge for their Z3 Tablet compact hands on |
All the Xperia Devices I've talked about so far are waterproof for up to 30 minutes at 1.5m which is around 5ft ish, and even though they have to use flaps to gain their waterproofing, Sony's Omnibalance design is very generous is not making it look like crap, quite the opposite really, the Sony devices are staggeringly gorgeous and these new ones feel even better than they look from what i hear.
Again a trend for Sony seems to be engineering marvels, the Z3 Tablet Compact has a 4500mAh battery, yet only weighs in at 270g, even crazier? this thing is sub 7mm thin! at 6.4mm this tablet could probably give you a shave if you aren't careful enough, along with engineering marvels Sony seems to go hand with terrible naming and the Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact most certainly fits there, unfortunately, at least it isn't the Sprint Samsung Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch,so there is that.
Did i also mention that phone calls and texts are a thing on the Z3TC? yeah they are, but please don't hold this up to your ear.
As you're probably used to now, now price or release date, but expect it to be soon after/with the Xperia Z3 and Z3 Compact.
Smart watch 3
 |
| Image credit goes to Sony, this is from the SW3 landing page |
The first is the screen, the SW2 has a 1.6" 220x176 Transflective LCD screen, it's an okay screen, and it's pretty amazing is broad daylight without the back light on, but its noticeably pixelated and the fact its a rectangle kind of irks me. The second annoyance i have with the SW2 was the OS it used, its a special OS made by Sony to run on the SW2, it's meant to mimic android in certain ways, it even has a home,back and menu button, a notification pull down and more, but the fact is, it just wasn't very good, it's functional and easy to use ,but its not particularly full featured, and people need to make apps for the watch, for instance i use Hangouts a lot, but there isn't a first party app by Sony for hangouts, and every single 3rd party on sucks, I've settled on the best one of a crap bunch, but thats not exactly high praise.
With the Smartwatch 3, Sony fixed those 2 main annoyances i had with the Smartwatch 2, they swapped out the 220x176 1.6" screen for a 1.6" 320x320 Transflective screen, Yes! a square screen and a higher resolution one at that, they've apparently also increased the colour reproduction when the back light is on, a gripe many had with the SW2 but one that didn't bother me too much. They also changed the software, they moved to the much more functional and awesome Android Wear from their proprietary Smartwatch OS, there is now an always on mic, listening for you to say "OK Google" and open up Google voice search, Google Now is of course present with its predictive abilities, scaring the bejeebus out of some people, but i enjoy it, and of course, good hangouts integration along with good Gmail integration, Google Play Music All Access integration and much more, all the stuff i use and want.
So you'd think I'd be ecstatic about the Smartwatch 3 wouldn't you, i mean after all they fixed the two things that bothered, me, what could go wrong?
They messed what didn't need to be messed with, that's what.
Sony changed the design, that gorgeous Aluminium body with chamfered top edges, that nice big (if slightly mushy) power button on the right edge have been replaced by a cheap looking, nasty silicone strap, and the watch itself is now a module that you just pop out, it's just pretty nasty, it looks like something you'd give to an 8 year old, "My first smartwatch" or something like that, they changed the one thing no one asked them to change, the SW2 looks lovely from a hardware perspective, you could throw any strap you wanted on there thank to the 24mm band, you cant do that any more, silly,nasty, neon Sony silicone straps now, the classy SW2 has gone to crap with this, with the leather band i can wear my SW2 with a nice suit, there is not a single place i could wear this apart from the beach where it wouldn't look out of place, what a step down Sony, I'm disappointed (not that you care, you're a company and I'm a single blogger) i was gearing up to sell my SW2 for the SW3, but after this, it looks like I'm saving up for an Asus ZenWatch instead.
Like every other Android wear watch, the Sony Smartwatch 3 utilises a Snapdragon 400 (Cortex A7) and 512mb of RAM, it has a 410mAh which while sounding unimpressive is the largest Android wear battery is my memory serves me well (it probably doesn't) it has the usual pedometer apps, Sony adds a Walkman app like it does with everything else, price was 160 Euros , no release date if i remember correctly.
Smartband Talk
 |
| Image credit to Sony from the Smartband Talk landing page |
Now that is a bit mean, you can actually take calls on the Smartband Talk, seeing as its in the name, it's a fitness tracker like a fitbit flex, but a curved E-Ink screen, it's kind of cool, and i guess if you didn't want a fully fledged smartwatch ,something like this might be cool
At 24g you'll barely feel it and at 9.5mm you might not even realise its there, the 1.4" Curved E-ink screen has a resolution of 296x128, so not the highest, but most certainly high enough for reading emails and texts on this and telling you who is calling.
The Smartband Talk is also a sleep tracker as well as a fitness tracker, like all the other new wearable trackers, forgive if i seem a bit bored on this, because i am, so lets move on, No price or release yet.
Xperia E3
The Xperia E3 is a forgettable mid range phone, a 4.5" WVGA Screen 5MP rear camera, Snapdragon 400 and 1GB of RAM, not much to say, it'll probably be super cheap, sub 150 euros is my guess
Lens Cameras, we got more of them
Remember those lens camera's we started selling last year? sure you do the point and shoot that clips on your phone and took forever to do almost anything, you don't? oh well, we have 2 new models, the QX1 and the QX30, the QX30 is basically last years QX10 but with a nice super zoom lens, take your iPhone and stand it up, that's how tall the lens is when it's fully extended.
And the QX1, well you know you have one of our pretty awesome NEW /Alpha Cameras? take the important "camera" bits out of there and put it in a cylinder now that clips to your phone, and you Can use your super expensive lenses with your phone, because , why not.
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