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Just thought I'd start this thread as I think the Xperia Z may be being discontinued, at least for the time being.
I bought a new Xperia Z handset in May. I made a clear choice between this and the Samsung S4, mainly for two reasons. The first being the overall design. It looks a much nicer/sexier phone. The second being the water resistance. I use the phone in the bath and I go fishing a lot. Seemed an obvious choice really.
When I first started using the phone, everything worked perfectly fine and I was very happy with my purchase. Except for one thing. I was experiencing the WiFi drop out problem. If I was in my living room (where my WiFi router is) it connected without issue. If I tried in other rooms, I would get a low connection and it would drop in and out. This bug has been well documented over several forums (without any response from Sony unsurprisingly), so I was a little reassured that it was not my phone specific issue, and a lot of people stating that it will likely be resolved with firmware updated. Two updates later and I was still having the issue.
I decided to take the phone back to Argos (where I purchased it) to see if I could get a replacement and hope that it would not have the issue. They were quite happy to replace it on the grounds that it is a faulty phone, however they didn't have any in at this particular store. The guy done a search and found one (and only one) in a store some 50 miles away. I asked if they could order one in for me, so he had a look and he said they can no longer get any. I thought this was very odd. A store chain the size of Argos and they can no longer get a top of the range phone only released 6 months or so ago? I asked if they knew a reason why, he said he didn't but if the error I'm experiencing is common and they have had a load returned then Argos may have chosen to no longer stock them.
This does not bode well for Sony at all. If Argos are taking this stance then I would not be surprised to see other outlets do the same.
I was left with a choice to either carry on with the phone and hope that at some point in the future the bug will be resolved, downgrade to another model, get my money back or pay the extra and get an S4. I decided to go with the S4, a decision I was not entirely happy with as, other than the WiFi bug, I was very happy with the Xperia Z, but I could not continue getting frustrated with the WiFi dropping out.
For those interested in the differences between the two phones, from an end users perspective and not a techno guru reviewer, there are a lot of similarities between the two. There are obviously pros and cons for each. The S4 is a lot lighter, and the external speaker is fantastic. It's design is a little uglier and the rear case is very slippery. The Xperia Z just looks nicer, looks less like a toy. They're just as responsive as each other, both take great photos/videos. The Xperia Z keyboard is much better than the S4, but that may be me needing to get used to it.
Given the choice, if the WiFi problem wasn't prevalent, I would definitely have the Xperia Z back. Hopefully Sony will pull there socks up.
maybe the rumor about a refresh with S800 processor and triluminos screen is true then.
Congrats on your new S4...
Sent from my C6602 using xda app-developers app
xperia z is not discontinued (confirmed with sony executive), funny you judged that. though x-reality for mobile is coming for xperia z
---------- Post added at 04:54 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:47 PM ----------
i think this SteveJustice is probably a samsung bot desperately to attract sales as clearly sony is dominating and samsung s4 having a hard time getting sales now.
mysticmetal said:
xperia z is not discontinued (confirmed with sony executive), funny you judged that. though x-reality for mobile is coming for xperia z
---------- Post added at 04:54 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:47 PM ----------
i think this SteveJustice is probably a samsung bot desperately to attract sales as clearly sony is dominating and samsung s4 having a hard time getting sales now.
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What? I gave pros and cons for both devices, and clearly stated that had I not had the problems with my Xperia Z then I would still have it. Not to mention I went to the store to get a replacement, not a different phone.
Even if the phone isn't being discontinued, it still begs the question as to why Argos are not getting any more in.
And where did you speak to this Sony executive by the way? Just happened to be passing in the street?
I have both the S4 and Xperia Z and your right they are very similar to each other and both have their pros and cons and let me just give a short of what I think are cons of the xperia Z compared to the S4 and funnily enough they are mostly to do with volume.
The Z speaker is lower in volume than s4, headphone volume is slightly lower and so is earpiece volume, S4 is a bit clearer aswell in earpiece, Z wifi is weaker and obviously due to a smaller battery, battery doesn't last as long. Camera/video I would say the S4 edges it but not by much
The Z is better to look at and and im sorry all those saying the screen on the Z is rubbish need to go to their opticians as the screen on the Z looks much sharper and better looking than the S4, not as good as the one on the HTC One but not far off, also the Z looks better than the S4 not that the S4 is ugly as I love the look of the S4 too, the Zs UI and keyboard etc are all better, the Z is just as smooth as the s4 if not smoother. TBH if the speaker was louder, earpiece was louder and audio volume was louder and wifi signal strength was stronger I would say the Z is the best phone on the market atm. The Z has restored my faith in sony as when I had the xperia S and T last year I wasn't happy atall.
RCJ89 said:
I have both the S4 and Xperia Z and your right they are very similar to each other and both have their pros and cons and let me just give a short of what I think are cons of the xperia Z compared to the S4 and funnily enough they are mostly to do with volume.
The Z speaker is lower in volume than s4, headphone volume is slightly lower and so is earpiece volume, S4 is a bit clearer aswell in earpiece, Z wifi is weaker and obviously due to a smaller battery, battery doesn't last as long. Camera/video I would say the S4 edges it but not by much
The Z is better to look at and and im sorry all those saying the screen on the Z is rubbish need to go to their opticians as the screen on the Z looks much sharper and better looking than the S4, not as good as the one on the HTC One but not far off, also the Z looks better than the S4 not that the S4 is ugly as I love the look of the S4 too, the Zs UI and keyboard etc are all better, the Z is just as smooth as the s4 if not smoother. TBH if the speaker was louder, earpiece was louder and audio volume was louder and wifi signal strength was stronger I would say the Z is the best phone on the market atm. The Z has restored my faith in sony as when I had the xperia S and T last year I wasn't happy atall.
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Click to collapse
I have a XZ and the wife a S4 and tbh there isn't much between the two.
Screen: Alot of song and dance is made about the samoled 1080p panel, and its obvious why the blacks are amazing but that's at the cost of the whites which are quite common on webpages (xz wins in whites). The viewing angles are better on the S4 although not as much as the reviews seemed to make out, one area where the XZ is better is the visibility in sunlight.
Winner: Close call id give it to the S4 sometimes colours seem a bit too saturated with XZ but not much in it overall.
Sound: The loudspeaker on the S4 rapes the XZ due to the XZ's waterproof ability. In call is slightly louder on the S4 but not by much, the S3 was amazing for in call volume.
Winner: S4 by a mile
Camera: Both use the same chip but different software is implemented and some hardware is different I believe (im no expert so could be wrong).
Anyway the XZ originally was a bit slow but with the latest update is on par with the S4 if not better, just took two pictures (night here in England) and the XZ was clearly better (both on auto, flash off). (uploaded both pics to pc for analysis)
Winner: Close call was about to say the XZ due to my rather short samples but im not a expert and reviewers praise the S4 so Id say a draw.
Battery: Both phones used differently so hard to compare. Depends on alot of variables such as area used, syncs, etc. I can't do a proper review of it but my amateur opinion says the S4 is better, more screen time but that could be because the wife is mostly on wifi at home. Anyway there's not a great deal if the S4 is better its not by more then 10%,
Winner: S4
Design: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder so not much too say there, material wise though the XZ is better and it feels more solid. The S4 has the advantage of removable battery and is more comfortable to use in the hand. Then again the XZ is dust and water proof and has soft keys.
Winner: XZ
Software: Id say stock xperia is definitely better then stock touchwiz based on design but then again that's user preference. I love the smart stay feature in touchwiz though and the vibrate when you pick up for messages/put phone to head to call from messages.
Xperia has the Bravia Engine though and as we mostly view photos on our phone these days that's a neat trick. Overall both are running 4.22 and rock solid so not much in it.
Winner: Draw.
Overall score: S4 wins 3. XZ 1. And 2 draws.
Conclusion: Both great phones and not much too seperate them, go check them out in store before you buy either and see which one you prefer. At the same time check out the HTC One...
scorpi786 said:
I have a XZ and the wife a S4 and tbh there isn't much between the two.
Screen: Alot of song and dance is made about the samoled 1080p panel, and its obvious why the blacks are amazing but that's at the cost of the whites which are quite common on webpages (xz wins in whites). The viewing angles are better on the S4 although not as much as the reviews seemed to make out, one area where the XZ is better is the visibility in sunlight.
Winner: Close call id give it to the S4 sometimes colours seem a bit too saturated with XZ but not much in it overall.
Sound: The loudspeaker on the S4 rapes the XZ due to the XZ's waterproof ability. In call is slightly louder on the S4 but not by much, the S3 was amazing for in call volume.
Winner: S4 by a mile
Camera: Both use the same chip but different software is implemented and some hardware is different I believe (im no expert so could be wrong).
Anyway the XZ originally was a bit slow but with the latest update is on par with the S4 if not better, just took two pictures (night here in England) and the XZ was clearly better (both on auto, flash off). (uploaded both pics to pc for analysis)
Winner: Close call was about to say the XZ due to my rather short samples but im not a expert and reviewers praise the S4 so Id say a draw.
Battery: Both phones used differently so hard to compare. Depends on alot of variables such as area used, syncs, etc. I can't do a proper review of it but my amateur opinion says the S4 is better, more screen time but that could be because the wife is mostly on wifi at home. Anyway there's not a great deal if the S4 is better its not by more then 10%,
Winner: S4
Design: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder so not much too say there, material wise though the XZ is better and it feels more solid. The S4 has the advantage of removable battery and is more comfortable to use in the hand. Then again the XZ is dust and water proof and has soft keys.
Winner: XZ
Software: Id say stock xperia is definitely better then stock touchwiz based on design but then again that's user preference. I love the smart stay feature in touchwiz though and the vibrate when you pick up for messages/put phone to head to call from messages.
Xperia has the Bravia Engine though and as we mostly view photos on our phone these days that's a neat trick. Overall both are running 4.22 and rock solid so not much in it.
Winner: Draw.
Overall score: S4 wins 3. XZ 1. And 2 draws.
Conclusion: Both great phones and not much too seperate them, go check them out in store before you buy either and see which one you prefer. At the same time check out the HTC One...
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Great honest comparison mate :thumbup:
You forgot performance , s4 wins here thx to s600 ( specifically gaming )
Battery is much better since s4 gets average 4:30/5 hrs screen time. While xz barely makes it 3:30.
Anyway these 2 vs one are pretty much weaker in every aspect.
Speakers ate better and louder then on both
Headphones are also better with more quality then on both , also louder.
Screen is better by much then on both. ( tho amoled has better blacks ) also better viewing angle , brighter , and better sunlight visibility.
System speed is much better then on both. ( even faster then n4 on 4.3 )
Design .. I'd say only xz and one are pretty , I'd call this one personal preference.
Build quality .. I guess we agree aluminum is more premium ( + serves as a heat sink so one is much cooler then both )
Camera is actually better then on xz after the recent updates both in day light and dark , also the camera is much snappier then both , as for video neither comes close to one thx to the ois and hdr mics
Speaker for calls is also better , again stereo and it's very loud and clear.
Front camera is also better then on both + wide angle
Battery is on par with s4 if not better , at least in my case I perform much better then the cousins s4. , the other cousin with xz usually gets around 2:50/ 3:20 screen time. outside. While my average is 6 hrs screen time with heavier usage .
I guess this would be my 2 cents.
Btw my cousins have s4 and xz while my friend has n4 , pretty much surrounded with mobile geeks lol. So this comes from the tests I made with them , if you guys need some screen shots , or pic samples lemme know.
Shan89 said:
Great honest comparison mate :thumbup:
You forgot performance , s4 wins here thx to s600 ( specifically gaming )
Battery is much better since s4 gets average 4:30/5 hrs screen time. While xz barely makes it 3:30.
Anyway these 2 vs one are pretty much weaker in every aspect.
Speakers ate better and louder then on both
Headphones are also better with more quality then on both , also louder.
Screen is better by much then on both. ( tho amoled has better blacks ) also better viewing angle , brighter , and better sunlight visibility.
System speed is much better then on both. ( even faster then n4 on 4.3 )
Design .. I'd say only xz and one are pretty , I'd call this one personal preference.
Build quality .. I guess we agree aluminum is more premium ( + serves as a heat sink so one is much cooler then both )
Camera is actually better then on xz after the recent updates both in day light and dark , also the camera is much snappier then both , as for video neither comes close to one thx to the ois and hdr mics
Speaker for calls is also better , again stereo and it's very loud and clear.
Front camera is also better then on both + wide angle
Battery is on par with s4 if not better , at least in my case I perform much better then the cousins s4. , the other cousin with xz usually gets around 2:50/ 3:20 screen time. outside. While my average is 6 hrs screen time with heavier usage .
I guess this would be my 2 cents.
Btw my cousins have s4 and xz while my friend has n4 , pretty much surrounded with mobile geeks lol. So this comes from the tests I made with them , if you guys need some screen shots , or pic samples lemme know.
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Having had the HTC one earlier in the year, three things i disagree on are
1) audio is actually better on the s4, but the HTC one is louder
2) battery life on HTC is not better than S4 and i certianly wouldnt call it close either especially if we include standby time though it is better than the xperia z.
3) as for looks i really do not like the fact that the One has the htc sign inbetween the buttons i think thats ugly, i think all three phones look good, if i was to choose an order it would be XZ, S4 then One.
The main reasons for getting the s4 and selling the one was better battery and memory card slot as i ran out of memory on the one and i seriously hope htc change this as 25gb isnt enough. Also while the one is loud i feel it lacks the bass of the s4 and XZ, also i find the custom eqaulizers better than simply beats on or off
I was debating and then I was like "what was I thinking" though the camera is mediocre, and speakers are Ok, everything else is fantastic.
I was going to wait for the HTC one2, and realized that more than likely no other phone soon will be able to last as long as the z1 with their battery saving software.
to be honest with you, as much as I complain about my Z1, overall there isnt one device out there for me that tops it. Just hope that the new update will do something to the Camera and 4K vid recording is something I really really wanted, but not enough to move be back to Samsung.
I have Z1, SGS4 and used the nexus 5 for a day and a half, I will compare them below
Nexus 5 best performance but lack features
SGS4 worst performance (too much lag and stuttering) but has lots of features (most of which are useless and no-one actually uses them except to show off)
Z1 excellent performance (almost identical to the nexus 5) and has some useful features like camera apps, small apps ...etc
Although the Z1 is not perfect (nothing is perfect), but it is the best overall phone out there. I will get chance to play with the HTC ONE for few days in a week or two then I will probably be able to say what is the best phone currently available (apart from the LG G2 which I haven't had the chance to play with).
Not even considered it, got it sim free and I'm happy with it
I returned mine because I spotted a dead (or maybe stuck) pixel on the screen. I hope I'll have better luck next time.
I am very very disappointed in the camera, the speaker is actually close to top considering its a tiny waterproof speaker but I love every thing else about the Z1 so no, I didn't return my device and I wont be doing so.
Gitaroo said:
to be honest with you, as much as I complain about my Z1, overall there isnt one device out there for me that tops it. Just hope that the new update will do something to the Camera and 4K vid recording is something I really really wanted, but not enough to move be back to Samsung.
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I'm interested in knowing why since I was thinking about getting the Note 3.
Sent from my C6903 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
DAddYE said:
I'm interested in knowing why since I was thinking about getting the Note 3.
Sent from my C6903 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
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Click to collapse
Actually I had the Note 3, it is the worst mistake that I made up until now!
now the problems I had with it are more philosophical than fair, so to make it fair I'll only point out the problems that "others" consider worthy!
1. Not so great looking even though its an improvement over the S4 and Note 2
2. Has A LOT of bloat ware
3. Cheap looking/feeling device (like all Samsungs)
4. Depending on what you do with it scales form lagging a couple of times a day to constantly lagging (I couldn't handle the lag so...)
5. Bigger than most people would want it to be (I actually where okay with it mainly because I didn't called anyone with it)
6. You would look Very-Very stupid talking with it on the street or anywhere else for that matter!
DAddYE said:
I'm interested in knowing why since I was thinking about getting the Note 3.
Sent from my C6903 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
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Click to collapse
mostly personally preference but Im coming from a S3 owner, but here are some of the reasons
-touchwiz, hate it with a passion, actually got to play with a real note 3 today at the store and it actually still lag a little bit like seriously lol?! Checked the ram consumption it always over 1.2+ gigs after I clear everything it goes back up quickly no wonder why they keep added more rams for all the galaxy phones. My Z1 has to be on for a couple of weeks to hit over 1 gig and generally around 0.9.
-hate OLED colors, it has gotten a lot better with the pentile problem but still not enough to bring me back. Triluminos looks better to me straight on even if you have to sacrifice the wash out colors in extreme angles which I never look at my phone that way. Plus I see color shifting problems on Note 3, like yellow would turn green in a angle, so viewing angle is not a clear victory on the note 3 neither (same with Nexus 5 and G2 which have their own problems in extreme angle when I played with them today). Didn't get to do out door test with the note 3 not sure if it become unreadable under the sun.
-Built quality, I dont think I need to say much here, just personally when I pay hundreds of dollars for a flashship device I want it to actually feel like a flagship device.
the only features in the Note 3 that I want in the Z1 is the 4K video recording, downsampling 4K video to play on 1080p screen is a huge difference. You don't need a 4K display to take advantage of it. I used to think that the multi screen features from note2 and S3 is going to make me happy with my S3 again, but after the update came out I've never use it once.... Its all personal preference so those my not apply to others.
ahomad said:
I have Z1, SGS4 and used the nexus 5 for a day and a half, I will compare them below
Nexus 5 best performance but lack features
SGS4 worst performance (too much lag and stuttering) but has lots of features (most of which are useless and no-one actually uses them except to show off)
Z1 excellent performance (almost identical to the nexus 5) and has some useful features like camera apps, small apps ...etc
Although the Z1 is not perfect (nothing is perfect), but it is the best overall phone out there. I will get chance to play with the HTC ONE for few days in a week or two then I will probably be able to say what is the best phone currently available (apart from the LG G2 which I haven't had the chance to play with).
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I'm coming from Note 2, Galaxy s4 and HTC one to Sony Z1, apart from note 2 (which I liked) the other's are disappointing s4 has lag and loads of stupid features you turn off, HTC One was boring and battery life was rubbish plus I was scared to scrape or dent the metal (best sound though) . I was wanting Note 3 but too expensive and cant believe it still has lag, plus Knox! (which totally put me off s4)
Sony Z1 feels premium has a decent enough camera and battery is probably the best with the note 2 I've had.
Before I had Z1 I was waiting for Nexus 5 and was going to sell s4, but after seeing it, Z1 is much better.
Thank you all guys you opened (again) my eyes. There are just few things that make me sad about the Z1.
- camera is not so fantastic. Unless you have the stone hand just pressing the hw button from focus to shoot makes the phone shaking and the picture a little blurry. This is almost not noticeable with high lights but as soon start to be a little darker things gets worse. Thus in low lights this camera is totally incapable to take decent pictures, what you see 'good' in your screen will be post processed and 'destroyed'. No manual mode could help ATM.
- freaking hardware buttons
I can't believe that my 5" real estate triluminus 400+ DPI 1080 **** should have a damn waste of space: soft keys IMHO are the android cancer. Now I'm using a pie (after gtm) it's okay but still annoying and uncomfortable. I'll be happy to pay one dollar more and have at least a central hw button. Note that I compared twitter, Google+ and Chrome with the iPhone and on the smaller 4" there is much more space!!! This piss me off!!!!
- unlock the boot loader. I used to pay the retail price in order to not increase the US mafia of carriers. After more than a month this phone isn't really unlockable. No official words from Sony about the fact they are working for a fix or a date. This scares me.
- 2013 and our display is not oleophobic. This makes me sad even more when a friend tell me: cool phone can I see it? And my screen is a finger print fest. Tried almost any good screen protector antifinger print. None of them really works without decrease the screen quality.
Sent from my C6903 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Just one tip.
Don't compare N5 and Z1 now.
Wait until Z1 gets 4.4 then you'll see what Z1 is capable to do.
As I said few times, it's better to have great camera (hardware) which is fixable than great software without hardware support.
Z1 has great camera and with 4.4 update we will have the best device money can buy...
Everyone compares N5 and Z1 now and all of them are unique in conclusion - these two devices are similar but remember we are comparing 4.2.2 with 4.4 - so you can just imagine Z1 with a KitKat under the hood
It will fly
Sent from my Z1
I love the pure Google experience but internal memory and battery capacity of Nexus 5 is just killing me. I would go for G2, but I heard it struggles with poor internal memory performance. Can anyone confirm it with KK onboard? My N5 is .84 rw. Which one has better community support? I would probably flash cm/omni. And Im considering 16GB Z1 vs 32GB G2. I like the feeling of N5, and that's why Im a bit scared of Z1 huge frame, but stable and fully functional pure Google is the most important for me.
mnickkk said:
I love the pure Google experience but internal memory and battery capacity of Nexus 5 is just killing me. I would go for G2, but I heard it struggles with poor internal memory performance. Can anyone confirm it with KK onboard? My N5 is .84 rw. Which one has better community support? I would probably flash cm/omni. And Im considering 16GB Z1 vs 32GB G2. I like the feeling of N5, and that's why Im a bit scared of Z1 huge frame, but stable and fully functional pure Google is the most important for me.
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Click to collapse
Do you care about horrible viewing angles? I mean horrible.
As long as they are not worse than in my TFT desktop monitor, I'm fine with that. Are they worse than in Xperia S? Cause those are almost unacceptable.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
I came from Experia Z and truly don't go for a Z model, screen is horrible, camera is horrible "noise!", battery more horrible than N5. Don't do it!. Today I bought a additional battery for my N5 which easy to replace..
Verstuurd vanaf mijn Nexus 5 met Tapatalk
Wait for the Z2
Sent from my C6906 using Tapatalk
mnickkk said:
As long as they are not worse than in my TFT desktop monitor, I'm fine with that. Are they worse than in Xperia S? Cause those are almost unacceptable.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
They're worse. The Z2 fixed that though. It also has a much better camera algorithm. The z1 is full of noise.
Sent from my C6916 using Tapatalk
Wait for the Z2
Sent from my Xperia Z1
I think Z1 is great
Sent from my N986 using xda premium
The only horrible thing is the community, that writes crap about this nice device every time ...
I can tell you (with many hours of testing Z1, G2, S4, etc. that the Z1 is by far the best device out of the top devices at the moment... for sure you will have to know, what you are doing (and seemingly no one here does) ... i'm a photograph and have to say that the camera is brilliant (for a mobile camera) ... you just have to choose manual iso and such things, cause the automatic is (as always at EVERY camera) not the best for all situations ... e.g. if you shoot pics at night, the automatic mode gains the iso to maximum ... this will for sure make you able to shoot pictures that look like at evenig, not at night, but will gain the noise to a max ... if you choose wisely (e.g ISO 400) at night shots and hold the camera still you will get good pictures ...
i may upload a few examples today or tomorrow ..
the display: Yes, it is not such a good viewing angle as on new IPS-Panels or something ... BUT ... do you want everyone in a train e.g. be able to look and read everything on your display? Me not ... It's important to have enough angle to watch videos or look at photos (espacially for me) without getting wrong colors or something ... and THAT is what the Z1 does ...not more, but not less ...
so why is the z1 better than evey other mobile available?!
- it's water resistant (and yes, i testet it half an hour fully under water) ...
- its aluminium frame with saphire glass on both sides (yes it is) gives it a nice finish (im sure you can even let it fall on a stone without braking it, but not tested - it just falls periodically from my table on the carpet - ca 1m - and is still alive )
- the dev community is good
- the battery life is the longest for those cpus and displays
- the camera is awsome
- the display (triluminos) is brilliant with true colors, good contrast, etc ...
- sony delivers good support
- the sound that comes out of this mobile (even with just the headset in the package) is amazingly brilliant - with good earphones it's for sure the best i ever heard (sony has much experience cause of the walkman devices and such things ...)
- it comes out of the box with very cool features such as the stamina mode (wich works brilliant - no need for any other battery apps or task killers) or the ability to bind an DualShock-Controller to the mobile for gaming e.g. ... and much more ...
so enough said .. haters will allways hate ... but i will never give my z1 away ... it's the best phone i ever head in my hands (and i've had more then enough) ...mybe the z2 will be the replacement for the z1 in a while ... but at the moment there is nothing better available ...
EHHHM .. just to be clear ... im reporting about the standard german nonbranded C6903 .. i heard that some other countrys and models may have other display panels and may be worse than the "normal" device ... don't know, what is exactly true about this .. i can only tell you something about German unbranded C6903 which is mine and the mobile of 2 friends of me .. all working without problems ...
I sign this
mnickkk said:
I love the pure Google experience but internal memory and battery capacity of Nexus 5 is just killing me. I would go for G2, but I heard it struggles with poor internal memory performance. Can anyone confirm it with KK onboard? My N5 is .84 rw. Which one has better community support? I would probably flash cm/omni. And Im considering 16GB Z1 vs 32GB G2. I like the feeling of N5, and that's why Im a bit scared of Z1 huge frame, but stable and fully functional pure Google is the most important for me.
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Click to collapse
I have the Z1, but the only reason I went for it instead of the G2 is because I need more than 32GB storage and I care about the materials / build quality of a product a lot. I guess if those things are important to you, go for the Z1, otherwise the G2 is probably better than the Z1 in every way really (especially the display and the size of phone to size of screen ratio. Z1 has HUGE bezels)
DJ_Synergy said:
The only horrible thing is the community, that writes crap about this nice device every time ...
I can tell you (with many hours of testing Z1, G2, S4, etc. that the Z1 is by far the best device out of the top devices at the moment... for sure you will have to know, what you are doing (and seemingly no one here does) ... i'm a photograph and have to say that the camera is brilliant (for a mobile camera) ... you just have to choose manual iso and such things, cause the automatic is (as always at EVERY camera) not the best for all situations ... e.g. if you shoot pics at night, the automatic mode gains the iso to maximum ... this will for sure make you able to shoot pictures that look like at evenig, not at night, but will gain the noise to a max ... if you choose wisely (e.g ISO 400) at night shots and hold the camera still you will get good pictures ...
i may upload a few examples today or tomorrow ..
the display: Yes, it is not such a good viewing angle as on new IPS-Panels or something ... BUT ... do you want everyone in a train e.g. be able to look and read everything on your display? Me not ... It's important to have enough angle to watch videos or look at photos (espacially for me) without getting wrong colors or something ... and THAT is what the Z1 does ...not more, but not less ...
so why is the z1 better than evey other mobile available?!
- it's water resistant (and yes, i testet it half an hour fully under water) ...
- its aluminium frame with saphire glass on both sides (yes it is) gives it a nice finish (im sure you can even let it fall on a stone without braking it, but not tested - it just falls periodically from my table on the carpet - ca 1m - and is still alive )
- the dev community is good
- the battery life is the longest for those cpus and displays
- the camera is awsome
- the display (triluminos) is brilliant with true colors, good contrast, etc ...
- sony delivers good support
- the sound that comes out of this mobile (even with just the headset in the package) is amazingly brilliant - with good earphones it's for sure the best i ever heard (sony has much experience cause of the walkman devices and such things ...)
- it comes out of the box with very cool features such as the stamina mode (wich works brilliant - no need for any other battery apps or task killers) or the ability to bind an DualShock-Controller to the mobile for gaming e.g. ... and much more ...
so enough said .. haters will allways hate ... but i will never give my z1 away ... it's the best phone i ever head in my hands (and i've had more then enough) ...mybe the z2 will be the replacement for the z1 in a while ... but at the moment there is nothing better available ...
EHHHM .. just to be clear ... im reporting about the standard german nonbranded C6903 .. i heard that some other countrys and models may have other display panels and may be worse than the "normal" device ... don't know, what is exactly true about this .. i can only tell you something about German unbranded C6903 which is mine and the mobile of 2 friends of me .. all working without problems ...
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Click to collapse
Well, I do not think there is anything more to say :good:
Why everyone is complaining about Z1?
I have a Z1 and i LOVE IT!
Ok, my first impression wasnt the best (touch issues), but i replace it and now its perfect!
My battery can hold for 2 days with wifi and 4g the entire time, twitter, facebook, email, linkedin, everything connected and i play on my free times. TWO DAYS!
I dont have any problem with the angle because i dont use my phone looking from the sides (who do this?) when i use it the screen is in front of me, so not a problem.
Its water resistent, do you need more? (oh, but i dont live inside a pool bla bla bla, neither me, but is something to consider on a top end phone).
Performance is unbelievable! Im using stock ROM from Sony and is fast, stable, beautiful.
The camera is noisy? Yes, but ONLY on AUTO mode, change to MANUAL and do some basic camera ajustments, you will see a new camera, very clear photos even at night.
Internal storage 16gb, yes, this is crap, but i have 12 games installed and more 2gb of music without a SD Card, so all depends on your use.
So if you want a perfect phone, buy the Z1 or the brand new Z2, both of the phones are incredible!
I also agree.
I sold a Galaxy S4 and caught a Z1 and do not regret it.
I Make excellent pictures in Manual mode (the best camera on a smartphone).
Viewing angles never bothered me, so I usually look at the screen from the front.
Quality construction and water resistance = Perfect!
Excellent battery life.
G2 / N5 = plastic phones, no sdcard slot, no real good cameras, no water resistant, no great battery life.
Conclusion: Today, Z1 is the best option. If you can wait, buy a Z2 or HTC One 2 (M8). These will be better than Z1. :laugh:
I would say the technical best devices are the HTC One or the Xperia Z series. If you compare the Z, Z1 and Z2 the differences are minimal. Because of that you can decide by the amount of money you want to spend for a mobile phone. I am sure after the Z2 reaches the market, the prices for Z and Z1 will be lowered.
marciozh said:
I also agree.
I sold a Galaxy S4 and caught a Z1 and do not regret it.
I Make excellent pictures in Manual mode (the best camera on a smartphone).
Viewing angles never bothered me, so I usually look at the screen from the front.
Quality construction and water resistance = Perfect!
Excellent battery life.
G2 / N5 = plastic phones, no sdcard slot, no real good cameras, no water resistant, no great battery life.
Conclusion: Today, Z1 is the best option. If you can wait, buy a Z2 or HTC One 2 (M8). These will be better than Z1. :laugh:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
G2 has great battery life. probably on par or even better than Z1.
DJ_Synergy said:
so why is the z1 better than evey other mobile available?!
- it's water resistant (and yes, i testet it half an hour fully under water) ...
- its aluminium frame with saphire glass on both sides (yes it is) gives it a nice finish (im sure you can even let it fall on a stone without braking it, but not tested - it just falls periodically from my table on the carpet - ca 1m - and is still alive )
- the dev community is good
- the battery life is the longest for those cpus and displays
- the camera is awsome
- the display (triluminos) is brilliant with true colors, good contrast, etc ...
- sony delivers good support
- the sound that comes out of this mobile (even with just the headset in the package) is amazingly brilliant - with good earphones it's for sure the best i ever heard (sony has much experience cause of the walkman devices and such things ...)
- it comes out of the box with very cool features such as the stamina mode (wich works brilliant - no need for any other battery apps or task killers) or the ability to bind an DualShock-Controller to the mobile for gaming e.g. ... and much more ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
few things i'd like to reply on:
first a few things that are not quite right:
display:
the triluminos display may seem brilliant, but is has it downsides. for those who are in this stuff, this video is pretty nice. well aside from that, it just has to look good right? wich it, in my opinion, does.
sound:
well yeah, with headphones it's definitly something, but without? ouch...
screen:
it's dragontail glass not saphire glass (source)
positive:
camera:
the camera is excellent IF you know how to use it. The G2 does decent pictures without questions, but they are heavily post processed. It may not be visible for the normal user, but if you're in that photo stuff the z1 should do better.
take a look at this page for further information.
but this should all be in vain, because those are stock roms, who really knows how the perform on custom roms?
battery:
it's huge. i came from Xperia S what lasted about 10 Hours with my usage. The Z1 easily gets over 2 Days with wifi, gps, mobile allways on. Additionally i receive quite a few push messages.
edit:
i love my Z1
owned both (Z1 & G2) and I would definitely recommend the G2
Both are good phones...and I was in the exact same position choosing between the G2 and Z1. Yes the Z1 can have images with noise but I've managed to get a good technique with all the tips from XDA members...people are always complementing my Z1 camera
Ultimately it's down to what you want;
mnickkk said:
I love the pure Google experience but internal memory and battery capacity of Nexus 5 is just killing me. I would go for G2, but I heard it struggles with poor internal memory performance. Can anyone confirm it with KK onboard? My N5 is .84 rw. Which one has better community support? I would probably flash cm/omni. And Im considering 16GB Z1 vs 32GB G2. I like the feeling of N5, and that's why Im a bit scared of Z1 huge frame, but stable and fully functional pure Google is the most important for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So if you want custom roms the G2 is hands down the winner compared to the Z1 with a permanently locked bootloader (i.e. not unlockable). However if you can get a unlockable Z1 it's about even. If not the stock Z1 is still really good and very close to pure google experience once you root and clean things up with titanium backup.
If I could choose again I would probably go for the G2 since I prefer messing around with custom roms (although I would miss the solid premium feel the Z1 has...so maybe I'd try harder to source an unlockable Z1 :silly: ).
I was hesitating about the same thing, G2 vs Z1. I was almost sold for the G2, it was pretty nice at test (swipe gestures and tap screen are very user-friendly).
But finally I got my Z1 form my carrier, thinking that if it was not good for me I could sell it at a big price and buy a G2 instead. I never went this way. Testing a Z1 and owning a Z1 are 2 different worlds, this phone has just blown my mind.
Also had an accident with Coca and my phone held out for 30 minutes without any problem, I just washed it under a shower, cleaned it with my shirt. Way to go!
And I'm a music addict. Just check the two topics I've opened lately. All about sound. The Z1 is by far the best out there with Qualcomm DAC, implementation is perfect. Zero noise, zero distortion, power, lively music, responsive EQ, it is worth the experience.
I will definitely not trade my Z1 for a LG G2. Though the last one is an amazing phone and I recommend it, if you have money to chose either the Z1 or the G2, Z1 is the way to go. I don't know the Z2. If it does eveythign the same way or better than the Z1, it's a WIN-WIN situation.
Ah, I run stock ROM, haven't looked after root yet, nor bootloader stuff etc.
I am looking for an excellent camera. The Xperia Z3 sounds good. I do see the Z5 has a little better resolution, but I do need to root and fix up the software to run Xposed, so Z3 sounds better.
Is the Z3 camera actually excellent?
Xperia series of camera are good in my oppinion, a lot better compared to iPhones due to the number of features added.
However i suggest not getting a Z3 Compact (Or any xperia compact) as they are quite dodgy (hardware problems all the time)
But in conclusion the Z3 camera is good, but if you wanted 20MP in superior auto you need to root and install xposed anyway.
interestor said:
I am looking for an excellent camera. The Xperia Z3 sounds good. I do see the Z5 has a little better resolution, but I do need to root and fix up the software to run Xposed, so Z3 sounds better.
Is the Z3 camera actually excellent?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can tell you one thing for sure excellent it is not. on the contrary, far from that, average at best I'd say. The stock camera app is very slow compare to other flagship smartphones which were available at the time of the release of the z3. The auto focus is also pretty slow and quite bad. Moreover, the front-facing camera is also average, but I haven't seen any smartphone excel at that area. In addition, I don't really know if its a factor to you or not, but the flash is by far THE WORST flash I have ever seen a smartphone to be equipped with - a single LED flash which can with very little power to it.
The only positive thing I can say about it, that if you go manual in the stock app you can get some very good shots with it, but I doubt anyone does that with a smartphone on a daily basis.
Don't get me wrong, its a decent phone for it's price. However, the sole reason I sticked to Sony is because they are the only company to release a below 5" flagship speced smartphone in 2014.
nzzane said:
Xperia series of camera are good in my oppinion, a lot better compared to iPhones due to the number of features added.
However i suggest not getting a Z3 Compact (Or any xperia compact) as they are quite dodgy (hardware problems all the time)
But in conclusion the Z3 camera is good, but if you wanted 20MP in superior auto you need to root and install xposed anyway.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Damn! I am leaning toward getting one mainly because of small size (and lanyard mount and button). What are the common problems with the compact?
What, an xposed module lets you run the camera at higher performance? What's its name? what's it do?
Sydrox said:
I can tell you one thing for sure excellent it is not. on the contrary, far from that, average at best I'd say. The stock camera app is very slow compare to other flagship smartphones which were available at the time of the release of the z3. The auto focus is also pretty slow and quite bad. Moreover, the front-facing camera is also average, but I haven't seen any smartphone excel at that area. In addition, I don't really know if its a factor to you or not, but the flash is by far THE WORST flash I have ever seen a smartphone to be equipped with - a single LED flash which can with very little power to it.
The only positive thing I can say about it, that if you go manual in the stock app you can get some very good shots with it, but I doubt anyone does that with a smartphone on a daily basis.
Don't get me wrong, its a decent phone for it's price. However, the sole reason I sticked to Sony is because they are the only company to release a flagship speced smartphone in 2014.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. Yeah, I have read about lag, and focus hunting. Good to mention the flash.
I am interested in the manual controls, but also shooting from the hip.
Now that it is a coupla years old, price is getting better, making me think about redefining excellent.
interestor said:
Damn! I am leaning toward getting one mainly because of small size (and lanyard mount and button). What are the common problems with the compact?
What, an xposed module lets you run the camera at higher performance? What's its name? what's it do?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Commonly they will have water proofing failures, or bad batteries, but some people are lucky and get away with no problems.
Yeah i believe its called 20MP xperia or something similar and there is also this modded camera which adds many funtions to camera like more ISO options, exposure, shutter speed etc.
I have one z3c and the camera it's ok much better than most of phones. I have xposed as well and camera fx, i don't have troubles yet so far so good.
Nope, it's pretty bad and certainly a big disappointment.
In good light and with a bit of luck it can take great pictures, but most of the time it's just frustrating (mainly because you know that it is capable when it feels like it). In poor light or with the flash it's just a terrible smudgy mess, my old Galaxy S3 is considerably better. After 6 months I got sick of it and bought a Galaxy S5 which blows it away all the time.
In all reality though, if you wanted to take good photos, use a proper camera, phone cameras are only point and shoot, and are pretty crap compared to what a good camera can do
Hi all,
So it has been a week that have XZ1 Compact, but as most of you aware from the forums camera is not very satisfying. I got a chance to use Galaxy S8 for two months prior to XZ1C, which is also a great phone, however I get the XZ1C just like most of us here; for the phone being in a compact size.
So with the disappointing camera, I am very torn between keeping the phone and wait for an update maybe for the issue to be fixed, or return the phone and get the taller S8.
I wonder what other fellow XDA users think on this issue whether the camera quality can be fix or why should I stay with XZ1C or leave it for S8?
i have the s8 and the XZ1C.
in my opinion, the only thing s8 really has that is special is the camera. i also think this is very overblown. most people don't use their camera that much, but it has become a strong focal point of choosing which phone to buy.
s8 has a slew of issues, including the rounded edges on the screen, the laggy interface, incompatible aspect ratio, bluetooth & wifi issues, poor battery life and a locked bootloader.
before asking if the camera is worth going to, ask yourself if the camera really matters that much. sony camera isn't as good as s8, but then again none are. if the camera means that much to you, then you are forced from here on to only buy samsung products. they really do always have the best cameras, but they pretty much suck at everything else. i don't ever miss my s8 now that i've switched. hell, i enjoy my OP5 more than the s8.
EDIT: you wanna buy my s8? lol (not joking)
The XZ1c is a great compact phone. There isn't any other compact comes close. I bought it because it fits in m pocket and I can drive it with one hand. That's why I love it.
Sure I am disappointed that it can't do close up's, but I have been using the camera a couple of weeks and for all the outdoor stuff and landscapes, it's brilliant. I think people have made too much of an issue about the distortion.
If you're asking the thread if you should get another phone, why not ask yourself what you're going to do with the phone.?
Is it going to fit in a pocket?
Are you going to be taking close up pictures of keyboards?
The sound chip is outstanding, as is the video camera and there's nothing comes close to out performing the battery life, there are so many things that this phone does right.
£500 for qualcomm 835, you're not going to beat that.
I find the issue with the camera is that you can't "just get it out and snap a pic" then expect the result to be something good every time.
With the S8 (and S7, and recent iPhones, and the Pixels) you can do that and most of the time you have a very decent picture.
On the flip side if im careful when taking the picture (mainly making sure there is zero shaking, exposure being correct, etc), the result is generally of higher quality, as long as it's not in low light. I can't easily reproduce the results with the S7/8/iPhone at least.
I suspect that whenever this gets OIS (or they somehow do even better magic with the EIS) this might solves most of this.. (XZ2C?!) but so far, it's not really as good in the "snap and boom decent pic" area.
Finally, I currently own a S7 and while the pic quality is a little less good than the S8 it performs admirably. I'm very tempted to switch full time to the XZ1C and sell the S7 though, because as other said, the XZ1C is better *everywhere else*.
I own XZ1c for 4 days now and annoyed by the camera too. 2 problems on the camera which I found followed by its solution:
1) Distortion problem. I have read various sources, it is due to wide angle lens that caused this, and this issue found too in other phones like Samsung S7 or LG G6. There is 2 solutions from what I know which is a) a software update from Sony that adds an additional step in post photo processing that corrects the distortion, and b) manual correction via software like Adobe Lightroom/Photoshop with 'lens correction' tool.
2) Dark photos during low light environment, in superior auto mode. I managed to get better photo by a) adjust 'colour and brightness' in the setting, or b) switch to manual mode and increase the 'EV' attribute.
Hope it helps.
WaxysDargle said:
i have the s8 and the XZ1C.
in my opinion, the only thing s8 really has that is special is the camera. i also think this is very overblown. most people don't use their camera that much, but it has become a strong focal point of choosing which phone to buy.
s8 has a slew of issues, including the rounded edges on the screen, the laggy interface, incompatible aspect ratio, bluetooth & wifi issues, poor battery life and a locked bootloader.
before asking if the camera is worth going to, ask yourself if the camera really matters that much. sony camera isn't as good as s8, but then again none are. if the camera means that much to you, then you are forced from here on to only buy samsung products. they really do always have the best cameras, but they pretty much suck at everything else. i don't ever miss my s8 now that i've switched. hell, i enjoy my OP5 more than the s8.
EDIT: you wanna buy my s8? lol (not joking)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the S8, have it set up with Nova Launcher, turned all animations to.05 & set the speed on Nova Launcher to the fastest. Got rid of all the bloat ware. This phone flies. It's a great phone with a little doctoring. Saying that I'm still getting the XZ1 Compact, the phone is the perfect size. Just wish the damn phone had FM Radio & more internal storage. 32 just isn't enough for today's apps.
Vinny [emoji631]
Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
The distortion is annoying if you tafe photos that are straight like a building for example. in other cases you wonto notice unless its a close up foto. So yes, it is annoying. there is a rumor sony will improve this, but thats it, just rumor.
Overall the xz1c makes fotos almost as good as the s8 in daylight conditions. You can prove my statement useing the compare tool from gsmarena.
It is in the night that the thing goes bad to the Xz1c. But anyway im still kinda satisfied with its capability in night mode. definetly not good as the s8 i8, but its not bad either. You have to think how important is that to you.
vinnyjr said:
I have the S8, have it set up with Nova Launcher, turned all animations to.05 & set the speed on Nova Launcher to the fastest. Got rid of all the bloat ware. This phone flies. It's a great phone with a little doctoring. Saying that I'm still getting the XZ1 Compact, the phone is the perfect size. Just wish the damn phone had FM Radio & more internal storage. 32 just isn't enough for today's apps.
Vinny [emoji631]
Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i also noted a big improvement on my s8 after some extreme debloating via ADB. performance was definitely not the worst thing about the phone. i can deal with occasional hiccups.
for me, the worst thing is the screen. my ear pressing buttons while on a call, accidental grazes on the edges and loss of the corner utility because of the roundness and curved nature. looks cool, but not practical once used. it's a beautiful device, but i never could figure out exactly how to hold it securely and still remain functional.
oh, and the speaker on that thing! i've heard mouse farts that could drown out max volume on the s8.
The only thing I don't like with the camera is the slow autofocus. The feature of holding the shutter button to take many pictures quickly apparently focuses between each shot, so why can't the first single shot have a faster autofocus?
I've just looked at my pictures on the computer and holy ****, the quality is horrible for anything not taken outdoors. Just wow. The one thing holding me from unlocking the bootloader was what I thought were the camera improvements by Sony's DRM keys, but since that does nearly nothing to the quality of the pics, I may just do it whenever there's an AOSP rom available.
android_fury said:
I may just do it whenever there's an AOSP rom available.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They've been available for a while now.
legendnexus said:
Hi all,
So it has been a week that have XZ1 Compact, but as most of you aware from the forums camera is not very satisfying. I got a chance to use Galaxy S8 for two months prior to XZ1C, which is also a great phone, however I get the XZ1C just like most of us here; for the phone being in a compact size.
So with the disappointing camera, I am very torn between keeping the phone and wait for an update maybe for the issue to be fixed, or return the phone and get the taller S8.
I wonder what other fellow XDA users think on this issue whether the camera quality can be fix or why should I stay with XZ1C or leave it for S8?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you don't like the phone, just get another one. You won't find one where you like every aspect, so you'll have to priorize.
Regarding fixing the issues, yes, that's entirely possible.
The distortion comes from the wide-angle lense used and can be corrected in software.
The blur and loss of detail is part of Sony's smoothing algorithms and could be turned off in software.
Also, regarding the distortion: https://talk.sonymobile.com/t5/Xper...as-serious-distortion-issue/m-p/1271268#M7658
4rz0 said:
If you don't like the phone, just get another one. You won't find one where you like every aspect, so you'll have to priorize.
Regarding fixing the issues, yes, that's entirely possible.
The distortion comes from the wide-angle lense used and can be corrected in software.
The blur and loss of detail is part of Sony's smoothing algorithms and could be turned off in software.
Also, regarding the distortion: https://talk.sonymobile.com/t5/Xper...as-serious-distortion-issue/m-p/1271268#M7658
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, that message sounds promising. Lets see what the update has to bring us
In the XZP oreo update, aside from camera distortion fix, there is also addition of 3D scan feature which previously only limited to XZ1 series. And if this is the update pattern, to let all recent series capable of running the sama feature, I am sure camera fix for XZ1 will come in next update.
The other thing I really hope for in next update is tap to wake feature, which shall very handy in real life usage experience.