In advance of iPhone 6, Sony Gets It Right

Sony’s flagship Z series phones just got an upgrade only some six months after the release of the Z2.

While the new iteration, unveiled at Internationale Funkausstellung Berlin (IFA) this week, aptly called the Z3 doesn’t have a huge suite of features to add, it does feature a faster processor. This coupled with its whopping 3GB of Ram, 50% more than its closest rival, the Samsung Galazy S5, make it the most powerful Android phone on the market. Its 20.7 Megapixel camera handles low lighting conditions better than the Galazy S5, and has a more professional interface. The dedicated camera button, which is lacking in the S5 is a huge plus, making picture snapping that much easierr.

The phone is slightly lighter than its predecessor and features Hi Res Audio, the only phone to do so. And, for those gaming fans, it is compatible with the PS4 Handset, running without any snags.

It comes with 16GB with add-on memory of up to 128GB, making it substantial reservoir for data storage.

As with its predecessors, the screen is powered by Sony’s Bravia engine, which gives crisp clear images that don’t strain the eyes.

It has a smaller battery but Sony insists, that the reduction in size is compensated adequately through efficiencies, easily giving one a day and a bit of rigorous usage, which is a must for today’s smartphone user.

TechRadar praised the phone’s “vivid and crisp” 5.2 inch and 1080 x 1920 resolution display, as well as the device’s powerful 3100 mAh battery.
A sharp 20.7 megapixel camera and the option to stream PS4 games via WiFi onto the Xperia Z3 (PS4 Remote Play) were also lauded as attractive features.

In all, Sony gets it right with this phone but pricing in the UK is rather high at 549 pounds sterling for an unlocked version. It has yet to be priced in India.

Sony has also launched a compact model, which has a 4.7 inch screen, and might suit the hands of iPhone users better – a smart move as Apple goes big with its newer version of iPhone.

While the edges are not quite as sharp as the predecessors, on the whole, Sony has kept with its sleek, monolithic design principles. The phone has an aluminium body with gorilla glass on both sides, giving it the look and feel one would expect of a premium smartphone. And, as before, it is waterproof including submerged water, and dust-proof

Here is Tech Radar’s first look:Sony Xperia Z3 Full Specs.
ENERAL 2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 – D6603, D6643, D6653, D6616
3G Network HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100 – D6603, D6643, D6653, D6616
4G Network LTE 700/800/850/900/1700/1800/1900/2100/2600
(1/2/3/4/5/7/8/13/17/20) – D6603
LTE 700/800/850/900/1700/1800/1900/2100/2600
(1/2/3/4/5/7/8/17/20) – D6643
LTE 700 / 850 / 900 / 1800 / 2100 / 2600 – D6653
LTE 700 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100 – D6616
SIM Nano-SIM
Announced 2014, September
Status Coming soon. Exp. release 2014, September
BODY Dimensions 146 x 72 x 7.3 mm (5.75 x 2.83 x 0.29 in)
Weight 152 g (5.36 oz)
– IP68 certified – dust proof and water resistant over 1 meter and 30 minutes
DISPLAY Type IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
Size 1080 x 1920 pixels, 5.2 inches (~424 ppi pixel density)
Multitouch Yes, up to 10 fingers
Protection Shatter proof glass
– Triluminos display
– X-Reality Engine
SOUND Alert types Vibration; MP3 ringtones
Loudspeaker Yes, with stereo speakers
3.5mm jack Yes
MEMORY Card slot microSD, up to 128 GB
Internal 16/32 GB, 3 GB RAM
DATA GPRS Up to 107 kbps
EDGE Up to 296 kbps
Speed HSDPA, 42 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.8 Mbps; LTE, Cat4, 50 Mbps UL, 150 Mbps DL
WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot
Bluetooth v4.0, A2DP
NFC Yes
USB microUSB v2.0 (MHL 3), USB On-the-go, USB Host
CAMERA Primary 20.7 MP, 5248 х 3936 pixels, autofocus, LED flash
Features 1/2.3” sensor size, ISO 12,800, geo-tagging, touch focus, face detection, image stabilization, HDR, panorama
Video 2160p@30fps, 1080p@60fps, 720p@120fps, HDR
Secondary 2.2 MP, 1080p@30fps
FEATURES OS Android OS, v4.4.4 (KitKat)
Chipset Qualcomm MSM8974AC Snapdragon 801
CPU Quad-core 2.5 GHz Krait 400
GPU Adreno 330
Sensors Accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer
Messaging SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, IM, Push Email
Browser HTML5
Radio FM radio with RDS
GPS Yes, with A-GPS, GLONASS, Beidou
Java Yes, via Java MIDP emulator
Colors Black, White, Copper, Silver Green
– ANT+ support
– SNS integration
– TV-out (via MHL 3 A/V link)
– Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic
– Xvid/MP4/H.263/H.264 player
– MP3/eAAC+/WAV/Flac player
– Document viewer
– Photo viewer/editor
– Voice memo/dial
– Predictive text input
BATTERY Non-removable Li-Ion 3100 mAh battery
Stand-by Up to 890 h (2G) / Up to 740 h (3G)
Talk time Up to 14 h (2G) / Up to 16 h (3G)
Music play Up to 130 h
For the complete review, check out Tech Radar