There was an announcement of two new devices from Sony Mobile, the Xperia P and Xperia U. In fact, this is the main backbone of the 2012 line, today I would like to briefly talk about the event, the devices, the thoughts around it. The fact is that the presentation itself was no longer connected even with new products, but with the fact that Sony Ericsson now seemed to have returned to the fold of the parent company, this was clearly indicated on the slides, One Sony, and all that jazz. This is the first thing. Secondly, the company continues to develop the concept of four screens, that is, the user should conveniently switch between the same information on a smartphone, TV, tablet and laptop - fortunately, the company has all this in its product range. In my opinion, the concept is somewhat far-fetched; not many users connect a smartphone or tablet to a TV. Moreover, we are accustomed to accessing various information from the mentioned devices. For example, on TV I watch videos and play games, a smartphone is needed for everyday affairs, communication, listening to music, taking photos, a laptop for work, but a tablet is a kind of assistant, its use depends on the specific situation and aspirations of the owner. Thirdly, it was not for nothing that Sony talked about the uniform design of smartphones in 2012, and P, S, and U are similar to each other, not twins, but it will be difficult for an ordinary consumer to distinguish them. Let's say, a similar phenomenon is observed with Audi, people who are not familiar with the brand confuse A4, A6 and A8, as my friend says, they are the same, only different sizes. In my opinion, uniformity in the line of smartphones is necessary, and for the first time Sony devices of different price groups are so similar, let’s see how this will affect consumers’ perception of the brand. Fourthly, the last event should have fixed in the heads of journalists (well, we should have fixed it in our heads) a simple thought: Sony Ericsson is no more. There is Sony Mobile. New website, new products. Finally, a lot has been said about the concept of Entertaiment Unlimited, you can download videos directly from smartphones or watch online, the same with music and games, everything from the company store - it will not work in Russia yet. Well, now let's talk about devices.
There is just one thing, there is a leapfrog, the line of three smartphones is called Xperia NXT (that is, next), but it is not clear how to use this NXT, or add it to the name of the devices, or is it the name of the line, or something else. Dont clear.
To begin with, I suggest you watch a video about the announced devices.
Sony Xperia S
On our website there is a first look and other materials about this smartphone, a review will appear soon, if you have a desire, I can walk around with the device and take pictures. Relatively speaking, now this is a senior smartphone, not a flagship, but rather a senior one. I don’t think it will be possible to say anything new about the device here; I recommend turning to existing materials. The device goes on sale in Europe this week, they have been reminded of this several times. As they say, sales will show how well Sony has chosen the strategy.
Sony Xperia P
As they say, the average, but the average is not easy. Sony talks about an all-metal case, but in fact, only the battery cover is made of metal, and all the holes are cut out. The device fits well in the hand, the metal feels pleasantly cool on the hand, and the silver one looks much better than the black one. As you can see, here at the bottom there is a luminous strip separating a small area of the body. I hasten to please you that the P has buttons built into the strip, or rather, it’s as if there is one button. It may sound incomprehensible, but it is much more convenient to use than the sensors of the Xperia S. 1 GHz processor (dual-core), 16 GB of internal memory, Android 2.3 (update to the fourth version will be available), 8.1 MP camera, worse than S, but the device takes another. Actually, there are two main stories here: the already mentioned metal in the case and the display. The diagonal is four inches, I won’t give the exact resolution now, since there is some confusion in the press materials. I can only express my admiration for the WhiteMagic technology - this is the addition of another pixel, joy and happiness, Sony does not have time to say that this is the brightest display among all smartphones on the market. Well, I liked something else more, for example, in the browser, each letter seems to be drawn with a thin needle, everything is so clear and beautiful. The brightness is very high, in low light it literally hurts the eyes. A clear and really cool screen compared to everything I’ve seen recently - moreover, WhiteMagic, in theory, does not abuse the device’s battery, and for smartphones with Android this, you know, is a sore spot.
As I said, the camera is 8.1 MP, it is possible to shoot video in Full HD, and among the accessories there is a kind of stand to facilitate connection to a TV.
I won’t say anything yet about the price and time of appearance on the market; I will try to get to know the device in more detail during the exhibition and find out all sorts of details. I will also note that Sony continued to work on the interface, more of its icons, the necessary programs, and so on.
Sony Xperia U
Little brother, there is no metal in the case, but there are replaceable caps for the lower part; the set for Russia will include four such caps. The idea is good, the perception of the device is changing. Everything is simple with the U, it is designed to be a budget Sony smartphone, so don’t expect miracles - the display diagonal is 3.5 inches (854 x 480 pixels), no miracles like “white magic”, a processor like the P, 512 MB of RAM and about 8 GB of internal memory. A 5 MP camera with all proprietary options such as facial recognition and easy creation of panoramas, the stated operating time in music playback mode is about 45 hours, which is not bad, according to colleagues, the Sony Xperia U works in autonomous mode for a long time, longer than its older brothers.
The case is made of plastic, inside there is Android 2.3, an update to 4.0 is promised soon. My impression is simple: the device is for young people, and its fate on the market will very much depend on the price.
While I will dispense with conclusions, the line turned out to be like this, as they wrote more than once on Mobile-review (both Eldar and I), in SE they fought with themselves for a long time to come to the same thing where they started - to a compact line, where Each device is a kind of pearl. The announcement of 2012 did not bring any pearls, this must be understood absolutely clearly - this is not the K750. But Sony has put together a line of three products, each with its own differences: if you want a good camera, pay attention to S; if you want a cool screen and metal, take P; if you want a small and beautiful smartphone, take U. You know, there’s some driver missing here , some kind of killer - something like the Galaxy SII, pulling other models in the line with it. I would like to believe that there will be some other letter from Sony that will cause teeth gnashing among competitors. There isn't one yet.
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Sergey Kuzmin ()
The latest solution from Sony is interesting both in its features and design. One body combines everything you could want from a compact smartphone: a 3.5-inch screen, a 5-megapixel camera with 720p video recording, a future update to Android 4.0 and, of course, a proprietary shell.
Contents of delivery
- Smartphone
- Stereo headset
- High Power Charger
- MicroUSB cable
- 3 replaceable covers
Design
Sony Xperia U is designed in the same style as the company's new devices. The body is angular, small in size, although quite plump. Dimensions 112x54x12 mm, weight 110 g. The smartphone fits well in the hand, fingers rest against the non-slip plastic of the straight side surfaces of the case.
The appearance of the smallest new smartphone reminds us of the company's flagship. It looks like a smaller copy, neat and tightly knit. There are two versions to choose from: black and white. Each of them comes with a set of multi-colored covers that are attached to the bottom of the case.
The idea with such replaceable caps is original. We usually find replacement panels that are replaced entirely. But in our case, everything is limited to only part of the body.
The attachment holds tightly and is removed with moderate effort, so you don’t have to suffer when you want to change the image of your smartphone.
It is completely made of one-color plastic, so there is no need to worry about it peeling off over time. There will be parts in different colors depending on the version. Black, pink, yellow for a white smartphone and white, pink, yellow for a black model.
Perhaps the most unusual feature of the Sony Xperia U will be the backlight built into the transparent layer. Everything works very interesting. Depending on what design is selected on the screen, this layer will also have the same color. It adapts to the wallpaper, album cover or picture in the gallery. There are many scenarios, as well as possible shades. For a youth model, this function is just right; it should immediately distinguish the smartphone from other models.
The front panel contains a light and proximity sensor and a front VGA camera. All of them are located at the top, above the screen.
A block of three touch buttons is located at the bottom. Here the keys are located not on the transparent line, but above it. The exact same idea is used in . They press well, without errors or false positives. On the transparent strip you can see symbols indicating the actions of the keys, but when the backlight is on, they are difficult to see. However, given the logical placement of the back, home and function buttons, there shouldn’t be any problems.
On the right you can see a set of convenient buttons. It includes a volume key, a screen lock button and a separate key to launch the camera.
On the left there is a microUSB port.
At the top end you can see a second microphone and a 3.5 mm headphone jack.
At the bottom end there is a strap holder and a microphone.
The back panel is removable, underneath is the battery.
There is a hole in the cover for the camera lens, flash and speaker.
The standard large size SIM card compartment is located on the side.
Screen
The screen diagonal is 3.5 inches, the resolution is 480x854 pixels, and up to 16 million colors are displayed. The display is covered with tempered glass; it should serve as reliable protection against scratches and abrasions.
Just in case, all smartphones will be sold with the factory film attached. It is practically invisible; additional protection never hurts. Outdoors, the data on the display fades significantly in bright sunlight.
The Mobile Bravia Engine is turned on to increase the contrast and brightness of the image in various applications. For example, this may be relevant when viewing pictures in the gallery. The picture is bright, colors are vibrant, viewing angles are good. The display is superior in image quality to its predecessor, the Sony Ericcson Xperia Neo V; there is more brightness margin here.
Viewing angles and brightness margin are typical for a screen of this type. TFT does not have such maximum angles as SuperAMOLED, which is noticeable in the pictures.
Filling
The smartphone runs on the Android 2.3.7 Gingerbread operating system. There will subsequently be an update to version 4.0 in the second quarter of 2012. It uses a dual-core STE U8500 processor with a frequency of 1 GHz. There is 512 MB of RAM, as well as 8 GB of internal memory. It is not possible to install a memory card here; there is no connector. Of this memory array, about 4 GB is available for user data.
The smartphone works quickly, without delays.
Menu
At the top of the screen there is a service line, which displays the time, battery charge, and signal reception level indicator. Active connections and other data are also displayed there. By clicking on it, you can find out in more detail what programs were downloaded, what messages and letters were received, or what files were received via Bluetooth.
Both preinstalled images or wallpapers from Sony, as well as your favorite pictures, are used as design elements. There are seven different colored menu themes available. In addition, shortcuts and folders are placed on the desktop. For the latter, you can choose one of eight design options and assign it a name. Icons are added by dragging them from the phone menu directly into this area.
Of course, there are widgets here too, you can also add them to your desktop. There can be five such screens, their number does not change. At the same time, an interesting function works: you can swipe with two fingers from different angles, all desktops will be reduced and displayed on one screen. The widgets have been improved, for example, a large list of icons is available for making various connections, which is initially hidden in a small rectangle. Weather forecast data is animated and beautifully displayed.
There are 5 icons at the bottom of the screen. These are multimedia, messages, menu entry, contacts and dialing. If you click on media, an additional menu will pop up with those applications that are in this category.
The Application Manager is activated by the Home button. It displays 8 programs and in essence it is not a traditional task manager. As you know, Android closes applications on its own, based on the amount of free RAM.
The smartphone menu consists of several work zones, initially there are three. If you install additional applications, then over time there will be more such areas. There are 20 icons on the screen on a translucent background, under which you can see the wallpaper installed on the main screen. Icons can be arranged in a way that is convenient for the user. There is also sorting by several criteria: alphabetically, frequently used, recently installed. The icons are beautiful and neatly designed. The camera icon will remind you of the NEX series cameras, and the radios are Sony receivers.
When the screen is locked, the display shows the date and time. To unlock the screen, you need to swipe your finger along from left to right. If you do it the other way around, the silent mode is activated, as indicated by the additional icon. This may display additional information about missed calls, new messages, emails, calendar events, and Facebook notifications. If such notifications seem unnecessary, you can turn them off.
Phone book
The smartphone has a convenient assistant for importing contacts both from a SIM card and from Facebook and Google accounts; they are displayed in a single list. A backup copy of the list of numbers is created on a memory card; the data can later be restored. Sorting by first and last name works.
When you create a new contact, many fields are created. These are various types of telephone numbers, email addresses, means of quick communication (AIM, ICQ, Gtalk, Skype and others), residential addresses and others (nickname, note, Internet call).
The smartphone has a list of letters of the alphabet located on the right side of the screen. If you press your finger on this line and move down or up, a letter will pop up on the screen - a kind of quick search, which helps in cases where the phone has several hundred, or even thousands of contacts. The search works by the first letters of the contact name for both language layouts.
There is a menu of favorite numbers where you can add the most popular contacts. A quick menu is available: you need to click on the icon with a contact photo, after which you can call, send a message via SMS or email, or view data on Facebook.
Call log
You can access the call log directly from the phone book; it is highlighted in a separate tab. There, a single list contains dialed numbers, received and missed calls; for clarity, they are marked with icons of different colors. By clicking on a line, you can delete a number from the call log, add it to a contact, or perform some other actions. If you select a number from the list, detailed information about the call will be displayed.
By viewing your call history, you can not only make a telephone conversation with the selected subscriber, but also send him an SMS or an email from this list without going to another menu. Dialing is carried out using a convenient virtual keyboard. There is an automatic search for numbers that match the numbers.
Messages
For SMS and MMS there is a common folder where received messages go. When sending, adding various objects to the SMS can automatically convert it into an MMS. Messages are grouped by recipient into a correspondence feed. When dialing a subscriber's number, the phone displays a list of matching numbers in alternating numbers.
While typing, a small field reserved for characters will be displayed. The longer the message, the more the space allocated for the character set increases. The device can copy, cut and paste text. A convenient cursor is used for navigation, which helps to correct typos and highlight the necessary sections of text. In addition, you can use arrow buttons.
Intellectual text input is available, when word correction and auto-completion systems help you type text, allowing you to avoid wasting time correcting errors. Possible word options are shown in a separate line above the keyboard. Copying and pasting of fragments is supported. Now Sony has implemented Swype, which simplifies text entry.
To work with email, the mailbox is automatically configured (if it is not Gmail, which connects immediately after the email address is entered during the initial activation of the phone). It includes entering basic information (login, password). The phone perfectly understands various encodings, supports loading attachments (you must insert a memory card, otherwise this function will not work) in familiar formats.
When creating a letter, you can also attach various files from the device memory to it. The function of copying text and automatically checking the mailbox works (the interval is set manually). The device simultaneously runs two applications – Gmail and E-mail. The only difference is that in the first, mail comes only from the gmail.com server, while the second application works with any mail storage.
You can create multiple email accounts, each with its own color. This is convenient because you can view mail for each mailbox separately, and display messages from all accounts in one. Sorting mail by date, subject, sender and size works.
Camera
The smartphone uses a 5-megapixel Sony Exmor R module with backlighting, autofocus and LED flash. To launch the camera, use a dedicated key on the side of the smartphone. By holding it down for a few seconds, the shooting mode starts; this can be done from any application; it is not necessary to go to the main menu. I liked the high launch speed of the camera, as well as the very fast saving of pictures.
The most original feature of the device is fast shooting. The smartphone can take a photo in just 1.5 seconds. You need to point the device at the target, hold down the shutter button, and in a moment a photo will be taken. It’s very convenient because you don’t need to unlock the device, wasting precious time. The main thing is to hold the button until the frame appears on the screen, otherwise you may shoot the wrong object.
The interface is designed not only for landscape, but also for portrait mode. The screen displays auxiliary icons that make it easier to set up photography modes and conditions. In the upper left corner there is a settings mode, at the bottom the flash is turned off. At the top right is a lever for switching between photos and videos, then there is a shutter button. Below that is a stack of icons that show thumbnails of recent photos. If you click on it, you can go to the gallery.
Various options are available:
Image capture mode: normal, panorama, 3D panorama, multi-angle view, front camera.
Photo size: 5M (2592x1944), 3M (2048x1536), 2M 4:3 (1632x1224), 2M 16:9 (1920x1080 pixels).
Shooting conditions: normal, portrait, landscape, night photography, night portrait, beach and snow, sports, party, document.
Exposure number.
Flash: auto, off, fill, red-eye reduction.
Timer: 2.10 seconds.
Smile detection.
Focus: single autofocus, multi-autofocus, face detection, touch focus, infinity.
ISO: auto, 100, 200, 400, 800.
White balance: auto, indoor lighting, fluorescent, daylight, cloudy.
Metering: center, middle level, point
Geotags.
Shooting method: screen button, touch shooting, key only.
Shutter sound.
The smartphone has good detail, adequate color rendition and convenient shooting with a dedicated key.
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This is the youngest device in the modern Xperia line. At the same time, the company decided not to save money, and even with this positioning, the device received a dual-core processor, an excellent screen, and even a fast camera. But since the devil is in the details, we still can’t do without an exorcist...
Design
First impression Xperia U leaves only good things. The small, neat device is made of plastic that is pleasant to the touch and sports the signature design of the latest Xperia line. Like its older brothers, under the screen of the gadget there is a transparent strip with a multi-colored LED. Plus, the bottom plastic insert is removable, and the set comes with four of them. The device I tested was white, extremely elegant but not overly feminine - a sophisticated unisex in the Sony style.
Assembly Sony Xperia U excellent. The parts fit together perfectly, in some places even too much. For example, I couldn’t remove the replacement socket from my copy. She sat like a glove. There are no squeaks when squeezing, the back cover does not bend under your fingers.
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On the right side there are three hardware buttons: camera, volume rocker and power button. On the left there is only room for a MicroUSB connector, and on top there is a headphone jack. Quite a well thought out design.
A funny detail: in the box with the smartphone, in addition to the usual headset, charger and set of instructions, there are a couple of nice additions. The generous wizards from Sony put there a proprietary film for the screen, a cleaning cloth and a special adapter from Micro-SIM to a regular SIM card. Apparently, this is in case you decide that the fourth iPhone is already a thing of the past, and the future belongs exclusively to cute, inexpensive “androids”.
But there are also notorious nuances. Firstly, the touch button icons on the transparent panel are difficult to see. What is also complicated by the fact that the “Back” button is on the far left (in the center is “Home”, and “Menu” on the right), and not everyone is used to this arrangement. As a result, erroneous clicks are guaranteed in the first days of work. And in the following days too - the unmarked touch keys under the screen every now and then accidentally meet my fingers.
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Screen
The screen is excellent and perfectly complements the first wow impression. With a modest diagonal of 3.5 inches, there are full 854x480 pixels, which gives the output a very clear and beautiful picture. Yes, and Sony BRAVIA proprietary technologies are not just for words here and provide very high-quality color rendition, without the Korean “eye-popping” style. In the sun, the image remains readable, although it does have a slight glare. Hardly for the money they ask for Sony ST25i, there's more to be desired this year.
The capacitive screen supports four simultaneous presses. This, of course, is not ten, but it will do for most games, but will not be useful anywhere else.
The only thing I can complain about is the light sensor. It barely works, continuing to blind the eyes in the dark and not turning the backlight to maximum on the street. Apparently, firmware updates will fix this, but for now you have to change the brightness manually.
Iron
Designing ST25i, the engineers did not make compromises and installed the same processor here as in the more advanced Xperia Sola. This is a dual-core ST Ericsson NovaThor U8500 with a clock speed of 1 GHz. It also comes with 512 MB of RAM and a Mali-400 MP video accelerator. This is an excellent technological combination that is enough for playing HD video without conversion, high-performance games and other resource-intensive tasks.
The smartphone practically does not slow down, but it heats up quite noticeably even under average load. In fact, even simply playing music in APE format can already raise the temperature under the hood of the car. This is the price to pay for impressive power for this class.
Applications install on the system with lightning speed, the browser works very quickly, and even terrible Flash videos play without problems.
Some older applications that were written for Android 2.1 may be unstable. From my permanent set of “oldies”, the AndLess player, the Racing Moto game and the Multitouch Test tester application crashed with errors or froze. Although these are rather questions for software developers, since the smartphone is in complete harmony with the new software.
Alas, there was still a big fly in the ointment. The gadget does not have a slot for a memory card, and its own “brains” are only 8 GB, of which the user has access to: 1.6 GB for installing applications and 4 GB in storage mode. Lovely! I can see the Sony office where the decision is made on the positioning of this year’s Xperia line and I can clearly hear the demonic laughter of the marketers. Indeed, why cut the functionality of a younger model when you can seriously limit its memory? Some games for Android, let me remind you, “weigh” a good gigabyte. Not to mention listening to lossless music, shooting with a camera, watching videos... The space in the smartphone runs out already after 3-4 days of active work. You will inevitably think about looking at more advanced Xperia models or writing a letter of complaint to the UN.
Android
The smartphone has the Android 2.3.7 operating system with the proprietary Timescape shell. The fourth version of the green robot is expected for the Xperia family only in the summer, but the current result of the joint efforts of Google and Sony is quite interesting.
When you turn it on for the first time, the machine's Quick Setup screen automatically launches. In it you can set your preferred Internet connection settings, configure synchronization with Internet services, enable backup and other pleasant little things.
 Almost every smartphone function has Xperia U has its own widget |
The device offers you five desktops, an almost empty top notification area and a set of branded widgets. The Timescape shell focuses on the content and specific functions of the device, which manifests itself, for example, when pinch a gesture on the desktop - instead of the usual carousel of tables, we are simultaneously shown all the widgets selected by the user, between which you can quickly switch.
Sony has diversified the usual “Android” life with a whole set of applications. We will talk about those related to multimedia playback in another section. Now let's go on a controlled flight through the Internet and social networks.
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The Timescape shell has an application of the same name that aggregates all updates to your Facebook and Twitter profiles into a single feed. The same application has a whole bunch of widgets that bring the latest information from your friends’ profiles to your desktop. There is also a special “music and video” widget that searches your social networks in search of YouTube videos recommended by “friends” and displays them in a small window.
In addition to the standard Google Play, there is also its own PlayNow application store, where you can buy or download applications, games and music for free. The range is small, and the average price of applications is about $2. So it’s impossible to seriously consider Sony PlayNow as a competitor to the almighty Google Play. There is also a client application for downloading, demo testing and purchasing games from the Electronic Arts studio.
Also on a smartphone Sony Xperia U There is a utility for setting up energy savings by disabling unnecessary functions and an application for counting mobile traffic.
 The browser is standard, you can open up to eight windows at the same time. Thanks to the hardware, everything works very quickly |
The connection to the PC is carried out via the MTP protocol, the same way as is done, for example, in the Samsung Galaxy W. Personally, I like this method because there is no need to safely remove the device, and automatic format conversion is also available when copying. As much as I was used to listening to music in FLAC, in order to save memory, I still allowed the system to quickly convert the music to MP3.
When connecting to a computer directly from your phone, you can install the Sony PC Companion synchronization program, but this is not necessary - everything works just like that. The only strange thing I encountered is that automatic MKV conversion does not work when copying. This video format must be uploaded to the phone in the original resolution and format.
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In Contacts, in the dialing section, a smart search is organized: you dial a number on a virtual 12-key keyboard, and the smartphone helpfully gives you contacts with matching numbers and corresponding letters. A similar quick search is implemented in smartphones with HTC Sense. There is, however, a “nuance” here: the Cyrillic alphabet is not supported in this search (yet?).
Overall, during testing Xperia U worked reliably for me. But there were also surprises. For example, system applications hanging in the background may begin to eat up battery power. And one day the smartphone produced a series of cyclic reboots. If something like this happens to you, call an exorcist, turn off the device and turn it on again. Helps.
Camera
IN Sony ST25i A 5-megapixel camera with a quick shooting function is installed. You can start it without even removing the lock, just by holding down the shoot button. The function does not work at lightning speed, but still faster than the traditional way.
The quality of pictures in automatic mode is mediocre and there are not enough stars in the sky. Fortunately, the camera is stuffed with a huge number of settings, and with their help you can both simplify the work with the device and achieve relatively good pictures.
 Interior photography in natural light. |
But shooting video is frankly not fun. The declared HD is recorded at 29 frames per second, which is nominally quite good. But in practice, the picture turns out jerky, with artifacts that are visible not only on the monitor, but even on the screen of the phone itself.
To appreciate the quality of the shooting yourself, enjoy the parade of young mothers in the historical part of Odessa.
There is a mode for taking photos and panoramas in 3D, as well as a special utility for viewing the resulting images on compatible devices. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any of those on hand. But the shooting procedure itself is extremely difficult: to create a stereo panorama, you need to shoot it from several angles, for which you need to turn the camera very slowly. You'll probably get it right the fifth time! Overall, it's more of a fun diversion than an actual tool.
Multimedia
I liked the sound in the headphones. It is detailed and pleasant to the ear. The sound frequencies are balanced, and the volume headroom is good enough to take your smartphone out onto a busy street. And, most importantly, all these sound components are successfully mixed together and form a kind of explosive musical mixture that can easily rock not only your headphones, but also you.
The native music player supports the Cyrillic alphabet, is beautiful and has an additional feature: sorting music by emotional states. To do this, you need to send some information about your music library to the Sony servers, and in response you will receive an order: this song in “happiness-joy”, and this one in “sadness-sadness”. This function works so far through a stump deck; a significant part of the audio library I downloaded to my smartphone was completely left without emotional identifiers. I hope that the functionality of this option will improve in the future, as the idea itself is quite interesting.
It’s also worth talking about another cool idea from Sony - the Live Aware manager. It allows you to configure automatic launch of the programs you need when you connect a headset, headphones or charger. A very convenient thing that allows you to make working with the player automatic.
The video player is not particularly notable except for support for transferring content to a device paired via Wi-Fi, and the presence of a simple video editor in which you can trim the captured video. So I would recommend you to look for something more interesting on Google Play. The same MX Player, for example.
Battery
Xperia U ST25i received a more than modest 1290 mAh battery. If you don’t skimp and push the device hard, in 7-8 hours the battery will go a long way from 100% to zero. If you do not abuse 3D games and video shooting, the device will last a full daylight hours.
Very economical users will be able to squeeze out even a day from the device - if they turn off Wi-Fi and 3G, synchronize only important services and try to avoid resource-intensive applications. But do you need a smartphone then?
Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray, in my opinion, can compete with our hero in the image field. It's beautiful, similar to Xperia U, a device with the same clear screen, albeit smaller. Yes, the Ray's processor is weaker, but the battery lasts a little longer. Plus, he already received Android 4.0, and Sony Xperia U will “suffer” for some time on 2.3.7. You can buy a Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray for 10-12 thousand rubles, so this option has a right to life. Especially in gentle female hands.
In terms of convenience Sony Xperia U you will have to fight tooth and nail with the youngest representative of the new HTC line. The One V smartphone boasts a more convenient and thoughtful shell, a fresh operating system, longer battery life, a larger screen and better video recording. Its processor, however, is much weaker, the sound in the headphones is worse, and the price is more expensive - about 14,000 rubles.
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Advantages:
— Timescape shell and proprietary software
- Design
— Productive processor
— Camera quick launch function and hardware button for shooting
- Good sound in headphones
— An abundance of camera settings and the way they are organized
Flaws:
— Short battery life
- Low memory (about 5.7 GB for the user)
— Inconvenient touch buttons under the screen
— Old version of Android
— Poor video recording quality
— Strange operation of the light sensor
Summary
Sony has come up with a beautiful and fast device, loaded to the brim with the same Sony-style that is capable of seriously and for a long time blowing the minds of its owners. But minor firmware flaws, a weak battery and a catastrophically small amount of memory still spoil the impression and are slightly sobering. It seems to me that the device is almost ideal for a girl who loves social networks, music and appreciates beautiful gadgets. But the seasoned geek sighs, walks around this handsome guy, and chooses the Xperia Sola or HTC One V.
Technical specifications Sony Xperia U ST25i
| GSM | 850, 900, 1800, 1900 |
|---|---|
| WCDMA | 900, 2100 |
| Type of shell | monoblock |
| operating system | Google Android 2.3 |
| CPU | ST Ericsson NovaThor U8500, 1 GHz |
| RAM | 512 MB |
| Screen type | TFT |
| Screen size | 3,5 |
| Number of colors | 16 million |
| Screen resolution | 854x480 |
| Sensory | Yes |
| Built-in memory | 8 GB |
| Memory card support | No |
| Sound | xLOUD Experience, Track ID |
| Communications | Wi-Fi, 3G |
| Connectors | MicroUSB, 3.5 mm |
| Camera | 5 MP, autofocus, flash, HD video recording, BSI sensor |
Despite some successes last year, with some devices like the Xperia Arc, Sony hit a slippery slope in 2012. At the beginning of the year, Sony entered the market with the flagship smartphone Xperia S, which a month later eclipsed the HTC One X. And with the announcement of the Samsung Galaxy S3, Sony's flagship product seems to be out of business.
Maybe things will improve for the Japanese manufacturer with the release of the Xperia U? At first glance, the smartphone looks like a winner - a budget device with a dual-core processor, Bravia Engine display technology and excellent build quality. But this may be marred by an outdated version of Android. Well, let's take a closer look and move on to our Sony Xperia U review.
Design and ergonomics of Sony Xperia U
In terms of industrial design, many entry-level smartphones look like miniature versions of their high-end brothers, and this is undoubtedly the case with the Sony Xperia U and its big brother Xperia C. Besides the size, the screen is 4.3 inches on the Xperia C versus 3.5 inches. the Xperia U. This year, Sony decided not to deviate from the basic design of the Xperia line, while continuing to consolidate the branding of the line.
Like the Xperia S, the U has a soft-touch plastic body and a slightly curved back. Unfortunately, this uniqueness comes at the expense of ergonomics. There are three buttons on the illuminated strip: home, menu and return back.
Hardware: Sony Xperia U specifications
Above the buttons is a FWVGA Sony Reality display with a resolution of 854 x 480 pixels. The display also features Sony Mobile Bravia Engine technology, which enhances image contrast and color quality. The viewing angles are wide and the image quality is really good. It's certainly not comparable to the HTC One X, but it's decent, even outdoors in sunlight.
The Xperia U's physical buttons are located along the right edge - there's a power button at the top, a dual volume rocker in the middle, while the camera button is at the bottom. And like other phones in the Xperia line, you can hold down this button to immediately take a photo. The camera has a resolution of 5 megapixels and an LED flash, and for video calls there is a front VGA camera.
On the left side of the case there is a MicroUSB connector and at the top there is a 3.5 mm headphone jack. Behind the back cover you will find a removable 1300 mAh battery and a full-size SIM card slot. And the bottom panel of the case can be replaced, as shown in the photo.
Inside Sony Xperia U There is a 1 GHz dual-core ST-Ericsson processor, as well as 512 MB of RAM. While it's flattering to see a dual-core processor in a low-budget smartphone, its performance numbers are still quite modest and can't compare to dual-core monsters like the Snapdragon S4. However, it is quite sufficient for work, and we did not notice any performance problems. And although you may notice some unsmoothness in the animation, we believe that this is due to the outdated Android 2.3 and with the release of the update to Android 4.0 this flaw will be eliminated.
Software
Sony Xperia U runs Android 2.3.7 operating system along with Sony UXP NXT software. Sony promises to release an update to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich in the third quarter of this year.
Sony's UI is by far one of the best Gingerbread skins we've seen - there's just the right amount of animation and visual embellishment to make the experience enjoyable for the user without going too far into embellishment.
In addition to Sony's Cosmic Stream live wallpaper, there are weather, search and other widgets that you can customize to your liking. And you can change the appearance of the Sony system theme based on seven color profiles. When you change the theme profile, the backlight of the transparent bar with buttons also changes. Likewise, if you're viewing photos or listening to music, the backlight color will change to reflect the dominant color in the image or album cover. This may be a little gimmicky for some users' tastes, but we found this visual alert funny. The Xperia U comes with Sony's excellent suite of multimedia apps.
Other software goodies include the Music Unlimited and Video Unlimited streaming services, which are included in this phone model. The phone's player has been redesigned and is the same as on other Xperia 2012 models. It has a built-in equalizer with plenty of effects for your music, including ClearBass with a surround sound effect that can be appreciated when paired with good headphones.
Integration with social networks is carried out through Timescape and the Facebook Inside Xperia application. Timescape organizes social updates of text messages and other data into a 3D list, and there's support for Facebook, Twitter, Google Play and other services out of the box.
Sony Xperia U smartphone camera
Sony has historically made an impression with its cameras on phones, even on lower-end devices. And for the most part, the Xperia U's 5 megapixel camera supports that impression. In reasonably lit rooms, the phone captures images almost instantly and produces clear, noise-free images.
Sony has also included 3D panoramic photography in the app, although you'll need a 3D TV to view this as the phone has a simple 2D display.
Verdict on the Sony Xperia U phone review
The Xperia U is far from Sony's flawless effort, but it is a very well-rounded entry-level phone. Its retail price is around 12,000 rubles, which puts it on par with the HTC One V and Desire C. In this price range, it's hard to imagine a phone that offers better value for money than Sony Xperia U. This makes it even more disappointing that Sony has decided to limit user storage space to 4GB, with no prospect of expansion via MicroSD cards. Samsung and HTC realize that this is not enough and at least offer a MicroSD slot as a possible workaround in their entry-level phones - Sony doesn't offer such a compromise in the Xperia U.
However, a dual-core phone with 720p HD video recording for 12 grand would have been unthinkable a few months ago and Sony deserves credit for making it.
The device is made in a monoblock form factor and is equipped with a 3.5-inch LCD display with Mobile BRAVIA technology. The display resolution is 854 x 480 pixels. The screen is capable of displaying 16.7 million colors. Communication capabilities are presented: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB 2.0, DLNA and aGPS.
According to ZOOM.Cnews readers
Sony XPERIA U:
Beautiful, ergonomic, functional, has a capacious battery, has a good camera, can be a replacement for a player, can act as a GPS receiver, lightweight, affordable.
CHARACTERISTICS
BeautifulErgonomic
Functional
Has a capacious battery
Has a good camera
Can be a replacement for the player
Can act as a GPS receiver
Easy
Affordable
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