Sony Xperia Z5 Compact review: The overachiever
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- AnonD-265341
- xsY
- 08 Oct 2015
Great phone, cudos to sony for taming the dragon, i will buy this for my girlfriend asap! :D
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- Anonymous
- 7Xr
- 08 Oct 2015
Anonymous, 08 Oct 2015I can't believe it's an all around downgrade. Even looks li... moreZ5c may not be a perfect phone, because nothing's perfect. But saying that it is a downgrade is purely a negative exaggeration. It depends on what areas you look. Battery perhaps? But it is still performing well in that dept. Obviously no downgrade issues considering the fingerprint sensor, new cam sensor and an even more powerful chipset. Let us make things sensible here. Please.
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- Anonymous
- MPV
- 08 Oct 2015
I am considering this as my 1st non nexus phone and after reading the review, i am confused by the comment on the lockscreen,
Have Sony completely disabled all notifications on the screen? Stock lollipop displays notifications from apps prior to unlocking the screen. Surely this is a useful feature
Any ideas?
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- Anonymous
- L91
- 08 Oct 2015
I can't believe it's an all around downgrade. Even looks like potatophone.
On the other hand, it's the best time to buy the Z3 compact, which is a great phone.
- T
- The Reviewer
- vGe
- 08 Oct 2015
The weird thing is there was not even a single mention of the iPhone 6/6s as they are the direct competitors. The price of the Xperia Z5 Compact is lesser than even iPhone 6 let alone iPhone 6s and we know that Z3 Compact was the equivalent of the iPhone 6 and in some places even blew it of such as battery. The new 6s, even though is a good upgrade does not match the Xperia Z5 Compact in any way. The Z5C has better display resolution, better battery, better camera, better audio, waterproofing, equivalent fingerprint sensor, looks (matter of personal opinion) and most importantly the huge Price Difference.
Each has their pros and cons but the Xperia Z5 Compact really did beat the iPhone 6s.
- t
- the tech nerd
- 2S8
- 08 Oct 2015
taghack, 08 Oct 2015You have a point there. The Z5 Compact showed little signs ... moreI don't think so that it will ever overheat (maybe little heating) because Sony has applied same solution for overheating as they did for z5 premium (just remember it has 4k screen)
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- AnonD-404798
- d%{
- 08 Oct 2015
DenisXD, 08 Oct 2015plus Z5 is durable, you forgot to mention thisYeah i know,but if i start i can go all day with SONY Xperia advantages and still find only few disadvantages that can be overlooked easily because in most cases they don't even mater...and yeah sound is important i saw that in other comment ,but people should know the difference between sound quality and it's loudness right now sound quality is very good but not so loud :( prob because of waterproofing...so i can overlook that part and wait for improvement.
- T
- The Reviewer
- vGe
- 08 Oct 2015
God...first time have i seen such a good discussion in the GSMArena Comments Section.
Sony phones are really misunderstood. To me they are the most technical, in short the best phones (in light of recent releases).
The Z5 Compact is just another great phone. Would like to clear a few things though.
1. The phone that they reviewed does not have the latest camera UI (as said in the review). It has improved vastly and the software is also leaps and bounds ahead of the current one.
2. Audio is great but even i am not impressed with the audio levels.
3. The phone does not overheat at all. There is a video on GSMArena which shows that the Z5C can record upto 40mins of 4K video which is just AMAZING as we know that 4K recording makes the processor go crazy hot. Sony's technical solution is just amazing.
4. I prefer it to have a 720p screen and 2GB Ram. The fact that 1080p screen and 3GB would just have made things worse (battery), i was former was the right thing to do, which they did.
5. What i personally think is that Sony (infact all companies) should ditch Android Lollipop and go with Android Marshmallow. Lollipop has a lot of issues and i think that most phones instead from benefiting from it have had more issues.
6. Again, the camera is really really great and not other phone has a multi aspect sensor. Also with the new update, the Superior Auto Mode will not just be limited to 8mp but shall be able to use the full potential of the sensor that is 23mp. And if you check the image samples in the review, the pictures are really great. Much amazing than the previous generation.
7. The fingerprint sensor is also of of the best implementations on an Android and its location is just amazing.
8. True the volume button placement is weird (bad) but considering the size of the phone it is not an issue.
Overall, i think that Sony has moved in the right direction and in no way is it a downgrade from the Xperia Z3 Compact. Yes the price is high but it is because that you get a flagship phone in a Small form factor. It is still cheaper that many many other flagships.
Cheers
- A
- Ale
- 8mp
- 08 Oct 2015
Anonymous, 08 Oct 2015The software has been fixed in the Z5. It has the best came... moreYou probably are correct in that I'll admit.
But that only serves to put the Dx0 Mark test at odds with the findings of other review sites that are now starting to trickle in.
The consensus in this regard is that there are still issues present and it is the software that is letting the hardware down.
- DenisXD
- nmL
- 08 Oct 2015
AnonD-404798, 08 Oct 2015THAN GO TO YOUR SAMSUNG PAGE AND ENJOY ''SUPERB BUILD QUALI... moreplus Z5 is durable, you forgot to mention this
- DenisXD
- nmL
- 08 Oct 2015
Anonymous, 08 Oct 2015People don't care about audio. As long as it has stereo spe... moreEveryone has their needs from a device. If you don't want top music quality that's fine by me, but don't say that people doesn't care about audio when a lot obviously do..
- ?
- Anonymous
- J7R
- 08 Oct 2015
Ale, 08 Oct 2015The sensor yes, that's the hardware bit which the review pr... moreThe software has been fixed in the Z5. It has the best camera. Dx0mark just doesn't test the sensor, but it TAKES pictures with it and compares with the rest. Because they just can't rate the Z5 first only by testing the sensor.
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- Anonymous
- J7R
- 08 Oct 2015
Jumbo, 08 Oct 2015For Z3C owners it might be 50/50.
For Z1C owners such a... moreEven I'm sad that the Z1 series won't get 6.0. A bit harsh from Sony. Hopefully the Z1 series will get it in the last batch. If I were to replace my Z1C I'd get the normal Z5.
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- Anonymous
- J7R
- 08 Oct 2015
Jumbo, 08 Oct 2015For Z3C owners it might be 50/50. For Z1C owners such a... moreI own a Z1C but I think Z5C looks better. Z3C was more of a toy. Especially the Z5C has thinner bezels than Z1C and thinner.
- ?
- Anonymous
- 7Xr
- 08 Oct 2015
Ale, 08 Oct 2015The sensor yes, that's the hardware bit which the review pr... moreYes, the hardware has always been very powerful and no slouch. And the new 23MP sensor, is now even more improved. So you're right it's probably the software.
Admittedly, I am a Sony fanboy, and I always want to be objective that's why it's also nice to have a sensible exchange of thoughts here, rather than bashing. Here, there's no such thing as downgrade. Downgrade? Where?
Going back to the camera, personally they look fine to me. It could be just a matter of personal considerations and preferences. The reviewer might just want a polished processing here, thus polished outputs as well. To me, I feel a bit frustrated. They have all the best RX cameras and Alpha SLTs, so maybe they could help?
Now I am concerned as to how are we going to tap Sony and let them know that they could've done better, or polish the software. I'm just wondering.
- J
- Jumbo
- 3Y}
- 08 Oct 2015
For Z3C owners it might be 50/50.
For Z1C owners such as myself, it should be an easier choice but nothing is blowing me away about this upgrade. The design has gone waaaayy downhill, I was hoping for a --classy-- looking device like the Z1C was. Z3C was so toy-y, the Z5C improves but it's hardly a stunner.
Right now the only thing I really see as a major reason to consider the upgrade is the fact that it's just been announced that my Z1C won't be getting 6.0. Yes it's the best phone around right now, for my likes, but I have the 3rd-best which looks a lot better too. Feeling a bit jaded now..
- D
- AnonD-404798
- d%{
- 08 Oct 2015
ithehappy, 08 Oct 2015Why you guys keep saying "superb build quality" for a phone... moreTHAN GO TO YOUR SAMSUNG PAGE AND ENJOY ''SUPERB BUILD QUALITY'' OF CHEEP PLASTIC ! ROFL .
personally i never used any sort case or cover because SONY design and build feels so great in hand that anything on it is just annoying and hides it's beauty.
- taghack
- 0Bh
- 08 Oct 2015
Body150165, 08 Oct 2015I just wonder that there is not a single word about overhea... moreYou have a point there. The Z5 Compact showed little signs of overheating during tests, especially compared to some previous company models. However, the Z5, which is currently going through the procedure seems to heat up quite a bit more, particularly in GPU tests. Perhaps the bigger resolution is straining the chip, but the results aren't final yet.
- Y
- Yogi
- Hku
- 08 Oct 2015
Thanks gsmarena, for non-biased review...
I'm a great fan of SONY..!
Last 7 yrs I'm using only Sony mobiles ...
Luckily I have got all the 4 models ( w550, J108, Xperia ZR, Z1) faultless...!
Though before buying each product I use to read lot of reviews and user opinions.
By reading the z5 compact review, I made my mind to go for it...!
Thanks again... . !
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- AnonD-449091
- td5
- 08 Oct 2015
My Opinion:
if you have Z3C - you dont need an upgrade.
if you want the best small phone (not over 5") and don't want an iPhone - take the Z5C.
if you want the best small phone (not over 5") and don't want an iPhone, but you're short on money - buy yourself a new Z3C, it's discounted now and still a very nice mobile device.
Anyhow, I thank GSMARENA for a great and informative review.