Sony Xperia Z5 Compact review: The overachiever

7 October, 2015
When it comes to the Compact family, Sony has quite a reputation to live up to. The Z3 Compact is arguably one of the company's most-successful models.

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  • ?
  • Anonymous
  • J7R
  • 08 Oct 2015

AnonD-284151, 08 Oct 2015Time to make things clear: 1.Dxomark has tested the norm... moreZ5 and Z5 Compact have the same camera sensor and same software, hence same image quality.

    • D
    • AnonD-205566
    • 8xR
    • 08 Oct 2015

    ithehappy, 08 Oct 2015Why you guys keep saying "superb build quality" for a phone... moreBuild quality = the quality with which the phone is built. It refers to the finish of the device, the heft, how well it is constructed. Sturdyness is a whole different thing.

      • K
      • Kozakko
      • 0uI
      • 08 Oct 2015

      The battery is at least as solid as z3 compact in real life usage. The z3 compact battery time got worse with the lollipop update. Would be nice with a new battery test of z3 compact with lollipop.

        • R
        • Rahin
        • X{d
        • 08 Oct 2015

        Sony said that all Z5 phones have the same camera module.

          • A
          • Ale
          • Sgv
          • 08 Oct 2015

          AnonD-404798, 08 Oct 2015you are both trolls because there is no way that phone will... moreYawn you jumping on the troll bandwagon to eh??...well it's not like a dullard like is capable of anything more sophisticated now is it!

          I never mentioned gaming on the device, never even tried it, my Z5 got hot whilst I was on the phone to the guys at Carphone Warehouse.....that's right, simply making a phone call got this device sweating, you think I was going to try a game on it after that???

          And besides, I like Qualcomm, I was glad to hear that news that Samsung was testing it for the S7 (which by the ways is weeks old, get with the times!) I hope the 820 is an awesome SoC.

            • D
            • AnonD-341631
            • tDC
            • 08 Oct 2015

            Powerful Compact Phone
            Small Rambo

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              • AnonD-284151
              • a37
              • 08 Oct 2015

              Time to make things clear:

              1.Dxomark has tested the normal Z5 and not The Z5 compact.....so Z5 compact's results might differ,although they are identical....and seriously...GSMarena is being too hard on this phone's camera

              2.Not everyone has enough skill to root their phone and disable cores....so the company was supposed make a cooler phone :-)

              3.i'm a sony fanboy myself but truth needs to be said. The only disappointment i see in this phone is 2Gb of ram which could be more.The screen is better to remain 720 even for generations until a more capable battery or a battery with a new technology could be used.

              4..pls people.... be nice to each other,a phone or being fan of a brand is no worthy of insulting each other...even in an ironic way.

              5.Nothing

                • D
                • AnonD-404798
                • d%{
                • 08 Oct 2015

                Tee, 08 Oct 2015You are absolutely right. I bought the Z3 Compact a year ag... moreyou are both trolls because there is no way that phone will not heat up after 30 minutes of gaming,no mater witch chipset uses simply because battery discharge will heat up the phone! even if chipset is cool as ice ;) and this will know anybody who has any basis knowledge how the phone works , besides that i hope you enjoy the news that next Samsung S7 will be using Snapdragon 820 ;)... it seams that trolls are not aware of this fact yet :D

                  • A
                  • Ale
                  • gL@
                  • 08 Oct 2015

                  AnonD-134798, 08 Oct 2015Can anyone confirm if the RAM is LPDDR4 ?It's a Snapdragon 810, so LPDDR4

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                    • AnonD-134798
                    • DQg
                    • 08 Oct 2015

                    Can anyone confirm if the RAM is LPDDR4 ?

                      • A
                      • Ale
                      • gL@
                      • 08 Oct 2015

                      Adiyel, 08 Oct 2015Sir, you may have a defective device. These things happen. ... moreYou see what I mean Tee, all you need do is mention the word Exynos, and suddenly your a paid troll!!!!!

                      We are talking KGB levels of paranoia here!!!! it's really quite sad.

                        • A
                        • Ale
                        • gL@
                        • 08 Oct 2015

                        Adiyel, 08 Oct 2015If you root your phone and install a free system manager li... moreAnd what if I don't want to root the device and void the warranty, what if instead I would just like the device I have just paid a hefty sum for to work as advertised out of the box??????

                        Got any suggestions there pal???????

                          • A
                          • Ale
                          • gL@
                          • 08 Oct 2015

                          Tee, 08 Oct 2015You are absolutely right. I bought the Z3 Compact a year ag... moreCareful, this lot will be all over you :)

                          They are quite jumpy and quick to take offence on here regarding any criticism of the brand with which they are so obsessed.

                          To get back to your point though, I have been a big supporter of Snapdragon devices in the past, The problem I think is the 810, if they used an 808, I don't think there would be any issues here.

                          Hopefully Qualcomm will be back on form with the 820, they are at their best when using custom in house architecture.

                          We'll just have to wait and see how a future Z6 series performs with the 820, my expectations are high.

                          Would like to have at least tried a Note 5, unfortunately Samsung decided not to release it in the UK :(

                            Ale, 08 Oct 2015Ah right, I see now. Yeah I wouldn't agree the Z5C is a dow... moreIf you root your phone and install a free system manager like 3C toolbox, you can turn off two of the "big" cores and viola, you have SD808 but with a better gpu and other advantages that you can never get in the SD808 SoC. People with a little bit of vision realize that this phone really is better than the Z3C, me included. I'm sitting next to one right now (a Z3C) and I love it. If Sony doesn't produce a Z7C, then I'm all in next fall for a Z5C

                              • A
                              • Ale
                              • gL@
                              • 08 Oct 2015

                              Jumbo, 08 Oct 2015What risk? You've only got something to win, nothing to los... moreYes, I went out of my way and parted with near £550 just so I could be unhappy with something........

                              Is this really how your brain works????

                              Imaging this same conversation was about a Galaxy S6 or iPhone or HTC One M9, would you care as much either way?

                              I use and rely upon my mobile phone constantly, I don't live around the corner form my local Carphone Warehouse, so no I wasn't willing to risk having to make the effort to take another one back (not when at this price there are plenty of alternatives on the market) sorry it seems to offend you so much by this.

                                Tee, 08 Oct 2015You are absolutely right. I bought the Z3 Compact a year ag... moreSir, you may have a defective device. These things happen. I am looking at my Z3C right next to me as I type this, and I'm looking at the battery statistics in by System manager. After playing games all night, my phone never got above 36.3 C. You either have a defective device, or you're a paid troll here to smear this device before widespread launch. I hope you're not the second...

                                ...but considering your mentioning of the Exynos, you very well could be a paid troll.

                                  • D
                                  • AnonD-5666
                                  • rKy
                                  • 08 Oct 2015

                                  I am sometimes very pissed at the non-standard batterylife stats for GSMArena. Z5C @ 50% brightness is only 106 cd/m2, whereas many other phones are like 170-200 cd/m2 range. This gives unfair advantage to Sony or other displays which are less brighter at 50%.

                                  I think GSMArena should make it a norm to test @ 50% brighteness, but with a certain limit. Like minimum should be 150 cd/m2 and max 250 cd/m2.

                                  If a phone is 300cd/m2 @ 50%, and another is just 100 cd/m2 @ 50%, it doesn't make sense to compare them. There must be a minimum and maximum limit.

                                    Alright, so I just took a look at things, and the camera from the camera comparison tool's perspective has gotten better than its predecessors. It's arguably better than the iPhone 6s plus as well; not quite as stable, but its best are definitely better.

                                    Also for those complaining about battery life, do understand that this is due to the SD810 being a higher tier chipset than the SD801 (just as the previous generation's SD600 was top dog in their day, and now it's the mid-tier numbering) and the failures of lollipop. People are complaining about 3.5 hour and 2 hour hits in web browsing and video respectively, but it's also standby times that hurt it (this is due to lollipop and the way google play services goes grazy). Lollipop phones in general had great call times but web browsing generally got worse and video playback just a little (hence, an almost 12 hour boost in call times over the Z3C). Marshmallow should fix this.

                                    All in all, if we keep holding on to the battery achievement of the Z3C as a benchmark, we'll be slow to get anywhere with our compact line. Android marshmallow should bring better browsing and standby times, putting the Z5C within spitting range of the Z3C. SD820+Android 6.0 on the Z7C should bring the life back to that 101 hours...IF Sony decides to make a Z7 series before exiting the business.

                                      • T
                                      • Tee
                                      • fk9
                                      • 08 Oct 2015

                                      Ale, 08 Oct 2015Well when you have just paid £549.99 for a device and... moreYou are absolutely right. I bought the Z3 Compact a year ago, and since day one I was plagued with heating issues (was still on Kitkat back then). We pay top dollars and we get a device that can't be used for 5 minutes without heating up. The Z3C heated up to 40 degrees while performing simple tasks like calls / messaging. Web browsing and games made it over 45 degrees, making it uncomfortable to hold. I recently bought the Note 5 and I couldn't be happier. While the N5 is bigger, it produces zero heat, the Exynos SoC is very power efficient. I played 30 minutes of Hitman Sniper and the phone was at a mere 33 degrees! I'm staying away from Snapdragon in all my future phones.

                                        • A
                                        • Ale
                                        • gL@
                                        • 08 Oct 2015

                                        AnonD-404798, 08 Oct 2015Me and the dxomark http://www.dxomark.com/Mobiles/Sony-Xper... moreEr.. still you I'm afraid.

                                        Dx0 Mark is now every Sony fans best friend, this is in contrast it seems to when they gave previous Sony devices middling score's and you all were questioning their validity. But whatever hey!

                                        I think Dx0 are genuinely impressed by the Z5 series camera's (however in this case they seem to be running contradictory to other members of the tech community and their findings) and I agree that the majority of OEM's use Sony hardware, this is because Sony are the market leaders in the field of mobile imaging.

                                        Look, I like Sony, I have a Sony TV, and bought the PS4 over the Xbox One in a recent purchase.

                                        That is besides the point mind, on what grounds are you claiming OIS is more advanced than DIS, which has long been held as the superior method of image stabilisation in the camera world???

                                        I think other players in this game like maybe Canon, Nikon, Fujifilm, Pentax etc. might disagree with you. Are you saying you know better than them????