Sony Xperia XZ Premium review: The showstopper
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- Anonymous
- kcG
- 15 May 2017
There last phones have excluded fingerprint in US. Any idea why?
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- Cigbock69
- P@Y
- 15 May 2017
probably the best smartphone this year but!!! sorry to say this but IMO just my Opinion XZP sales will still declined , because sony's marketing is lame.
Tech Nerds surely will gonna buy this phone.
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- Avan Dr
- tDQ
- 15 May 2017
Anonymous, 15 May 2017If sony make a bezeless phone, would you prefer a big bezel... moreHe would not. When sony used TFT screen fanboys said IPS hurt thier eyes. Then sony used IPS they said Sony IPS is the best.
When they got rumor that sony will apply ois for their upcoming phone, they said it will be the best stabilisation and brag about it everywhere. Then No, still no OIS, they said, sony knows best they dont need ois.
When all vendors used QHD screen for their flagship. They said we cant see the different with fhd. Then sony used 4K screen they said Sony 4K screen is the greatest tech, and yes they need it for VR. But there is bad news, it only run at FHD and there is no support from sony, so its not good for VR. They said VR on mobile is useless.
- ?
- Anonymous
- JpI
- 15 May 2017
ithehappy, 14 May 2017Pointless in most part, on point in a few.
First off, th... moreAccording to you sound quality means loudness...
Mono will never be better than stereo.
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- Anonymous
- ijB
- 15 May 2017
AnonD-542706, 14 May 2017XZ premium is the king!! Kneel losers before your king !! ... morehahaha, as if there are people going to buy this phone...sony brand is irrelevant as far as mobile phone is concern.
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- d
- P@Y
- 15 May 2017
im at work so glad im watching a novel here in GSMA in my avail time. nice job Fanboys.
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- AnonD-669130
- LqH
- 15 May 2017
AnonD-77443, 15 May 2017Personally the OIS on the S8+ works as well as any I've use... moreYes, but not in the phones, an optical stabilization works better than digital stabilization, but in the large lenses, where there is enough room to reduce the shaking.
SteadyShot Intelligent Active does a better job, than any other electronic and optical stabilizer in smartphones, perhaps the only one that can be rival is the stabilizer of the Google Pixel.
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- AnonD-77443
- v6J
- 15 May 2017
AnonD-669130, 15 May 2017Do you really think the size of bezel matters to me? With b... morePersonally the OIS on the S8+ works as well as any I've used on a phone (not that I've done a side by side test).
Ive not used the XZP yet but from past experience optical stabilisation works better than electronic stabilisation.
- i
- ithehappy
- X%D
- 15 May 2017
Tann Hauser, 14 May 2017A "semi pro photographer" talking so much about auto camer... moreMobile phones are meant to be used in automatic mode. If one had time to tinker with manual settings then there is no point of different phones. At manual settings even a OnePlus 3T almost matches Pixel's automatic shots.
Whatever you try to prove with your imaginary statements, this phone has one of the worst low light camera and considering the price it will remain so as the king of worst low light cameras for this year of 2017. Now go find some manual mode long shutter shot of this phone and then compare it with other phone's automatic mode and say look this is better.
Fanboyism at its new record low really.
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- AnonD-669130
- LqH
- 15 May 2017
Anonymous, 15 May 2017If sony make a bezeless phone, would you prefer a big bezel... moreDo you really think the size of bezel matters to me? With big bezel or small bezel, it does not matter, as long as it is fast and does not slow down in 7 months, Stereo speakers, a good camera, and what matters for me is the video stabilization, the OIS on the S8 is terrible, 2017 and still having JELLO effect is awful
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- Anonymous
- tS6
- 15 May 2017
AnonD-669130, 15 May 2017Samsung processing isnt better: S8:https://attach.mobil... moreIf sony make a bezeless phone, would you prefer a big bezel phone to match your current statement?
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- AnonD-669130
- 8V0
- 15 May 2017
Anonymous, 14 May 2017Worst battery than any flagship.
Very bad camera and man... moreSamsung processing isnt better:
S8:https://attach.mobile01.com/attach/201704/mobile01-8b3c684d43167eb10806a8a95394f0c0.jpg
Xperia XZ Premium: https://attach.mobile01.com/attach/201704/mobile01-7baf0b5813e1503f4f2aee7e73fdcd7a.jpg
S8 has white-out and blue shades on the sky, noisy corners
S8: https://attach.mobile01.com/attach/201704/mobile01-d1624c29f53b50c350bd83e46894f32a.jpg
Xperia XZP make true colors and real black nightsky,and less noise on the corners
Xperia XZ Premium: https://attach.mobile01.com/attach/201704/mobile01-e49258b7f6c38424225fc519c4a83df8.jpg
Sony Ui is one of the best ui on Android, fast, simple, customizable and one of the best ram management even better than OnePlus 3T, even the XZs is faster than S8
2K is even worst because nothing is made for this resolution, the 4K diference is visible: https://attach.mobile01.com/attach/201704/mobile01-49d5f86b6922a74472adfcb630cb47d0.jpg
And the HDR make the difference even bigger.
4K (native+upscaling): any video, on album app, Youtube
4K (native): Web Browsing, Games
Source: https://attach.mobile01.com/attach/201704/mobile01-a9f604bdebc99850b163931966226b24.jpg
"excessive bezels make a phone hard to use and hard to store" Hahaha is ridiculous
Some games are unplayable on bezeless phones as Real Racing 3, is so uncomfortable.
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- AnonD-186803
- 3ad
- 15 May 2017
ithehappy, 14 May 2017Pointless in most part, on point in a few.
First off, th... moreYou're simply displaying a laughable bias now.
I focus on photography because it is my USP for a phone. The S8 it not "about 10%" worse than the XZP in most scenarios, it is clearly significantly worse on the metrics you yourself have highlighted. The things you praise about the camera are not unique to the S8 - the dynamic range, white balance (actually this is very poor on the S8) and exposure are clearly NOT superior on the S8 than the Sony - I've looked, I've used an S8 and I've compared numerous shots with those taken with the XZP. At best they're comparable - bar white balance, which the Sony has sown up.
The Sony has superior colour reproduction, edge sharpening and contrast: 3 things that - and here I agree with others on this thread - require an extremely irritating amount of work to correct if you get them wrong, which the S8 does every single time. The XZP is also the most detailed performer of the two.
To say "but that's only half the story - look at the low light",... well it's not half the story, is it? Be honest. You also have Macro (Sony), Video quality (Sony), Slow Motion (Sony by a wide margin) and video stabilisation (Sony again - see a pattern?)
Picking out low light and point out that the Xperia isn't as good as the S8 at defining detail when set in auto mode (forget the fact that Samsung have yet to build a camera that reproduces decent colours or contrast in low light) is disengenuous. The Xperia clearly has the overall better camera this year: low light is only part of that story, and you CAN get decent (if not class leading) results if you hit Manual. I take that hit because I want my video, macro and daylight shots to be significantly better than the crap that Samsung produces. They are.
And why are you hung up on OIS? So it doesn't have OIS. It has SteadyShot Plus - which Sony couldn't implement if the camera had OIS. You, and everyone else here, can see clearly what it does to stabilise video. That's more than enough justification for omitting OIS.
As to the other points: Samsung's screen outputs 1080p by default in all situations except media unless you tell it to do otherwise. I know, I've used it and I had to dig out the setting to change it.
In apps and homescreens the added resolution up to 2k is entirely and completely and utterly pointless, as virtually nobody is creating Android software that runs natively in 2k. In this regard the Samsung and the Sony are ENTIRELY THE SAME - running 1080p most of the time until there is media that requires more pixels. In Sony's case the media it will support is in a higher reolution. It's not like Sony's screen is some sort of abomination - I've yet to read a single review that hasn't called it an excellent screen. Get off your fanboy horse.
Bezels?! That's an arguement?!! Christ on a bike. Let me tell you something from experience: the bezel-less screen on the S8 is a ROYAL PAIN IN THE ASS. Sure, it looks lovely but I was CONSTANTLY entering touches on the screen at inopportune moments because I had nowhere to hold the damn phone. Whoops, there goes the back button when I'm in the Camera. Damn, what word it that?! Oh yeah; the keyboard got confused because my thumb was touching the edge.
Frankly, mate, it was far, far more trouble than it was worth. At least on the Xperia I'll be able to grip the thing firmly when watching video and taking photos - things that became a chore on my S8.
How about we mention the other failures of the S8? The fingerprint scanner was rubbish and placed in a god awful place that made it completely redundant. Bixby did nothing - nothing at all - that Assistant doesn't already do better, and I was always hitting the damn Bixby button by accident. The Volume Rocker too was in a stupid place - far too high up to reach with any ease. And finally the iris scanner was glacially slow and required 3 seconds of faffing around each and every time to get my eyes in PRECISELY the right place to make it work. It counts as easily the worst implementation of biometrics I've ever been persuaded to try.
So please don't come on here with your rampant fanboyism - Samsung isn't God. Sony isn't God. Apple isn't God.
You make your choices based on your likes and dislikes. I've made mine: I want this year's best overall smartphone camera and a working fingerprint scanner that's put in a sensible place. I want a great screen and a fast processor. Any more is a bonus.
You, it seems, just want "A Samsung". Enjoy your S8.
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- Anonymous
- pt0
- 15 May 2017
after some time now xz premium is more attractive for me than s8 .. best phone ever
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- Anonymous
- swf
- 14 May 2017
Tann Hauser, 14 May 2017Yup, you are right.
IMO,
XZ Premium has unbeliavable q... moreWorst battery than any flagship.
Very bad camera and many are agreeing with me. Sony post processing is very bad
Fluid UI but low ram. Meaning as apps need more resources, as android needs more resources the phone would be more and more constrained. Definitely not future proofed.
4k on phones is a terrible gimmick. You have to keep it closer than 5 inches to see a difference. That makes a person cross eyed, very bad for the health of the person.
So 4k on phones means either be cross eyed or never see it. The definition of a gimmick. Sorry but that's just a fact.
Lastly it's the biggest 5.5 incher in the market, only Apple makes them bigger (and not for long). Apart from being an ancient design , excessive bezels make a phone hard to use and hard to store. Sony has to finally fix this.
And all those is not hating. They are a reasonable argument against a phone filled with drawbacks.
There are so many things that Sony could do better yet refuse to.
Fix post processing
Put larger battery especially given how thick the phone already is
Shave off some of the bezels. They should strive for 75-76% Body to screen ratio which is a fine one for 5.5 inches. It keeps the phone manageable.
They should disable the 4k screen in anything other than VR. It would requite more resources and people can't see the difference, so disable it already. By contrast it's very useful for VR, so they should support daydream officially.
They should add more ram, future proofs the phone and is instantly available to heavy users.
They could do even only half of the above, many of which are long standing complaints and they would instantly have a hit. But they refuse to, this phone's flaws are fatal to its success.
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- Tann Hauser
- B}Q
- 14 May 2017
ithehappy, 14 May 2017Pointless in most part, on point in a few.
First off, th... moreA "semi pro photographer" talking so much about auto camera performance, must be a fake "semi auto photographer" to start with, as photographers do not care much about auto.
And you re so full of it on those XZ Prem lowlight performance, its excellent, with great detail preserve, color gamut, noise control and dynamic range, no ringing. All I see lacking in them is too much exposure that can be leveled out by single touch of LE in auto. Much better than others IMO.
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- Als
- FED
- 14 May 2017
The amount of comments on the Xperia phones is outstanding. That's tells you something. The classiest, snappiest, best looking, best overall android phone. Period
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- ithehappy
- X%D
- 14 May 2017
AnonD-186803, 14 May 2017I don't want to run every single image I ever take through ... morePointless in most part, on point in a few.
First off, this subjective thing has to stop. I was a semi pro photographer back in the days, so I don't need any lesson from you. S8's camera takes oversaturated, unnatural photos, simple as that. This is why I didn't even bother to read the S8 reviews extensively, simply from my photography enthusiastic mind those samples look very bad, a photo has to come as natural as possible, leaving the space to edit as per one's need. This doesn't mean the exposure/dynamic range/white balance etc. will have to messed up, they have to be spot on as well.
Now does this phone take better photos in daytime than the S8? Yes. To what extent? 10% maybe? And in some photos the S8 is clearly superior simple as that.
Now that's 50% of the camera. Here comes low light. What happens now? See the S8's samples there and this phone's?
So am I supposed to have a probable better camera to a small margin for daytime, and then a camera which performs awfully poorly in night time? Where does this phone rank for low light photography? Wait, don't say that, mention one phone in same price point, or lower which performs worse in low light than this, or simply zip the mouth.
I am sorry but some jokes are in poor taste. So carry on by saying this phone has this or that camera, cause stupid comments won't change those awful low light samples come out from this phone.
Funny how all these are focused on camera only, though even I was ready to forgive other things if that were acceptable. Audio quality worse than other flagships. Look at that loudness section, hilarious. Even the OP3T has more loudness. And even in camera there is no OIS! Display, umm, I am not sure, is it 4K or 1080p? ROFL. And as this was released in 2017, bezels gotta count. Which begs the ultimate question, what is actually wrong with Sony? But who cares really, they have their fans, worse than Apple and Samsung's. Let's see how long they can carry on like this.
No one buys a Sony any more. Just another name in mobile business nowadays.
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- Nick Paschalidis
- gJX
- 14 May 2017
AnonD-669339, 14 May 2017anyone know when this will be available in the US? been lo... morePossibly available in a couple of weeks.Reports were speaking of availability starting around June 1.However,I am not sure if the US gets the same or a later release date...
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- AnonD-120291
- JiM
- 14 May 2017
AnonD-186803, 14 May 2017I don't want to run every single image I ever take through ... moresimply shoot in RAW and use a 3rd party app to maximise the settings, and control your own contrast, iso, shutter speed etc, and avoid over saturated over sharpened images, problem solved. i would however like to see some colour profile setting added in a software update, but that is unlikely