Sony Xperia Z1 review: Walking on water

19 September 2013
Sony’s got a plan and sticking to it – while other makers pile software feature upon feature, the Japanese focus on their historical strengths, such as beautiful, durable design, photographic excellence and display tech. That in short is...

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  • D
  • AnonD-186803
  • 3av
  • 03 Oct 2013

On the camera side of things, here are some shots I've taken myself with my own unit.

See much noise? Didn't think so. See an absolute tonne of detail in very dark conditions? Yep.

Sure, Superior Auto often sets the ISO too high. If you see it do so and it doesn't select the appropriate "mode", hop out of S.A. and select the mode yourself. The camera launcher doesn't make this difficult.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/16762205@N04/sets/72157635983420745/

    • e
    • exidous
    • naB
    • 03 Oct 2013

    I just picked up the c6903 and must say. It's very smooth but certainly has issues. I hope they can all be fixed with a new firmware.

    Poor battery. And I mean bad. 6-7% loss in standby with their battery stuff on. Even airplane mode saw 5%+

    Poor screen viewing angle. Straight on its beautiful.

    Camera errors or one and a while. Requires restart. So far pictures are very grainy. Weird blocky compression I think.

    No ability to change # of icons row column with such a high resolution is needed.

      • D
      • AnonD-186803
      • 3av
      • 03 Oct 2013

      AnonD-173647, 25 Sep 2013How SONY gets the camera wrong is beyond me. Aren't they th... moreThe speaker issue is due to the waterproofing of the phone and fairly unavoidable, sadly.

      And I've taken some amazing photo's with mine - truly outstanding. Nout wrong with the camera - best camera I've used on a phone and I seriously doubt there's another Anroid out there that can match it, now that it's had its software updated.

      The Lumia 1020, however, has it beat.

        • D
        • AnonD-186803
        • 3av
        • 03 Oct 2013

        AnonD-115449, 25 Sep 2013probably you haven't read the review... superio auto makes ... moreThere's already been a software update for the camera. It's not the final update for it, I suspect, but the images it produces are now noticably sharper, with less visible noise (I suspect they've tweaked the ISO), especially in low light.

        Overall, the camera on this thing is superb. Bar a touch of noise (now pretty acceptable), low light shots are far in advance of anything else Android, including the G2 which over-softens night shots.

          • D
          • AnonD-142638
          • t7X
          • 03 Oct 2013

          Way the go Global Z1
          Waiting for d' Japanese edition of Z1 (Sol23 or SO-01F) It's way better than global Xperia z1.
          32gb internal storage
          IR blaster although the release date is on last wk of oct. Together the mini Z1(XZ1f) The price range is like ¥80-85k(Sol23)
          Replacing my Xperia Z(SO-02E)

            • f
            • frerdy
            • 9yB
            • 01 Oct 2013

            AnonD-136540, 24 Sep 2013It is nonsensical to compare the Note III phablet to the Z1... moreComparison with Note III? Why? What about S4 Activ?

              • i
              • iamnarendran
              • vGk
              • 01 Oct 2013

              Hi,

              Has anyone in India brought this phone. I would like to know what is quality of the screen ? I hear that it ships with different screens in different regions ? I would also like to know if the purple is so funky and girlish ? Please share your views ...

                • ?
                • Anonymous
                • w6B
                • 01 Oct 2013

                Saw it and personally i was not quite blown away like i thought i would be. Was looking forward to buy this beast but went and picked up the xperia z instead and now gonna buy the qx10 hoho! That makes better sense, costs the same as well. Btw the camera on the xperia z is absolutely stunning in itself. Have taken some breathtaking shots already. Donno what gsmarena keeps crying about.

                  • D
                  • AnonD-179866
                  • J5i
                  • 30 Sep 2013

                  AnonD-136540, 24 Sep 2013It is nonsensical to compare the Note III phablet to the Z1... moreWell said. Why compare devices that have different purposes? Sony Xperia Z1 should be compared with Samsung Galaxy S4 and I would say it wins the competition:
                  http://www.versus.com/en/samsung-galaxy-s4-vs-sony-xperia-z1

                    • D
                    • AnonD-184641
                    • uvK
                    • 28 Sep 2013

                    FrenchPower, 23 Sep 2013I'll NEVER EVER BUY SONY's PHONE worst performance, wors... moreok......
                    now get out of here..

                      • ?
                      • Anonymous
                      • 3LA
                      • 27 Sep 2013

                      [deleted post]Me 2

                        • D
                        • AnonD-115449
                        • 0Pp
                        • 25 Sep 2013

                        AnonD-52302, 24 Sep 2013Aluminium and glass - OK BUT between them plastic strip!?!... moreprobably you haven't read the review... superio auto makes the downsampling to 9mpixel (just like nokia 1020 from 40 to 5mpix) using the larger sensor with less pixels...


                        i just hope sony makes the magic on updates like they did on xperia z.
                        photos were decent, just a little worse then competitors, and after 3 updates, are probably some of the best photos in that smartphone age...

                        battery life also went for better results
                        same for performance.

                          • r
                          • ronan
                          • M%j
                          • 25 Sep 2013

                          Sony's web page for the Z1 mentions that salt water should be avoided.. so wading into the sea may not be such a good idea..

                            • D
                            • AnonD-173647
                            • nCe
                            • 25 Sep 2013

                            FrenchPower, 23 Sep 2013I'll NEVER EVER BUY SONY's PHONE worst performance, wors... moreThat's like saying I won't buy 2013 Mercedes BENZ because my 2000 model is awful. :-) The new phones under SONY Mobile are very good if not perfect. You should keep an open mind and try it at the stores.

                              • D
                              • AnonD-173647
                              • nCe
                              • 25 Sep 2013

                              How SONY gets the camera wrong is beyond me. Aren't they the same guys who came up with RX100? The mobile camera modules they make for other vendors' devices provide better quality but they cannot get the same or better quality in their own? Optical image stabilization was a given in Z1 considering this was promoted as a 'camera first' phone. 20 mega pixel seems like a gimmick considering most settings switches it to lower resolutions. That panorama shot and HD video is a SHAME. Also what's up with the speakers. I don't remember a single flagship phone from SONY where speaker phone was any good. xLOUD does make a difference, but still, as the reviewer said you might miss more calls in public. I hate when these small but important factors are ignored. A beautiful device that I pick up slowly becomes a pain as I start using is a real deal breaker. SONY is off to a good start with new Zs. But, I would love if SONY could fix these often overlooked issues like speaker phone volume, camera software issues and most importantly timely updates. Best of luck. For me, I'm considering Z Ultra or New Padfone Infinity

                                • D
                                • AnonD-136540
                                • 0wq
                                • 24 Sep 2013

                                It is nonsensical to compare the Note III phablet to the Z1! Z1 competes with the SGS4 while the Note III competes with the Z Ultra phablet! I know some are wont to support Samsung, come hell or high water, but seriously, let us compare apples to apples!

                                  • D
                                  • AnonD-183156
                                  • P%u
                                  • 24 Sep 2013

                                  AnonD-118519, 24 Sep 2013Hey GSM, dont you want to re-review this phone? One of our... moreThey should

                                    • D
                                    • AnonD-190012
                                    • ter
                                    • 24 Sep 2013

                                    Best smart phone ever

                                    http://www.sonymobile.com/gb/legal/testresults/xperia-z1/#resolution-android

                                      • S
                                      • Santa kumar
                                      • 7w5
                                      • 24 Sep 2013

                                      AnonD-189350, 22 Sep 2013guys plz help me as I need help in choosing a good phone. W... moreXperia z1

                                        • D
                                        • AnonD-52302
                                        • JFk
                                        • 24 Sep 2013

                                        Aluminium and glass - OK
                                        BUT between them plastic strip!?!?!?
                                        WHY?
                                        And bigger sensor but 20Mpix? Stupid!
                                        Why not 10 or 12 Mpix? Images would be a mile better...