Xperia

Six 'Xperia' stories March 2012 - February 2016

Samsung, LG, & others show off new devices at MWC ahead of Apple’s iPhone 5se event

Jordan Kahn Feb 22 2016 - 8:23 am PT

It’s Mobile World Congress this week in Barcelona, which means most of Apple’s competitors are unveiling their upcoming smartphone lineups that will inevitably compete with Apple’s own 2016 lineup.

But while we usually have to wait until the fall for a new iPhone from Apple, this year is different in that Apple’s event planned for early next month will likely see it unveil the much anticipated iPhone 5se, a rare non-flagship and mid-year iPhone upgrade that will be a low to mid-tier smartphone competitor at pricing that will take over the current iPhone 5s lineup around $450 off contract.

Among the announcements: Samsung has officially announced its Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge smartphones — both with a similar premium metal and glass design as previous generations but with upgraded internals — while LG showed off its all-new metal modular design for its new flagship LG G5. Also on show this week is a new smartphone flagship from Acer that offers an impressive 1TB of hybrid local/cloud storage, HTC’s One X9, and a trio of Xperia X smartphones from Sony, two with high camera specs including predictive focus.

Expand
Expanding
Close

Sony “stuck in 1992” after hacks – except for Macs, iPads and iPhones

Ben Lovejoy Dec 18 2014 - 6:20 am PT

24 Comments

A Sony employee has described the company as being “stuck in 1992” following the massive hacks, with employees desperately trying to avoid using any technology that could be compromised, reports TechCrunch.

“Some people had to send faxes. They were dragging old printers out of storage to cut checks,” she said. “It was crazy.”

The company is even encouraging staff to avoid using phones – presumably including the company’s own Android Xperia smartphones and tablets – in favor of face-to-face meetings.

There has, though, been one exception to the ban on modern technology: Apple kit.

“People using Macs were fine,” she said. She said most work is done on iPads and iPhones.

Sony may need to buy a few extra Macs, with some departments having only one or two computers for the entire office. It is, she said, like “living in an office from ten years ago.”

iPhone 6/Plus cameras ranked joint 1st in highly-respected DxOMark Mobile tests

Ben Lovejoy Sep 24 2014 - 7:22 am PT

19 Comments

The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus cameras have taken joint first place in the influential DxOMark Mobile ranking of smartphone cameras – three points ahead of the two Android smartphones which previously headed the list, the Samsung Galaxy S5 and Sony Xperia Z3.

DxO Labs tests the image quality of literally thousands of cameras from entry-level smartphones to professional DSLRs, and is considered by many in the photography field to be the definitive database. The company said that Apple has “set the gold standard for smartphone image quality” …
Expand
Expanding
Close

Sony mocks iPhone 6 in Xperia Z3 Compact ad: “Better than bigger”

Jordan Kahn Sep 18 2014 - 8:21 am PT

74 Comments

Samsung isn’t the only one mocking Apple’s new iPhone before the device even officially goes on sale tomorrow. Today Sony released its own jab at Apple with the ad above playing on Apple’s “Bigger than bigger” catchphrase for the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. The Xperia Z3 Compact device in the ad sports a 4.6-inch display about the same size as the iPhone 6, but the ad also points out a few specs the new iPhones can’t claim: 2 day battery life, 20.7MP camera, and waterproofing features.

On cue, Samsung and others have also joined in on the iPhone 6 mocking following Apple’s unveiling earlier this month.

[tweet https://twitter.com/sonyxperia/status/512609575804342273/]

Apple wins ‘best mobile tablet’ award at Mobile World Congress in absentia

Benjamin Mayo Feb 25 2014 - 12:58 pm PT

1 Comment

The Global Mobile Awards today revealed their verdicts on their annual mobile device awards. As usual, like all industry conferences, Apple did not attend MWC. Regardless, in their absence, they were still given the ‘Best Mobile Tablet’ award for the iPad Air.

Expand
Expanding
Close

Study: Smartphone owners demand bigger screens, prefer 4+ inches

Seth Weintraub Mar 14 2012 - 3:56 pm PT

0 Comments

An interesting study out of Strategy Analytics today says that United States and United Kingdom smartphone owners “prefer device screens in the 4.0-inch to 4.5-inch range, as long as the device is also thin.”

“Almost 90 percent of existing smartphone owners surveyed chose a prototype smartphone with a display larger than their current device,” commented Paul Brown, a Director in the Strategy Analytics User Experience Practice. “This trend is driven by increased mobile web browsing ability, as well as engaging video and gaming experiences.”

Not surprisingly, women overall chose smaller phones than men, and existing Android users chose bigger screens than iPhone users. Still, it seems Apple’s customers would prefer a bigger screen.

Kevin Nolan, Vice-President for the User Experience Practice at Strategy Analytics, added, “In order for smartphone owners to adopt larger devices, it is important for handset manufacturers to ensure that mobile devices are not too heavy and that the devices remain thin enough for purses and pockets.”

The data seems to line up with our January poll of 9to5Mac readers in which the majority prefers the next iPhone to be 4-inches or more:

Expand
Expanding
Close