December 14, 2012 at 19:12Sony Xperia V review
Recently on sale in Russia came Sony Xperia V - one of the flagships and the most current Sony models at the moment. It's no secret that the main driver of sales at this time of the year is the holidays, and Xperia V is one of the candidates for falling under someone's Christmas trees. Does he deserve this? We will see.
Three key, in my opinion, characteristics of Xperia V: 4.3 ”screen, waterproof, LTE. We’ll start with them.
In the age of touch smartphones, the main parameter of any phone is the screen: resolution and diagonal. With this, the Xperia V is all right: the 4.3 ”diagonal contains 1280 points vertically and 720 horizontally - normal HD resolution, in general - as, for example, the Xperia S (with the same diagonal, by the way).
In addition, the display has a couple of new chips that I just can't help but mention: this is the new Sensor on lens display technology, thanks to which the screen is brighter and has wider viewing angles and the advanced Mobile Bravia Engine 2 technology, which makes the image even more realistic . The picture is really bright and juicy - in fact, as befits a top-end smartphone. All in all, it just works.
More precisely, moisture and dust protection. This has already become Sony's trademark - only this year it released the mid-size Xperia go and the modified flagship acro S with protection against water and dust.
Now, among the phones that are not afraid to drop into the water, you can get Xperia V in the pouring rain or accidentally throw frisbee along the beach. Its protection standard is IP 55/57, which means that some dust can penetrate, however this does not interfere with the operation of the device, the insides are completely protected from contact; as well as protection against water jets from any direction (can be washed under the tap), when diving for a short time, water does not fall in quantities that interfere with the operation of the device - you can take it to the bathroom with you. But, just in case, permanent work in submerged mode is still not supposed.
Sony Xperia V is the first Sony model working in Russian LTE networks. The model supports all allowed frequency bands: I, III, V, VII and XX. I can’t say how this works, although the first time I turned on Sony saw a megaphone LTE network, but I need a special SIM card to connect to it. Therefore, for my needs, I managed traditional 3G and Wi-Fi. However, the very fact of having an LTE network in Moscow, like LTE in the smartphone itself, cannot but rejoice.
By the way, in the settings * # * # 4636 # * # * you can set LTE only mode and now work with a modem SIM card, for example, to distribute the Internet via wi-fi.
At one time, the Sony Xperia arc was recognized as one of the most beautiful smartphones of 2011 - and certainly was one of the most original. The main motive of his design was a concave cover, which gave him the name. In 2012, Sony returned to arc-style in a number of its models. It will be appropriate to recall that the year began with the NXT line - angular smartphones with a transparent strip under the screen. Thus, Sony's lineup this year is mainly made up of NXT and arch-shaped smartphone models.
She is also a noticeable detail of the appearance of the Xperia V, except for the concave cover - this is the lack of front keys, both physical and touch. Now they finally moved to the screen, appearing there as necessary.
A powerful plastic rib for aluminum protrudes around the entire perimeter of the body - this is the only design element that gives out the brutal essence of the phone - so to speak, body armor under a tuxedo.
Buttons on the case, in principle, became less. Say, a separate key to start the camera has disappeared, now the fastest way to launch it is the button on the lock screen.
There is a power / lock screen button and a volume key. There are also the minimum number of connectors - microUSB and 3.5 mm audio output.
Both, of course, are closed by caps. Perhaps the stubs are the only, but inevitable drawback of waterproof smartphones.
It is extremely curious to observe the evolution of Sony's secure smartphones since last year's Xperia active. On the one hand, this is expansion - it covers more and more segments in the lineup. On the other hand, the defense itself becomes less conspicuous, more elegant, without losing its protective properties.
Let's say an unprepared user may not notice at all that the Xperia V is a waterproof smartphone. You won’t surprise anyone with stubs - they can be found on ordinary phones. And if you remove the back cover, then under it are the usual smartphone interiors: a slot for a memory card and microSIM, and a removable battery:
This is a special feature - say, in Xperia active, under the top, decorative cover, a second, real protective shell was hidden:
In Xperia go the carapace was already removable - only with a pair of slots for a memory card and SIM:
in Xperia V, the smartphone cover itself performs a protective function - on its inner surface there is a special hard rubber border, the shape of which shows that it protects against water SIM slot area and battery location.
A simple and elegant solution. And most importantly - delicate.
Onboard V, the most powerful Qualcomm 8960 Snapdragon S4 chipset with a 1.5GHz Krait dual-core processor is installed in the Xperia line.
1 GB of RAM promises to work without brakes, its own memory on the smartphone - 8 gigabytes, and supports an SD card up to 32 GB.
The battery capacity is 1750 mAh, not so much, but it partially compensates for the presence of an extended standby mode - a function that is included in the power settings, which means disabling data transfer if the phone is inactive for some time. This greatly saves the battery, and, at the same time, the user's money.
Xperia V comes with Android 4.0.4. If I'm not mistaken, this is the first Xperia smartphone, in which the composition and purpose of the menu keys has changed. Sony’s traditional set has always been this: home, context menu and back - and sometimes (for example, on Xperia ion) a fourth button appears - search. There are still three buttons on the Xperia V, but the Menu button has given way to the call button for the latest applications. This is not Sony’s idea, but such an all-android tradition - but the decision is controversial, in my opinion. It is assumed that the user more often needs to switch between many applications, which takes multitasking to a new level.
The menu button is now part of the interface of the application itself - however, for those programs where its support is not yet implemented, it is displayed by the OS itself in a number of main keys. Obviously, this was one of the reasons for rejecting even touch-sensitive, but separate menu buttons - great flexibility.
Another purpose of the new button is to show the so-called small applications that appear in the form of pop-up windows - notes, voice recorder, calculator, and so on - there is a whole section on Google Play with these very small applications - not very large yet.
Such an application does not open in full screen and allows you to do your thing in passing - for example, post a status on facebook while playing Angry birds:
Understanding the pre-installed applications, he drew attention to Play Movies and Play Books:
- It has long been known that Google decided to sell not only applications, but also books, films and games through its market.
Play books offer for review exclusively Russian classics - Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky. To increase the cultural level of their users, one must assume. The rest of the books you need to buy - however, before buying, you can read the free fragment.
As a reader, I really liked the application. Settings for displaying text as in a decent test editor + the ability to read aloud.
However, the latter is more likely a fun than a really useful function - the text is read legibly but painfully in a funny male voice with a parody of a foreign accent. The GLaDOS voice would have been better, in my opinion;)
The Play Movies application is simpler - in fact, it’s just a catalog of already purchased films + the cover of the Google Play movie catalog. The player is used for playback, and to access the full catalog and purchase movies, go to the Google Play itself.
What upset me - there are absolutely no free films, at least those that have long been in the public domain, cinema classics. But in general, the idea looks promising - the opportunity to buy a movie or a book here and now is actually in demand, including in Russia - the myths about a pirate republic in our case are greatly exaggerated. However, while this is a rather narrow niche of users, on the one hand, they are sufficiently well-off (not students and schoolchildren who are paid for by their parents) to buy a film in HD-quality for 400 rubles, and on the other hand, they are not demanding enough. Say, in the information about the film I did not see information about the languages of voice acting (is there an original track?) And the presence of subtitles. I suspect that on both counts the answer is no, so I still do not get into the target audience of this service.
The following were packed in a traditional white box: the Sony Xperia V (LT25i) smartphone itself, the BA800 1750 mAh battery, the EP880 high-power charging unit, the MH750 wired stereo headset and a cable for charging and synchronization.
Color options for the case - more precisely, the back cover - white matte with a silver trim (as on my copy), black soft touch with a gray matte frame and pink matte with a pink trim - for girls.
Once again, the summary characteristics of the smartphone:
It just so happened that in the field of creating smartphones with protection against water and dirt, Sony competes with itself. Judging by the regular premieres of secure smartphones, buyers appreciated this. Well, specifically Xperia V demonstrates that protection can be completely invisible. And it pleases even more - perhaps in time it will become an industry standard, and phones will cease to be so fragile and vulnerable, acquire arms and enslave humanity .
But even if you give odds to your competitors, the Sony Xperia V remains a powerful and stylish smartphone with its own unique face and decent features. It’s worth it, it’s true, just like Sony - not cheap. The recommended price is 24,990 rubles, but judging by my impressions and ratings on Yandex.Market(Xperia V has 5 stars there) - it's worth it.
Think for yourself, decide for yourself - the most important thing that distinguishes a person from the most intelligent machine is still the right to choose. Good when it is (:
Screen
In the age of touch smartphones, the main parameter of any phone is the screen: resolution and diagonal. With this, the Xperia V is all right: the 4.3 ”diagonal contains 1280 points vertically and 720 horizontally - normal HD resolution, in general - as, for example, the Xperia S (with the same diagonal, by the way).
In addition, the display has a couple of new chips that I just can't help but mention: this is the new Sensor on lens display technology, thanks to which the screen is brighter and has wider viewing angles and the advanced Mobile Bravia Engine 2 technology, which makes the image even more realistic . The picture is really bright and juicy - in fact, as befits a top-end smartphone. All in all, it just works.
Moisture protection
More precisely, moisture and dust protection. This has already become Sony's trademark - only this year it released the mid-size Xperia go and the modified flagship acro S with protection against water and dust.
Now, among the phones that are not afraid to drop into the water, you can get Xperia V in the pouring rain or accidentally throw frisbee along the beach. Its protection standard is IP 55/57, which means that some dust can penetrate, however this does not interfere with the operation of the device, the insides are completely protected from contact; as well as protection against water jets from any direction (can be washed under the tap), when diving for a short time, water does not fall in quantities that interfere with the operation of the device - you can take it to the bathroom with you. But, just in case, permanent work in submerged mode is still not supposed.
LTE
Sony Xperia V is the first Sony model working in Russian LTE networks. The model supports all allowed frequency bands: I, III, V, VII and XX. I can’t say how this works, although the first time I turned on Sony saw a megaphone LTE network, but I need a special SIM card to connect to it. Therefore, for my needs, I managed traditional 3G and Wi-Fi. However, the very fact of having an LTE network in Moscow, like LTE in the smartphone itself, cannot but rejoice.
By the way, in the settings * # * # 4636 # * # * you can set LTE only mode and now work with a modem SIM card, for example, to distribute the Internet via wi-fi.
Design
At one time, the Sony Xperia arc was recognized as one of the most beautiful smartphones of 2011 - and certainly was one of the most original. The main motive of his design was a concave cover, which gave him the name. In 2012, Sony returned to arc-style in a number of its models. It will be appropriate to recall that the year began with the NXT line - angular smartphones with a transparent strip under the screen. Thus, Sony's lineup this year is mainly made up of NXT and arch-shaped smartphone models.
She is also a noticeable detail of the appearance of the Xperia V, except for the concave cover - this is the lack of front keys, both physical and touch. Now they finally moved to the screen, appearing there as necessary.
A powerful plastic rib for aluminum protrudes around the entire perimeter of the body - this is the only design element that gives out the brutal essence of the phone - so to speak, body armor under a tuxedo.
Buttons on the case, in principle, became less. Say, a separate key to start the camera has disappeared, now the fastest way to launch it is the button on the lock screen.
There is a power / lock screen button and a volume key. There are also the minimum number of connectors - microUSB and 3.5 mm audio output.
Both, of course, are closed by caps. Perhaps the stubs are the only, but inevitable drawback of waterproof smartphones.
Insides
It is extremely curious to observe the evolution of Sony's secure smartphones since last year's Xperia active. On the one hand, this is expansion - it covers more and more segments in the lineup. On the other hand, the defense itself becomes less conspicuous, more elegant, without losing its protective properties.
Let's say an unprepared user may not notice at all that the Xperia V is a waterproof smartphone. You won’t surprise anyone with stubs - they can be found on ordinary phones. And if you remove the back cover, then under it are the usual smartphone interiors: a slot for a memory card and microSIM, and a removable battery:
This is a special feature - say, in Xperia active, under the top, decorative cover, a second, real protective shell was hidden:
In Xperia go the carapace was already removable - only with a pair of slots for a memory card and SIM:
in Xperia V, the smartphone cover itself performs a protective function - on its inner surface there is a special hard rubber border, the shape of which shows that it protects against water SIM slot area and battery location.
A simple and elegant solution. And most importantly - delicate.
Specifications
Onboard V, the most powerful Qualcomm 8960 Snapdragon S4 chipset with a 1.5GHz Krait dual-core processor is installed in the Xperia line.
1 GB of RAM promises to work without brakes, its own memory on the smartphone - 8 gigabytes, and supports an SD card up to 32 GB.
The battery capacity is 1750 mAh, not so much, but it partially compensates for the presence of an extended standby mode - a function that is included in the power settings, which means disabling data transfer if the phone is inactive for some time. This greatly saves the battery, and, at the same time, the user's money.
Software
Xperia V comes with Android 4.0.4. If I'm not mistaken, this is the first Xperia smartphone, in which the composition and purpose of the menu keys has changed. Sony’s traditional set has always been this: home, context menu and back - and sometimes (for example, on Xperia ion) a fourth button appears - search. There are still three buttons on the Xperia V, but the Menu button has given way to the call button for the latest applications. This is not Sony’s idea, but such an all-android tradition - but the decision is controversial, in my opinion. It is assumed that the user more often needs to switch between many applications, which takes multitasking to a new level.
The menu button is now part of the interface of the application itself - however, for those programs where its support is not yet implemented, it is displayed by the OS itself in a number of main keys. Obviously, this was one of the reasons for rejecting even touch-sensitive, but separate menu buttons - great flexibility.
Another purpose of the new button is to show the so-called small applications that appear in the form of pop-up windows - notes, voice recorder, calculator, and so on - there is a whole section on Google Play with these very small applications - not very large yet.
Such an application does not open in full screen and allows you to do your thing in passing - for example, post a status on facebook while playing Angry birds:
Understanding the pre-installed applications, he drew attention to Play Movies and Play Books:
- It has long been known that Google decided to sell not only applications, but also books, films and games through its market.
Play books offer for review exclusively Russian classics - Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky. To increase the cultural level of their users, one must assume. The rest of the books you need to buy - however, before buying, you can read the free fragment.
As a reader, I really liked the application. Settings for displaying text as in a decent test editor + the ability to read aloud.
However, the latter is more likely a fun than a really useful function - the text is read legibly but painfully in a funny male voice with a parody of a foreign accent. The GLaDOS voice would have been better, in my opinion;)
The Play Movies application is simpler - in fact, it’s just a catalog of already purchased films + the cover of the Google Play movie catalog. The player is used for playback, and to access the full catalog and purchase movies, go to the Google Play itself.
What upset me - there are absolutely no free films, at least those that have long been in the public domain, cinema classics. But in general, the idea looks promising - the opportunity to buy a movie or a book here and now is actually in demand, including in Russia - the myths about a pirate republic in our case are greatly exaggerated. However, while this is a rather narrow niche of users, on the one hand, they are sufficiently well-off (not students and schoolchildren who are paid for by their parents) to buy a film in HD-quality for 400 rubles, and on the other hand, they are not demanding enough. Say, in the information about the film I did not see information about the languages of voice acting (is there an original track?) And the presence of subtitles. I suspect that on both counts the answer is no, so I still do not get into the target audience of this service.
Equipment
The following were packed in a traditional white box: the Sony Xperia V (LT25i) smartphone itself, the BA800 1750 mAh battery, the EP880 high-power charging unit, the MH750 wired stereo headset and a cable for charging and synchronization.
Color options for the case - more precisely, the back cover - white matte with a silver trim (as on my copy), black soft touch with a gray matte frame and pink matte with a pink trim - for girls.
Once again, the summary characteristics of the smartphone:
- 4.3-inch display with a resolution of 1280 × 720 pixels
- Dimensions 129 x 65 x 10.9 mm
- weight 120 g
- 13-megapixel camera with fast shooting technology and the ability to record video in Full HD.
- dual core 1.5 GHz processor
- LTE support
- Android OS version 4.0.4
- protection against dust and water (IP55 / 57 +), protection against immersion to a depth of 1 m for up to 30 minutes
- black, pink and white colors
Summary
It just so happened that in the field of creating smartphones with protection against water and dirt, Sony competes with itself. Judging by the regular premieres of secure smartphones, buyers appreciated this. Well, specifically Xperia V demonstrates that protection can be completely invisible. And it pleases even more - perhaps in time it will become an industry standard, and phones will cease to be so fragile and vulnerable
But even if you give odds to your competitors, the Sony Xperia V remains a powerful and stylish smartphone with its own unique face and decent features. It’s worth it, it’s true, just like Sony - not cheap. The recommended price is 24,990 rubles, but judging by my impressions and ratings on Yandex.Market(Xperia V has 5 stars there) - it's worth it.
Think for yourself, decide for yourself - the most important thing that distinguishes a person from the most intelligent machine is still the right to choose. Good when it is (: