Saturday 1 February 2014

Sony compact z1 first impressions

A friend's given me his Z1 compact to try for the weekend- my first impressions:


Pros:
  • Nice one handed size- though feels surprisingly heavy compared to the iPhone 5 (137 vs 112grams), and the extra width and depth of the Sony makes it a bit less comfortable to hold one handed than the iPhone 5, 4s or HTC One mini.
  • The display is nice and sharp. It might not have the highest dpi but it's more than good enough.
  • Good external speaker (loud enough to use around the house)
  • Dedicated camera button (though you have to press in the right way to get it to work)
  • The waterproofing is great - especially in the weather we're having at the moment.
  • Camera seems decent- though I had a couple of funny colours come out in low light
  • Feels sturdy
  • Battery life, especially in stamina mode is impressive.
Cons
  • It's a dust magnet - front and back. 
  • Audio on headphones could be louder (though quality is good)

Would have been interesting to have had these specs in an iPhone 4s shell.  but as a small, solid, decent spec'ed phone/audio/camera/quick email tool that can withstand the elements it's great.

I've loaded Nova launcher- I prefer it having 5  rows and 5 columns (leaves an extra column when using 4x1 widgets) and removing text from under most of the app icons.

As I handed back the z1 compact, I was left thinking that if I wasn't wedded to android, the iPhone 5 (or 4s) would be a better one handed phone- more comfortable to hold, lighter, and functions seen easier to access one handed. However, as an android user this is excellent. The external speaker was a nice surprise, though on headphones a bit lacking compared to the HTC one, and even the iPhone. Battery life is great, and the next time I want to use my phone in the pouring rain I'll miss the peace of mind of a waterproof phone!


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