Die another day
Entertainment aside, for standard phone use – reading emails, browsing the web – the vivid screen's wow factor is muted somewhat although the overall size helps. Indeed, being a big bright display, battery life is impacted. Out of the box, doing an average amount of work on the phone, it’s done in just under a day. I wonder what Q would make of this?
Home screen and music overload
He might be curious to note that – along with the smooth running 1.5 GHz dual-core Qualcomm Krait processor – the handset runs Android Ice Cream Sandwich, not the latest Jelly Bean. Sony's UI enhancements include a few widgets squished on top, such as the photo flipper – a virtual rotating sheaf of photos which is attractive, fun to spin round, and makes good use of the high def screen.
AnTuTu scores and Help is at hand
But having three different preloaded applications for music was a bit too much clutter. Sony’s Facebook integration was fiddly to set up and fiddly to use. It didn’t really add much to either the phone or Facebook experiences – with tiles accidentally closing and opening and the connection to phone numbers not being particularly helpful. Add in the Sony Select and the Android Help widget and it felt like the company could have done with applying its minimalist principles to its software offerings on the handset.
Circular thinking
In general use, my stumbling blocks with the Xperia T came from working out which of the multi-faced ways to access the menus, the apps dashboard, the homepage et al – the right-hand side slider of open apps was the right way to get something done. Presumably, this becomes more intuitive over time.
Impressive screen but no doubt Q would take issue with the plastic body
These grumbles aside, Sony knows a thing or two about photography and the 13Mp camera is a joy. It’s responsive, easy to use, and makes good looking images of the most casual snaps even in poor light and features an LED flash if you need it. The panoramic feature works nicely for wide, seamless shooting and, again, that screen makes casual viewing of photos a delight.
Verdict
Overall, Sony's Xperia T is an attractive phone with great camera and a beautiful screen, but it lacks Jelly Bean and, in the hand, it seems not so much the 007 of the smartphone market, more a 005½. ®
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Sony Xperia T
COMMENTS
Re: BOOOOO
Yes, that's an unfortunate factor in all reviewing of Sony products.
The general rule of thumb to get the real review score:
Take 15 points off any Apple score here.
Add 15 points to any Sony score here
review by an iPhone user???
the below are stock design features of all new Android phones (for good or ill) so I'm guessing the reviewer is mentioning them / marking them down as issues simply because they differ from the phone she uses every day.
"In general use, my stumbling blocks with the Xperia T came from working out which of the multi-faced ways to access the menus, the apps dashboard, the homepage et al"
"the other key design feature is that there is no physical home button, just a line of buttons"
As an Xperia T owner I'd mark both these features as strengths rather than weaknesses, ditto the position of the power button. Once you get used to it you'll find it's a rather convenient place to put it. Easy to press with the thumb when held in the right hand but at the same time hard to press accidentally.
On a technical note one issue with the T is that only 1.8GB of the 16GB storage facility is free for apps / system storage.
Re: " .. but it lacks Jelly Bean ..."
Jely Bean is an optimisation release so the result of an upgrade is smoother animation and other refinements.
I think these phone manufactures are not doing themselves or their customers any favours by gratuitously customising android since it adds delay in the time taken for the phone to receive an update. In some cases it would rule out an update entirely.
Why trash this phone?
I dont know about you but I am very exited about this phone. Its got a higher pixel density in the screen than the S3 and doesnt suffer from that gastly Amoled screen which offers radioactive colours and common screen burn. Granted the S3 can be seen from better angles but tbh I dont want to encourage people looking over my shoulder when I am out and about.
Before trashing the processor you do realise it beats the S3 and HTC 1X in bench mark tests. Why? Because Android ICS and to a lesser extent JB havent been fully optimised for quad core processors yet. Not only that but almost every app isnt either.
The casing is pretty cool I thought. When your rivals are made out of plastic and have bits of metal all over it the Xperia T has got a matt rubber like finish which adds to grip and can even act as a shock absorber. Not for everyone, sure but its different and personally I think it works. Especially when you add that grip to the shape of the phone which gives you a good balance in your hand.
The camera is second only to Nokias pureview cameras.
Jellybean will be out soon, I dont see why waiting a month or so for an update is going to make much difference on a 24 month contract.
It can also do things which other phones cant. Its got the new Playstation store which is in its early stages at the moment but is going to be something well worth getting exited about. You can even plug it in to a TV and play games on there. You can even sync up a ps3 pad and use the controller too! Amazing.
Its got NFC and HDMI input. In fact Sony have got all sorts of crazy gadgets to go with this phone to use NFC to its maximum potential atm. One could argue its the king of NFC at...considering thats the future atm Id say thats pretty good.
Also its cheaper than its rivals. Especially the Iphone 5 which again lacks the NFC and HDMI input.
Its even got FIX (facebook inside Xperia) which I have on my current Xperia and it makes social networking so much easier. It syncs up all your events to your android calendar and adds all your contacts birthdays to it too. It puts everything in one place. Not only that but it syncs up all their details on to your contacts list too so your phone book and facebook contacts are merged. The only other manufacturer which even comes close to this is LG.
75% for this phone is an insult. Do your home work and try again,
