You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Sony’s flagship smartphones may not have set the world on fire so far, but the company is making another concerted push in 2013, launching two top-end phones with near-identical internal specs. The Xperia Z is the main player here, with refined mirrored panelling across the sides and back and a machined power button being the only physical undulation from the 5-inch oblong. Sony’s put in its latest tech from across the family, being the first device to house its Exmor RS sensor capable of HDR video, and a 1080p 5-inch TFT Reality Display (that’s 443 dpi), packing the upgraded Bravia Mobile Engine 2 to augment colors and contrast on videos and stills. From its imaging arm, Sony’s cleaned down its on-screen camera interface and is now more inline with its standalone point-and-shoots and NEX range.
Work has also been done on improving the algorithms behind its automatic settings — now dubbed “auto i+” — while the phone-maker has caught up to the competition with a 9-megapixel burst mode at 10 fps and the ability to capture stills during video. It’s even upgraded the front-facing camera to a 2-megapixel Exmor R sensor, while the rear-facing 13-megapixel primary shooter will be able to capture HDR video — offering up a new solution to dim filming conditions. Software additions to Jelly Bean Android, alongside those Sony entertainment services, include a battery stamina mode that will monitor and switch off apps when the screen is off, while you’ll also be able to add necessary apps to Sony’s white list. The phone will be LTE-capable, with a potent Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor and (perhaps surprisingly, given how the phone looks) IP55 and IP57 certified water-resistance. It’ll also be the first phone to communicate through NFC with Sony’s family of new HDTVs, something we’ll be hearing plenty more about later this week.
The phone has barely appeared on stage here at CES but Sony has promised a global launch this quarter — and we’ve already managed to snag some playtime with the device — you can find our full impressions here.
Gallery: Sony Xperia Z announced
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Sony
Last year Sony kept finding itself behind the curve with Android phones. The new Xperia Z and ZL are the company’s attempt to break that trend. These two phones basically check off every box a spec-hungry geek could want and then some. More »
On December 21, a leak surfaced stating that the Sony “Yuga” is officially named the Xperia Z, and now more information on the handset has appeared. According to a leaked promotional video, the Xperia Z has a “skeleton frame” and is water/dust resistant. In addition, it has an Exmor RS image sensor and can take images and record video in HDR.
The so-called skeleton frame is composed of individual components, according to Sony, upon which the phone is assembled. In addition, there’s an OptiContrast panel, a 13-megapixel Exmor RS camera, a full HD Reality display, and the ability to both take images and record videos in the HDR mode. Also demonstrated is its water-resistant body, with images showing the handset covered in large droplets of water.
Aside from the new features in the promotional video, we got a nice look at the handset via the Russian website Mobile Review, which claimed to have a copy of the handset, which it reviewed in detail. According to current leaks, the Xperia Z has a 1080p display, a unibody design, a beautiful power button on the side, and glass backing.
The Z is said to run a 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon processor with 2GB of RAM and an Adreno 320 GPU. The 5-inch display has a resolution of 1794 x 1080 with the on-screen buttons. According to leaked images, it is running Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. So far, everything we’ve seen points to an exceptional, sleek handset. Sony is rumored to show off the device at CES, and we’ll be sure to keep a lookout for it.
[via Xperia Blog]
Sony Xperia Z leaked promotional video shows water resistant body, HDR camera is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Are you ready to welcome in 2013? It’s sure to be another hot year for handsets, and if this pair of leaked Xperia smartphones is any indication, Sony is likely to be off to a solid start come CES. The svelte Xperia Z “Yuga” and slightly sleeker ZL “Odin” have made a premature debut on the Japanese tech giant’s site, with a pair of straight-on press shots appearing overnight. The Xperia Z shot appears to be in line with earlier leaks, while the ZL is shaping up to be a slightly more compact variant, potentially squeezing identical hardware into a smaller shell. Both devices are rumored to include 5-inch 1080p LCDs, quad-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro processors with 2 gigs of RAM and Adreno 320 graphics, along with a 13-megapixel Exmor RS sensor on the rear — oddly, the ZL’s front-facing camera appears to be positioned on the bottom. Sony has yet to confirm either device’s specifications, but with CES just around the corner, we don’t have long to wait for either device to become official.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Sony
Via: Engadget Spanish, Xperia Blog
Source: Sony Mobile (Z), Sony Mobile (ZL)
It’s time to get back in business with the device code-named Sony C650X ODIN, aka the Norse god-of-gods, father of Thor and Loki, and one heck of a smartphone. What we’ve got here is a case of Sony setting themselves up for either a very giant win or a real big let-down for lovers of the name – but one way or another, we’re about to see one massive effort of a smartphone in 2013. Expect to see the machine at hand at CES 2013 or MWC 2013 without a doubt.
The device we’re speaking of here comes right after the Sony C660X “Yuga” was tipped as being called the Xperia Z in its final form. Now with the ODIN we’ve got a device that’s ready to bring on a 5-inch 1080p display (sensing a trend?) along with a lovely Sony BRAVIA engine inside and a quad-core processor to back it all up. That processor is rumored to be the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core SoC clocked at 1.5GHz – that’s the same one you’ll find in the LG Optimus G and the Google Nexus 4 – powerful stuff!
The Sony Xperia X and Sony Xperia Z are both expected to be appearing at CES 2013 at the earliest or Mobile World Congress 2013 at the latest, hero status in-tow either way. Sony is in a position right this minute where they’re in need of a real win after having had less than great luck with breaking their way into the top tier of the smartphone universe since the birth of Android – with massive beasts like these, they just might do it.
Also of interest for those completists of you out there in the Sony universe is word that the Z and the X will be more or less identical. The big differences between the two are said to be in the internal connectivity components that make them able to work with networks inside or outside the USA. If you’re inside the USA, you’ll likely see the ODIN, aka the X, while Asia will likely be working with the Yuga, also known as the Z.
[via it168]
Sony ODIN tipped to hit market as Xperia X, savior of the OEM is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Leaks concerning Sony‘s smartphone codenamed Yuga have been fairly regular, with a progressively larger array of images and specs appearing online over the least few months. Now another rumor has entered the fray, this one concerning the Yuga’s official name: Xperia Z. So says one source who has provided accurate information in the past.
On November 7, several images said to be the Sony Yuga appeared on the German website Android Schweiz, showing off different angles of the phone’s display and body. Then, on December 18, the Yuga appeared again, this time on the Russian website Mobile Review, which claimed to have a prototype of the handset, which it reviewed in detail.
The latest rumor surfaced over on Xperia Blog via the source UnknownX, who is known to have posted accurate leaks in the past on the XDA forums. According to the source, the Yuga will be officially called the Xperia Z, and will feature a chassis that is both dust and water resistant. The handset’s final size is said to be 139mm x 71mm x 7.9mm.
The handset is said to feature a 5-inch 1080p display at 443ppi, which the source says utilizes OptiContrast technology, something found in both the Xperia V and Xperia Tablet S. The Yuga/Xperia Z is said to feature a 1.5GHz quad-core processor and Adreno 320 GPU, as well as a 12-megapixel camera and Bluetooth 4.0. It runs Android 4.2.
[via Android Community]
Sony Yuga gets an official name, will be the Xperia Z, source says is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
There’s no denying that of all the Android OEM’s, Sony’s the most consumer-friendly. With a track record encompassing consistent and transparent software updates, easily unlocked bootloaders, a former flagship that’s been in and out of AOSP and now this — an Xperia flash tool — the company’s on a roll. Released today on the company’s developer site, the beta tool allows Xperia users with unlocked bootloaders to revert back to Sony’s lightly-skinned stock ROMs. The process is as simple as downloading the program from its dev portal, connecting your device, selecting the available “services” (read: Xperia ROMs), flashing your ROM of choice and then rebooting. Easy enough, no? For a brief video walkthrough, head on past the break.
[Thanks, Nabeel Ahmed]
Continue reading Sony releases Xperia flash tool in beta, lets unlocked devices return to stock ROMs
Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile, Sony
Source: Sony Mobile
Outside of custom projects, the cardinal rule for draping phones in exotic materials is that they must never, ever be truly high end devices: at best, they should involve mid-tier hardware that could be eclipsed by a garden-variety smartphone at a fraction of the price. Sony’s maintaining that all too time-honored tradition by producing a gold-coated, 24-carat version of… the Xperia P. Yes, rather than spruce up a flagship like the James Bond-approved Xperia T, Sony has instead given the luxury treatment to a smartphone with a strictly middling 4-inch display and dual-core 1GHz processor. In fairness, the company sees this as an experiment rather than a Vertu-like business model, with the intent strictly to emphasize the unibody design. A maximum 15 have been built as a result — and rather than count on impulse purchases from oligarchs, Sony hints that it’s offering at least some of its gold Xperia P stock to followers on Facebook. As long as there’s no pretenses of living the high life with what’s really a very ordinary phone underneath, we’re satisfied.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Sony
Source: Sony
Americans who likes the Sony Xperia go’s approach to lifeproof smartphone design won’t have to live vicariously through their overseas friends anymore. Keeping up its recent habit of selling unlocked versions of niche devices, Sony is selling the toughened smartphone in the US as the Xperia advance. The 3.5-inch handset won’t initially be a surprise to those who’ve had a peek at an international version, right through to the out-of-the-box Android 2.3 installation — you’ll be sitting in line for a taste of Ice Cream Sandwich or Jelly Bean like everyone else. For most, the advantage will rest in a dust- and water-resistant phone that can wield its 3G on AT&T or Straight Talk while being free to use at least basic GSM calling abroad. Be sure to shop around before committing to an Xperia advance, though. While Newegg’s $250 price makes a reasonable case, the $300 official cost has our minds wandering to the much more powerful (if more fragile) Nexus 4.
Continue reading Sony ships Xperia advance to the US, offers unlocked ruggedness for $300 or less
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Sony
Sony ships Xperia advance to the US, offers unlocked ruggedness for $300 or less originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Nov 2012 22:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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