My trusty old Moto died. Loved that thing. They did not have anymore of them, and The S4, promised beacon of phone greatness, was not yet released when my old phone fell into a spiral of death, and HTC decided to not give us a MicroSD expansion slot, a decision I frown upon.. I needed it to import my contact list, and a boat load of other things. Not all of it could be done wirelessly, my old phone was almost dead, and some stuff couldn't be handled by my Windows PC. So, even if HTC have stunning A/V support with the stock media player, and would have been my first choice with an SD port, I opted to stay away from it.
This lead me to purchase the Xperia ZL. I have never liked the Sony brand very much, and a few of their products have been serious let-downs, my TV being the worst case. Being open minded, I figured that It couldn't be all that bad, and Sony's biggest failing has always been firmware and software, and in this case, Google is in charge.
I've had this phone for about two weeks, now. Having lived with Android for already two years, it stands to reason that I was home in no time. But this also meant I had habits, and these are hard to break.
First impressions:
Phone looked good.
Bezel width is very limited, yielding a decently small package even with a big screen.
The screen, once "Adapt to lighting conditions" has been turned-off, is a beautiful thing.
Size and weight is a good balanced compromise.
Speaker is capable and powerful.
No HDMI - Major let-down.
OS:
Android has evolved, since Froyo. Adding functionality, useful widgets, and keeping the older features user loved without adding unnecessary bloat. Kudos to Google. So far, I'm loving Jelly Bean.
Software:
- The messaging widget.
It seems to be a lot less powerful and a lot less configurable than Motorola's MotoBlur messaging widget. I can't get everything to work yet. a bit of a let-down, but only very minor.
- The Stock Media player.
Let-Down of the century. From the company who invented "portable music" - For the younger ones, check Walkman (Wikipedia). The stock media player, which is branded "WalkMan", a legendary name with a historical connotation, is, for lack of a better expression, "Teh Suck". Stock format support is poor and the player does not "see" my SDcard's media content, nor will it let me use a file folder view to find and navigate my contents. Sony should crack the whip on it's devs, or on the dodgy bureaucrat who decided to cooperate with Sony's "content" hyenas, intent on killing most media formats to impose subscriptions based streaming. Installing VLC or another media player is an absolute must on this phone.
After two weeks:
Hardware:
Screen has a protective "anti-shatter" film on it, right out of the box. It is not mentioned anywhere obvious to the consumer. The film is very prone to easy scratching. Sending many, including myself, at first, into a fit of panic at how easy the screen scratches, but it is merely the film getting the scratches, not the glass itself. The film is removable, and I recommend you to leave it until it is scratched beyond your tolerance. As for the screen's viewing angle, mentioned by many reviewers, fret not. These reviewers seem to think and work like a monolithic block of copycat non-sense. The screen's viewing angle is perfectly wide enough for anyone to view it without problems, even when used on a windshield suction-cup stand at odd angles, as a GPS guiding device in a vehicle. The Xperia, just like any phone out there, for that matter, is NOT a bloody theater screen or TV, it's a bloody phone screen! The angle of viewing is fine. Anyone over 40? off the screen, probably shouldn't see what's on that screen anyway. If you meet a reviewer in the flesh, who talks to you about viewing angles, please teach him the difference between a phone and a TV. Be gentle about it, though these types are often narcissistic by nature, thus have very fragile egos.
The construction is sturdy.
Nice and loud sound. Decent speaker..
Love the card slot access without having to remove battery.
Love having a FM radio tuner
Love the IR remote hardware
Solid performer with snappy execution and great stability.
Still peeved by lack of HDMI.
Power button is annoyingly obvious and prone to being activated by mishap. It forces me to use "screen lock on close" to prevent it from accidentally calling, browsing and doing all sorts of stuff because of accidental unlocking followed by a series of unwanted software activations. I prefer a recessed button, like the one on the Motorola Atrix. Reviewers who prefer obvious pop-out button are mostly desk-jockeys, and don't have many real-world problems because of it. I have a rough and tumble blue collar job, and I need my phone to stay off, until I need it on. The way the Xperia's power button is set, I loose ? my battery power to the screen going on needlessly in my pocket. Professional reviewers, take note: Obvious, popped-out power buttons = very BAD for lots of people.
Software situation:
"Walkman" is still a no-go. I downloaded VLC, a formidable media player, which also happens to be what I use on my PCs, it took care of making my phone Media friendly, with support for everything, including flawless DTS playback on my Experia.
Stock Web browser is near useless. I do NOT like Chrome. In my opinion, on Android, Dolphin HD rules.
Stock file browser also worthless. Downloaded ESfile explorer, which is my favored file browser.
Album, the stock picture and movie widget works great.
SkEye, my favorite planetarium software, crashes. Sent in a report. Hopping the author can fix this and the the Xperia is not going to be a problem for this.
Remote control software: Not bad, but I would have like a better layout for my buttons. Working on learning the software's customization options, so far, though, it works.
Concluding this, my rating:
Hardware 6/10
- Lost 2 points for screen being way too prone to getting scratched.
- Lost 1 point for lack of HDMI
- Lost 1 point for idiotic Power button config and placement. On top would have been better, recessed would have made it perfect.
Software 8/10
- Lost 2 points for sucky media playback software.
Original rating:7/10
Edit:
After yet more time with my Xperia ZL, (2 more weeks).
Learned: There is a "shatter-proofing" film on the screen. It is a good protector, but will wear down, just like any other protective film.
Result: I removed the film, I'm now on glass, and much happier.
Brick to Sony: They should "tout this as a feature", and let us know it's removable in a much more forthcoming way.
More:
I'm now a lot more familiar with this phone, it's software and UI. I'm loving it, now. The "walkman" software finds and adds DLNA conbtent nicely, so I give it back a point, but no directory browsing still keeps a whole point away
Revised rating:
Hardware 7.6/10
- Lost .4 point for the presence of a protective anti-shatter film on the screen not being obviously mentioned anywhere, causing distress to unaware owners thinking this screen is overly scratch-prone
- Lost 1 point for lack of HDMI
- Lost 1 point for idiotic Power button config and placement. On top would have been better, recessed would have made it perfect.
Software 9/10
- Lost 1 points for sucky "Walkman" media playback software - No folder browsing and narrow file type support. Beaten flat by VLC, an open source initiative with next to no funding... Miserable fail, Sony... This is almost worthy of a meme.
Final rating: 8.3/10
Addendum: Anyone purchasing a Jabra Supreme bluetooth headset should now this: If the Jabra Software crashes, just update the earpieces' firmware. It's very straightforward, and it resolves the issue.
This lead me to purchase the Xperia ZL. I have never liked the Sony brand very much, and a few of their products have been serious let-downs, my TV being the worst case. Being open minded, I figured that It couldn't be all that bad, and Sony's biggest failing has always been firmware and software, and in this case, Google is in charge.
I've had this phone for about two weeks, now. Having lived with Android for already two years, it stands to reason that I was home in no time. But this also meant I had habits, and these are hard to break.
First impressions:
Phone looked good.
Bezel width is very limited, yielding a decently small package even with a big screen.
The screen, once "Adapt to lighting conditions" has been turned-off, is a beautiful thing.
Size and weight is a good balanced compromise.
Speaker is capable and powerful.
No HDMI - Major let-down.
OS:
Android has evolved, since Froyo. Adding functionality, useful widgets, and keeping the older features user loved without adding unnecessary bloat. Kudos to Google. So far, I'm loving Jelly Bean.
Software:
- The messaging widget.
It seems to be a lot less powerful and a lot less configurable than Motorola's MotoBlur messaging widget. I can't get everything to work yet. a bit of a let-down, but only very minor.
- The Stock Media player.
Let-Down of the century. From the company who invented "portable music" - For the younger ones, check Walkman (Wikipedia). The stock media player, which is branded "WalkMan", a legendary name with a historical connotation, is, for lack of a better expression, "Teh Suck". Stock format support is poor and the player does not "see" my SDcard's media content, nor will it let me use a file folder view to find and navigate my contents. Sony should crack the whip on it's devs, or on the dodgy bureaucrat who decided to cooperate with Sony's "content" hyenas, intent on killing most media formats to impose subscriptions based streaming. Installing VLC or another media player is an absolute must on this phone.
After two weeks:
Hardware:
Screen has a protective "anti-shatter" film on it, right out of the box. It is not mentioned anywhere obvious to the consumer. The film is very prone to easy scratching. Sending many, including myself, at first, into a fit of panic at how easy the screen scratches, but it is merely the film getting the scratches, not the glass itself. The film is removable, and I recommend you to leave it until it is scratched beyond your tolerance. As for the screen's viewing angle, mentioned by many reviewers, fret not. These reviewers seem to think and work like a monolithic block of copycat non-sense. The screen's viewing angle is perfectly wide enough for anyone to view it without problems, even when used on a windshield suction-cup stand at odd angles, as a GPS guiding device in a vehicle. The Xperia, just like any phone out there, for that matter, is NOT a bloody theater screen or TV, it's a bloody phone screen! The angle of viewing is fine. Anyone over 40? off the screen, probably shouldn't see what's on that screen anyway. If you meet a reviewer in the flesh, who talks to you about viewing angles, please teach him the difference between a phone and a TV. Be gentle about it, though these types are often narcissistic by nature, thus have very fragile egos.
The construction is sturdy.
Nice and loud sound. Decent speaker..
Love the card slot access without having to remove battery.
Love having a FM radio tuner
Love the IR remote hardware
Solid performer with snappy execution and great stability.
Still peeved by lack of HDMI.
Power button is annoyingly obvious and prone to being activated by mishap. It forces me to use "screen lock on close" to prevent it from accidentally calling, browsing and doing all sorts of stuff because of accidental unlocking followed by a series of unwanted software activations. I prefer a recessed button, like the one on the Motorola Atrix. Reviewers who prefer obvious pop-out button are mostly desk-jockeys, and don't have many real-world problems because of it. I have a rough and tumble blue collar job, and I need my phone to stay off, until I need it on. The way the Xperia's power button is set, I loose ? my battery power to the screen going on needlessly in my pocket. Professional reviewers, take note: Obvious, popped-out power buttons = very BAD for lots of people.
Software situation:
"Walkman" is still a no-go. I downloaded VLC, a formidable media player, which also happens to be what I use on my PCs, it took care of making my phone Media friendly, with support for everything, including flawless DTS playback on my Experia.
Stock Web browser is near useless. I do NOT like Chrome. In my opinion, on Android, Dolphin HD rules.
Stock file browser also worthless. Downloaded ESfile explorer, which is my favored file browser.
Album, the stock picture and movie widget works great.
SkEye, my favorite planetarium software, crashes. Sent in a report. Hopping the author can fix this and the the Xperia is not going to be a problem for this.
Remote control software: Not bad, but I would have like a better layout for my buttons. Working on learning the software's customization options, so far, though, it works.
Concluding this, my rating:
Hardware 6/10
- Lost 2 points for screen being way too prone to getting scratched.
- Lost 1 point for lack of HDMI
- Lost 1 point for idiotic Power button config and placement. On top would have been better, recessed would have made it perfect.
Software 8/10
- Lost 2 points for sucky media playback software.
Original rating:7/10
Edit:
After yet more time with my Xperia ZL, (2 more weeks).
Learned: There is a "shatter-proofing" film on the screen. It is a good protector, but will wear down, just like any other protective film.
Result: I removed the film, I'm now on glass, and much happier.
Brick to Sony: They should "tout this as a feature", and let us know it's removable in a much more forthcoming way.
More:
I'm now a lot more familiar with this phone, it's software and UI. I'm loving it, now. The "walkman" software finds and adds DLNA conbtent nicely, so I give it back a point, but no directory browsing still keeps a whole point away
Revised rating:
Hardware 7.6/10
- Lost .4 point for the presence of a protective anti-shatter film on the screen not being obviously mentioned anywhere, causing distress to unaware owners thinking this screen is overly scratch-prone
- Lost 1 point for lack of HDMI
- Lost 1 point for idiotic Power button config and placement. On top would have been better, recessed would have made it perfect.
Software 9/10
- Lost 1 points for sucky "Walkman" media playback software - No folder browsing and narrow file type support. Beaten flat by VLC, an open source initiative with next to no funding... Miserable fail, Sony... This is almost worthy of a meme.
Final rating: 8.3/10
Addendum: Anyone purchasing a Jabra Supreme bluetooth headset should now this: If the Jabra Software crashes, just update the earpieces' firmware. It's very straightforward, and it resolves the issue.
Last edited:
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