Database Users

On the whole, is the Arc worth it? Opinions...

I am looking to upgrade my phone this week, going from a Sony Ericsson W995, and I am looking into getting the Arc. I have been set on it for weeks, but just read on the SE forums a few threads about the phone just randomly shutting off and not doing what it is meant to do.
I just wondered if people would recommend it or not, and if these posts are true or not?

Obviously every phone is different so some ones would reboot and some wouldn't. Mine doesn't everything works for me perfectly, the only thing thats bugging me is that development isnt doing too good, in not complaining cause I know it will come eventually cause the phone hasn't been out that long. I would go for tho phone 100% I cant find anything wrong with it so and ice had it for over a week now
Hope this helps u
Sent from my LT15i using XDA Premium App

Mine is up for 550 hours without reboot.
It speaks for itself.

Had mine since Mar 31st - and I love it.. had the X10 before and this is 100000000000000000000000000000000x better than that was!.. Had no real big problems with it.. only thing that people seem to consistently have issues with is a bug in the HD video recording which is causing the voice and images to go out of sync.. I'm expecting that they'll fix this in the next firmware release in June(ish)

Well, you are @ arc forum. most people like their phone per details they were looking for. On the other hand, you have to sort out your important facts which you are expecting from your next phone(which varies from one person to another).
Problems you have listed don't appear for everyone, whether I have been lucky with phone or not, I have never encountered issues like that with any of my SE phones.
Your best bet is to go to store and compare list of phones that you are interested side by side and see what makes you happy. but as far as me being an arc owner, I should say that satisfies my needs and I have not yet had any issue with it as everything is solid and moving forward.
I have to say, this phone is exactly what everyone requested from SE to make. Update hardware, software + get rid of all the SCAPES(which is sort of optional now and not integrated anymore) I just love this + possibility to have unlocked bootloader on certain models. What else can you ask?
just my 7 cents

im_iceman said:
Had mine since Mar 31st - and I love it.. had the X10 before and this is 100000000000000000000000000000000x better than that was!.. Had no real big problems with it.. only thing that people seem to consistently have issues with is a bug in the HD video recording which is causing the voice and images to go out of sync.. I'm expecting that they'll fix this in the next firmware release in June(ish)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And huge battery drain from stock camera app.
For 720p recording you can give up image stabilization feature for well-synced audio. For camera you have yo use 3rd party camera app like vignette.

I think this says it all - the Arc is the best single-core handset in the world.
That isn't to say that the Arc is without it's foibles; there are a few things could be better and it's a shame it lacks certain features like a front-facing camera or NFC but the pros outweigh the cons.
It's all down to personal needs though, as well as what sort of deal you can get.
If you can get, say, the Galaxy S2 on the same contract/deal as the Arc, there's really no contest.

Im also very interested in this i own a x10 and have some questions.im thinkin bout it but just dont think is worth getting . The x10 is unbrickable. Its getting custom kernels that are undoin SE's crap. Plus arc doesnt have any custom roms yet And i like the size and desighn of my x10 . And tthe x10 has a pretty strong xda community
Is there a fps cap
Does it do 16 m colors
Hows the camera what kind of camera
Hows the battery life
Sent from my X10i using XDA App

rtblittlebrown said:
Is there a fps cap
Does it do 16 m colors
Hows the camera what kind of camera
Hows the battery life
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure, not that I'm aware of.
Yes.
Exmor R backlit-CMOS sensor - same sort of tech Sony use in their proper digital cameras. There are threads in the section with pictures taken by Arcs.
Battery life isn't great but on a par with other similarly-specced handsets I'd say
To be honest, you could've answered the bit about the colours and the type of camera by just looking up the specs.

Step666 said:
Not sure, not that I'm aware of.
Yes.
Exmor R backlit-CMOS sensor - same sort of tech Sony use in their proper digital cameras. There are threads in the section with pictures taken by Arcs.
Battery life isn't great but on a par with other similarly-specced handsets I'd say
To be honest, you could've answered the bit about the colours and the type of camera by just looking up the specs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks
Sent from my X10i using XDA App

Scott_HKR said:
I am looking to upgrade my phone this week, going from a Sony Ericsson W995, and I am looking into getting the Arc. I have been set on it for weeks, but just read on the SE forums a few threads about the phone just randomly shutting off and not doing what it is meant to do.
I just wondered if people would recommend it or not, and if these posts are true or not?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Congrats on being the owner of W995. To me, that's the best non-smartphone without touchscreen ever made
You will definitely be very very happy with Arc. There could be something better depending on your needs but you can't go wrong with Arc and I think Arc is currently the best looking phone for my taste and I think it almost feels as good as W995 ;-)

Step666 said:
It's all down to personal needs though, as well as what sort of deal you can get.
If you can get, say, the Galaxy S2 on the same contract/deal as the Arc, there's really no contest.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why? Because its dual core? That means absolutely nothing! Dual core is not even needed these days. Galaxy S was an over hype phone imo, ditched it in about a week to get back my X10, and the Galaxy S2 will be the continuation of Samsungs over hyped nonsense.
Sent from my X10a using XDA App

You just claimed the X10 was better than the Galaxy S, I'm not even going to begin to waste my time arguing with you.

Step666 said:
You just claimed the X10 was better than the Galaxy S, I'm not even going to begin to waste my time arguing with you.
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Click to collapse
I simply stated the galaxy s didnt do a damn thing better or faster than what the x10 already did. Regardless of its specs vs the X10....it was over hyped.
*edit* sorry, the galaxy s video recording destroys the X10.
Sent from my X10a using XDA App

Yes, my mistake - you claimed they were basically equal which is still extremely questionable.
I'm not a Samsung person, I think TouchWiz is a horrific, iPhone-y, designed for and by 5-year-olds joke of a UI. And I think the Galaxy S is a cheap plastic PoS handset.
But it blows the X10 out the water every single day of the week - better screen, better CPU, more RAM, much more internal memory, better stills and video camera in my experience, better software support/upgrades (which is saying something given how poor Samsung are at that).
The Galaxy S2 is simply the best handset in the world right now, not only on paper but every review/hands-on with it says the same thing.
It's not just the dual-core CPU, though as time goes on that will definitely be a huge advantage over the likes of the Arc; double the RAM, a better screen (ok, a little less clear-cut than the difference between the Galaxy S and the X10 but it probably still edges it based on little things like viewing angles), significantly more internal memory, larger battery, better video camera - it's even thinner than the Arc!
So no, it's not just because it's a dual-core CPU (though that alone would be reason enough to choose it if the two were the same price - if you think it's not a huge advantage, you're short-sighted or lying to yourself), there's a litany of other advantages.
I'm not saying the Arc is a bad phone, it has genuinely wowed me and I really didn't expect it to but there's no point kidding ourselves that it's living on borrowed time before it's left behind.

Step666 said:
So no, it's not just because it's a dual-core CPU (though that alone would be reason enough to choose it if the two were the same price - if you think it's not a huge advantage, you're short-sighted or lying to yourself), there's a litany of other advantages.
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Click to collapse
Well, it's an advantage, but I'm a bit conservative when it comes to say huge advantage. Benchmark is great; But, it's an intensive number-crunching process most of the time. IMO, that deviates what I (and probably most of the users) use my smartphone for. I don't use my smartphones to calculate Pi, audio/video editing, etc.
I think dual-core will be shafted by quad-core even before the mass-adoption of the technology by the app developers.
I'm more excited on when GPU acceleration gonna be implemented in our homescreen.

ArcOnFire said:
I'm more excited on when GPU acceleration gonna be implemented in our homescreen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's the one good thing Samsung have done with TouchWiz (apparently).

Hi
I shall make an amendment to the agreement with my mobile op. and I am wondering whether SE Xperia Arc is a good choice. I have always use Nokia phones and I thought to buy Nokia N8, but I when I saw Arc I've changed my mind. Arc design and mutlimedia possibilities are great, but when I read about battery draining, lags, vid/audio sync problems I am not happy about it.
I am wondering if SE will fix this problem soon? Are these problems only software or maybe it is hardware failure? Do you think it will be repaired soon? When the next software update is expected?
Please help me to make a good choice.
Thanks a lot

hi.. battery drain is seemingly caused by a couple of software issues.. camera and google maps.. both of which should be fixed/ fixable.
lags - not seen many/any reports of lag.
video/audio sync - short term fix is either to use fwvga or try switching image stabilisation off. long term SE should be fixing that.
next update from SE expected in the next couple of months..
Sent from The Arc!

Thanks
I have only a liitle knowledge of Andoid system so tell me If I root my phone is it possible to remove google maps and camera soft? Will it help? Or maybe this is possible without rooting the phone?

GSMArena review is out

Of all the sites, I find GSMArenas review process to be one of the most thorough & reputable
Here's their take on the Z1
http://www.gsmarena.com/sony_xperia_z1-review-987.php
It's all pretty good, right until you come to the frankly bewildering browser & video playing battery life.
Hopefully it's something that can be addressed in firmware as the talktime & standby time are pretty good.

techguyone said:
Of all the sites, I find GSMArenas review process to be one of the most thorough & reputable
Here's their take on the Z1
http://www.gsmarena.com/sony_xperia_z1-review-987.php
It's all pretty good, right until you come to the frankly bewildering browser & video playing battery life.
Hopefully it's something that can be addressed in firmware as the talktime & standby time are pretty good.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Note, they call out the lack of HDR for images. HDR isn't an option in Superior Auto, or when you go manual and bump to full resolution; however, if you drop the resolution in manual to 8MP, HDR is indeed there. With how fast the images take, I'm surprised they didn't leave HDR as an option for the 20MP resolution, but hey, they probably have their reasons.

There are 2 HDR modes as well. Just shows how unthorough the review was.
I dont understand why companies think it is ok to release buggy phones. The Z1 really needs an update, espcially on the camera. Battery life is excellent

Generaly I like the test of GSM Arena but not this one, because they fail on the 2 major point of the phone, the screen and the camera.
For the camera they said that they're not impressed. Yes but they couldn't make a good with the default of the lens of the pre-unit they had. So they can't juge this point.
The second one is the screen. It's maybe not the best, the HTC One or the LG G2 are maybe better. But the S4 screen isn't better than the one of the Z1. I have both and I made some test. When the contrast is better on the S4, the color are false. When the color are right (in video mode), the contrast and the brightness is better on the Z1 screen.

It's hard to compare side by side. It's like buying a TV at best buy or Fry's. You're in the showroom and you can nitpick from one TV to another. Get any one by itself and you probably wouldn't have any problems with any of them (beyond defects and/or missing features and whatnot). Most users wouldn't know the difference.

I dont trust gsmarena, they are too biased towards Samsung, ill wait until technobuffalo or someone else review the z1

It looks like Sony rushed the product.
Battery life : lets hope firmware update improves it.
Camera : lets hope blah blah same as above
Screen : not guaranteed. Lets hope blah blah
If this is the case then why not lets see if the z2 is better and then buy that.
They haven't put s-master audio chip/amplifier to boost volume level.
I was looking for a 5 inch phone which bests my One. But m sure Z1 is not that phone.
Sent from my HTC One using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

A firmware update is not going to fix the battery life. Otherwise the Z wouldn't be as anemic as it is. Weak video and browser times.

Yeah the battery life had me scared the most since my phone is on its way in the mail.
How can they make a phone with the same SoC as the G2, same batterysize, and a smaller screen, and it gets half the browsing and videotime as the G2. Sounds like software to me.
Also when you pull up the camera comparison on gsm arena, the Z1 pictures doesn't even stand a chance against the S4 or G2.

Apoxx said:
Yeah the battery life had me scared the most since my phone is on its way in the mail.
How can they make a phone with the same SoC as the G2, same batterysize, and a smaller screen, and it gets half the browsing and videotime as the G2. Sounds like software to me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd say it's the screen.

g2 uses a new battery technology .. z1 didnt

Darn, Now I'm really thinking twice about buying this phone...
The Battery Life is very important to me... 6 hours of web browsing and 6 hours of video playback is quite pathetic for a 3000 mah battery...
I was at least expecting 9 hours each...

Tizza said:
I'd say it's the screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
weird since IPS screens are less battery efficient than TN panels.

This really sucks by sony...
How can a bigger phone with bigger screen Z Ultra have more video playback than a smaller phone Z1?
both uses same software, battery and same screen....
I cannot understand this...

Morlock O said:
This really sucks by sony...
How care a bigger phone with bigger screen Z Ultra have more video playback than a smaller phone Z1?
both uses same software, battery and same screen....
I cannot understand this...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
GSM stated that their xperia z1 is a pre-production one so it probably doesn't have the latest software . Therefore their statements on the phone are probably not accurate

Choriandus said:
GSM stated that their xperia z1 is a pre-production one so it probably doesn't have the latest software . Therefore their statements on the phone are probably not accurate
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dream on...
Gesendet von meinem HTC One mit Tapatalk 4

Reviews based on pre-production units only make confusion because you'll never be sure if they changed something in the final unit or not. There might be a small update in the firmware for example that changes how the phone performs. I'm surprised Sony Mobile gives out pre-release devices for reviews.
And based on this GSM Arena review the battery life is very poor, half of what other competitors achieve (LG G2).

sachinaik said:
It looks like Sony rushed the product.
Battery life : lets hope firmware update improves it.
Camera : lets hope blah blah same as above
Screen : not guaranteed. Lets hope blah blah
If this is the case then why not lets see if the z2 is better and then buy that.
They haven't put s-master audio chip/amplifier to boost volume level.
I was looking for a 5 inch phone which bests my One. But m sure Z1 is not that phone.
Sent from my HTC One using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In terms of sales, definitely.
Oh, camera, speed too.
Sent from my LT28h using xda app-developers app

Apoxx said:
weird since IPS screens are less battery efficient than TN panels.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Perhaps it is weird. I can't say I'm a tech guru but it just feels like it's a power-hungry screen. Did Sony spend so much time beefing up screen quality that it neglected (or felt it warranted the sacrifice of) battery life? I don't know, but I get the impression that this is the case.
I doubt software optimisation is going to change much, but I do accept the possibility that I could be wrong.

Choriandus said:
GSM stated that their xperia z1 is a pre-production one so it probably doesn't have the latest software . Therefore their statements on the phone are probably not accurate
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed, although I add the caveat that if there's any firmware change or a new unit, GSM Arena are likely to redo those parts of the review and update (like they did on the HTC 1 when that too had non final software)

It's time to say goodbye my friends! :(

After all thease months, after all good and bad moments it's time to say goodbye and move on to my next device.
I bought LG G3 couple of weeks ago and today I'm selling my Xperia Z. It's so hard to move on because Xperia Z reminds me on true legend, Xperia X10i. It's such a great device to have. In fact , after using G3 for couple of weeks I'm so disappointed with this device (laggy software, not so great build quality) so I'll probably sell it and buy a real device, Xperia device (Z2 or Z3).
I'm gonna miss this forum so much, I'm gonna miss all You guys. Good luck and take care! :good:

So, the G3 isn't great then? I'm looking at getting a new device next month and it was a possibility, as reviews seem to be all positive. The Z3 is also on my list along with the N6.
I'm leaning towards the N6 because of ease of root etc and the huge development support that comes with the Nexus devices, but I'll see closer to the time as Sony has established itself as my current best Android OEM because of the great experience I've had with the Z.
Anyway, good luck for the future and I'm sure I'll see you around.
Sent from my C6603

kingvortex said:
So, the G3 isn't great then? I'm looking at getting a new device next month and it was a possibility, as reviews seem to be all positive. The Z3 is also on my list along with the N6.
I'm leaning towards the N6 because of ease of root etc and the huge development support that comes with the Nexus devices, but I'll see closer to the time as Sony has established itself as my current best Android OEM because of the great experience I've had with the Z.
Anyway, good luck for the future and I'm sure I'll see you around.
Sent from my C6603
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LG G3 has beautiful display, one of the best out there, but 1440 x 2560 res is unnecessary because you can't see the difference between fullHD and this with naked eye. Camera is ok but not breathtaking (I think that LG use Sony 13 mpx module), Lollipop ROM is laggy, signal strength is lower than on other devices. Battery life is ok but not great, double tap to lock/unlock function is fantastic. If you look for development support I can't recommend you this phone, at least for now. On the other side I tested Xperia Z3 last week. Fantastic device, great looking, screen is beautiful, stock rom is fast and smooth, build quality is excellent. Battery life is insane, nice speakers, and camera is fantastic. I'm so in love with that phone man, I hope that Z3 is my next phone. And thanks for nice words.

I had a real bad experience with an LG device. The Optimus 2X was released with a lot of publicity as the first dual core Android phone and then abandoned with buggy software and only 2 updates in 2 years. I promised myself never to buy from them again, but the G3 was tempting me. Hearing your thoughts has put me off again!
So, Z3 or N6 it is probably.
Hope to see you around on the forums if I get a Z3.
Cheers.
Sent from my C6603

Funny I had the LG o2x too. What a disappointing device, I still remember how unreliable it was that I couldn't even use it as an alarm clock because it use to freeze when deep sleep
Sent from my C6603 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

wawyed said:
Funny I had the LG o2x too. What a disappointing device, I still remember how unreliable it was that I couldn't even use it as an alarm clock because it use to freeze when deep sleep
Sent from my C6603 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, you never knew if the thing would be unresponsive when you picked it up to use it. The stock rom was woeful as well. The only reason I didn't trash it was because of the great developer support and custom roms.
Sent from my C6603

kingvortex said:
So, the G3 isn't great then? I'm looking at getting a new device next month and it was a possibility, as reviews seem to be all positive. The Z3 is also on my list along with the N6.
I'm leaning towards the N6 because of ease of root etc and the huge development support that comes with the Nexus devices, but I'll see closer to the time as Sony has established itself as my current best Android OEM because of the great experience I've had with the Z.
Anyway, good luck for the future and I'm sure I'll see you around.
Sent from my C6603
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If i were you i'd wait for the Z4.
Or go for the Z3, the Nexus isn't as good as it should be, the AMOLED is causing major issues.
Sent from my Z Ultra using XDA Free mobile app

Tommy-Geenexus said:
If i were you i'd wait for the Z4.
Or go for the Z3, the Nexus isn't as good as it should be, the AMOLED is causing major issues.
Sent from my Z Ultra using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't really looked into anything yet, as I don't tend to start looking around at prices etc until I really am ready to buy a new device. The Z is still actually really usable despite being almost 2 years old now, so there's no urgent need.
Sent from my C6603

kingvortex said:
I haven't really looked into anything yet, as I don't tend to start looking around at prices etc until I really am ready to buy a new device. The Z is still actually really usable despite being almost 2 years old now, so there's no urgent need.
Sent from my C6603
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
MWC isn't THAT far away, and if the Z4 is announced then expect a Z3 price drop. The upgrades for the Z4 won't be game changers - an 810 with a better GPU, a slightly nicer display that may well be QHD, improvements to the camera I expect. With the amount of time people use their phones nowadays, battery life simply must improve. And with rumours that the actual Sony imaging department will handle the image processing, maybe the Z4 will get a stand-out camera. I really hope the RAW API's will be implemented by Sony. I'm looking at an upgrade too, maybe a Oneplus Two, or if they make a Nexus 5 2015 edition I'd bite. The Xperia Z was my first smartphone and I'd like to try other android devices.

Have any of you guys seen the new ASUS ZenFone that's to be released in March? It looks like an absolute animal of a phone and I'm very tempted to snap one up as soon as preorders are available because of its fantastic price and even better spec to follow, but I'm worried about the developer support as there hasn't really been a great deal of support for ASUS' previous ZenFone generations, do you guys think that the price would pull more developers in?
Beans

bbeanss said:
Have any of you guys seen the new ASUS ZenFone that's to be released in March? It looks like an absolute animal of a phone and I'm very tempted to snap one up as soon as preorders are available because of its fantastic price and even better spec to follow, but I'm worried about the developer support as there hasn't really been a great deal of support for ASUS' previous ZenFone generations, do you guys think that the price would pull more developers in?
Beans
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is that the one with the Intel processor? Yikes, as far as I know, developer support on those devices is nowhere near the level of your standard Snapdragon phones. Exynos processors in Samsung's are very common and even those are shunnes., with developers working on Snapdragons instead.

Quad HD sounds nice on paper but it doesn't bring any visual differences that your eyes can detect. Except the low battery indicator flashing more frequently?
Sent from my D6503 using XDA Free mobile app

I have used a LG G3 for more than a while.. I couldn't see anything wrong with it on KK.. Compared its display with a Z3 and saw the difference in detail and also under sunlight it seemed better than Z3.. Ofc 2k comes into play as well.. So it would be wrong to compare. Also the gestures are nice on any high end LG phone which Xperia's miss officially.. And battery life on G3 is amazing for the h/w it has.. I hardly saw a hiccup even the LG UI.. Camera is decent(Probably same as XZ).. Atleast it seemed the same when i compared my XZ cam with it.. G3 is a beast phone and i think their LP fw update might be buggy since its just initial update.. Ofc u have to wait for another 1 or 2 bug fixing updates to experience the best of LP on any phone for that matter..

tOrNadO™ said:
I have used a LG G3 for more than a while.. I couldn't see anything wrong with it on KK.. Compared its display with a Z3 and saw the difference in detail and also under sunlight it seemed better than Z3.. Ofc 2k comes into play as well.. So it would be wrong to compare. Also the gestures are nice on any high end LG phone which Xperia's miss officially.. And battery life on G3 is amazing for the h/w it has.. I hardly saw a hiccup even the LG UI.. Camera is decent(Probably same as XZ).. Atleast it seemed the same when i compared my XZ cam with it.. G3 is a beast phone and i think their LP fw update might be buggy since its just initial update.. Ofc u have to wait for another 1 or 2 bug fixing updates to experience the best of LP on any phone for that matter..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with you, but I sold it yesterday anyway. I ordered Z2 this morning and that's my next phone. Cheers.

neoxx3m said:
I agree with you, but I sold it yesterday anyway. I ordered Z2 this morning and that's my next phone. Cheers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I myself am planning to buy a Z2 too, very soon.. Hope to meet u thr..

Hi
What's Google's policy regarding transferring paid for apps from one phone to another? Can they be shared on 2 phones?

SXZdabbler said:
Hi
What's Google's policy regarding transferring paid for apps from one phone to another? Can they be shared on 2 phones?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You just have to sign in on the other device. I have a couple of phones and a tablet on the same Google account and can use paid apps on all of them with no issues.
Sent from my C6603

tOrNadO™ said:
I myself am planning to buy a Z2 too, very soon.. Hope to meet u thr..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hope so!

neoxx3m said:
I agree with you, but I sold it yesterday anyway. I ordered Z2 this morning and that's my next phone. Cheers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Count me too.. For Z2. Soon..

We don't really need a new thread for everyone who leaves to another device. If you already have a thread you can post it there, but a new thread isn't needed.
Closed.

Should I wait to buy?

Hi
I'm pretty much committed to buying a Z3 Compact or the Z1 Compact as they seem to be the only smaller Androids out there.
I've noticed the price has dropped a little (£292 on Amazon) which I presume is something to do with the imminent arrival of the Z5 compact - do you think if I wait a little longer the price may fall some more?
And is the Z3C that much better than the Z1C?
Thanks

phoneowner71 said:
Hi
I'm pretty much committed to buying a Z3 Compact or the Z1 Compact as they seem to be the only smaller Androids out there.
I've noticed the price has dropped a little (£292 on Amazon) which I presume is something to do with the imminent arrival of the Z5 compact - do you think if I wait a little longer the price may fall some more?
And is the Z3C that much better than the Z1C?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It seems as if there will also be a z4c.
You might want to wait for that, but if you fancy a good camera Sony phones wouldn't be something for you.
Sent from my D5803 using XDA Free mobile app

Dsteppa said:
It seems as if there will also be a z4c.
You might want to wait for that, but if you fancy a good camera Sony phones wouldn't be something for you.
Sent from my D5803 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Generally speaking I'm not quite sure how much the price of the z3c will fall with the introduction of the z4c.
However I'm curious about the overall performance of the phone: Do you think it is worth the buy?
And what is more, I've seen there is quite a struggle with the bootloader and with developers, but with official CM nightlies this should be fine, right?

Jkay7 said:
Generally speaking I'm not quite sure how much the price of the z3c will fall with the introduction of the z4c.
However I'm curious about the overall performance of the phone: Do you think it is worth the buy?
And what is more, I've seen there is quite a struggle with the bootloader and with developers, but with official CM nightlies this should be fine, right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The price won't fall THAT much, but the recent price drop could be because of that.
The phone is still worth to buy for sure as for bootloader problems, they should be history now.

There is no real evidence of a z4 compact being released anytime soon. For now, pretend like it doesn't exist and get whatever phone you want. Besides, the rumors indicate the phone will only be a marginal upgrade: newer processor and increased screen resolution.
Sent from my Xperia Z3 Compact

phoneowner71 said:
Hi
I'm pretty much committed to buying a Z3 Compact or the Z1 Compact as they seem to be the only smaller Androids out there.
I've noticed the price has dropped a little (£292 on Amazon) which I presume is something to do with the imminent arrival of the Z5 compact - do you think if I wait a little longer the price may fall some more?
And is the Z3C that much better than the Z1C?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is just my opinion and I don't intend to talk trash about Sony phones but I'm gonna just tell you like it is.
Just so you know, I'm in IT field (Windows) and I have a comprehensive knowledge about PC hardware tech. Since I switched to android from iPhone about 2.5 years ago, I had bought quite a few phones that included 3 Sony phones.
- ZR with overheat problem even only on browsing the internet with Chrome and very poor quality display (made with TFT) => RETURNED with 15% restocking fee.
- ZL Same poor quality TFT display => I ended up gave it to my sis.
- Z3C made with IPS but with poor touch panel. Annoying touch pattern grids are visible. IPS display quality of the Z3C is well below average even compared to the iPhone 4's. Camera is mediocre at best but all the hype makes me really look down on Sony - the only company who created TA partition just to put their crappy softwares on it and tied the bootloader with it. Not that I give a rat ass about losing its DRM functions, it's just that errors pop up here and there when I unlock the bootloader.
My other 2 Android phones are the Nexus 5 and LG Optimus E970. These 2 phones' displays are superb. I wish the Z3C has the same display quality as those 2. I love its size and battery performance but Sony mobile display sucks big time. Don't get me started on Sony bloatwares (2 ecosystems on 1 device is a joke).
I have many Sony devices in my home (laptop, bluray player, tv...) but when it comes to Sony phones, I'm sure next time I'll pass.
I bought my Z3C for $520 USD. It's still 99.99% new. I would sell it to you for $300 USD if you live in my area (I wouldn't buy it even for $300 though)

Some of the cheaper Z3C listings in the US are for the D5833 overseas model. Be careful with this version, as it will suffer from limited 4G compatibility in the States.

phoneowner71 said:
Hi
I'm pretty much committed to buying a Z3 Compact or the Z1 Compact as they seem to be the only smaller Androids out there.
I've noticed the price has dropped a little (£292 on Amazon) which I presume is something to do with the imminent arrival of the Z5 compact - do you think if I wait a little longer the price may fall some more?
And is the Z3C that much better than the Z1C?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a D5803 running stock 5.0.2 and I'm very happy with the device.
It's compact, fast and battery lasts for 2 days minimum (if you don't play games).
The user interface is simple, fast and close to AOSP look&feel .
I saw no reason to hack the phone with custom ROMs or mods, since I found it to be VERY stable and basically everything works.
If you plan to heavily customize your phone, be ready to face some obstacles mainly due to the fact that Lolipop is quite new on this phone and mods are not yet perfect (although they are improving). I've gone that route before with previous phones, and usually the outcome is that you get some visual adaptations to your taste, but in fact the overall stability/performance will be worst.
Some may argue that the camera software could be better, and I tend to agree. But you will be able to take good pictures, if you use some manual settings.
In my experience, Bluetooth/NFC works very well with different gadgets/systems: hi-fi, Pebble watch, BT headphones (even using aptX), car system, ...
I haven't tested audio high-res external DACs, but some users report some devices are tricky to interface well using Lolipop. Other report their device works. Basic audio play is quite good if you have good headphones and choose the right eq settings.
Some users report the glass may crack due to overheating, and I saw many friends with other phones (like Samsung) suffering from the same issue. Mine is in perfect condition and I hope it stays that way.
In summary: I'm very happy with my gadget and I wouldn't change it for anything out there with similar form factor. And although Lolipop 5.0.2 is not perfect, I got used to it and don't see a reason to go back to KK. And 5.1 will certainly come...
Is there a perfect smartphone (hw+sw+UX+price) ? No, but in my opinion this one is a good step forward.
Oh, and if you don't want to fiddle around with connectivity issues, be sure to buy the phone that maps to your geography and operator (D5803 vs D5833) and use a ROM that was built for it.

z4c would defiantly be a "want to have" but at a premium price point, that's why i picked z3c and i got a great deal. In my eyes it's the best phone on the marked atm. If you exclude all the minitablets which i have 0 interest in.

I am in the same position as the OP.
I had some android devices (nexus s, gnexus, htc incredible s, nexus4, htc one m7), right now I have no smartphone.
Z3C seems the "right choice" except for a couple things:
1) Price: here in Portugal the lowest is 400eur. For that price you can also have: htc desire eye, galaxy s5, and a lot of other non-waterproof phones with better cameras and better screens, but also worse battery.
The Z1C is 100eur cheaper.
2) Camera: it seems that sony camera is not on pair with others, even with everyone saying that is software the truth is that nobody solved it.
3) Sudden death: there are some cases (see sony's forum) of sudden death phones.
4) Cracked glass: this I don't know if is hype or not.I had a nexus 5 and people said that it broken by itself but mine only broke by hitting the floor.
I guess that if the Z4C brings the Snappdragon 810 it won't be very good because of overheating and throttling...
Only option is to wait.

Thanks for the replies.
For me the Z3C choice comes down to physical size.
I want a smaller phone but good specs, and as far as I can see there is no competition in the Android sphere (happy to be proved wrong).
I'll be keeping the phone pretty much stock until I need to start tinkering, so mods are not a problem for me currently.
I suspect the Z3C will have OS support for longer than the Z1C so that may make the £100 difference worth paying.

phoneowner71 said:
Thanks for the replies.
For me the Z3C choice comes down to physical size.
I want a smaller phone but good specs, and as far as I can see there is no competition in the Android sphere (happy to be proved wrong).
I'll be keeping the phone pretty much stock until I need to start tinkering, so mods are not a problem for me currently.
I suspect .com/2015/04/22/sony-xperia-z4-compact-e5803-z4ultra-e6683-e6883-certification-details/"]http://www.whatsontech.com/2015/04/22/sony-xperia-z4the Z3C will have OS support for longer than the Z1C so that may make the £100 difference worth paying.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://www.whatsontech-compact-e5803-z4ultra-e6683-e6883-certification-details/
Z4c and Z4U are real coming and they already passed the certification process with the model number being leaked out. I guess they will out on Sep.
But if you are speaking for the battery life, Z3c with s801 and 720p will be much better. All I can think is Z4c will improve the camera software further(and also fixed the Z3/Z3c red/green/purple tint issue) and upgraded to FHD screen. I've got a Z1c, if you want a cheaper phone to wait Z4c then Z1c is still doing good. If you want battery life for all then go for Z3c now.

Is Z3+ worth the MONEY?

Hi guys (especially to z3+ users)! I would like to buy a Z series Xperia phone. So far (aside from the Z5), Z3+ is the only Z series that has a 5MP front camera (front cam is one of my criteria in choosing a phone). My other options are M5 and Z2 (but Z2's front camera is only 2MP..) I am also concerned with its overheating issue..is that really true or just a black propaganda? Is this phone worth the money?
By the way, if you will rate your satisfaction of Z3+ from 1 (LOWEST) to 10 (HIGHEST), what will be your score?
Thank you in advance for your opinions!

I suggest you wait until 5'1.1 update shows up. Because now most of us facing poor battery life and heat issue.
You know what, I compare my z3+ with my Z1
Most of the time Z1 open apps faster, despite it's three generations older.
---------- Post added at 07:40 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:38 PM ----------
My z3+ does really have heat issue, and when it gets hot device run slower and start to lag.

I don't have heat problems and it runs smooth from the last update z3+. Yes it gets warm not hot. It's normal if it gets warm a little bit. So far i am satisfied.
ME
---------- Post added at 01:26 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:21 PM ----------
When u buy the phone or if you do it don't put anything in it. Update it first then do a factory reset and then put your app.
ME

Thank you for your opinions & tips! They're helpful I guess I'll just wait until November or December before I buy Z3+. By then, I hope the price will be less expensive. Z5 seems to be really awesome but I guess its price will be way out of my budget. Haha.

One word answer = Yes

By the way, if you will rate your satisfaction of Z3+ from 1 (LOWEST) to 10 (HIGHEST), what will be your score?

mark_q07 said:
By the way, if you will rate your satisfaction of Z3+ from 1 (LOWEST) to 10 (HIGHEST), what will be your score?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
4.75/5
0.25 for not having 5.1.1

If you have one of those devices which doesn't overheat so the answer would be yes. In the other hand, It's an expensive brick or toaster. My Z1 was a much better device even 2 years later. The battery last nothing, overheats a LOT (after updating to the latest version is working better but still) and the performance drops significantly. I'm about to returning it because I don't want to wait until Sony decides to give us a proper solution and I can barely use it (I tried all the possible software fixes). The problem is that I don't like other device (maybe Oneplus Two but it's too difficult to get).

illetyus said:
4.75/5
0.25 for not having 5.1.1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't worry. Z3+ is a Z series Xperia. Sooner or later, it will get a software update. This phone is even included in the upcoming Marshmallow update

DryKillLogic said:
If you have one of those devices which doesn't overheat so the answer would be yes. In the other hand, It's an expensive brick or toaster. My Z1 was a much better device even 2 years later. The battery last nothing, overheats a LOT (after updating to the latest version is working better but still) and the performance drops significantly. I'm about to returning it because I don't want to wait until Sony decides to give us a proper solution and I can barely use it (I tried all the possible software fixes). The problem is that I don't like other device (maybe Oneplus Two but it's too difficult to get).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"When u buy the phone or if you do it don't put anything in it. Update it first then do a factory reset and then put your app. " - trumastanr1
Did you already do what "trumastanr1" suggested?

mark_q07 said:
"When u buy the phone or if you do it don't put anything in it. Update it first then do a factory reset and then put your app. " - trumastanr1
Did you already do what "trumastanr1" suggested?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not for all users works, before last update two factory resets give a usable (not ideal) Z3+, after last update, three repairs and two factory resets give an almost-non-usable device that gets so hot so easily.....
Much of this variation is due to usage difference, so also depends in what is yours....
In general I think my z3c has (a lot) better performance, but I also think some software updates will solve all major issues, still I have to say I'm a little disappointed with this phone...
Sent from my E6533 using XDA Free mobile app

QBerto said:
Not for all users works, before last update two factory resets give a usable (not ideal) Z3+, after last update, three repairs and two factory resets give an almost-non-usable device that gets so hot so easily.....
Much of this variation is due to usage difference, so also depends in what is yours....
In general I think my z3c has (a lot) better performance, but I also think some software updates will solve all major issues, still I have to say I'm a little disappointed with this phone...
Sent from my E6533 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see. I hope the future updates will solve its major issues.

Alright you know what caused mine to overheat even after update an app. Took it away now it's fixed.
ME
---------- Post added at 11:15 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:14 PM ----------
Hope for the new update
ME

Haven't noted much issues with overheating, but I've only played a bit of games here and there on it. Still waiting for a rooted firmware before I make it my daily driver.

I think it is. It's a great phone with one big flaw everyone keeps talking about, and that will probably be fixed at some point.

serrin85 said:
Haven't noted much issues with overheating, but I've only played a bit of games here and there on it. Still waiting for a rooted firmware before I make it my daily driver.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The phone does not need root It's performance is as good as rooted ones.

Uhhm at this point Im really disappointed with this device peformance..It gets really hot even tho after 251 update android 5.0.2...It really sucks If I would compare Z3 and Z3+. My Z3 is way faster..my z3+ are so damn slow...but the design of z3+ is so much better... This is my judge for now..I really hope that a new update is coming and some custom roms will hit online soon. Maybe I will skip this device and buy a Z5...lets see if the update will change my mind

illetyus said:
The phone does not need root It's performance is as good as rooted ones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure if you've noticed but the process of unlocking the bootloader in order to root the phone removes the DRM keys and diminishes camera performance, amongst other things.
This has nothing to do with performance and everything to do with restoring app backups as helium doesn't work properly on the z3+.
So unless you can suggest a way to do that (as well as installing cerberus on the system partition, uninstalling sony bloatware, spoofing mac addresses for fun and profi etc) then I would make the argument that rooting is required, well at least for me anyway.
Yes I am aware of the pre-rooted kernel by devires, but I'm waiting for dl12345's publicly released solution before taking the plunge.

Am begging for an update that fix heat problem, if this is fixed I can say is totally worth.

In terms of satisfaction, for me it's 9/10 -- for things it can do for me that off-set the negative PR.
Mainly it loses a point because the native camera app cannot record video 'forever' - the native camera app shuts itself off saying the phone is too hot after about half an hour. However using Google Camera app for video I can record 1080P video basically forever.
But it justifies points with me for the following from the top of my head-
+ Stereo sound recorded with video (coming from iPhone this is MAJOR for me)
+ microSD expandable to 128GB
+ internal SSD is 32GB which is much better starting point
+ OTG capability
+ Waterproof* with capless USB port
+ No buttons on the front (no really, I love this)
+ Call quality sounds better than my old iPhone 6 Plus
+ Decent camera for stills and video
+ Sony take audio seriously, also nice to find a mild dynamic compression option for music
+ Battery stamina modes are useful compared to anything on iOS 8 (I guess same exists on iOS 9 now)
+ If I get a notification on my phone without dismissing it but catch up on my computer - the notification dismisses itself on the phone (unlike iOS where it would never sync like that)
+ 3GB RAM, FWIW this doesn't impress me but hey
+ 64bit so in theory should have some longevity (famous last words)
+ Cheaper eco-system than iOS, no more £17.99 sync cables (I swear my kids chew them or something)
+ Really easy to record the screen (which presumably could also record phone calls - interesting), can also record the screen whilst engaging the selfie camera PiP
Currently on 5.0.2, I do think update to 5.1.1 (or M) will make this phone even better based on how 5.1.1 performs on my Z2 (which was second-hand refurb gateway to my Z3+)
The Z3+ does get warm when it's working hard (Star Wars Uprising) but in general use I don't notice any thermal issues even if they do exist.