News Update On Sony New Handset : Xperia Z5 And The Curious Case Of Sony's Flagship Phones

Could Sony make a comeback with fingerprint scanners, great cameras and a 4K phablet at IFA next week?

Sony's last flagship was the Xperia Z3 and their next is expected to be the Z5. This is because the Z4 was only released in Japan and was also called the Z3+ (pictured). Confused? You're not alone. Photo: Sony

Rumours and speculation have been bubbling for months online about the new phones Sony is expected to unveil in September, although if you've only been paying to the mainstream zeitgeist you'd be forgiven for thinking the Japanese company had stopped making phones entirely.

After a big splash with the waterproof, two-day-battery-toting Xperia Z2 in early 2014, Sony refined and improved its design with the Z3, set a high bar for small phones with the powerful Z3 Compact, and in the year since has struggled to hold the attention of the masses with its erratic release schedule and obtuse naming conventions.

An Xperia Z4 released in Japan was so similar to the Z3 that Sony didn't dare bring it to any other shores (in some regions it was later released as the Z3+). Australia in particular has seen a confusing bevy of new phones announced from the selfie-focused C3, C4 and striking phablet C5 Ultra to the budget E4 and the waterproof M4 and M5.

Next week at the IFA conference in Berlin, so say the rumours, Sony will return to the Z line and attempt to claw back some mindshare with a device packed with latest in Sony-made screen and camera tech, the newest Android software, impressive specs and a now ubiquitous fingerprint sensor. It's widely assumed to be called the Xperia Z5.
Familiar design, new features

Earlier this month a series of images from Twitter user "ViziLeaks" appeared to show an Xperia Z5 and the smaller Z5 Compact. The phones in the pictures follow the flat, monolithic glass 'omnibalance' design seen on all Z devices to date, although both appear to feature the kind of grippy edges and padded corners seen on the Z3 Compact.

The images show regular micro USB ports as opposed to the previously rumoured USB C, but confirm another rumour: that the Z5 devices will come with a built-in fingerprint scanner. Unlike that found on Apple and Samsung devices, Sony's supposed scanner is mounted on the side of the device, doubling as the power button. You can see the long, white scanner in the tweets below.

 

 

Mobile photography fans will be pleased to see that the devices retain the hardware shutter button for snapping steady pics without needing to touch the screen.
 

Go big or go home :

To date, the only big screen Z series phone was released in July 2013. Even risk-averse Apple fully committed to the phablet craze with the iPhone 6 Plus, but Sony's kept the bigger phones for its lesser product lines, like the media-focused T and selfie-focused M.

That could all change next week, with bloggers uncovering a user agent profile for a supersized Z5 (which means someone somewhere is using the phone to access websites) indicating some cutting edge specs, chief among them a 4K resolution screen.

The current high bar for phone screens is Quad HD, and while the two standards are frequently confused, 4K actually has a much higher pixel count (3840 x 2160, as opposed to Quad HD which is 2560 x 1440).

Assuming the Z5 phablet has a screen of 5.5 inches, a 4K screen would give it an astonishing pixel density of 801 pixels per inch (PPI). For comparison, the iPhone 6 Plus has an identically-sized screen and a pixel density of 401 PPI.

Sony was one of the first companies to champion the format for televisions, so it's believable it could bring its software and expertise to help it shine on a phone. It remains to be seen whether a 4K resolution on a screen so small would offer any advantage over Quad HD, but it's certainly a talking point.

Some sites have supposed the Z5 phablet to be called the "Xperia Z5 Plus", but given it already used 'plus' in an attempt to cover up its Z4 blunder, I think this would be too confusing even for Sony. "Z5 Ultra" seems more likely. Images apparently leaked from an internal slideshow seem to confirm the existence of the phablet.
 

A focus on the camera:

As with its fancy screen technology, cameras are an area you expect Sony to be on top of. After all, this is a company that not only makes sensors for its own high-end cameras, but also for its smartphone competitors at Apple and Samsung.

Despite this, the camera hardware on Z phones has been identical since the Z2. It seems a big change is coming in terms of imaging, and this tidbit is actually from Sony itself, or at least one of its European bureaus:

he shape and size of the phone in the picture makes it unlikely this is a flagship Xperia Z5, although it could easily be the Z5 Compact (or, if Sony hasn't learnt its lesson, something completely different).

There are countless other bits and pieces that point to what Sony could be cooking up (for example it launched a quiet test of a new "stripped back" Android skin in July, could it be looking to ditch the bloatware?), but the most convincing rumours point to a trio of high-end phones that update the Z3 in predictable but powerful ways.

The landmark in the teaser image above is the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, and the date points to a couple of days before IFA gets underway in that city, so it's clear we don't have long to wait to find out if Sony has the goods to get it back out of the shadows.

Posted by Unknown Thursday, August 27, 2015

News Sony New Handset Update: Bezel-Free Sony Xperia C5 Ultra and Xperia M5 Leak In New High Definition Images Available

Sony is scheduled to announce the new Xperia C5 Ultra and Xperia M5 in the next couple of days. Prior to that announcement, newly leaked images were spotted online, giving us early glimpses of the handsets' design features.

The leak comes from the Russian tech site Hi.Tech.Mail.ru. The original post, according to 9to5google.com, was time stamped for Aug. 3 and had now been taken down.

The upcoming C5 Ultra, as the name suggests, is billed as the successor to the 5.5-inch Xperia C4. The "ultra" moniker could refer to a number of things. First among them is the C5 Ultra's bigger display of 6 inches compared to the C4's. The next thing to consider is its upgraded battery size of 2,930 mAh which is bigger than the C4's 2,600 mAh battery. Other major comparisons include the C5 Ultra's 13MP wide-angle front-facing camera versus the C4's 5MP and the C5 Ultra's ultra-thin 0.8 mm bezel versus the C4's bezel measurement of 2.2 mm.

A few days ago, Tech Times reported on a leaked manual of the Xperia C5 Ultra, which confirms the handset's bezel-free display. The report also noted the handset's rear and front cameras to both have a flash.

The second image in question is purported to be the Xperia M5, which is reminiscent of the Sony Xperia Z3. Unlike the huge C5 Ultra, the M5 exudes a certain level of familiarity that makes it blend easily with the other Sony devices that are now available on the market.

The Xperia M5 features a 5-inch Full HD IPS LCD display and also sports a 13MP camera on the front and rear. It runs an octa-core Media Tek Helio X10 processor and has a RAM of 3GB, internal storage of 16GB and a microSD slot. It also boasts an IP65/IP68 dust and water resistance certification.

Among the two, the Xperia C5 Ultra will probably get more attention because of its bigger display and the 0.8mm wide bezels. Other notable features include a RAM of 2GB, internal storage of 16GB and an octa-core Media Tek Mt6752 processor.

The Xperia C5 Ultra is expected to retail at around $350 while the Xperia M5 will be somewhere near the $400 price point. 

Gallery :

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted by Unknown Sunday, August 02, 2015

News Android L Update : Lollipop Android 5.1.1 Hit Several Sony Xperia Devices Z2 And Z3

Lollipop Sony confirms that Android 5.1.1 Xperia phones will reach the end of July.  Android 5.1.1 Lollipop is assured for devices Xperia Z2 and Z3 Xperia seriesSony Xperia, but still we need to find out the final date launch. As we have heard before, the new firmware for Android 5.1.1 Lollipop was recently certified in the PTCRB, so we can assume that a main update will come for these two phones, the Xperia Z2 and Z3 Sony Xperia , throughout this week. Sony wanted to confirm our suspicions and stated that both devices Xperia receive Android 5.1.1 Lollipop late July.

This information comes from the hand of XperiaBlog , which claim that Sony Japan has also revealed some changes included in the update to Android 4.4.4 Android 5.1.1 KitKat Lollipop. However, if you are owners of Xperia Android 5.0. 2 Lollipop , those changes will not be implemented in this update to Android 5.1.1 since they were already present on your device.

Two confirmed changes :

So far, only two developments have confirmed the previously rumored and will form part of the upgrade. It is a wider range of options for the Wi-Fi connection and Bluetooth in the menu of notifications and new icons that appear in the menu settings.

Obviously, these are not the only changes that will appear with the update; we also expect bug fixes, new animations and latest technology enhancements to be included in our devices for increased performance.

Sony is one of the leading manufacturers of smartphones, devices that bring Android to the most popular and you’re doing get Android 5.1.1 Lollipop almost all terminals. It is not the only company: HTC, Motorola and Samsung have done the same with their latest models; but manufacturers still need to follow these steps.

Posted by Unknown Tuesday, July 21, 2015

News Android L Update : Android L 5.1.1 Update For Sony Xperia Z2, Z3 Devices Arriving Soon

Owners of devices from Xperia's Z2 and Z3 lines of handsets can expect to receive the latest version of the Android Lollipop soon.

According to various sources, the Android 5.1.1 Lollipop update for the Xperia Z2 and Z3 series has just been certified, the Xperia Blog reported.

The certification for the update was granted by PTCRB, an organization that authorizes telecommunication bands used by devices in North America.

However, this does not automatically mean that the update will be seeded to devices right away. Sony will still have to conduct various tests on the update before it is rolled out to the public.

The devices that will receive the update include the Xperia Z2 Tablet, Xperia Z2, Xperia Z3 Dual, Xperia Z3, Xperia Z3 Compact and the Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact. As for their series model numbers, these are the Xperia Z2 D6502, Xperia D6503, Xperia Z2 Tablet SGP521.

For the Z3 series, these include the Xperia Z3 D6653, Z3 Dual D6633, Z3 Compact D5803 and D5B33 and the Z3 Tablet Compact SGP621 and SGP641.

Android Geeks noted that the update can only be installed for devices running on stock software. Those with modified firmware will not be able to get the latest Android Lollipop update.

As for its features, the update comes with various improvements and enhancements designed to improve the overall performance of the devices. Through the update, bug and glitches that causes apps to crash and freeze will be eliminated. It will also fix the issue that causes the devices to restart randomly, according to Android Standard.

In addition, the update will also improve the battery life of devices as well as prevent overheating.

However, it is not yet confirmed if the latest OS upgrade will be able to fix the memory leak issue. According to reports, this problem involves increased RAM usage even though users are not running apps on their devices.

The additional features of the update, on the other hand, include improved notifications setting, multi-user support and better security system.

Although Sony has not yet announced when the update will be exactly rolled out for the Z2 and Z3 series, users can expect to receive it within the next few weeks.

Once the update goes live, users will receive notifications regarding its availability. However, the roll out will most probably conducted in stages to ensure that the update is free of bugs and other potential problems. This means not everyone will be able to get it at the same time once it is officially released.

Posted by Unknown Saturday, July 18, 2015

News Handset Security Update : My Xperia Theft Protection Bricking Phones With Unlocked Bootloaders

Sony's My Xperia Theft Protection (MXTP) feature, which is present in recently launched handsets such as Sony Xperia Z3+, Xperia C4, Xperia Z4 Tablet and Xperia M4 Aqua, is bricking bootloader-unlocked smartphones as per user reports.

For those unaware, the MXTP security feature, when enabled, prevents a user from wiping the stolen Xperia device and installing a custom ROM without access to the owner's Google sign-in details. The main work done by MXTP here is to prevent the bootloader on the device from unlocking.

However, according to some Xperia users (via Xperia Blog), enabling the MXTP on the device that already has an unlocked bootloader, leads to the bricking of the smartphone. This is said to happen due to MXTP's efforts to prevent the bootloader-unlocking on an Xperia handset that already has an unlocked bootloader.

Sony is aware of the issue and instead of a solution, has recently changed some wording on its Unlocked Bootloader website under the 'Risks' section. The firm says that, "After unlocking your device, you should not enable My Xperia (found in the settings menu under security on some devices running Android 5.0) as this might cause the device to malfunction." The site adds, "In addition, if you have enabled My Xperia, this function must be turned off before you can unlock your device."

Notably, Sony for now does not allow consumers to unlock the bootloader on new devices including Sony Xperia Z3+, Xperia C4, Xperia Z4 Tablet and Xperia M4 Aqua. The delay is said to be the same MXTP issue, which the firm might be working on behind-the-scenes. For now, there are no custom ROMs available for the devices.

Posted by Unknown Friday, July 10, 2015

News Tech Gadget Update : GoPro Shrinks The Camera Again: Hero4 Session Review

GoPro Inc., the popular maker of tiny video cameras, is making them even tinier.


How tiny? The new GoPro Hero4 Session is the size of an ice cube, about half that of previous GoPros. It can fit into the spokes of a bike, hang onto the end of a fishing pole or turn a toddler into a documentary filmmaker.

The Session goes on sale July 12, and GoPro gave me one to try over the past week. It isn’t the best-quality camera GoPro has ever made, but it’s so small and simple, I’m likely to keep using it.

Just brace for the sticker shock: $400. That’s the same price as an Apple Watch, not to mention last year’s Hero4 Silver, which has a touch screen and better picture quality.

With the Session, GoPro is going for its iPod Shuffle moment. In 2005, Apple upended its own booming music player business with the Shuffle, an iPod small enough to wear on a necklace. Its main selling point was what it lacked: no screen, no removable battery and no complex controls.

The Session is the first new design in nearly a decade for GoPro, which has an astounding 70% of the U.S. video-camera market, according to NPD. Like the Shuffle, the Session sheds features to slim down and broaden its appeal. It has no screen to view pictures, no extra buttons to change modes, no way to swap its two-hour battery.

But the refinements in the new design are, for the most part, worth the sacrifices. They go a ways toward addressing my longstanding complaint that GoPros require too much futzing.

The Session still takes full-HD video, but is pool-party ready without the waterproof housing its predecessors required. The Session’s lens is covered by a clear shield, and the USB ports for charging and swapping out memory cards are pressure sealed (safe to an undersea depth of 10 meters). The microphone drains like a human ear when you take it out of the water, so you can go from the pool to the picnic table in seconds.

The Session also cuts GoPro’s number of buttons from three to two—really just one big one you use regularly. Tap the shutter button once to power it up and start recording video, or hold it down for still shots. (A tiny digital readout next to the button gives you confirmation that it’s working.) Press the shutter again to stop recording and turn it off. This is a significant speed improvement over older GoPros and competing action cams from companies like Sony.

A few aspects of the new design did aggravate me. The 1.5-inch, 2.6-ounce cube is cute, but when all sides are equal, how can you tell which way is up? The Session can sense its orientation, and will flip its video in 180-degree increments. But it can’t rotate 90 degrees. I held it wrong initially, and took video you have to watch with your head tilted like a confused puppy.

The session holds enough power to shoot about two hours of HD video, and doesn’t waste any juice when it isn’t shooting. But the sealed battery means you must be conscientious about charging it. That takes about 90 minutes.

The big question, of course, is why you’d need a GoPro at all when you already have a smartphone. The answer is that you’re willing to stick them in places you’d never put your phone or regular camera.

I had no problem handing the Session over to a 2-year-old who, transfixed by its cute shape and blinking red light, produced incredible footage of his afternoon. Seen from the Session’s wide-angle lens, the tyke looked like a giant stomping around toy trains.

I also stuck it on the bottom of a skateboard, on a puppy and in a cocktail glass. GoPro Chief Executive Nick Woodman says he’s fond of holding it in between his teeth to document playing with his children.

Compared with other GoPros, the Session’s ruggedized, compact design made it easier to think of it as camera I can just keep in my bag. If you’ve got a pool in the backyard, it’s a no-brainer.

The Session’s design has plenty of appeal, but if you’re fussy about your cinematography, it isn’t the right choice. The image sensor GoPro put into the Session is fine, but not as good as the Hero4 Silver and Black, which can take higher-resolution shots and pick up more light in dark scenes.

The Session also requires you to be OK with filming without a screen to frame your shot. You get over this limitation when you realize the super-wide-angle lens does a remarkable job capturing whatever’s interesting. You can also use the Session’s second, smaller button to connect it to your phone via Wi-Fi to preview, download shots or change modes.

GoPro has long encouraged perspective creativity by selling an array of mounts, all of which are compatible with the Session when you clip on its included plastic frame. It has also introduced a few new ones, like a $60 glove called the Strap. GoPro has even announced plans for its own quadcopter drones and 360-degree virtual-reality rigs.

Now that the Session plots a new design direction for its cameras, GoPro’s biggest problem is that it doesn’t have an answer to what to do with all that footage. Sure, the camera comes with an editing program; it’s a bit buggy, but who even has the inclination to edit their videos anymore?

The Session ought to be smart enough to upload all your footage to the cloud as soon as you get home and plug it in, for storing and sharing those moments. Mr. Woodman says his company is working on such a cloud service. That GoPro can charge $400 for the Session without it is a testament to its quality design and powerful marketing, but it is sorely needed now.

GoPro’s marketing has always been about extreme athletes. Like Nike, I suspect the message is aspirational for most customers. Its actual base looks increasingly more like extreme parents. For them, the Session is the best camera on the market for documenting the rough and tumble of family life.

Posted by Unknown Monday, July 06, 2015

News Update New Handset Impressions : 3 Reasons Why Sony's Xperia Z3+ Doesn't Make Any Sense

Sony has finally launched Xperia Z3+, which is a version of its Z4 smartphone, in India. It has been priced at Rs.56,000. Oh, sorry, it's Rs.55, 990. The company lets you keep Rs.10, just so you have something left in your pocket.

Unfortunately, in a country like India where consumers are extremely price sensitive and care for value, paying this much money for Xperia Z3+ doesn't make sense.

The smartphone. no doubt, has some really great specifications. It has top-of-the-line Snapdragon 810 processor coupled with Adreno 430 graphics chip and 3GB RAM. But it would be a shame if it were any less than that. But all this is on paper, we are yet to find out how it will fare in actual use.

So what are the problems that I see with the Xperia Z3+?

Design :

"Is that Xperia Z2?" I don't want to hear this, especially when my Rs.56,000 phone looks exactly like an old phone that sells for less than half its price.

Looking at the design of Sony phones, one can easily imagine how badly the company is dragging its heels on the looks and feel of its devices. And the dated design is reflecting in the sales of Xperia phones, which are no longer finding too many takers.  Till last year even Samsung would have been blamed of being slow on the design front but then this year the Korean company came out with beautiful Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge.

The Xperia Z3+ sports a design that is now almost three years old. It doesn't look like the kind of phone that we expect from a company like Sony. It is definitely capable of coming up with killer designs, but it's just that the Xperia Z3+ is not one of those devices that can be called iconic in design terms.

Hardware :

When I say Sony forgot to do better I am not talking just about the design. If we go back 10 months in history the company launched Xperia Z3. It's totally understandable that the new phone is supposed to be slightly faster compared to the earlier one. But does this slightly faster hardware should command the premium of Rs.18,000? No, that is not what we call progress and a worthy update.

Both the phones have same screen size, same camera resolution, same screen resolution, similar amount of RAM and both support 4G. Interestingly, the earlier version had bigger battery. So the only big difference is the processor. But is it worth Rs.18,000?

Competition :

While it seems Sony has failed to improve its game with the Xperia Z3+, its competitors are doing so much more. Phones like the iPhone 6 and the Samsung Galaxy S6 are not only cheaper but also look more attractive in almost all aspects compared to the Xperia Z3+.

The Sony Xperia Z3+ is out in Ireland, exclusively available from Vodafone from the 26th of June 2015. We got to grips with the new handset at a launch event last night, read on for our first impressions.

The Xperia Z3+ is Sony’s latest flagship handset, offering up the best of the brand and iterating on the successes of last year’s Xperia Z3.

And it looks very similar to the previous model in person – though it’s actually lighter and manages to be even slimmer at 6.9mm. In the hand, it feels as slick as ever thanks to a premium build which is also tough when you need it to be.

The front-facing camera has been boosted a wide screen lens at 5 megapixels so its perfect for getting everyone in the shot. And its backed up by that blazingly fast 20.7 MP shooter on the back.

The standard model now boasts 32 gigs of storage (up from 16) and is expandable via microSD. The slot for cards features a flap but the really good news is that all other ports are uncovered – so you won’t have to worry about opening them everytime you want to charge. Yet still the phone is water and dustproof – just let it dry out before plugging in any cables.

The Xperia Z3+ actually has a smaller battery to help get the weight and thickness down but Sony says it still manages a full 2.2 days of normal use. With battery saving options, you could stretch that to a full eight days, which is very impressive indeed.

The 5.2 inch full HD display is great for consuming all kinds of media including blockbuster movies. Which is just as well because the handset comes with 8 high res downloads for popular films. Two come in the box, with one a month for the first six months.

The phone also supports High Res Audio, a breakthrough technology which restores the full range of sound in your tunes. The Z3+ also reinstates the placement of the front-facing speakers, offering up full stereo sound which was capable of getting very loud indeed in our brief test.

We also got a quick chance to test out the Remote Play on the handset. This allows you to synch with a PlayStation 4 to play full console games on your smartphone. There’s a special grip which goes around the DualShock 4 controller and holds your phone in the perfect position for play. Over Wi-Fi the frame rates were consistent and being able to use the full controller was a bit of a revelation.

The Sony Xperia Z3+ is a high quality handset with impressive specs and a gorgeous design and we’ll have a more in-depth review very soon.

Posted by Unknown Saturday, June 27, 2015

News Sony Xperia Update : Xperia Z3 Spotted Running Android 5.1.1 With New Icons And Animations In Video

While Sony is busy testing the Android Lollipop upgrade for the Xperia Z series device, a leaked video has been spotted, suggesting the Android 5.1.1 for the Xperia Z3 smartphone.

Thanks to Wayerless we now know Sony is planning the next Android version for Xperia Z3, and the video shows that Sony might skip Android 5.1, in favour of Android 5.1.1.

The video which runs slightly more than a minute, shows Xperia Z3 bearing number D6603 is running Android 5.1.1 update, which adds new animations and a shortcut bar that allows searching for available Wi-Fi networks and Bluetooth directly from the notification menu.

Apart from this, there are new icons in the settings menu which are flatter and brighter in keeping with Google's material design. And the Music app that replaces Walkman.

A couple of Android Lollipop builds such as 23.4.A.0.279 and 23.4.A.0.248 have been caught in Handtec Detection site, hinting the build template for Android Lollipop release for Xperia Z3 or, Z2 series would be 23.4.A.0.XXX.

If the latest report is to be believed, then expect the official roll-out of the new Android version for Xperia Z3 later this month or, early next month. Check out the video for more details.

Posted by Unknown Monday, May 18, 2015

News Sony Vaio Update : VAIO Announces Its Own Smartphone After Sony Sell-Off

After VAIO was sold off by Sony to an investment fund, the new independent company has since released a pair of new laptops and a tablet. It seems like VAIO has more up its sleeve, as it has now ventured into the smartphone space, with a new mid-range handset called the VAIO Phone. 

First spotted at the B-mobile website, the device runs on near-stock Android 5.0 Lollipop, with very minimal customizations, and has a 5-inch IPS 720p HD screen. It is powered by a 1.2 GHz quad-core processor, with 2 GB of RAM, and 16 GB internal storage expandable up to 64 GB via microSD.

The handset also includes a 13-megapixel rear camera, and a 5-megapixel shooter on the front, along with a 2500 mAh non-removable battery. Lastly, it is reportedly 4G LTE capable, and supports micro-SIM cards. Obviously, due to the Sony sell-off, the device sports only the VAIO logo, but nothing else related to its former owner.

The VAIO Phone will be exclusively available in Japan, and only in black, and can be purchased via Japan Communications for 51,000 yen (roughly $420). It is not yet known if VAIO has plans to release their first smartphone in other countries.

Posted by Unknown Friday, March 13, 2015

News Sony PlayStation : Sony - We Fully Believe in Free-To-Play

The controversial business model wasn't originally part of Sony's plan, but now it's big business--and growing.

Today during a 2015 Game Developers Conference presentation, Sony's Sarah Thompson spoke about the rise of free-to-play gaming on PlayStation 4. In short, she said Sony has seen impressive growth in this area, so much so that the model could be a key component of the company's digital business going forward.

"We're really looking at this as a significant part of our digital business," she said about free-to-play. "I think that it's going to be a really a big chunk of our revenues in the next few years; 3-5 years. And it's already growing at amazing rates that are really quite surprising."

Thompson, whose official title is senior account executive for PlayStation's free-to-play business, went on to explain that Sony had no idea the free-to-play model would even exist just 15 years ago. Times have changed, and free-to-play has emerged as a key strategy for Sony.

"So we think that's great news. I think that it is really stabilizing the business. And I think it's future-proofing us. I think that it's really taking us into where we need to be as a company," she said. "As a company, we do fully believe in free-to-play."

Of course, Sony's investment in free-to-play doesn't mean the company will abandon traditional games anytime soon. The company has a number of marquee PlayStation games due this year alone, including Bloodborne and Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, among others.

Also sitting on the panel today was Laura Naviaux, who holds the title of senior vice president of sales and marketing for H1Z1 and EverQuest developer Daybreak Game Company, formerly known as Sony Online Entertainment. Naviaux said she foresees a bright future for free-to-play on consoles, and not just on PlayStation systems, but everywhere.

"It's sort of just the first layer of the onion," she said, referencing that free-to-play on consoles is really just getting started. "Every indication is that there is a tremendous amount of opportunity for growth with free-to-play on consoles."

Splitting off from Sony means Daybreak can now support multiplatform development in ways it couldn't before. The company has said it is interested in bringing games to Xbox, though no specific Daybreak games have been announced for Microsoft's console.

Free-to-play often inspires debate and controversy, but Naviaux said players of games such as DC Universe Online and PlanetSide 2 have embraced the new monetization methods Daybreak has rolled out, especially on the PS4. This may come down to Daybreak's consumer-friendly approach to microtransactions, highlighted in a November Eurogamer interview.

In that interview, PlanetSide 2 creative director Matt Higby (who has since left the company) revealed that the developer purposefully went out of its way to prioritize making the game "fair and equitable" even if that meant missing out on a revenue spike.

"In a lot of cases, with the way we have designed our business model, we are leaving money on the table," he said at the time. "We're doing it for a reason. We're doing it because the trade-off in making sure we have a fair and equitable game will lead to more people playing and enjoying it, than if we were selling items we thought might be more powerful--even if that is a good, incremental and temporary revenue boost."

Posted by Unknown Wednesday, March 04, 2015

News Sony Product Update : Sony's Google Glass Rival SmartEyeglass Goes On Sale For $840 Or £520

Sony is making a pass at Google Glass, announcing that a developer edition of the Sony SmartEyeglass high-tech specs are available to order now -- and they're cheaper than Glass, even if they're nowhere near as elegant.

The SmartEyeglass Developer Edition SED-E1 is the first set of smart glasses from Sony to go on sale. They are available from March in the US, the UK, Germany and Japan for $840, £520, €670 or 100,000 yen, and pre-orders are open today in the UK and Germany. They'll also be on sale to business customers in France, Italy, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands and Sweden. No Australian prices or details were announced but the UK price converts to around AU$1,020.

Smart glasses are like regular specs with a transparent screen in the lenses, so you can see features like emails and notifications floating in front of your very eyes. Paired with your phone, the glasses can show you information or tell you what's going on with the apps in your pocket.
The SED-E1 displays information in the colour green only. The battery lasts around 2 hours 30 minutes.
Although there are plenty of high-tech eyewear alternatives, the Google Glass specs are the best known. Glass was one of the early devices that kickstarted the trend for wearable tech, but earlier this year Google stopped selling it. Costing $1,500 and only available in limited numbers, it was never aimed at a mass audience. What's more, the camera-equipped device raised controversy over questions of privacy -- bars banned them and wearers earned the nickname "Glassholes".
In design terms Glass is much more subtle than Sony's chunky 77-gram (2.7-ounce) black-rimmed SmartEyeglass. Having worn them in September last year, I can tell you they're pretty cumbersome. Glass is also wireless, whereas Sony's specs connect with a wire to a hockey puck-sized control unit that holds the battery, speaker, microphone and touch controls.

Posted by Unknown Thursday, February 19, 2015

New Product Release Update : Sony SmartEyeglass Developer Edition On Sale Now

 Where Google failed, Sony hopes to succeed. Its SmartEyeglass Developer Edition eyewear is available now for pre-order in the U.K. and Germany.

The SED-E1 transparent-lens headset will go on sale in eight more countries—Japan, the U.S., France, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands, Sweden—next month. Developers can access the official version of the SmartEyeglass SDK today.

Using holographic wavelength technology, Sony's futuristic glasses connect with compatible smartphones to superimpose information onto the wearer's field of view—"without any half mirrors that may obstruct the user's vision," the company boasted.

It also comes with a built-in 3-megapixel CMOS image sensor, accelerometer, gyro, electronic compass, and brightness sensor, behind the 3-millimeter lenses. Together with GPS location data from the attached phone, the headset provides information tailored for the current task or scenario.

A separate (but wired) circular controller that clips onto your jacket or shirt collar houses the battery, speaker, microphone, NFC, and touch sensor.

Early application concepts include a step-by-step guide on how to assemble an engine, scrolling in front of the mechanic's eyes as they work. Sony also suggested an app to share player stats while watching a sports game, or to display sightseeing information while visiting a tourist attraction.

Early developers will have access to a handful of SmartEyeglass apps—available in the Google Play store—which enable access to Twitter, Facebook, Gmail, RSS, calendar, and voice control.

The developer edition will cost $840 in the U.S., £520 in the U.K., €670 across Europe, and ¥100,000 in Japan.

Sony hopes to release its SmartEyeglass headset to consumers sometime next year.

Posted by Unknown Wednesday, February 18, 2015

News : WhatsApp Plus Reportedly Coming To The Market Bringing An Improved Experience

Between WhatsApp, Viber and Facebook Messenger, there aren’t many other popular messaging apps, and pretty much all users are running one of the big three. WhatsApp in particular rose to fame with its minimalistic and clean approach to its chat interface, as opposed to Viber and Messenger which allow their users to send “stickers” – a feature that some have been enjoying a lot, while others have been finding profoundly annoying. And now, WhatsApp is evolving, as the app is reportedly about to get an entirely new version called WhatsApp Plus, offering various new features that the original doesn’t have.

One of the things that WhatsApp Plus is going to give its users is more customization – the app itself is going to be much more flexible, with all-new themes, while chats will now offer a wider selection of emoticons to allow users to better express themselves. With regards to themes, it’s reported that the feature is going to be quite extensive, going beyond the simple wallpapers that were featured in the original WhatsApp – the new theme system will reportedly be used to change the entire look and feel of the interface, and will come with hundreds of pre-made themes for users to pick from.

The app will also see a shift towards a more secure-oriented development approach, with more privacy options, including the ability to hide one’s online status. Just like with the “seen” notification setting though, users who choose to disable their online status showing will also not be able to see the online status of others in their contacts list.

Last but definitely not least, if the reports are true, the new WhatsApp Plus is also going to introduce one feature that users have been requesting for a long time – the ability to share large files. It’s not known if there will be any limitations on filesize, although anything would be an improvement over the current situation for sure. With this change alone, WhatsApp can easily become an even more popular platform than it already is, as it can turn into a much more attractive ground for users who enjoy sharing large videos and music files.

No release date or other launch details have been announced for WhatsApp Plus as of yet, and it’s not known if the app will be paid, free, or follow a similar model like the current version that offers a one-year trial on some platforms. Some reports have claimed that WhatsApp Plus will come as a free upgrade to all users of the current version, though nothing has been mentioned about those who’re just about to get into the app for the first time, or those who want to change their numbers.

Posted by Unknown Saturday, January 17, 2015

Rumor : Sony Working On 12-Inch Tablet For 2015

Sony has joined several tech giants rumored to develop a larger tablet, with this one expected to make its way to customers in the early half of 2015.

Sources with knowledge of the situation said mass production for the 12-inch tablet will begin shortly, and that the high-end engagement will most likely be the main target for the device, which might be priced at over US$1,000, according to Digitimes.

While Sony hasn't been involved in the PC market for quite some time, the Japanese tech giant is still focused on improving its line of tablets, the sources said. They also believe Pegatron Technology, which manufactured Apple's iPad and Microsoft's Surface tablets, will be responsible for doing the same for Sony's tablets.

Pegatron declined to comment on the companies it works with.

Features expected for the 8.6-mm thick, 12-inch tablet include a 3840 x 2400 resolution for the display, a Qualcomm processor and an 8-mega pixel camera, BGR reported. The sources also believe more vendors will release large-sized tablets in 2015, but they didn't name any of these vendors.

The rumor puts Sony in competition with Samsung and Apple, who have also been reported to be working on a larger tablet.

Sony is the latest company rumored to be

The Sony tablet is supposedly going to feature a 12.9-inch display with 3840 x 2400 resolution, a Qualcomm processor and an 8-megapixel camera. The device is only 8.6mm thick and should be mass-produced by Pegatron, the same company that also builds the iPad and Surface tablets for Apple and Microsoft, respectively. 

It’s not clear when the Sony tablet might launch, but the device is supposed to cost more than $1,000 and “target mainly the high-end segment” of the market, according to the publication.

Digitimes says sources familiar with Sony’s supply chain also expect more vendors to launch large size tablets in 2015, without naming any of them.

Apple is expected to launch a 12-inch iPad Pro at some point next year.

working on a much bigger Android tablet, joining Samsung’s existing 12-inch model and preparing to compete against Apple’s upcoming 12-inch “iPad Pro” tablet. A new report from Digitimes says Sony is aiming to release its large tablet in the first half of next year, with the device supposed to head to mass production soon.

Posted by Unknown Saturday, December 27, 2014

Sony Rolls Out First Xperia Z Update With Fix For ‘Sudden-Death’ Issue

The Sony models Xperia Z has been one of the most well-known mobile phones this season. Its water and dustproof system and the complete HD show have powered it up in the reputation maps. But soon customers began confirming a strange bug in the cellphone, which would convert off the cellphone and only a difficult totally reset (power + amount up) would get it began again. Even that remedy was not a worldwide fix, as several customers revealed that the cellphone would not begin up even through the difficult totally reset option.

At enough time, it was believed that the bug is relevant to battery energy store, but several customers were confirming devices passing away on them with near to a complete cost. Sony models had guaranteed an upgrade to fix the problem, and the organization has now began moving out an upgrade for the Xperia Z to fix the problem.

The develop variety is 10.1.A.1.434, but the Android operating system edition remains 4.1.2 Jelly bean and the Kernel seems to be the same 3.4.0. edition as well. 

Even though there is no formal changelog for this surprising upgrade, speculation have it the new launch details the sudden-death problem destroying the leading. There were also other insects such as the non-functional LED alert mild when the cellphone is in Endurance method. Users are confirming on the XDA Developers thread that there are some performance developments and minimal bug repairs as well in the package

Sony is launching the upgrade in levels both via the PC Partner app and over-the-air. You should examine both for the upgrade and if it isn't available for you already, it should pop up in a few times. For the eager amongst you, there is a obtain weblink on the above XDA line, which should help professional ROM blinkers to get the upgrade quicker.

The Xperia Z is available in Indian for a cost of Rs 38,990. At that cost, it’s your best option as it comes with a highly effective Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core CPU. It also has 2GB of RAM and Adreno 320 GPU.

Here’s a look at the key specs of the Xperia Z:

• 5-inch TFT LCD with a 1920 x 1080p resolution, 441 PPI
• LTE, Cat3, up to 100 Mbps DL, HSPA+, GPRS/EDGE
• Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspotGPS with A-GPS support
• Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP
• GPS with A-GPS support and GLONASS
• NFC
• 13 megapixel camera with HDR video recording, image stabilisation, Sony 3D Sweep Panorama; 2-megapixel front-facing camera with 1080p video recording
• 16GB internal storage with microSD card slot

The Xperia Z has a non-removable 2330 mAh battery energy. Sony’s exclusive Endurance Mode technological innovation should help in improving battery energy lifespan by throttling data-hogging applications when in stand by method.

Posted by Unknown Monday, March 25, 2013

Sony Rolls Out First Xperia Z Update With Fix For ‘Sudden-Death’ Issue

The Sony models Xperia Z has been one of the most well-known mobile phones this season. Its water and dustproof system and the complete HD show have powered it up in the reputation maps. But soon customers began confirming a strange bug in the cellphone, which would convert off the cellphone and only a difficult totally reset (power + amount up) would get it began again. Even that remedy was not a worldwide fix, as several customers revealed that the cellphone would not begin up even through the difficult totally reset option.

At enough time, it was believed that the bug is relevant to battery energy store, but several customers were confirming devices passing away on them with near to a complete cost. Sony models had guaranteed an upgrade to fix the problem, and the organization has now began moving out an upgrade for the Xperia Z to fix the issue

The develop variety is 10.1.A.1.434, but the Android operating system edition remains 4.1.2 Jelly bean and the Kernel seems to be the same 3.4.0. edition as well. 

Even though there is no formal changelog for this surprising upgrade, speculation have it the new launch details the sudden-death problem destroying the leading. There were also other insects such as the non-functional LED alert mild when the cellphone is in Endurance method. Users are confirming on the XDA Designers line that there are some performance developments and minimal bug repairs as well in the package

Sony is launching the upgrade in levels both via the PC Partner app and over-the-air. You should examine both for the upgrade and if it isn't available for you already, it should pop up in a few times. For the eager amongst you, there is a obtain weblink on the above XDA line, which should help professional ROM blinkers to get the upgrade quicker.

The Xperia Z is available in Indian for a cost of Rs 38,990. At that cost, it’s your best option as it comes with a highly effective Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core CPU. It also has 2GB of RAM and Adreno 320 GPU.

Here’s a look at the key specs of the Xperia Z:

• 5-inch TFT LCD with a 1920 x 1080p resolution, 441 PPI
• LTE, Cat3, up to 100 Mbps DL, HSPA+, GPRS/EDGE
• Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspotGPS with A-GPS support
• Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP
• GPS with A-GPS support and GLONASS
• NFC
• 13 megapixel camera with HDR video recording, image stabilisation, Sony 3D Sweep Panorama; 2-megapixel front-facing camera with 1080p video recording
• 16GB internal storage with microSD card slot

The Xperia Z has a non-removable 2330 mAh battery. Sony’s proprietary Stamina Mode technology should help in increasing battery life by throttling data-hogging apps when in standby mode.

Posted by Unknown Saturday, March 23, 2013

Review : Sony Xperia Z (C6602)

Back when Sony parted ways with Ericsson, the company promised they would be doubling their smartphone efforts and we caught the first glimpse of it with the launch of the Xperia S, the first Sony-branded Android. Since then, we've seen a wave of handsets being pumped out by Sony in order to plug every conceivable price segment. Most of them were slightly modified clones of the flagship with one unique feature, which differentiated them in the line-up. Cut to the present and it seems as if Sony is running out of alphabets for its phones. The Xperia Z is the latest flagship from the Sony stable, which was launched along with a smaller sibling, the ZL. In true Sony fashion, this handset too has one stand out feature that sets it apart and that’s the IP55 and IP57 certification which makes the Z, the first ever high-end Android to be dust and water proof.

Design and Build :
Sony has managed to achieve this feat and still keep the width down to 7.9mm and the weight to just 146g, so you understand why we were so excited to get our hands on it. You have a choice of colours with white, purple and black options. The handset looks good in white although some of us in the office felt it resembled a bathroom tile, which in all fairness, it does from the back. The Z carries forward the block-like design of previous generation Xperias and is completely flat from all sides with the exception of the corners and the edges being rounded off. It does feel unusual in your hand at first and the sides aren’t very grippy either. It’s not the most comfortable smartphone for sure and with a 5-inch display, you’ll have some trouble adjusting if you have small hands. To counter this, Sony has placed the power and volume rocker lower down on the sides so your thumb easily reaches it when held with the right hand. Just below that is the speaker grill, which we’ll talk about more in a bit. The rest of the ports are distributed around the phone and are safely ensconced with rubber-lined flaps. There’s a microSIM, microSD, microUSB and headphone jack, all protected from dust and water. Sony even throws in a lanyard loop at the bottom, not something we see a lot these days. 

Around the back, we have a second microphone for noise cancellation, the 13MP camera and an LED flash. Overall, the build and finish of the handset is very good and even a few drops left nothing more than minor scuff marks along the edge. Having said that, all’s not perfect with the Z. The phone is a huge fingerprint magnet and we’re talking about both the glass backs as well as the sides, which are a nightmare to clean. We also noticed that our test unit had developed many hairline scratches, on the display and the back, which spoiled the whole look. This was a little confusing since Sony says the glass is scratchproof.

As it turns out, the Xperia Z comes with a factory-fitted screen guard, that’s clearly not meant to be removed since the logo in the front comes off with it. This doesn’t affect the phones waterproof capabilities in anyway and neither does it help the display as it attracts scratches very easily, so why put it there? After removing it, we tried scratching the glass with pins, keys, basically anything sharp and it didn’t do any damage. Clearly, the display is capable of withstanding quite a bit of abuse and it should have been just left as is. Fingerprint smudges got a lot worse however with the screen guard removed.   

you’ll be happy to hear that the phone does just fine when dunked in water, hot or cold. The capacitive screen goes out of whack so it’s not exactly usable underwater like the Xperia Active. Other than that, we didn’t face any problems.

Features :
Interface :
Let’s start with the display itself. You get a 5-inch LCD panel with a 1920 x 1080p pixel density, giving you sharp text and images. While this sounds good on paper, the reality is quite different. Even with the BRAVIA Engine 2 on, the colours are washed out and aren’t very rich at all. A Rs13,000 Android with an IPS display manages better colours. Boosting the brightness only worsens the contrast. We can’t really blame the waterproofing for such muted colours since the Xperia go had the same treatment and the screen was definitely better. It’s not a terrible display but when you compare it with the HTC One or the Optimus G, the Z pales in comparison, quite literally. 

Sony has skinned the Xperia Z similarly to their previous offerings so you’ll be at home if you’ve used a Sony droid in the past. You get onscreen buttons which work much better than the capacitive ones on the Xperia S.

We love the new lock screen animation which mimics a window’s blinds. Apart from this, there are two new exclusive Sony apps that will feature with the Z. Sony LIV is available on the Play Store and lets you stream TV shows of SAB, Sony Entertainment and Max. The app, though, refused to stream any of the videos we selected for some reason. The Sony Music app didn’t come with the phone nor is it available on the Play Store. Apart from these two, the rest of the app suite is the same as we’ve seen on previous Xperia devices. 

For power management, Sony has added a STAMINA mode, which actually does a very good job of prolonging battery life. You can choose at what battery level the mode should kick in and when it does, it restricts apps from using packet data. However, if you want Whatsapp or GTalk to be active in sleep mode, you can add these apps to a white list of sorts so they will still work. When the ‘Low battery’ mode kicks in, a bunch of functions are automatically switched off like GPS, Auto-sync, etc. You can once again pick and choose what should be disabled and what shouldn’t. With these modes on, we actually managed to go through an entire day without having to charge the phone.

Sony has changed the 'Recently closed apps' interface a bit. All past apps appear on the right side of the screen along with a row of what Sony calls "Small apps". These include the calculator, notes, voice recorder and more, which can be downloaded through the Play Store. These special apps open up in a floating window which can be moved around but can't be resized. You also have the option to go to the fully functional app if needed. This can come in handy if you need to quickly take a note or use the calculator.

Media :
The music player app is really slick this time around and the new lock screen widget is very convenient. Audio quality is very good thanks to the MH-EX300AP stock in-ear phones. The headphones have a snug fit and produce deep bass while providing good noise isolation. Sound enhancements are present in the form of ClearAudio+, which automatically amplifies the sound or you could fine tune the settings through a 5-band graphic equaliser along with features Clear stereo, Clear phase, xLOUD and Dynamic normaliser – all of which are designed to boost frequencies and make your audio experience more pleasurable. 

The video player breaks down your videos into movies, TV and those that can be streamed. The player won’t read MOV files but everything else, including MKV files, work just fine. HD video playback heats up the Z rather quickly so prolonged watching could get a little uncomfortable. FM radio is also present. The Xperia Z comes with 16GB of internal memory (11.7GB is usable) and you have the option to expand it via microSD card, which is a big bonus as Sony’s previous flagship didn’t give you that option. The mono speaker is loud but not clear. Alerts are audible even in crowded areas but complex sounds like movies and music tend to get garbled at high volumes.

Connectivity :
The Xperia Z is a quad-band GSM and 3G handset but no LTE support for India, at least in the current ROM. Along with this; you also get dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth v4.0, NFC, GLONASS, the works basically. The GPS works well and is quick to triangulate your position. However, the phone heats up a lot when you use GPS, to a point where it’s uncomfortable to answer a call. Couple that with our summers and you’re looking at one smoking hot phone. The stock browser has been ditched for Chrome, which is lightning quick in rendering web pages. We also really liked Sony’s new keyboard, which now comes with their own version of Swype. The word prediction works pretty well and so does the auto-correct. New words are automatically saved once manually chosen in the preview list. 

We didn’t like the earpiece one bit since the opening for it is very narrow and if you don’t hold it to your ear in the sweet spot, you’ll have great difficulty hearing the person on the other end. Even with the earpiece volume maxed out, it was quite difficult to hear the other party with lots of ambient noise around.  

Other custom apps from Sony include Sony Select, which is essentially a mini app store with the recommended apps. The new Socialife app is neatly done and lets you view all your social feeds in one place. This is also accompanied by an equally useful widget. Smart Connect lets you automate tasks at certain time intervals, so you can make your Z switch to silent mode, turn off Wi-Fi or data from 12AM to 8AM while you sleep and so on. Other noteworthy apps include Update Center, McAfee security, Xperia Link, Sony Car, Backup and Restore, NeoReader, Wisepilot, OfficeSuite and TrackID.

Camera :
The Xperia Z is the second handset in the Indian market with a 13MP camera. The sensor consists of a 28mm lens with an aperture value of f/2.2, which is decently large for low-light shots. The camera interface is a little different this time around as well. The different modes can be selected with the tap of the first icon and there’s a new Superior Auto, which automatically picks the right scene mode depending on where you point the camera. Outdoor pictures are nice and sharp with good colour reproduction and there’s a good level of detail even after zooming in. Indoor shots are just about average and it gets noticeably worse as the ambient light reduces. The flash provides good illumination if the subject is less than 2 feet away but anything more than that and the picture gets quite grainy. 

The Xperia Z boasts of HDR video in addition to regular HDR but we aren’t too convinced by this. What this does is brighten up the dark areas in the video but in doing so, introduces a lot of noise in the video so we don’t recommend you capture any precious moments in this mode. We must say, the smile shutter works very well. The front and rear camera are both capable of 1080p video, which is good. Overall, the camera on the Z didn’t really blow us away and is pretty average at best.

Battery Life :
The Z is fitted with a 2330mAh non-removable battery which managed two full loops in our video drain test and about 10-minutes into the third which racks up a grand total of 5-hours and 40-minutes. This poor performance is mainly due to the high-resolution screen. If the phone is used carefully under regular use, you can just about make it an entire day before having to charge it. Games and GPS will drain the battery very quickly, not to mention heat it up, so you have to think twice before you decide what app to use.

Verdict and Price in India :
The Sony Xperia Z is available in India for a street price of Rs 38,790, which makes it the cheapest high-end phone with a Full HD display. The waterproofing feature gives it an added advantage and no doubt, many people would buy this solely for that reason alone. Let’s sum up the good points first. The Z is well-built and takes falls and bumps in its stride, comes bundled with very good earphones, has good audio and video playback, is waterproof and dust proof, the STAMINA mode is a welcome feature, has expandable memory up to 64GB and the default keyboard is not a pain to use. Now for the not-so-good points. The handset is not the easiest to use with one hand due to bad ergonomics. The flattened chassis makes it difficult to get a good grip. The use of a screen guard on the front and back comes across as tacky, not something we expected on a phone that costs almost Rs 40,000. This tends to pick up scratches very easily and will ruin the look of your brand new phone within weeks. The display is sharp but the colours appear dull and washed out. The phone also has a nasty habit of heating up a lot when using GPS. The earpiece could have been designed better as well and last but not least, we found the camera and battery life to be strictly average.

The only reason we’ve given the Xperia Z a relatively good rating is for the IP55 and IP57 certification as we don’t see any other high-end smartphone launching in the near future that has this. Other than that and the fact that it’s aggressively priced, the Xperia Z is quite a mediocre handset that doesn’t offer anything more than an evolutionary upgrade to its previous generation.

Specifications : 

 

Posted by Unknown Thursday, March 21, 2013