Sony Xperia Z5 Compact

[JaySoul]

Reviews are starting to come out for the Z5 Compact.

Here's an extremely positive one (not brilliantly written but still).

http://www.theguardian.com/technolo...ria-z5-compact-review-best-smaller-smartphone

 

[GadgetSN]

The Sony Z3 is probably the second best looking phone currently available after the Edge Plus. However, that Z5 compact looks awful. They've raised the side edges and consequently made it look thick and chunky. Looks like a retro/old fashioned phone now.

However it will sell well as it is the only real option for those that want a small phone. Just depends on how big this market is.

 

[tbayrgs]

Love seeing that's it's a battery champ. I'm sure the high res fanatics will burn me at the stake but this device appears to be additional proof that using all of these ridiculously high PPI displays aren't helping battery life.

 

[epicrayban]

Love seeing that's it's a battery champ. I'm sure the high res fanatics will burn me at the stake but this device appears to be additional proof that using all of these ridiculously high PPI displays aren't helping battery life.

Yup, 1080 tops. I can only imagine what the S6 battery life would've and could've been...

 

[spriter]

Love seeing that's it's a battery champ. I'm sure the high res fanatics will burn me at the stake but this device appears to be additional proof that using all of these ridiculously high PPI displays aren't helping battery life.

Ssssshhh! It's always the panel. Or the SoC. Or a lemon. Or the way we're holding it. Absolutely under no circumstances does high PPI make batteries drain quicker.

Looks like a really nice phone. I use maps a lot so navigation in the car doesn't suit small screens but this bodes well for the bigger brothers.

 

[0007776]

Looks nice, I'm not sure I'd consider a 4.6" phone to be compact though.

 

[gotluck]

no new word on us availability?

 

[JaySoul]

Ssssshhh! It's always the panel. Or the SoC. Or a lemon. Or the way we're holding it. Absolutely under no circumstances does high PPI make batteries drain quicker.

Looks like a really nice phone. I use maps a lot so navigation in the car doesn't suit small screens but this bodes well for the bigger brothers.

This was actually my problem with the Z3 Compact. Great phone, but had to slightly strain my eyes to see maps.

 

[kasakka]

Looks nice, I'm not sure I'd consider a 4.6" phone to be compact though.

It is compared to the 5+ inch monstrosities the majority of phones are. There's precious few smaller phones on the market that aren't complete crap. The Z5 Compact is one of the few contenders in that area outside Asia. It's sad that good phones at this size are so few.

The Z5 compact looks good to me but since I'm used to a 5" 1080p display I would have to do more research (for example can you read really tiny text on it without heavily zooming in) and try it myself. The around 600e full price here in Finland seems a tad salty though.

 

[0007776]

It is compared to the 5+ inch monstrosities the majority of phones are. There's precious few smaller phones on the market that aren't complete crap. The Z5 Compact is one of the few contenders in that area outside Asia. It's sad that good phones at this size are so few.

The Z5 compact looks good to me but since I'm used to a 5" 1080p display I would have to do more research (for example can you read really tiny text on it without heavily zooming in) and try it myself. The around 600e full price here in Finland seems a tad salty though.

I agree that relative to many other phones out there it is compact, but I used to have a Z1 Compact and the 4.3" screen on that was about the maximum I could go and still use it with one hand which is what I think a compact phone needs.

 

[TacticalDesire]

Probably going to have to import this phone if I want to get it or wait months for US Availability if it ever comes. I'll wait for a few more reviews to come in but this is likely going to be my next phone. I don't really do anything on my phone that requires a large screen. Web browsing usually only consists of a few quick google searches, and I don't need a huge screen for texting, phone calls, maps, social media, sports scores or a quick email. Which is really all I use my phone for. I do what I need and it goes back away. I don't typically game or watch movies on my phone or spend extended amounts of time with it. Anything that requires a large screen I usually have a tablet or traditional computer nearby. I don't usually spend a lot of time on it and the battery life looks very promising.

 

[apolloa]

Just been probing around the net, and I found these very interesting reviews, by the same journalist, he states the Z5 gets "quiet warm" yet in his Z5 Compact review he states it is a lot cooler, I wonder if that's to do with the thicker design of the Z5 Compact?

Z5 review:
http://www.theguardian.com/technolo...eria-z5-review-waterproof-fingerprint-scanner

Z5 Compact review:
http://www.theguardian.com/technolo...ria-z5-compact-review-best-smaller-smartphone

I've found that phablets are not for me and am looking for something around the size of my Nexus 5, so I am going to wait, and read the reviews of the new Nexus 5X and I may pop into a phone shop and have a look at the Z5 Compact.

The reviewer also states the Z5 Compact has a better battery life then the Z5! So basically buy the Z5 Compact.

 

[apolloa]

Love seeing that's it's a battery champ. I'm sure the high res fanatics will burn me at the stake but this device appears to be additional proof that using all of these ridiculously high PPI displays aren't helping battery life.

It's funny, Sony said they were not interested in high resolution panels as current battery life technology can't cope, and then they launch a 4K 5.5" phone......

 

[kasakka]

Got to try the Z5 Compact today. Felt really nice, good grip and even though I wasn't able to really try the fingerprint sensor it seemed fast to tell me that it can't find a matching fingerprint.

Tried the display on the same website side by side with my Galaxy S4 and aside from better brightness on the Z5 they looked very much the same so the smaller size and res of the Z5 is no big deal IMO, especially since it means better battery life.

Camera was also really fast and took pretty good pictures even of moving targets (just random people walking in store).

That said, the 599 euro price does feel a bit salty and the selection of colors is not that nice. I'd probably go for the pinkish coral out of them all. Not sure how it looks in person though. I do actually like that it is a bit thicker phone. Fits in the hand better, this thinness nonsense really should end.

 

[JaySoul]

Got to try it out today as well!

Very, very nice. I'm suitably impressed, and actually preferred the form factor to the Z5 (they were side by side so I could really compare and contrast).

The Z5 Compact was so nice, in fact, that I've just ordered one for my wife. Should arrive next week, so will post my thoughts. She wants to move back from her iPhone 6 to Android, and this seems like the best option.

FYI the screen is lovely and the camera seems excellent, I played around with it for 10 minutes and although my subjects were limited, it seems to be the real deal.

 

[MRU]

Got to try it out today as well!

Very, very nice. I'm suitably impressed, and actually preferred the form factor to the Z5 (they were side by side so I could really compare and contrast).

The Z5 Compact was so nice, in fact, that I've just ordered one for my wife. Should arrive next week, so will post my thoughts. She wants to move back from her iPhone 6 to Android, and this seems like the best option.

FYI the screen is lovely and the camera seems excellent, I played around with it for 10 minutes and although my subjects were limited, it seems to be the real deal.

Cool. Looks forward to more detailed impressions when you get your hands on it for a more in-depth look and feel.

 

[Savor]

I think the Z Compact series for the perfect size and big battery for only 720p, any solid LG with removable battery & micro-sd slot, and a sub-$250 Xiaomi Mi 4c are the only phones that have interested me in 2015. And I am not really crazy about the last two Android updates with Lollipop and Marshmallow. I can live on KitKat for years if I want like I did on Windows XP. Probably 2016 (Year of the Monkey) is probably when I finally upgrade to a Sony Xperia Z Compact device. I prefer 720p and no bigger than the iPhone 6/6s.

 

[kasakka]

Ok, got one. Unfortunately at least mine runs hot. It gets a bit warm even in normal web browsing (noticeable but not annoying) but when updating several apps or using the camera it can get somewhat hot and it stays that way for about 15 minutes after shutting the app that makes the chip run hard. My old Galaxy S4 only did that when downloading lots of apps, though maybe it has less heat transfer thanks to the 3rd party back cover I have on it.

I'm not completely sold on using the Z5 Compact one-handed either. The size is right but if the back was more contoured it would feel better to hold and use. The device itself has good enough grip though so I don't feel like I'd need a case for this one.

I think it's going back, which is a shame since it's one of the few well specced smaller phones on the market, the camera worked well, the fingerprint reader was super fast and in the perfect location. Even though winter is coming I don't need an extra hand warmer.

EDIT: Did more testing, comparing S4 vs Z5C. On the S4 heat is concentrated on the top of the body which I don't touch as much whereas on the Z5 it seems to spread to most of the phone. Since the back cover of my S4 is thicker and heats less I concentrated on how the touch screens feel. After filming a 2.5 minute video on both (S4 used Google Camera, Z5 Sony software) the Z5 overall felt a bit warmer but that might be the combination of the back and front. Browsing Reddit a bit using Bacon Reader again the Z5 felt warmer.

I'm now testing Z5 stamina mode's reduced performance setting. Noticed no real difference in performance yet but warmth remains to be seen.

 

[tbayrgs]

Another incident of the 810 running hot? I sure hope this problem doesn't rear it's head on the Nexus 6P as it's the first Nexus that looks like it might offer top level performance at a not so top level price.

 

[apolloa]

This is a good test of the Z5 non Compact:

 

[tbayrgs]

This is a good test of the Z5 non Compact:

What caught my eye was how much faster the Samsung devices were to load. Very nice.

 

[apolloa]

What caught my eye was how much faster the Samsung devices were to load. Very nice.

Apparently the Sony is faster at multitasking. I haven't seen it for myself, just read it somewhere. But yeah the new Samsungs are damn fast.

 

[JaySoul]

It actually arrived yesterday and my wife has been testing it out.

It seems to be having some real problems, you know.
Touchscreen, freezing, overheating, apps just not even loading...

I'm going to test it out myself tonight but it sounds bad, real bad Michael Jackson

 

[MRU]

It actually arrived yesterday and my wife has been testing it out.

It seems to be having some real problems, you know.
Touchscreen, freezing, overheating, apps just not even loading...

I'm going to test it out myself tonight but it sounds bad, real bad Michael Jackson

sounds like it'll be going back.

 

[JaySoul]

sounds like it'll be going back.

She tried to take some photos and the camera app wouldn't even work....!!

Pretty sure it will be getting sent back on Monday. I'll see what I can do on the weekend.