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Sony X Compact.
Bethaneeny
21-10-2016
https://www.carphonewarehouse.com/so...cificationData

Picking this up tomorrow! £26.50 a month, 3GB data, unlimited everything else!

This is my third sony (Xperia T, Z3 Compact previous)

Does anyone have this phone, and have any feedback?
Faust
22-10-2016
Originally Posted by Bethaneeny:
“https://www.carphonewarehouse.com/so...cificationData

Picking this up tomorrow! £26.50 a month, 3GB data, unlimited everything else!

This is my third sony (Xperia T, Z3 Compact previous)

Does anyone have this phone, and have any feedback?”

Yes, sadly Sony has decided to abandon the winning formula they had with the Compact range i.e. flagship specs in a smaller form factor and has now taken it down market.

Don't expect it to be anywhere near what your Z3C was. It does not have the same specs or power of its larger sibling. Sony's total shipment for 2016 will be around 19 million units worldwide. To put this in persecutive the big boys are each shipping 100 million units. It begs the question just how much longer will they keep making phones.
Gigabit
22-10-2016
I am convinced that somebody inside Sony is sabotaging them intentionally. Their strategy is just idiotic.
Faust
23-10-2016
Originally Posted by Gigabit:
“I am convinced that somebody inside Sony is sabotaging them intentionally. Their strategy is just idiotic.”

It does make you wonder. Or at least if whoever has oversight of the mobile division has the first clue what they are doing. Either way it does look like there is no way back for them now and the decline will continue.

I don't even like the design of their current phone lineup.
goldenface
24-10-2016
I too would stick with the my Z5 Compact rather than going for the X Compact.

The Z3 Compact is a great price right now too.

With the X Compact I'd miss the lanyard hole, the waterproofing (although this has just launched in Japan with this feature) but I do like where they are going with the new design. Very nice phones.

From what Sony is saying, they're staying in the mobile game by remaining small but profitable, they don't have the advertising coffers to compete globally with Samsung so they're are slimming down and concentrating on their best markets.
Bethaneeny
24-10-2016
Originally Posted by goldenface:
“I too would stick with the my Z5 Compact rather than going for the X Compact.

The Z3 Compact is a great price right now too.

With the X Compact I'd miss the lanyard hole, the waterproofing (although this has just launched in Japan with this feature) but I do like where they are going with the new design. Very nice phones.

From what Sony is saying, they're staying in the mobile game by remaining small but profitable, they don't have the advertising coffers to compete globally with Samsung so they're are slimming down and concentrating on their best markets.”

It's the z3c I have, not the z5c
x
Faust
24-10-2016
Originally Posted by goldenface:
“I too would stick with the my Z5 Compact rather than going for the X Compact.

The Z3 Compact is a great price right now too.

With the X Compact I'd miss the lanyard hole, the waterproofing (although this has just launched in Japan with this feature) but I do like where they are going with the new design. Very nice phones.

From what Sony is saying, they're staying in the mobile game by remaining small but profitable, they don't have the advertising coffers to compete globally with Samsung so they're are slimming down and concentrating on their best markets.”

A company has to have a certain critical mass to remain in the game. Making a tiny couple of million pounds profit as Sony's mobile division just has is a road to nowhere. It's a vicious cycle the less presence you have the less you are likely to sell.
goldenface
24-10-2016
They're choosing their battles. They have next to no presence in the huge markets of China, India and the US.

However, they don't do as bad in Europe, so as long as they can make a profit there is no reason for them to pack up altogether. Sony have said as much themselves.
Faust
24-10-2016
Originally Posted by goldenface:
“They're choosing their battles. They have next to no presence in the huge markets of China, India and the US.

However, they don't do as bad in Europe, so as long as they can make a profit there is no reason for them to pack up altogether. Sony have said as much themselves.”

They have to make a sizeable profit or they won't have the money for R&D which is vital to future models. What they have made this year won't provide enough funds for two tin cans and a piece of string.

They no longer have an advertising budget either - how's that going to work for them? Sony's CEO already has his finger over the red button and I doubt he will wait that much longer before he presses it.
jonmorris
25-10-2016
Originally Posted by goldenface:
“They're choosing their battles. They have next to no presence in the huge markets of China, India and the US.

However, they don't do as bad in Europe, so as long as they can make a profit there is no reason for them to pack up altogether. Sony have said as much themselves.”

I know when I've been to Spain, Sony seems very popular there. But is Sony still doing that well in the UK?
Faust
25-10-2016
Originally Posted by jonmorris:
“I know when I've been to Spain, Sony seems very popular there. But is Sony still doing that well in the UK?”

Apparently Sony is the most profitable OEM per handset in the Android world. Their profit per handset is $26 whereas Samsung is $23 dollars. That pales into insignificance when compared to Apple's $184. Good to know Apple aren't milking their customers.

However, the real worry for Sony is that volumes are failing quarter on quarter and they need to sustain a certain level of volume just to cover its fixed cost base. It's reckoned if volumes go much lower then the business will become unsustainable.

By contrast LG are losing $3 per handset, Microsoft losing $36 dollars with HTC bringing up the rear losing $38 per handset.
jonmorris
25-10-2016
I wonder how much Google is going to be making on the Pixel phones?
Faust
25-10-2016
Originally Posted by jonmorris:
“I wonder how much Google is going to be making on the Pixel phones?”

Well hopefully enough to make it worth their while. However, if you look at the losses HTC are making on each handset and the Pixel is manufactured to the same high levels of build and specification as an HTC then it may not be as much as you imagine.
jonmorris
25-10-2016
I'm pretty sure HTC doesn't spend much more than anyone else, like Xiaomi or Huawei. Seen the new Xiaomi phones released today? The amazing near bezel-free phone will cost around £400!

HTC has made hardware for so long that it must be able to produce things efficiently. Its problems are down to poor decisions on specs and the fact it spent precious little on marketing and has become almost anonymous of late.
Faust
25-10-2016
Originally Posted by jonmorris:
“I'm pretty sure HTC doesn't spend much more than anyone else, like Xiaomi or Huawei. Seen the new Xiaomi phones released today? The amazing near bezel-free phone will cost around £400!

HTC has made hardware for so long that it must be able to produce things efficiently. Its problems are down to poor decisions on specs and the fact it spent precious little on marketing and has become almost anonymous of late.”

Well I think the problems at HTC began when it made the M9 which was virtually indistinguishable from the previous M8. The sad bottom line is that HTC has shed a huge number of jobs and no longer has the cash for big advertising budgets.

On that note I see the Pixel is now being advertised on TV. Strange thing to do when their own store has virtually no phones to sell.

Re: the Xiaomi - I can't see that being a winner, not in any numbers that is. Who on earth wants a 6.4 inch screen as a phone? That is beyond ridiculous IMO unless you mean the Mi Note 2
jonmorris
25-10-2016
Have you been to Asia recently? They are very happy with huge screen phones, but the 6.4-inch screen has a footprint similar to that of an iPhone 7 plus or Nexus 6P.

It's not on sale here because we're not such big fans (hence why the Note's never sold in huge numbers here, and why last year Samsung didn't even bring out the Note 5 in the UK), but I know people will import it. And the Mi Note 2 looks good too.

There's still stock of the Pixel if you shop around. Currys / Carphone Warehouse have 32GB models, and the Store gets new deliveries regularly.

The 128GB Pixel XL is the one in short supply, and I was told last week that in (now) under two weeks, there will be a more delivered - possibly sooner.

I think the rush on 128GB models is because initial sales are more likely to early adopters and tech nerds, but coming up to Christmas, when stock is no longer an issue, I expect the 32GB model will be the bigger seller. For one, it's obviously cheaper. Secondly, unless you want to store loads of media for offline viewing (which can be to a degree done with a USB-C flash drive), you can probably get by with 32GB (or nearer 25GB in reality) if you enable the automatic backup/delete feature.
Faust
25-10-2016
Originally Posted by jonmorris:
“Have you been to Asia recently? They are very happy with huge screen phones, but the 6.4-inch screen has a footprint similar to that of an iPhone 7 plus or Nexus 6P.

It's not on sale here because we're not such big fans (hence why the Note's never sold in huge numbers here, and why last year Samsung didn't even bring out the Note 5 in the UK), but I know people will import it. And the Mi Note 2 looks good too.

There's still stock of the Pixel if you shop around. Currys / Carphone Warehouse have 32GB models, and the Store gets new deliveries regularly.

The 128GB Pixel XL is the one in short supply, and I was told last week that in (now) under two weeks, there will be a more delivered - possibly sooner.

I think the rush on 128GB models is because initial sales are more likely to early adopters and tech nerds, but coming up to Christmas, when stock is no longer an issue, I expect the 32GB model will be the bigger seller. For one, it's obviously cheaper. Secondly, unless you want to store loads of media for offline viewing (which can be to a degree done with a USB-C flash drive), you can probably get by with 32GB (or nearer 25GB in reality) if you enable the automatic backup/delete feature.”

I notice plenty of reviews between the iPhone 7 plus and the Pixel XL are coming out as dead heats i.e. virtually nothing to choose between them. What's in Apple's favour of course is brand awareness and loyalty built up over the last ten years.
goldenface
25-10-2016
There is quite a big marketing campaign going on right now for the X series. #WowofNow centrered around the imaging prowess of the cameras.
jonmorris
25-10-2016
Yeah, I've seen the ads. Shame the reviews aren't so great about the camera quality.

At IFA, I had issues with AF keeping track of objects and the camera overheating. Same old problems it seems Sony can't quite fix.
clonmult
26-10-2016
Originally Posted by goldenface:
“There is quite a big marketing campaign going on right now for the X series. #WowofNow centrered around the imaging prowess of the cameras.”

Aside from the DXO "reviews", the Sony cameras only seem to be appreciated by the fanboys. Most other reviews don't exactly slate the cameras - they just aren't as good as DXO or Sony claim.

Main problems are the camera interface (which is dire) and the post processing (which is also pretty rubbish).
jonmorris
26-10-2016
In my experience it's the post processing that messes things up. The image sensors on the older Xperia cameras were used quite successfully in other phones, and it's the Sony software that seems to try so hard to mess things up.

But, Sony does perhaps push its luck a bit by always claiming how great its devices are in low light, when it seems to just bump up the ISO so everything comes out like an oil painting.

Sony make sensors which really do work well in low light, but they're usually lower in pixel count with larger individual pixels. Sony makes the camera in the Pixel for example.

Why does Sony want to go for more pixels when it must know less is more. Are people still playing the numbers game? Are consumers buying 20-23MP cameraphones over 12-16MP ones? I guess they were, but now a lot of consumers have realised that there are no real benefits (except perhaps lossless zoom, but Apple's dual camera solution is arguably more effective for that).
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