Got my Xperia Z today (Cos I'm in Japan) :P

[xiFIL]

i believe everyone should be getting the firmware update, the reason why his unit had the update was because its a carrier dev unit so they were provided with the firmware update to ensure they can put their branding on it etc. but Sony wil defo release 4.2 shortly after launch and i think its the 4.2 which will have the calibration settings.

That is correct!

---------- Post added at 08:55 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:49 PM ----------

Those are usually BROWN devices, an internal code Sony uses for prototypes. They require differently signed files and have more debugging on them.

Nowadays you can only see the difference in EMMA, maybe in *#*#SERVICE#*#* > Service tests > Certificates. If you could post/send me a screenshot I could compare it to my release unit.

Sent from my C6603 using xda premium

Sure, I will do so next time I am working with it (Vodafone are in the last phase of testing, so perhaps they might send it back to Sony, at this point in time, someone who is much higher up than me is dealing with the device)

 

[stryker.jp]

omg, i cant believe i'm missing out ZL because i'm in japan.

 

[ulicquel]

So since I started this thread I guess I should post in it lol
fhsieh posted a great review and I agree with most of it so I don't want to give a big review myself but I'll just give you some of my thoughts.
I've been using the phone for a little over a week not and I can't say I have anything to complain about.

Screen -
So people have a lot of concerns over the screen so that comes up first. Firstly the colours, well putting it next to the galaxy s2 and you can see the colours are
less vibrant but it can go the other way and actually when I look at the s2 now the screen colours look cartoony I like the more natural colours and the 1080p screen
is really beautiful to look at
Secondly brightness, I never have the backlight on and it's quite easy to use and read with it off. In strong sunlight an very dark situations though you can just switch it on and when it's on it's very bright!!

Speaker -
The speaker is good, not amazing but good. Recently some reviews have said the call volume is low but I've had no problem listening when I'm on the phone. As I mentioned before the speaker tends to crackle a little when you put it on maximum volume while playing music but that might be due to some of my music files and I'll have to play around with the settings more.

Camera -
Honestly I don't pay much importance to the camera on my phone. I don't take many pictures and only do so on occasion.
So far with the pictures I have taken the night pictures have been ok to good and the pictures in daylight have been very very good

Things I like -
The speed of the phone is great with little to no lag, and multi tasking is great and I really like the small apps.
The battery is good and lasts a day easily, although I would really like stamina mode and if the rumours of a screen calibration app coming that would be very welcome.
So in summary I like my purchase and there is nothing so far that would make me regret getting it.

Any more questions just ask

 

[archheretic]

So since I started this thread I guess I should post in it lol
fhsieh posted a great review and I agree with most of it so I don't want to give a big review myself but I'll just give you some of my thoughts.
I've been using the phone for a little over a week not and I can't say I have anything to complain about.

Screen -
So people have a lot of concerns over the screen so that comes up first. Firstly the colours, well putting it next to the galaxy s2 and you can see the colours are
less vibrant but it can go the other way and actually when I look at the s2 now the screen colours look cartoony I like the more natural colours and the 1080p screen
is really beautiful to look at
Secondly brightness, I never have the backlight on and it's quite easy to use and read with it off. In strong sunlight an very dark situations though you can just switch it on and when it's on it's very bright!!

Speaker -
The speaker is good, not amazing but good. Recently some reviews have said the call volume is low but I've had no problem listening when I'm on the phone. As I mentioned before the speaker tends to crackle a little when you put it on maximum volume while playing music but that might be due to some of my music files and I'll have to play around with the settings more.

Camera -
Honestly I don't pay much importance to the camera on my phone. I don't take many pictures and only do so on occasion.
So far with the pictures I have taken the night pictures have been ok to good and the pictures in daylight have been very very good

Things I like -
The speed of the phone is great with little to no lag, and multi tasking is great and I really like the small apps.
The battery is good and lasts a day easily, although I would really like stamina mode and if the rumours of a screen calibration app coming that would be very welcome.
So in summary I like my purchase and there is nothing so far that would make me regret getting it.

Any more questions just ask

What kind of screen on time do you manage on 4g? My phone tends to be away from Wi-Fi and the charger all day...thanks for your thoughts.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium

 

[evildave_666]

I would not necessarily trust Docomo to push the 4.2 update in a reasonable timeframe. As an example their Galaxy S II are still on 4.0.3.

I am holding off on buying an XZ until Docomo have proven themselves by delivering the 4.2 update. If they don't by June I'll either go with the updated OG Pro (second model) or MNP to bmobile for a few months if there isn't another handset worth getting.

 

[Ambroos]

I would not necessarily trust Docomo to push the 4.2 update in a reasonable timeframe. As an example their Galaxy S II are still on 4.0.3.

I am holding off on buying an XZ until Docomo have proven themselves by delivering the 4.2 update. If they don't by June I'll either go with the updated OG Pro (second model) or MNP to bmobile for a few months if there isn't another handset worth getting.

Why, actually? 4.2 doesn't really have any useful improvements over 4.1, especially not with Sony's own skin. The most important things were already implemented by Sony (Miracast and gesture typing (Swype) for example).

 

[ethan3686]

Yea 4.2 is more of an incremental upgrade

 

[cs098]

Yea 4.2 is more of an incremental upgrade

not really an incremental upgrade per say, but more of a upgrade for nexus devices not androids in general like ics and jellybean 4.1 was.

 

[stefanve]

Yea 4.2 is more of an incremental upgrade

http://www.android.com/whatsnew/

and I think lock screen widgets are new, but I'm not sure

 

[evildave_666]

not really an incremental upgrade per say, but more of a upgrade for nexus devices not androids in general like ics and jellybean 4.1 was.

The improved notifications, and widget resizing I found a lot more useful on my Nexus devices.

 

[Ambroos]

The improved notifications, and widget resizing I found a lot more useful on my Nexus devices.

Ehm, extended notifications are something available in Jelly Bean 4.1 and widget resizing has been possible since ICS?

 

[Akiainavas]

Ehm, extended notifications are something available in Jelly Bean 4.1 and widget resizing has been possible since ICS?

If I remember well, 4.2 changelog stated "more extended notifications" or something. Still, incremental upgrade with nothing critical compared to 4.1

 

[techguyone]

ulicquel

Can you give more detail about the phones speaker, I'm especially concerned that GSMArena said it was 'awful'

We ran our traditional loudspeaker test on the Sony Xperia Z, and the results were awful. Scoring a Below Average result even with xLOUD turned on, the Xperia Z is a definite disappointment in terms of speakerphone loudness.

For example I watch films etc on my phone and I would like to be able to hear the soundtrack say in a room with other noise going on, as you might expect in a family room. Are you able to do this without having to use headphones?

 

[evildave_666]

If I remember well, 4.2 changelog stated "more extended notifications" or something. Still, incremental upgrade with nothing critical compared to 4.1

I've gotten used to replying to SMS right from notifications in 4.2. Would be annoying going back. And we can hope that a non-nexus device gets photosphere.

 

[Riyal]

I think it's possible to sideload the stock camera app of 4.2. Regarding sms notifications same for me.

 

[martindesu]

thanks! that looks like an interesting list
well buying a phone in a Japan is different from other countries, basically I'm buying the phone for 525 pounds over two years :/

You cannot buy the phone in Japan unlocked.

---------- Post added at 01:42 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:12 PM ----------

Got my Xperia Z (docomo SO-02E) last week. Some info, my early impressions, and some answers/confirmations:
...
[*]Performance is excellent, no UI lag. With bloatware removed/disabled,...

Thanks for an excellent review.

What are the steps for removing bloatware? I am thinking about picking one of these up soon.

 

[ulicquel]

so I haven't tested the speaker out thoroughly yet and I haven't tried watching a movie while there is background noise but I have listened to music with the TV on and I could hear it clearly from the other side of the room while cooking so I hope that helps

 

[evildave_666]

You cannot buy the phone in Japan unlocked.

---------- Post added at 01:42 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:12 PM ----------



Thanks for an excellent review.

What are the steps for removing bloatware? I am thinking about picking one of these up soon.

If its anything like the Docomo loads for Samsung, about half of the bloatware will be deinstallable from Settings -> Apps.

 

[yt92]

Graduation you got the So-02E!
I just want to ask does DOCOMO provide the bootloader unlocking service?
Have you tried to flash an international version ROM? If so, are the one seg, IR remote still working? THX

 

[DINOZur]

Got my Xperia Z (docomo SO-02E) last week. Some info, my early impressions, and some answers/confirmations:



Basic info:

• Price: ~77,280yen (before fees). You get 1955yen ~ 3675yen discount per month, which is either applied towards the device (if you pay for it in installments), or credited to your account/monthly service (if you pay for the phone in full up-front). There are usually additional ~20,000yen cash back promotions if you shop around.
• Package: includes matching dock, wired headset, and 1seg antenna (a short, 3.5mm "pass-through" cable). No AC adapter or USB cable. Some shops are throwing in free (basic) screen protectors.
• SO-02E is both Bootloader locked and SIM locked. For a fee, docomo will SIM-unlock the device, but the bootloader will remain locked. It may still be possible to root (via FTF or other vulnerability), but so far nothing. Rooting the SO-02E will likely depend on what XDA does with the C6602/3 global versions.
• Shipping ROM (docomo SO-02E 10.1.D.0.317) does not include screen calibration software or the new Stamina mode (see Battery life below).

I'm using:

• Ray-Out semi-transparent case and screen protector (RT-SO02EC21/C).
• Nova Launcher, Tersus HD icons (with a few custom icons I made myself for Japan apps)
• Docomo/Xperia bloatware removed/disabled

Impressions:

• Performance is excellent, no UI lag. With bloatware removed/disabled, the Z gets 20,000+ on AnTuTu. Under normal conditions, the phone can get slightly warm to the touch, but nothing bad.
• Battery life is very good. With bloatware removed/disabled, there is nearly no battery drain in standby (see the flatlines in Battery Mix screenshot). Unsurprisingly, the display uses up a lot of power, but I have no difficulty in confirming the 4.5hr/1day+ estimate mentioned earlier. A lot of Japanese users are complaining about the lack of the new Stamina mode. I'd like to have fine-tuned control, but with all the bloatware gone, it's basically a non-issue given the battery performance so far.
  On another note, the Z recharges quite quickly. With a 1.5A charger, you can likely recharge the whole battery within 2-3 hours.
• Screen quality is excellent. Color and sharpness are great thanks to BE2. Viewing angles are good. Blacks and saturation are no match compared to AMOLEDs (as expected), which some people may prefer.
  That said, there is a potentially big issue with the screen. Japanese users have found that in warm conditions, the pixels have a little trouble switching from black to white quickly, which can cause certain elements to turn purple-ish. This is most noticable when scrolling white text on black background.
  It's not clear if this is a widespread manufaturing defect, limited to only the first lots, or just something inherent to the LCD panel technology used.
• Camera quality is very good under bright conditions. You can even get some bokeh with macro. With high ISO, image quality suffers significantly, as is typical of Sony's JPEG noise-reduction processing. But as a camera-phone, I have no complaints. (I normally carry around a separate camera, anyway).

Where can I buy that Ray-Out utra slim case? You can tell me either a store in Japan or any other store with shipping capabilities. Thanks!