Xperia

73 'Xperia' stories July 2011 - June 2015

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Sony makes Android M developer preview available on select Xperia devices

Tom Maxwell Jun 22 2015 - 7:03 am PT

Google only ever makes its Android developer preview versions available on its own Nexus devices – these devices are designed partly with developer modification and testing in mind, after all. But Sony has gone ahead and done the necessary legwork to make the preview version of Android M work on those of its devices in its Open Device program, and even has a handy guide on how to install it.

Ensuring a device can run the M Developer preview without too many issues, device manufacturers have to include in the software support (drivers) for all the hardware – the chipset, connectivity radios, etc. Over on Sony’s Open Device page is a list of devices in the program along with two downloads to get M running, the AOSP (Android Open Source Project) – Android M itself – as well as software to get the hardware working properly on M. Only a couple of its smartphones and tablets are currently supported right now.

Sony’s Xperia Z4 comes to the United States as the Z4v for Verizon

Stephen Hall Jun 16 2015 - 7:23 am PT

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When the Sony Xperia Z4 was announced earlier this year, we weren’t sure when—if ever—it would be coming to the United States. Now, as has been announced this morning by Verizon, it looks like the Japanese company is bringing the device to North America by way of the Big Red. As we noted before, the device definitely isn’t a drastic departure from what we know of as the Xperia Z3. But the Z4v brings some improvements and features that the Z4 doesn’t have…
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Sony Xperia M4 Aqua available in USA through Amazon, $349 unlocked

Tom Maxwell Jun 11 2015 - 8:44 am PT

Sony’s mid-range, IP68-certified dust and water resistant smartphone has started showing up on store shelves in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, but those of us in the US have been mostly in the dark – until today, however.

The phone is being sold on Amazon through a reseller, but fulfilled by Amazon, for $349 unlocked in black with 8GB of onboard storage (no microSD card included). The LTE bands this phone can connect to are supported on all the major US carriers, so bringing it to your favorite shouldn’t be a problem.

You might want to get a microSD card to go along with it, however, as the M4 Aqua out of the box only has 1.26GB of free storage. The phone is otherwise packing a solid punch for the price with a 5.0″ 720 x 1280 pixel-resolution screen, a 1GHz octa-core Snapdragon 610 processor, 13MP rear shooter, and 2GB of RAM.

Android Lollipop coming to a bevy of Sony Xperia smartphones

Tom Maxwell Jun 4 2015 - 9:31 am PT

If there’s one smartphone manufacturer punching above the rest to provide the latest software from Google to the greatest amount of customers, it’s Sony. The company posted to its blog today that not only is Android 5.1 Lollipop rolling out to the whole series of Xperia Z-Z3 phones as well as the Xperia ZL, ZR, and Tablet Z right now, but July will be the beginning of a Lollipop rollout for even more devices.

First, in July the Xperia T2 Ultra and Xperia C3 will get the update. Then starting “a little after we’ve made the update available for the Xperia Z Series,” the M2 and M2 Aqua will go directly to Android 5.1.

The company says to hang tight for more updates on each of these rollouts (noting that timing may vary by market and/or carrier) and follow them @SonyMobileNews on Twitter for information as its released, or keeping checking the blog. We’ll continue to keep you posted on these rollouts as well.

Sony officially announces its new Xperia C4 and C4 Dual selfie smartphones

Stephen Hall May 6 2015 - 8:05 am PT

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Sony has today announced a refresh of its Xperia C line with the introduction of the Xperia C4, featuring a Full HD display and a “best in class” 5-megapixel front camera. I’m not the target audience for a selfie phone, but there’s definitely some kind of target audience out there somewhere that buys these things…

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Sony rolling out new firmware update for Xperia Z2 & Z3 for improved Lollipop experience

Ben Lovejoy May 5 2015 - 6:55 am PT

xperia-z3-lollipop

Sony is rolling out a new firmware update for Xperia Z2 and Z3 devices, with a number of improvements and bug fixes for Android 5.0 Lollipop. The update covers the Xperia Z3, Xperia Z3 Compact, Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact, Xperia Z2 and Xperia Z2 Tablet.

Sony has brought back the ‘close all apps’ button in the activity menu, enabled lock-screen notifications that work on all devices, ensured the LED light remains available in all sound modes and made a number of other bug fixes.

Sony first rolled out Lollipop to the Z3 last month.

Xperia Z4 appears in bench tests as Sony says Lollipop coming to older devices

Zac Hall Mar 30 2015 - 11:27 am PT

SONY-XPERIA-Z4-Intern-01

<a href="http://9to5google.com/2015/03/16/xperia-z4/">Xperia Z4 renders</a>

Two pieces of Android news for Sony fans today including believed specs on upcoming hardware and official word on software updates for current smartphones and tablets.

First up is what could be hardware specs for the upcoming Sony Xperia Z4 smartphone. We saw renders of what could be the Xperia Z4 earlier this month, and now bench results capture what we could expect to see inside Sony’s next flagship…
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Sony announces Xperia Z4 tablet w/ 10.1-inch 2K display & mid-range Xperia M4 smartphone

Stephen Hall Mar 2 2015 - 6:36 am PT

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Sony this morning announced their latest entry into the tablet market with a super-slim device called the Xperia Z4 Tablet, as well as an update to the mid-range Xperia M smartphone series, the Xperia M4. The former claims to be the world’s slimmest 10-inch tablet, packs a 2K-resolution display, and has the Snapdragon 810 (the chip in many of this year’s flagship smartphones) built inside. The Xperia M4 is a “no compromises” smartphone that packs waterproofing with some decent spec bumps.

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Sony unveils new ‘Purple Diamond Edition’ Xperia Z3

Stephen Hall Jan 22 2015 - 7:15 am PT

Sony Mobile HK 2015-01-22 08-32-22

Sony Hong Kong has today unveiled a purple variation of its flagship Xperia Z3 smartphone. It’s officially called the Xperia Z3 Purple Diamond Edition and it packs the standard black front with a purple backside. On top of the changes in its physical appearance, the new Z3 variant also ships with some content from Disney’s Frozen pre-loaded. The phone is going to launch at some point before the end of the month in Hong Kong at the price of HK$ 4,998 ($645). There’s no word yet on when or if the handset will be making it to other countries.

Here’s a gallery of shots from ePrice:

All of Sony’s Qualcomm-based 2014 Xperia devices now support KitKat AOSP

Casey Carroll Dec 16 2014 - 9:58 am PT

2014-12-16 11_48_50-AOSP available for all Qualcomm-based 2014 Xperia devices - YouTube

In a developer blog post this morning, Sony announced that developers can now build custom versions of Android for all 2014 Xperia devices with a Qualcomm processor. This is made possible through Google’s AOSP (Android Open Source Project), a project dedicated to keeping Android open and giving developers the power to build their own custom ROMs.

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How to unlock the bootloader of a Sony Xperia device

9to5 Staff Dec 13 2014 - 12:58 pm PT

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIdJg7KNH3A

Sony has uploaded a video to its developers channel that demonstrates how to unlock the bootloader of a Sony Xperia device, allowing for custom ROMs to be installed. Sony warns that you may void your device’s warranty and cautions about certain other risks that may occur.

The process involves generating an unlock code for your device through Sony by entering a unique IMEI number associated with the device. Then, you must install the Android SDK and all drivers and connect to Fastboot. Sony has a list of supported devices on its website.

Sony to reduce its smartphone efforts in hopes of cutting costs

Mark Hearn Nov 25 2014 - 11:46 am PT

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Sony’s diverse product portfolio is about to lose a little weight. Despite the company’s popularity and historical success the Japanese corporation is going to be cutting down its TV and mobile lineups to cut costs. Over the past few years Sony has steadily lost its wireless momentum to rival companies like Samsung, Apple and Xiaomi. The outfit’s new focus will be for its struggling TV and mobile divisions to simply turn a profit.

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Sony Xperia Z3 series root bounty surpasses $2,600

Mark Hearn Nov 25 2014 - 8:20 am PT

xperia-z3-compact

There’s no denying the appeal of the Sony Xperia Z3, however if you’re the type who likes to tinker with your phone, its current lack of root access might be a deal breaker for some folks. If you happen to fall into the aforementioned group of people and you’ve been holding out in hope of a resolution, your ship might soon be coming in thanks to a group of ambitious (and generous) individuals over at the XDA developers forums.

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Sony’s Backup & Restore Android application reportedly compromised (update)

Mark Hearn Nov 24 2014 - 10:38 am PT

Sony-Backup-app

Sony’s Backup & Restore Android application that comes pre-installed on its Xperia Z3 smartphone appears to have been compromised. A Google Play entry has been added for the app listing “Nirav Patel Kanudo” as its publisher, along with the software’s description claiming that it’s managed by the “HeArT HaCkEr Group.”

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Sony SVP Hiroki Totoki to take over mobile division as smartphone sales decline

9to5 Staff Oct 30 2014 - 7:38 am PT

Xperia Sony Sony Corporation announced on Thursday that it will appoint senior vice president Hiroki Totoki as the new president of its Sony Mobile division on November 16th. Totoki, who currently serves as corporate planning director at the Japanese company, will replace outgoing Sony executive Kunimasa Suzuki to run the smartphone business.

The corporate mixup is largely unsurprising given that Sony has been faced with declining Xperia smartphone sales due to tough competition from rivals Apple, Samsung, LG and others. The company has been forecasted to once again report slowing smartphone sales when it announces its latest quarterly earnings results on Friday.

As of November 16, 2014
Kunimasa Suzuki
(New)
Group Executive, Sony Corporation
Executive Vice President, Sony Entertainment Inc.
(Current)
Corporate Executive Officer, Executive Vice President,
Officer in charge of Mobile Business, Sony Corporation
President & CEO, Sony Mobile Communications Inc.

Hiroki Totoki
(New)
Group Executive, Sony Corporation
President & CEO, Sony Mobile Communications Inc.
(Current)
Corporate Executive, Senior Vice President,
In charge of Corporate Planning, Finance and New Business Creation Department, Sony Corporation

Hands-on with the Sony Xperia Z3 (Video)

Dom Esposito Sep 5 2014 - 5:10 am PT

Today we’re taking a closer look at the Sony Xperia Z3. Sony announced the Z3 and a handful of other products (we previously revealed) at a press event during IFA 2014 in Berlin. Now I know what you’re thinking, didn’t Sony just launch the Z2 earlier this year? Yes they did….

The good news is, any Z2 owners won’t need to regret the purchase because there’s nothing special here.The Xperia Z3 is finally launching without a delay in the US, but it’s coming to T-Mobile first. Either way, this is more of an Xperia Z2.5 if anything, but take a look at our hands-on video below…

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Sony announces latest Xperia smartphones: Z3, Z3 Compact, & E3

Zac Hall Sep 3 2014 - 8:09 am PT

Taking stage at IFA 2014, Sony is showing off its latest Xperia gadgets with the new Z3, Z3 Compact, and E3 smartphones. The flagship Z3 is a 5.2-inch “dust-tight and waterproof” aluminum framed device that ships in black, copper, silver green, and white. Included is a feature called PS4 Remote Play allowing you to game on the device with the PS4 controller.

Next up is the Compact Z3, a 4.6-inch device (compact, huh?) that’s also dust-tight and water proof with options in black, green, orange, and white. The Xperia Compacy Z3 also enjoys PS4 Remote Play support (as does the tablet version). Last is the Xperia E3, a 4.5-inch device with a 5 megapixel camera available in black, copper, lime, and white. (Oh, and there were also wearables, of course.) Press releases for each follows…

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Press shots leak of Sony Xperia Z3 Compact in black, white, green and red/orange

Ben Lovejoy Sep 2 2014 - 5:26 am PT

xperia-z3-compact

We’ve previously seen AutoCAD models, but Ausdroid has obtained what it says are two press shots of the Sony Xperia Z3 due to be launched at IFA in Berlin on Thursday. It has also listed specs which tally with those we posted this weekend: a 4.7-inch display 720×1280 display, a 2.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon 801 and 3GB of RAM.

The photos show four colors: black, white, a kind of mint green and a fourth color that looks more like orange in one shot and red in another (below) …
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Revealed: The new phones and waterproof tablet that Sony has up its sleeves for IFA 2014

Dom Esposito Aug 30 2014 - 5:28 pm PT

As we’ve previously reported, Sony will be launching an Android Wear powered SmartWatch 3 and a new SmartBand Talk during IFA 2014 in Berlin. Don’t worry, that’s not all the Japanese company is announcing at the show. We’ve been informed by sources close to the matter that Sony will be launching three new smartphones and a thin waterproof tablet as well. Here’s what you can expect to see at IFA 2014…

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Sony teases trio of Xperia 3 devices ahead of next week’s official launch

Ben Lovejoy Aug 28 2014 - 5:43 am PT

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kajjMuZx8nY]

It’s no great surprise that Sony is now teasing three new Xperia 3 devices in a short video on its YouTube channel, pointing to their official announcement at the IFA next week …
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AutoCAD renderings of Sony Xperia Z3 and Z3 Compact revealed

9to5 Staff Aug 8 2014 - 9:42 am PT

Z3 Renderings

AutoCAD renderings of the Sony Xperia Z3 and its little sister, the Z3 Compact, have leaked online this morning, revealing the dimensions and some specs of the two upcoming devices expected to be revealed at IFA in Berlin next month.

The first rendering is of the main flagship, the Z3. The dimensions show the device coming in at 146.46 x 72.09 x 7.3 mm, which is smaller than the Z2 in every way. The Z2 measures in at 146.8 x 73.3 x 8.2 mm and weighs 163g, so it seems likely that the Z3 will be lighter than the Z2.

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Sony Xperia Z3 alleged hardware specifications leak w/ 2.4 GHz quad-core processor and Adreno 330 graphics

9to5 Staff Jul 23 2014 - 9:39 am PT

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Sony’s current Xperia Z2 smartphone

We’ve already seen several leaks this week, and today evleaks posted the specifications of the upcoming Sony Xperia Z3 with a purported model number of ‘D6653’.
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Sony Xperia Z2 KitKat update rolling out now w/ call quality and performance improvements

Alex Allegro Jul 18 2014 - 8:05 am PT

This morning Sony began the update process for the Xperia Z2 to Android 4.4 KitKat. According to the documentation, the update should bring along some noticeable improvements including “enhanced call quality” and “improved charging when battery is low”. It’s not clear when the rollout will be complete, but it shouldn’t be too far off so keep checking that ‘System Update’ tab in your settings for KitKat goodness.

Sony updates its bootloader unlocking tools

Mark Hearn Jul 15 2014 - 11:43 am PT

Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet

In an effort to appeal to developers and tinkerers, Sony has made it easier to unlock the bootloaders on its Xperia devices. The company recently updated its bootloader unlocking service with a modernized look and feel that adds support for newer products like the Xperia Z2 and Xperia Z2 Tablet. Designed with a refreshed interface, the updated process is now broken into a few easy steps.

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