Sony Mobile

Sony Xperia Ear now available worldwide

by Sohrab Osati | Nov 22, 2016 | 0 comments

The much-talked-about (by yours truly and curiously nobody else in the tech racket) Sony Xperia Ear has now launched globally. From Sony:

Consider yourself reminded that Xperia Ear – Sony Mobile’s intelligent personal assistant – is going to be landing in stores across the world from this week.

First unveiled back at MWC in February, Xperia Ear is a whole new way to get the info you need, when you need it, all via an oh-so-small and surprisingly comfortable earpiece.

Not only does it handle the usual phone functions using voice control (make and receive calls, listen to and compose text messages), Xperia Ear comes into its own as a nifty personal assistant. It can deliver a heads-up on your schedule, give you directions, inform you of the weather and plenty more.

One problem I have with Xperia Ear has been the lack of information surrounding the product. It’s as if Sony isn’t even acknowledging it, which is quite different from when Apple launches AirPods, and that’s unfortunate. First, this leaves those interested in a state of flux as they’re unsure what exactly they’re getting themselves into – and second, if this is ushering in a new era of technology where we begin to inject AI into devices that we wear, shouldn’t Sony be banging on every drum they can to bring attention to it?

Sony SmartWatch 3 can be yours for £69.99

by Sohrab Osati | Nov 22, 2016 | 0 comments

It’s that time of the year again, folks. With the build up to Black Friday, many stores and sites throughout the world are putting promotions in place to draw you into them in hopes of you ultimately spending more. Alas, Sony likely won’t be developing a SmartWatch 4 so if you want to see what the hype (or lack thereof) around Android Wear is, or you simply have an affinity/need like I do for a smart watch, might I suggest the Sony SmartWatch 3 for £69.99?

HTC could soon exit the phone business

by Sohrab Osati | Nov 22, 2016 | 6 comments

I’ve written many times about how HTC is the bellwether for Sony and other Android OEMs that aren’t Samsung or from China. Now, according to the latest rumors as pointed out by Digital Trends, HTC could be making an exit from the smartphone business in 2017.

HTC’s mobile business has been struggling for some time, despite the fact that we are big fans of its most recent flagship device. That struggle may soon come to an end, though, as there are rumors swirling that it will leave the smartphone business entirely as soon as spring 2017.

Deep Pink Sony Xperia XZ coming to Hong Kong and Taiwan

by Sohrab Osati | Nov 18, 2016 | 0 comments

Like they did for the UK and Japan, Sony Mobile is bringing the Deep Pink color to Hong Kong and Taiwan. Sony has already seen some great success in Taiwan with the Xperia XZ where pre-orders sold out in 45 minutes so it’s no surprise to see them get it by month’s end. Following its release there, Sony will then bring the Deep Pink variant to Hong Kong in December. Though yet to be announced, don’t be surprised to hear of additional countries getting the bold color in early 2017.

Security Updates Arrive for Xperia XZ (39.0.A.3.30) and Xperia X Compact (34.1.A.3.49)

by Sohrab Osati | Nov 16, 2016 | 0 comments

Coinciding with the November 2016 Google security patches, Sony Mobile is pushing out two updates of its own that cover the Xperia XZ and Xperia X Compact. It’s unclear if the updates bring with them any additional tweaks to the system but at first glance, it appears to be just the security patches from Google.

Why Sony Can Never Make Its Own OS

by Sohrab Osati | Nov 14, 2016 | 9 comments

One thing that comes up regularly in the comments section is the cry for Sony to end its reliance on Android and build an OS of their own. Wouldn’t it be great to see Sony run with PlayStation as the core of their systems, seeing how much success they’ve been having with it, or start from the ground up and control their own destiny while becoming less reliant on Google? In theory, it all sounds great but in reality, it’s near impossible to achieve.

For starters, not even Microsoft has been able to expand beyond Windows on desktop and they were in the mobile category long before Apple and Google. Yet with a lead and billions of dollars in the war chest, Windows Mobile continues to shrink and hovers around 1% marketshare. Why is that? One word: developers.

Sony’s Concept for Android is Coming to Xperia X

by Sohrab Osati | Nov 11, 2016 | 0 comments

Sony’s Concept for Android is an initiative that dates back to a few years now which allows owners of select Xperia devices get a taste for the latest software that will be coming. This is a way for those eager to push their phone and capabilities to get their hands on the latest and it also provides Sony with a lot of valuable information on what’s working and what’s not. In short, it’s a fancy word for beta.

Sony Xperia Agent Can Order Coffee But That’s Not the Point

by Sohrab Osati | Nov 8, 2016 | 2 comments

James Trew from Engadget was able to get some hands on time with the Xperia Agent, Sony’s other competitor to devices like the Amazon Echo and now Google Home. For those playing at home, Sony plans to conquer your home with either the Xperia Agent, a robotic looking device, and the Xperia Projector. While both units will utilize the same AI/virtual assistant that lives inside the Xperia Ear, the two do differ in some ways with the former offering an LCD screen and camera and the latter being able to project information on the wall, turning any empty space into a touch-based surface. James’s piece from two months back is titled

Sony sold me on Xperia Agent in one cup of coffee

and it’s hard to fault him for that. As a coffee fanatic, I’d love nothing more than to get up in the morning and say “hey Siri, brew me an espresso roast” and my Verismo machine fires up a cup of coffee. James continues with:

Sony’s 2017 Xperia Model Numbers Revealed – G3112 and G3121

by Sohrab Osati | Nov 7, 2016 | 9 comments

In various pieces throughout the past week, I’ve written about how Sony Mobile’s next two quarters, and how well Xperia XZ is received by consumers during that period, will turn out to be a pivotal moment for the future of Sony’s mobile efforts. Even if sales results are less than stellar, Xperia phones won’t come to a halt overnight as is evident by the above two models. In fact I’d be shocked if Sony wasn’t deep in R&D of phones that we’ll see in fall 2017 but before their arrival, we’ll get the G3112 and G3121.

The Verge Places Sony, HTC, and LG on Android OEM Death Watch

by Sohrab Osati | Nov 4, 2016 | 5 comments

Despite many players in the Android ecosystem, the only one of them that’s been able to turn a profit on a regular basis has been Samsung. Even the once darling HTC has been hammered hard in the past two to three years and everybody else like LG, Motorola, and whomever else you’d like to place on that list is doing even worse. Sony for it’s part was smart and transitioned their division to do lower volumes at higher ASP which has allowed them to remain profitable, though in just the tens of millions, which isn’t a lot.

Should Sony Mobile Continue to Make Xperia Smartphones?

by Sohrab Osati | Nov 4, 2016 | 6 comments

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Earlier in the week, Sony reported their Q2 FY16 earnings report and per usual, their mobile division was a mixed bag. On one hand, they’re no longer losing hundreds of millions of dollars per quarter and yet on the other hand, smartphone shipments are down significantly. Part of the dramatic decline in sales is actually by design, as under Kaz Hirai, Sony smartly recognized that doing volume for the sake of volume while losing money hand over fist was a pointless strategy.

Along with their earnings report, Sony also cut 2016 shipment forecasts for a third time now, believing they’ll only sell 17 million units. As you can see from the chart above, they have a long way to go before they hit that number and I’m not entirely convinced they’ll be able to ship 7 million phones during the next quarter. But going back to the initial point, yes Sony Mobile is making a profit but it’s not much. In fact, for the quarter, mobile managed to bring in approximately $48 million in profits, which, in the grand scheme of a billion-dollar company, is next to nothing.

Sony Lowers Xperia Smartphone Sales by 11% for FY16

by Sohrab Osati | Nov 1, 2016 | 5 comments

sony_mobile_q2_fy16_2

One of the key factors in Sony’s Q2 2016 revenue taking an 86% dip is lower than expected Xperia smartphone sales. Having already cut smartphone sales forecasts twice in 2016, Sony is once again lowering their guidance by 11% for the year and expect to only ship 17 million units. Looking at the numbers, things don’t look all that rosy for Sony’s mobile ambitions though sales were up by 400k compared to the previous quarter. However, looking at the numbers against the same in 2015, which was never spectacular to begin with, it’s hard to walk away with a bright view on the division.

Sony Xperia Ear Commands

by Sohrab Osati | Oct 31, 2016 | 2 comments

For those regularly tuning in, you’ll know that I’ve had a bit of an infatuation with the Sony Xperia Ear. Just a few pieces I’ve written on it include:

I think you’ll find each piece worthy of your time as they paint my concerns with the product and Sony in general. Now I fundamentally believe that this is a product category that Sony needs to be in. AI-driven devices will shape the next decade, make no mistake about it, but is it the Xperia Ear? I’m not sure it is. Besides a high price tag and lackluster marketing videos (so what’s new, a lot of you would say), the Xperia Ear appears to be severely limiting.

Sony Discontinues ‘Live on YouTube’ App for Android

by Sohrab Osati | Oct 27, 2016 | 0 comments

Sad news for those who like to use Sony’s ‘Live on YouTube’ app on Android to stream live video to YouTube. Come October 28th, Sony is officially discontinuing the app and those who update to Nougat will find the app incompatible. Sony didn’t give a reason why, but the likely answer is that the YouTube app can finally live stream on its own. Google was caught sleeping when it came to live streaming from mobile devices with Periscope and now Facebook owning a majority of that space – all which led to a rise of 3rd party apps to handle the task. With Google’s YouTube app now doing basically what Sony’s app and others have been doing, there’s little reason for Sony to invest further money in an app that’s redundant.

Android 7.0 Nougat Coming Soon to Xperia Z5, Z5 Premium, Z3+, and X Series

by Sohrab Osati | Oct 26, 2016 | 6 comments

To say Sony’s had a mixed track record with OS updates would be a bit of understatement. Android Marshmallow, the now year-old release from Google, has yet to make it onto many devices so when Nougat was announced, Sony fans were more than skeptical on when, if ever, they’d get the update.

Now, back in September, Sony revealed their update strategy for Android 7.0 Nougat which had a majority of their fleet getting the update by year’s end, but I wouldn’t hold it against you if you rolled your eyes a bit. Luckily for those with a newer device, that timeframe seems to be holding true.