While not new for CES 2014, Sony was in full promotion mode of their attachable smartphone camera lenses which include the Cyber-shot QX100 and QX10. While the two lenses offer many similar functionalities, like being able to sync to an iOS or Android device and act as an improved lens with local storage and battery, there are certainly differences between the two models. While tech specs certainly differ between the two models, size is another varying factor. After the jump, we compare the QX100 to the QX10 and help give you a better sense of the attachable lens sizes.
Phones
News at last! We finally got to see what the Xperia ‘Amami’ is, as Sony unveiled a mini version of the Z1 flagship at CES named the Xperia Z1 Compact. Details of this mysterious ‘mini’ version have been leaking for a number of weeks. The Xperia Z1 Compact is a glossy, stunning powerhouse in a more petite form factor of only 127 x 64.9 x 9.5 mm.
Perhaps even more surprising than the Z1 Compact was Sony’s committment to the US market, presenting a variant of the Z1 flagship known as the Z1S, exclusive to T-Mobile due and is due in the US later this month.
Read on for the full specs, dates and lesser known features…
Is the current flagship being upstaged by a non-flagship?
The mini version of the Z1 flagship, Xperia Z1 f recently became available in Japan. An international version is widely expected to become available soon, possibly revealed very shortly at CES. This international version is expected to be the Z1 s and the only difference from the Japanese launch version is likely global network compatibility.
Sony fans in Japan have been comparing the Z1 and it’s mini brother to see if Sony has improved on anything. They have, the display it seems. But they may have enhanced the screen too much to remain just the mini version. Images from owners suggest a striking display superiority of the mini…over it’s larger, flagship brother… Is the difference consistent?
Check out the other comparisons and see for yourself…
CES is upon us and it’s almost time to see which of the rumoured devices will finally become available to us.
The star of the show could be a mini version of the reigning flagship the Z1. It has undergone some design (and name) updates since it’s debut in Japan but the mini version to the powerhouse Z1 could be shown off at CES in Las Vegas. It’s a 4.3″ screen with a resolution of 720 x 1280p fuelled by a quad-core 2.2 GHz Krait 400. This will be the ‘Amami’.
The 2013 fleet will get an update as the Xperia E and E Dual will be updated to the E1 and E1 Dual as seen when passing through the FCC in the US. This appears to be the mysterious ‘Falcon’.
There are two more rumoured smartphones incoming, codenamed ‘Sirius’ and ‘Canopus’ according to one reliable source. What are these devices?
Read on to find out the details…
It’s January at last – the new smartphone season has begun and Sony must be close to revealing its plans. The first date in the calendar is the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas from the 7th-11th. It was this time last year that the Japanese company unleashed the Xperia Z to the world and walked out with nearly every smartphone award available.
Sony may be taking a different approach to a few things this year however. Rumours are coming in of at least two major changes to Sony’s strategy this year. It seems that the company may be preparing to release smartphones on a different OS in 2014, breaking from its Android-exclusivity. There is also news on their next flagship plan thanks to a holiday message posted on their website.
Which OS and which flagship? Read on to find out more…
If you’ve ever wanted to easily transfer a file between your PC (Mac, Windows) and Android device, or files between your Android smartphone and tablet that didn’t rely on the cloud, then you’ve been out of luck till now. Sony has announced a new dual 2-in-1 flash drive which houses a micro USB port on one end and a full-size USB port on the other end. This new dual USB drive will allow you to easily transfer files between devices without the need of the cloud, Bluet00th, or Wi-Fi. Now let’s talk details, including price and availability.
Good news for owners of the Sony Xperia Z, ZL, ZR, and Tablet Z. Sony has officially begun rolling out Android 4.3 Jelly Bean for your device with a few performance tweaks and new UI touches. In addition, Sony has released updated their Smart Social Camera and Walkman apps to take advantage of Android 4.3 Jelly Bean. After the break, you’ll find a list of changes to expect.
After announcing plans to give the QX10 and QX100 a host of improvements via a new firmware update come this January, Sony released a new update for the PlayMemories Mobile app. The app which is available for iOS and Android devices is required since the lenses lack their own screen. So what does PlayMemories Mobile app version 4.0 bring? Lets talk details.
Yesterday we ran a piece on 9 new countries that are receiving the PlayStation Mobile store. For those not familiar, PlayStation Mobile is an effort on Sony’s part to expand the reach of the PlayStation brand beyond official PlayStation consoles and into the mobile world. In order for a device to be able to have access to the PlayStation Mobile store which includes indie and classic PSone games, the device in question must be PlayStation Certified. After the jump, the list of PlayStation Certified devices await you.
Come this January, Sony will be releasing a new firmware update for the Sony QX10 and QX100 attachable external lenses for iOS and Android smartphones. The new firmware update will bring with it a host of improvements which include a higher ISO for better shots in the dark. Video fans will also be happy to note that both lenses will get the ability to record full HD video (1o80p) versus the current 720p. After the jump, lets talk details.
The PlayStation Mobile Store is to compatible Android devices, what the PlayStation Store is to official PlayStation devices. Conceived a few years ago, the PlayStation Mobile store allows for the purchase of smaller mobile games that run on PlayStation Certified devices like Sony’s Xperia line of smartphones, tablets, and even the PlayStation Vita. When initially launched, Sony even planed to bring the store and its content to iOS though those plans seem abandoned at this point.
Now, Sony is expanding the store to 9 new countries which can be found after the jump.
Sony’s latest flagship smartphone, the Xperia Z1 has been the exclusive home of Sony’s Motion Shot camera app. For those not familiar, the app allows you to capture a short movie by automatically rendering the movement into a single still image so that it appears to be a continuous picture. Now, thanks to a porting effort, anyone running Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich and above can download and run the free app. This includes devices like the Xperia S, Xperia ZR, Xperia ZL, and even the Xperia Z Ultra.
Last week, something unexpected happened to Sony’s mobile line. Via the Google Play store, the Sony Xperia Z Ultra Google Play edition came up for sale with a $649 price tag. While exactly the same in the hardware department, this iteration of the device lacks any of Sony’s custom software and instead shipped with Android 4.4 Kitkat. While seeming like a good thing, this proved to have some problematic outcomes like the inability to uninstall apps which seems like a bizarre thing to ship a device with. Thankfully, Android 4.4.2 for the Sony Xperia Z Ultra Google Play edition fixes all of that.
The wait for Android 4.3 for Sony’s latest fleet of smartphone is officially over. The Sony Xperia Z (C6603) and Xperia ZL (C6503) are gaining Android 4.3 thanks to the XDA developers center though it remains to be seen if it’s the final consumer build. While there likely won’t be anymore changes coming to the build, it’s always better to take caution with such downloads and potentially wait for the official release from Sony.
While many look towards the Cupertino camp to officially kick off the smart watch race, Sony is continuing to tinker away and improve their second iteration. Sony has announced a new firmware for the Sony SmartWatch 2 with build 1.0.B.3.46/1.0.A.3.8 that will bring some major changes to the Android based watch. Changes include larger fonts, new UI, and even a date to go along with the clock. After the jump, full list of changes await you.
You must be logged in to post a comment.