Sony xperia x1 specifications. Mobile phone Sony Ericsson Xperia X1. Software and multimedia

The continuation of XA turned out to be interesting: the MediaTek Helio P20 chipset and 3 GB of RAM, did not forget about the oleophobic coating, a 23 megapixel camera is used, as in the Sony Xperia Z5, there are some design nuances…

The most important thing

As for the Sony Xperia XA1, there are at least two important points here. First, we added an oleophobic coating on the front panel. This is already progress in comparison with the device of the first generation. The second is that Sony did not reinvent the budget line, but remake the model that already exists on the market, taking into account the wishes of users and sellers.

It would be necessary to type the line above with caps, but I will not do this - whoever needs it will understand that this is real progress.

It used to be like before. Every year, Sony shuffled the entire line, and we just had to get used to the updated nomenclature. Okay, new letters, okay. New design, new everything. While Apple, Samsung and other companies have been exploiting successful design for at least a couple of years, Sony has only now come to this. It's good that they came. Very happy.

It's good, because the XA, in general, was a good device. Reminds Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray, suitable for both boys and girls.

By the way, XA1, like almost all other announced Xperia, all consists of matte details. Imagine the XA1 in matte white plastic. Nice to hold, looks great.

The main differences between the XA1 and the XA are a slightly different design, a different processor, a 23 megapixel camera, which means that now this budget device has moved into another class. Almost middle class.

Characteristics and features

The smartphone will be presented in four colors: black, white, pink and gold, the last two look very cool and girls will like it. Black and white options are classic. Matte plastic, however, not all smartphones managed to feel. In the hand, the device lies pleasantly, the dimensions are small, every time I remember Ray when I pick it up.

Specifications Sony Xperia XA:

• Body materials: plastic, metal, glass
• Operating system: Android 7.1
• Network: GSM/EDGE, WCDMA, LTE (nanoSIM)
• Screen: IPS LCD, 5”, capacitive, HD), 554 ppi, automatic backlight level control
• Chipset MediaTek Helio P20
• Graphic system: mali t880
• RAM: 3 GB
• Storage: 32 GB, microSD card slot, supports cards up to 256 GB
• Main camera: 1/2.3" 23MP Sony Exmor RS camera, flash LED flash, fullHD video. Same camera used in Sony Xperia Z5
• Front camera: 8 MP
• Interfaces: 3.5 mm headset, NFC, Bluetooth 4.2
• Navigation: GPS/Glonass (A-GPS support)
• Extras: FM radio, fast charging (Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0), sensors: accelerometer, position sensor, ambient light sensor, gyroscope, barometer
• Features: LTE supported, FM radio, 2 (two) SIM card slots and one separate microSD slot
• Battery: 2300 mAh, fast charging supported
• Dimensions: 143.6 x 66.8 x 7.9mm
• Weight: 138.8g

It uses a USB Type-C connector, let me remind you that now Type C is in all modern Sony devices, these are inexpensive smartphones, and flagships, and accessories. If we are going to go, then with all our might! I agree with this.

The main thing that I noticed was that the sore spots were consistently improved - the oleophobic coating, the camera, the processor and the RAM. We did the same with the XA1 Ultra, but we'll talk about that in another article.

Wait or not?

The device will appear in retail in the second quarter of 2017, the price will be about 25,000 rubles. The company says that XA1 is a people's device for everyone. Given that the Sony Xperia XA1 does not have any skins, add-ons, problems with working with the Google store, there is a good design, a camera that is not bad for this segment and functions in general, it is worth waiting for a smartphone. I understand everything that you can tell me about Chinese devices for 25,000 rubles, but there are hundreds of "against" in addition to a dozen reasons "for".

I repeat - I'm glad that XA did not sink into oblivion and received a sequel.

The flagship smartphone XPERIA X1 will remain so until the release (hopefully, at the end of this year) of the model with the code name . Interest in it is fueled by excellent case materials, a large display with a diagonal of 3 inches and a resolution of 800x480, a QWERTY keyboard and an intriguing interface - X-panels, which are shells in the form of a desktop with different functionality. The set came out interesting, if not unique, but at the same time contradictory.

Confess, editorial gg I was tormented by doubts - to take or not to take this smartphone for review. It was announced last year at Mobile World Congress 2008, went on sale just before the New Year. At the same time, an extremely small amount of this phone was delivered to our country. It is not cheap and you can buy it only "on order" - you will not find it in free sale. A truly Hamlet question was nevertheless resolved in favor of “to be”, since the model still turned out to be significant and interesting, despite the fact that its release was delayed. In addition, we have certain tender feelings for the Sony Ericsson brand (as well as for Motorola, which is going through hard times), so we could not resist the temptation to play with the flagship smartphone of the company, even if it was developed in the depths of HTC (although both companies do not comment on this fact, however, without denying it).

A bit of history

Model Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 produced the effect of an exploding bomb at Mobile World Congress 2008 in the truest sense of the word. Nobody expected such a step from the company - to take and in one fell swoop abandon the Symbian UIQ platform, into which huge resources were swelled, to announce a new flagship on Windows Mobile. Even such a trifle as support for microSD memory cards and the rejection of Sony cards looked like a reasonable step towards the consumer, bordering on corporate blasphemy. A huge display with advanced resolution, a QWERTY keyboard and the promised innovative interface all boded well and fueled the interest of the public, unprepared for such upheavals and a sharp turn in the direction of the company. At first, a new version of Windows Mobile was promised, but then Microsoft let it down, as a result, the model came out with a slightly updated version 6.1. In fact, there were more problems. In June, a similar product was announced by HTC (of course, we are talking about the HTC Touch Pro). And he got to the shelves much earlier than the "experiment", in time for the crisis. In addition, the distributors of systems on Windows Mobile, due to specifics, are closer to the computer audience than to the mobile one. And HTC's position in this segment in the second half of 2008 was stronger than ever. As a result, of all the advantages of the XPERIA X1, only a partially metal case remained, the promised interface with the ability to create custom shells (it was assumed that independent developers could create their own panels) and an army of Sony Ericsson brand fans who were looking forward to the new product.

Specifications

The undoubted advantages of the model include a 3-inch display with a resolution of 800x480. Let me remind you that the Asus Eee PC 4G netbook had a similar resolution. Of course, there is some profanity with usability, which is widely replicated by the media, but in general it is considered that it is convenient to browse websites on a 3-inch display with this resolution. Although on the same Asus Eee PC 4G this convenience is doubtful, despite the significantly larger physical dimensions of the screen. For comparison, the characteristics of HTC Touch Pro are given. Both of them are available for sale in limited quantities (there are noticeably more HTC Touch Pro offers, but they could have been imported even before the onset of the crisis, counting on New Year's sales). The price for both models revolves around the amount of 5000 hryvnia.

Appearance

Taking into account the QWERTY-keyboard, the device turned out to be not very large, but the metal parts made it quite weighty. Metal is the base of the chassis, on which the keyboard itself is located. When closed, it looks like a metal bezel on the body, and when open, it looks like metal around the keyboard and gives the device an expensive look. In the corners there are LEDs that illuminate when incoming and missed calls and incoming messages.

The keyboard, at first glance, is very similar to a computer keyboard - a long spacebar, L-shaped Enter, but it obviously takes a long time to get used to it. Especially since some keys just require it. For example, a button with a Windows icon or a completely “intuitive” “ok” key. And the lack of arrows to control the cursor at first introduces into a stupor - to move the cursor, you need to move your fingers to the upper block with the display, where the navigation module is located.

Despite the fact that we got a test copy and hard “beaten by life” (for example, this explains the absence of a rubberized plug hiding the mounting screw in the upper right corner of the picture). But the metal battery cover and the soft touch material on the back look like new. Sony Ericsson didn't skimp on materials in this model. Except for the dust that constantly clogs into all the small cracks on the case, the device looks like new.

At the bottom there is a loop for tying a keychain, cord or other spillikins. The top has a 3.5mm jack and a power button.

The right sidebar contains the traditional camera button and volume keys. Pay attention to the speaker slot (on the left side of the upper and right - lower pictures). On the left is a USB connector - it serves for charging and for exchanging data with a computer. By the way, the charger with XPERIA is supplied, as in the case with HTC, into the plug of which you need to plug this very USB cable. That is, charging in any case comes from USB.

The cover makes an ambiguous impression. On the one hand, it looks reliable. On the other hand, after an accidental fall of the phone, it flew off along with the battery that fell out of its compartment. In these two shots, she sits loosely, it may be worth reshooting this angle for a full view. The stylus with its black cap hides in the body of the phone like a partisan in the forests of Transcarpathia - finding it is not so easy and fast. However, I have completely lost the habit of using it. Moreover, my last three phones were with touch screens and I got the hang of getting where I needed (if necessary) with the tip sharpened like a razor nail.

The navigation block, to be honest, turned out to be redundant in the end. Six keys, a navigation key, and even an optical joystick (which is not actually an optical joystick or a joystick - everything is just like a guinea pig). In general, there is a small touchpad in the center of the navigation block. The same is in Samsung Witu and a number of other models. To be honest, the author of such navigation wants erect a monument Ask some questions. For example - why, with two soft keys, make a separate “ok” button (duplicated, by the way, on a QWERTY keyboard and at the same time it is still completely incomprehensible in what situation it is used). The buttons for receiving and rejecting a call are quite justified. As well as a separate key that launches the same X Panels that were talked about so much in the announcement. But this key should be taken out somehow separately. I would, for example, make the launch of the panels in a simpler and more natural way - by pressing the center of the navigation key. Which is usually used to enter the menu. By the way, this optical joystick can be turned off in the Windows Mobile settings and you can use the navigation key as usual.

The SIM card is easy to install. It is supported by a special plate, which must be pressed in order to pull the card back.

But the memory card, although it can be removed without turning off the phone, but its connector is hidden under the cover. Therefore, when replacing a memory card, the cover will have to be removed. This image also clearly shows the stylus in its niche and the 3-megapixel camera module with LED backlight.

Appearance video

Interface and X-Panels

X-Panels are the key element to work with the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1. Alternatively, you can use the standard Windows Mobile menu, but it's hard to say which of them is worse. There was a feeling that the developers of X-panels didn't bother to get acquainted with similar add-ons for the operating system (there are already quite a few of them, but one could start from the most common one - TouchFLO 3D, created by HTC). In fairness, it must be said that there are eleven additional panels already available for free download (happy phone owners can access the download of new panels directly from the phone). These are panels for accessing Evernote, Facebook, Skype, Windows Live services. But in general, for a phone that went on sale six months ago, these are, of course, crumbs. The X-panels menu is called up by pressing a special key. At the same time, an icon gallery appears with all installed panels. There are not so many of them and they duplicate each other, differing for the most part only in color design. Visualization of the panels is implemented in 3 ways - you can spread them like a fan like this, or you can - that way. But this is all pampering, the only convenient way is to spread them out in a table. To remove or add new panels, you must press the settings key.

The Google bar serves to launch the corresponding services. Its presence is more like a nod of courtesy to a partner, rather than a reasonable necessity. The trouble with all X-panels is that to launch some application that is not on the current panel, you need to enter the panels menu, select a “more different” panel, wait for it to load (a few seconds) and only then start the application. It would be difficult to come up with a more complex mechanism. Another useless but beautiful panel is the fish panel. They just float on the screen with a clock and react to the touch of your fingers - they can be driven away. This is where all the fun ends.

The remaining panels are quite similar to each other. The process of loading panels is implemented as in the Apple iPhone. That is, the recompressed picture is loaded first (apparently, it is believed that since it is, the idiot user is sure that the application loaded instantly), and after 3-4 seconds, it does not become clear - this is the downloaded application with the X-panel. But in general, it's all better to see in the video below.

X-panels

The most useful (and the only truly convenient) is the panel developed by the St. Petersburg company Spb Software. Apparently, it will be included in the standard delivery set (I remind you that I had a test sample). The panel has three tabs - diary, main applications and contacts.

But, as folk wisdom says, it is better to see once than hear a hundred times: Spb Shell Panel

Two more standard panels are purely entertainment functions. It is completely incomprehensible why their functions are not combined - I have never met a phone in my life in which switching between radio and media player required so much time and actions. In addition, if you load one of them, the second will inevitably be unloaded from memory, which is generally strange for a multitasking device. The media panel is animated quite nicely and, in addition to listening to music, allows you to watch videos and photos. But the radio panel is extremely ascetic - it looks quite adequate and it is convenient to use it, but you will agree that the stations in the memory are, to put it mildly, wrong. Most likely it's all about the haste with which the developers made this panel.

Radio panel

From the "native" the most interesting (after the Spb Shell panel) is the panel called XPERIA. It has many settings, allows you to add RSS feeds, select blocks that will be displayed on the desktop. Here it would be appropriate to say that XPERIA is a phone aimed at those who prefer to be constantly online. The first thing a smartphone does after entering a pin code is connect to the Internet and try to keep its owner up to date with all the news (mail and RSS feeds). These opportunities cannot but be appreciated by those who are really interested in them. The device does not let you forget that it is now 2009.

The remaining two panels, however, have similar settings, which are modestly called (minus marketers - they could come up with something memorable, but there was not enough time, intelligence, or both at once) “panel 1” and “panel 2”.

A couple more interesting screenshots - the first shows access to the Picasa Google Dashboard, the second is the Comm Manager application used by HTC. It allows you to easily and simply manage all the communication capabilities of the phone (although it is not clear how the “on the plane” mode differs from turning off the phone).

But Google maps have never looked as good on the phone as they do here. Of course, this is due to the high resolution of the screen and its size. Perhaps, in this form, they are really comfortable to use.

For the sake of formality, I will give more screenshots of the Windows Mobile settings. They are standard, as you would expect. And they do not carry anything unusual and unseen before.

Camera

It is worth saying that premium smartphones, which certainly include the XPERIA X1, have never been distinguished by advanced cameras. Not that their customers would refuse a good camera in their device. Rather, manufacturers do not equip their devices with advanced cameras so that the price, already comparable to the cost of a laptop, does not rise to the cost of an expensive laptop, limiting the circle of buyers (and reducing manufacturing resources, which, in turn, will also lead to higher costs). The camera in the XPERIA X1 is quite standard, three-megapixel with autofocus and LED backlight. Logically, it should be similar to the one in the HTC Tocuh Pro, but I liked the camera in the HTC Touch Diamond, which I had pleasure (or displeasure - this is from which side to look, there were a lot of disappointments) to use, I liked less. Plus, the XPERIA X1 camera has the ability to select the autofocus area when shooting - for this, you just need to activate the appropriate mode and simply tell the device what to focus on by pointing your finger at the corresponding area of ​​the display. By the way, the work of autofocus, either due to the incomplete version of the device, or something else, gave frequent failures during macro shooting, focusing on the general background (in this case, it was the background, the focus of which did not interest me at all). But in the forced focus mode, everything worked just fine - with all the desire to find flaws in the operation of automation, it would not work. The default resolution is 2048x1280, which matches the aspect ratio of the display. But if you wish, you can also choose 2048x1536 (that is, 4: 3). In practice, the camera simply cuts off a strip from above and below, but everyone can decide in what resolution to shoot on their own. For printing, of course, 2048x1536 is better. But maybe someone takes pictures to watch them on their widescreen monitor or TV. Sample images in original resolution are available by clicking on the preview. The images will open in a new browser window. You can view the entire gallery, consisting of fifty pictures, in

: Hooray! In less than a year, almost the final pre-commercial sample of the Xperia X1, a communicator that made many reconsider their attitude to Windows Mobile, got into the hands of your humble servant. And whether this communicator is worth reconsidering your attitude to these devices, let's try to figure it out in our today's review.

Introduction

You can talk about this device for a long time, you can not talk at all, but one thing remains a fact: on the first day of MWC'08, the main attention of the public was concentrated on Xperia, which then still existed mainly in the form of dummies or completely working prototypes, but with the basic version of Windows Mobile 6.0 Professional. A little later, by April of the past year, the first samples with the operating system version 6.1 began to appear, and at the same time with the beginnings of one of the main functions that were actively promoted for this new product. But the path of the device to the shelves was truly a long one, if we consider November 2008 as the date of commencement of sales.

What was the first reason for the delays in the release of the model, which was planned to be launched already in July-August? The first reason lies in the original intention of Sony Ericsson to become the first manufacturer to use the Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system in its device, the announcement of which was planned in June 2008. But already in May, all the company's plans began to crumble, as Microsoft decided to focus on the early announcement of Windows Mobile 7.0, which was originally planned only for 2010. In this situation, Sony Ericsson programmers faced the fact of the final use of Windows Mobile 6.1 only by the time when HTC spectacularly announced the Touch Diamond, with the same OS 6.1 and Today's own screen skin called Touch FLO 3D.

But this only partially delayed the communicator's entry into the market, while other ambitions associated with an unusual hardware and software component ensured Sony Ericsson's banal unpreparedness for parallel fine-tuning of the communicator before its launch in England, and in a number of other markets where the option was not ready. local keyboard layout. Russia was also among the countries with incomplete localization, which is why the communicator did not have time to hit store shelves before the new year, but at the moment when you are reading these lines, the new product has probably already taken its place on store windows, so it's time take a closer look at it.

Appearance

Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 can rightly be called one of the most beautiful communicators based on Windows Mobile, which is due to one uncomplicated property. Unlike most other E-TEN, ASUS and HTC devices, the Xperia body is made mainly of metal, and metal is not called aluminum, often used in other Sony Ericsson products, but steel.

As a result, Xpreria, made in the form factor of a side slider with dimensions of 111.2 x 52.7 x 18 mm, fully corresponds to the title of a technologically advanced fashion solution. If we compare the body dimensions of the Xperia X1 with other communicators based on Windows Mobile, it will be easy to notice a certain minimalism of Sony Ericsson's novelty, although the comparison with and minimizes the dimensions of the communicator.

If we take smartphones based on Symbian OS for comparison, we will not be able to notice a significant difference in size, and this is taking into account the fact that we are not in front of a monoblock, but a slider.

The Xperia X1 lies comfortably in the hand, fully concentrating tactile impressions on the steel parts that make up the lion's share of the communicator's surface. Initially, in the mechanics of the communicator, you can notice a tight transverse play of the lower and upper edges of the front half, which is caused by the mechanics of the guides without frills, as in a monolithic one. An additional refinement to the densely assembled body of the X1 gives a significant weight of 158 grams, deleting the chest pocket of a shirt and trousers from the list of places to carry, while in jeans and a jacket, the communicator can be worn without negative feelings all day.

The entire front surface of Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 is made of a single sheet of steel, most of which is concentrated on top. We are dealing with a matte surface, the corners of which are polished to a high gloss. Alas, since this is not stainless steel, the wear of the matte areas appears after a week of use, and after a month there is no doubt that the device was used daily.

A narrow rectangular cutout runs close to the upper edge of the front surface in the steel panel, on the left of which a light sensor is visible, and on the right there is an additional camera for video calls. The rest of the space is occupied by a protruding silver insert, from the bottom edge of which you can see a speaker slot.

A centimeter lower, another cut begins in the steel sheet, this time much larger, since it ends only 5 mm from the bottom edge. The purpose of the cutout leaves no doubt thanks to the familiar film touch screen, which acts as the main means of controlling the communicator.

Actually the area of ​​the touch screen suggests that it protects a widescreen TFT - a matrix with a diagonal of 3 inches, capable of displaying up to 65536 colors. The physical dimensions of the communicator's screen are 38.7 x 65 mm, but the matrix resolution is 480 x 800 pixels. It would seem that a similar screen was used in the communicator, but the similarity between the matrices remains only from the position of a record small grain size of 0.08 x 0.08 mm, while the color rendering and white balance parameters are clearly on the side of the Xperia X1. The image on the communicator's screen is distinguished by a rich color palette, only software-limited to 65536 colors, with a good level of brightness and contrast, but the white color is slightly shifted towards the warm range of 5000-5700K, which made it possible to achieve deep blacks without going into gray tones. As for the brightness of the backlight, here we are presented with a uniform scale of 11 gradations, the minimum value of which is comfortable in the case of reading texts at night, and the maximum value is perfect for watching videos or reading the same texts during the day.

In the sun, the behavior of the Xperia X1 screen is quite expected due to the use of a film touch screen, which reduces the sharpness of the picture by half, while reducing the image contrast. Accordingly, a comfortable viewing of images and graphics is already difficult, although all the contrasting areas are readable, and navigation through the menu is not satisfactory. In addition, the X1 screen matrix used also provides excellent viewing angles without inversion, both horizontally and vertically, and when viewed from the corners of the screen.

Immediately below the screen display, a black area of ​​the key block begins, the beginning of which is a monolithic strip with a logo and floating corners along the edges. Significantly protruding thin keys are inscribed in these ledges, duplicating the virtual strip of the lower contextual elements. Continuing to move around the edges, our gaze appears triangular answer/end call keys, the latter of which is also used to lock the keys and the screen. From below, the keyboard block is interesting with the OK key on the right, as well as the panel launch button on the left, which we will talk about in more detail in the corresponding part of the review.

All the remaining space is given at the mercy of a large navigation key with elongated triangular edges on the left and right. Due to the millimeter protrusion above the surface, working with the four-way navigation key is quite convenient, although some may not like the clear click of all the buttons with a sonorous mechanical click. Only one button has a silent click, namely the recessed confirmation key inscribed in the center, whose soft stroke adds to ease of use. And one of its interesting features can discourage the need to use mechanical cursor deflection keys.

We are talking about the presence of an optical navigation pad, on which it is enough to swipe your fingertip in the right direction to move the cursor one position to the side. Using only an optical element for navigation, there are no particular problems, but in conjunction with the navigation key, erroneous actions are too frequent not to use the option to turn off the “optical joystick” in the settings.

Continuing downward, we again come across a steel front panel, from the bottom end tightly adjoining a plastic chrome insert. At their junction, you can see a tiny microphone hole, and already from the end of the main half, you can see a hole for attaching a strap with a thin loop.

From the upper side of the case, a slightly recessed power key is of interest, located right on the verge of a spectacular end strip of a break that forms the angular relief of the Xperia ends, with an arcuate bend of the rib from the bottom and top. In addition to the power button, there is also a 3.5 mm headphone jack - a first for Sony Ericsson, but familiar to communicators based on Windows Mobile.

On the left side of the case there is an ordinary miniUSB - a connector for connecting a communication cable with a PC, which, in turn, can be connected to the power supply of the charger. From the bottom edge there is an empty recess of the ribbed edging of the case, identical to the other three, also located along the edges of the left and right ends. Closer to the rear surface under the recess, you can see the opening of the polyphonic speaker, often blocked by a finger during operation, which reduces the sound volume by 70%.

The right end of the case is no less interesting, since there is a key on top - a volume rocker with an adjacent central risk. Working with the key is inconvenient for one reason only: the distance between the volume up and down buttons is less than a centimeter. In addition, the flat shape of the button and the indistinct click with a short stroke do not add ergonomic points. From the bottom edge of the butt there is a silver key of identical size, also equipped with two degrees of pressure, but this time we are talking about the shutter button. The focus preload is quite expressive and accurate, but to release the shutter, you will have to double the pressure, resting your thumb on the speaker hole from the opposite edge of the case.

Instead of going to the description of the rear surface, we suggest taking a closer look at the left and right ends of the case, where two black stripes of the front half of the case are clearly visible. On the edges of these plastic inserts, four LEDs are inconspicuously placed, effectively acting as an indicator of missed and ongoing events by pulsing flashing.

And now we return to the lower and upper faces of the case, where a curved gap between the halves is clearly visible, suggesting thoughts about an unusual opening mechanism. The mechanism really looks interesting, although we are talking about two ordinary steel guide rails, as well as a halfway finishing mechanism. On paper, everything looks ordinary, but in practice, the side shift of the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 can surprise even those who have tried the HTC Touch Pro in practice. Holding the device in the right hand, the middle finger easily pushes the front half of the case to the right, and halfway through, the auto-adjustment is triggered, completed by a dull metallic pop. After that, the thumb easily gropes for the rebounded edge, and the half is easily pushed back. And again cotton with a pleasant dull sound. It's funny, but you can just clap the halves of the communicator because there is nothing to do - exactly the same entertainment is interesting for some owners, so there is nothing strange in this.

Keyboard

Opening the case of the Xperia X1, we immediately meet a large block of QWERTY - a keyboard consisting of 4 rows of keys separated from each other, the total number of which is 42, and 32 keys can be used for various keyboard layouts. As you understand, the letter “Ё” fell under the write-off of Cyrillic characters, while all other letters found their place on the layout, and the characters were placed on the keyboard in the same way as NUM - a block on the keyboards of ordinary laptops. By the way, since we remembered laptops, it's time to talk about two interesting points:

• Xperia X1 keyboard looks similar to Sony VAIO P-series keyboard unit


• the rectangular keys are spaced apart in the tradition of Sony laptop keys.

In addition, strengthening the similarity of the communicator's keyboard is ensured by the presence of a massive Enter key, as well as a brick structure of the arrangement of horizontal rows at a 50% offset from the neighboring block. The secondary points include the presence of a button for changing the layout, a large Tab key, a small Shift, a monstrous space, duplicating the Start and OK keys.

And now it's time to move on to the impressions of working with the keyboard, albeit in the case of entering text in English, due to the lack of factory Russian letters. The buttons themselves practically do not protrude above the surface, so their rough matte texture becomes the only reference point for the fingers, in contrast to the glossy panel that frames the keys. A funny moment is a kind of convex texture of the keys, with a diagonal relief under the thumbs of the right and left hands. Due to these bevels, quite acceptable tactility of the keys is provided, while their mechanics leaves only pleasant impressions. The noticeable elastic movement of the buttons is completed by a clear click with a dull click. As for the text input speed, the situation here is quite comparable with the HTC Touch Pro, so we can take 80 characters per minute as the base value, with possible deviations to the side.

The back surface of the communicator continues to delight the eye with brutal protrusions and a metal surface. From the top edge, two screw plugs are easily visible, immediately under which there is again a rectangle, and again with corners along the edges. A slightly recessed protective glass with a black substrate is inscribed in this protruding frame, under which a weak LED flash and a 3.2 megapixel camera module with autofocus optics are hidden.

Another protrusion runs from the opposite edge of the case, together with the first one, protecting the steel cover of the battery compartment from excessive contact with the surface. The metal is under such symbolic protection for a reason, since its textured matte surface is prone to small scuffs, which will become noticeable after a couple of months of using the communicator.

The lid significantly floats on the ends of the body, where the grooves under the nail are visible, allowing you to hook it and pull it towards you. As you understand, you have to pull on the end of sheet steel, so it's better to forget about the safety of the manicure, since the external forms of the communicator are designed mainly for the male hand, where even a nail remains a tool. The lid is fixed due to metal protrusions soldered from the inside and two guides on top, which are in contact with the recesses in the plastic frame, the condition of which has not worsened during the month of using the communicator.

But before looking under the lid, let's look again at the top of the back surface. On the right edge, the head of the stylus is inconspicuously located with convenient risks for prying with a fingernail. Fixing the stylus is devoid of magnets, however, the tight fitting of the cap to the groove in the case provides a moderately tight movement of the control in the slot. Having taken out the stylus, it remains only to note the convenient execution of this thin steel stick with a small plastic tip, as well as a comfortable length of 85.7 mm.

So, the battery cover has already been removed, so it's time to head to the microSDHC memory card slot located on the left side. Removing and installing cards does not require the presence of long nails, and the edge of the fingertip can be dispensed with, which is convenient.

And now it's time to take a look at the massive lithium - polymer battery BST - 41, whose capacity is 1500 mAh. It seems that everything in it is good, and the capacity is optimal for such a functional device, but it reminds of something. To answer this question, it does not hurt to take and look at their battery. Also lithium-polymer and also - 1500 mAh. We take both batteries in one hand, and doubts disappear by themselves. We are dealing with an accessory produced by Panasonic for both companies, so you can be sure that in a year the battery capacity of the Xperia X1 will remain at the proper level.

And this means that on one charge you can:

• read books at minimum illumination for about 22 hours


• 5 hours of watching videos at maximum backlight


• 17 hours listening to music or radio


• 6 hours to surf the net via Wi-Fi.

In normal operation, with half an hour of calls a day, an hour of using Wi-Fi for browsing WEB pages, two hours of listening to music and 20 minutes of extermination of balls in a standard game, the battery charge reaches critical 2% after three days. If you use the communicator even harder, the operating time will be about 1.5 days, and a more gentle mode is already irrelevant for Xperia. Accordingly, we propose to count on 2 days of work, deviations from which will be insignificant.

An interesting slot for a SIM card is waiting for us under the battery, with a large plastic stop pressed down when the card is removed. To install it, first, the edge of the card is threaded into the black casing, after which it remains only to drag it until the plastic stop is flush with it.

Hardware Features

Taking into account the well-known fact, regarding the production of Xperia X1 by HTC for Sony Ericsson, it seems quite logical to use the Qualcomm MSM7200A complex component as the basis for computing power, which is based on a computing processor with a clock frequency of 528 MHz. On the one hand, there is an optimistic picture of a high-performance device, but in comparison with the HTC Touch Pro, one small detail immediately becomes clear. The HTC communicator uses the MSM7201A, which differs from that used in the Xperia X1 by the active video processing component with the QTv codec, while in the hero of our today's review all tasks are performed by a single processor, and nothing more.

As for the amount of memory, here Xperia looks more than interesting, offering the user:

• 256 MB DDR RAM - more than 200 MB available for running applications


• 512 MB ROM - memory for storing user data, although in practice only 281 MB is available


• slot for microSDHC - memory cards, up to 32 GB.

The characteristics look quite impressive, but they clearly do not pull on the title of records. However, this is another result of a long delay between the announcement and the release of the communicator on sale.

Software features

As mentioned in the introduction, Sony Ericsson had a lot of plans to become the leader in the use of the Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system, but in the end, the Xperia X1 received by no means a fresh operating system from Microsoft with the 6.1 Professional index. In terms of basic capabilities, the system is so typical that it makes no sense to describe the software once again.

But we will definitely tell you about all the other interesting applications today. Let's start with the panels.

X-Panels

It was under the Xperia Panels brand that Sony Ericsson promoted this software idea in the minds of users for almost a year to bring personalization of the standby mode, since the capabilities of Windows Mobile Crossbow allow you to place anything on the Today screen, from standard shortcuts to 3D applications with level graphics. PC, model 2000. In theory, these possibilities looked so tempting, and HTC's first step, with its Home plug-in utility in Touch Cruise, looked so insipid that the February announcement of the panels managed to surprise many Sony Ericsson fans, and communicators in general. But time turned out to be so fleeting that now the panels already have a tough competitor in the face of Touch Flo 3D, where the level of visualization is an order of magnitude higher than all kinds of third-party add-ons, and convenience is quite enough for real operation, which could not be said about Touch FLO with its slow animation triangular bookmarks.

The original idea behind the panels was to use the entire Today screen space to accommodate the main windows, the format of which depends on the current situation or the need for entertainment features. From the company's point of view, the panel profile provides users with the opportunity to:

• use the device as a familiar communicator;


• keep abreast of current affairs and promptly monitor communications;


• quickly view current tasks and quickly launch applications of interest;


• use Multimedia Menu without any restrictions;


• listen to your favorite radio stations;


• be able to quickly find the information you need on the Internet.

On paper, everything looks tempting, but in practice we are dealing with the very add-ons on the idle screen, which are changed by pressing the dedicated panel key, after which a window with thumbnails appears before our eyes.

Our attention is drawn to two small virtual buttons at the bottom of the screen, the first of which switches the display of panels, and the second allows you to customize the matrix of 9 panels to your liking by deleting the existing panel or selecting other panels from the Sony Ericsson/Fun website. At the moment, no interesting panels could be found there, but they promise to develop the service for at least six months, which
already happy.

Panels

Clock, screen and more

The first and second panels are identical in terms of capabilities, and differ only in content. By the way, the thumbnails of these panels are drawn anew each time, so you won’t have to be surprised at the discrepancy between the depicted content and the real appearance. Having called the panel, our eyes are filled with rows of various icons and indicators, where you can turn on / off any wireless communication, view the date and weather in the selected region, and at the same time be aware of the current time.

If you are not satisfied with this content, the surest step will be to go to the settings, where you can change the clock, choose a different window theme, adjust the number of lines on the callouts, and add application shortcuts.

fish

After the service panel with many labels, the description of much easier-to-learn fish, slowly swimming around the virtual aquarium of the Today screen, looks most organic. In total, there are four fish available, among which all carry various functions on their shoulders, or rather their backs. So, a small goldfish can turn white sharply, as soon as you turn on the silent alert profile. And if there is a missed call, another one will join the trinity of funny fish. But these are just one of the variations on the theme of the life of fish on the screen, while we are not so much interested in their serene life, but in the reaction to the user's subconscious desire to knock on the wall of the aquarium when a fish swims nearby. And this moment is well taken into account by the creators of the panel, since not only vague contours of the impact appear on the screen, but the reaction of the fish remains quite expected. Any of the fish instantly swims to the side, sometimes releasing more bubbles, which looks interesting, even after 2 weeks of using the communicator.

Those who often resort to the help of the Google web search engine will certainly find it interesting to be able to return to the search bar along with returning to idle mode, and at the same time use the capabilities of Maps, Gmail and Picasa web services.

Multimedia menu

Recently, not a single Sony Ericsson product of the upper price range is complete without a proprietary multimedia menu, first seen in. In Xperia X1, the menu has found its place in a number of panels, which automatically brings this add-on into the ranks of the most functional and well-implemented panels. However, let's take a look at how Sony Ericsson programmers managed to port the menu to Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional.

When you turn on the panel, we are greeted by a pleasant unobtrusive menu background, whose color scheme depends on the current time, varying between sky blue and bright orange. At first glance, exactly the same menu items are presented as in the A200, but after scrolling down the list a couple of positions, there is a contact label, immediately after which there are settings.

In the settings, you can change the dimensions of the icons, select the animated effect of interest, and at the same time hide unnecessary menu items, whether it be contacts, or music, or something else that is not interesting specifically for the owner. As for the animation and speed of movement between points, everything here is implemented much more interesting and . and compared to phones on the A200, during navigation, the items literally fly, and the background animation is smooth and without delay. As for the description of the remaining points, in our opinion it would be much more correct to describe them in a separate part of the review, while we will move on to the last point.

Radio

Of course, from a certain point of view, the output of the radio separately from the multimedia menu does not look the most logical way, but from the standpoint of expanding the number of panels, this step is quite justified. We can only state that under the soundtrack of your favorite radio station, viewing photos using the multimedia menu is impossible, but through third-party programs there are no restrictions, as for other programs.

The interface of the radio receiver is made without any animation and other interesting points that we could observe in the same . Moreover, the interface also lacks a list of memory cells, instead of which there are only six shortcuts to which you can save the currently found radio station. But before that, the receiver must be turned on using the virtual key in the lower right part of the screen, after which the designation of the current radio frequency will appear under the large digital clock. To navigate through the supported range from 87.5 to 108 MHz, you can use the automatic search using the two extreme virtual keys with the image of double arrows, and fine tuning in 0.1 MHz steps can be done using the central navigation buttons. In addition, there is a 12-step volume control, the maximum value of which does not put pressure on the ears, but is sufficient for most situations.

As for the visualization capabilities, the scope of thought here is limited only by the description of the supported RDS line output function, as well as AF adjustment. There are no complaints about the quality of signal reception, and there are no complaints about the sound quality. Moreover, there is a pronounced emphasis on the low-frequency Kick BASS in the sound, which is relevant in the case of radio stations broadcasting rhythmic electronic music.

Panels in practice

To be honest, I wanted to avoid much desire in describing the subjective views from the panels, but it still turned out that there were no other justifications for the idea. What is the main convenience of the panels, and can they make life easier for the user? See what the picture looks like: if you need to call the right person, you can display the multimedia panel, go to the contacts tab, scroll through the list, select the person you are interested in and call him. And you can press the call button, dial the first digits of his number, or start right away, enter his first / last name according to the T9 scheme, after which the Windows Mobile filter system will quickly display the desired number, to which the call will be made. You can call the multimedia menu and get to the music, or you can install Pocket Music with an equalizer and a bunch of different themes, or limit yourself to Windows Media Player. Photos can be viewed with a standard program from the OS kit, or you can install a much more functional and convenient utility from a massive list of third-party software. You can display a bulky panel with shortcuts and a calendar, or you can take the SPB Panel. You can disturb the fish on the screen, or you can look at the top line of indicators, where silent mode and missed calls are succinctly indicated by their icons.

It turns out that the meaning of the panels lies beyond ergonomics and convenience, allowing you to diversify the communicator's desktop, only in cases where you do not see in the device a really demanded means of facilitating work with various tasks outside the PC. To some extent, the situation resembles the multimedia menu in Nokia smartphones, where ergonomics are also questionable, and a separate key is reserved for launching. However, we are talking more about a functional smartphone, and the relevance of such functions in similar devices was clearly shown in the G700/G900, while the Windows Mobile-based communicator is too flexible in terms of individual adjustment, and the panels reduce the capabilities of the Today screen to the area of ​​widgets. If we put some intermediate ratings for the panels, they deserve the attention of fans of Sony Ericsson solutions, and for users of other communicators, this function in Xperia X1 will seem funny in the first week of use. Then, with each passing day, the feeling that the device is not suitable for a thorough adjustment to the necessary tasks will increase, since simply switching to a different panel deprives you of all the information available in the previous version.

Communications

In terms of communication capabilities, Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 does not open up new opportunities for us, as is the case with , and the implementation of existing wireless communications is standard.

A Bluetooth 2.0 communication module is available with support for EDR and most other profiles, including:

• Dial-Up Networking Profile


• File Transfer Profile


• Generic Access Profile


• Generic Object Exchange Profile


• Handsfree Profile


• Headset Profile



• Object Push Profile


• Personal Area Network Profile


• Serial Port Profile


• Service Discovery Application Profile


• Synchronization Profile


• SyncML OBEX binding


• Phonebook Access Profile.

The speed of data transfer to another device with similar characteristics does not exceed 120 Kb / s, but data can be received at speeds up to 130 Kb / s. In the case of using wireless headsets using the A2DP profile, there are no complaints, since everything is identical to other communicators on Windows Mobile.

The communicator also has a Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11b/g communication module, which uses a standard utility that combines wide options for adjusting WLAN parameters - access points and wireless networks, with a frankly inconvenient interface.

Finally, it is worth noting the possibility of changing the usual connection to a PC with the launch of the Active Sync utility to the removable disk mode, which blocks access to the installed memory card through the communicator, and at the same time displays only the connected media on the computer. On the one hand, this connection method deprives us of the possibility of synchronization, but on the other hand, the read / write speed increases to 6 Mb / s.

Performance

The use of Qualcomm MSM7200A hardware components in the communicator looks quite justified from the point of view of the balance between power consumption and performance, although in reality everything is limited by HTC's unwillingness to modify the QTv drivers - the image display algorithm for Sony Ericsson, and those, in turn, were more interested in panels. As a result, we are dealing with exactly the same display speed results as in Touch Diamond using Direct Draw. The only amendment concerns the Xperia X1's screen resolution of 800 pixels in length, which imposes some restrictions on maintaining 100% image sharpness when encoding an image.

Sample 1
489 kbps, 320 x 188
1.31 Mbps, 267.42%

Sample 2
1.29 Mbps, 640 x 272
1.35 Mbps, 105.15%

In addition, in the applications section, you can see a utility for working with JAVA - midlets from Esmertec, which provides the ability to work with MIDP 2.0 applications, while MIDP 3D is not supported. Accordingly, it was possible to test performance only with the help of the first two versions of JBenchmark.

JBenchmark: 5408
Text: 1415
2D Shapes: 2446
3D Shapes: 413
Fill Rate: 184
Animation: 950

JBenchmark 2.0: 228
Image manipulation: 232
Text: 386
Sprites: 291
3D transform: 347
User interface: 68

Yes, Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 has SIRF Star III - a signal receiver with
GPS - satellites, and it is quite functional. Yes, this is the same common component from HTC solutions that most navigation software can work with. Accordingly, since there are no hardware differences, the start time and signal reception quality can be taken from memory, focusing on 30-40 seconds of a “warm” start and a couple of minutes of a “cold” start. As for navigation out of the box, we have nothing to say here yet, since there seems to be a disk with Wifinder 7, but the program itself has to be installed from a PC, initially having only a utility for loading data similar to those received via aGPS.

Menu items

We have already mentioned the graphic component of the multimedia panel in the description of Xpanels, so now is the time to go directly to the description of the menu items themselves.

First of all, let's take a quick look at the games section, where two demos and a standard set of ball solitaire are hiding.

This is followed by contacts, where you can search for records by names of subscribers, or scroll through the boring list. The selected contact cannot be edited, but the communication options are not limited to calls. In the drop-down list of actions, it is also possible to switch to the message editor, which supports the display of correspondence in the form of a chat.

Video

In the video section, you can view all MP4 and 3GP videos available in the memory, among which you can initially find the trailer for the latest film about 007, since Sony Ericsson remains one of the brands actively advertised in this series of films.
By selecting the video of interest, the video immediately opens in landscape orientation on the full screen, and with a simple touch on the display, playback is interrupted by the navigation bar that supports scrolling along the scale, changing the display mode between real
resolution and scaling, and completes the list with a volume scale of 16 gradations.

A photo

As it is easy to assume, the possibilities of the photo section also do not shine with variety, although there is the same sorting by months, displaying pictures separately from photos, and the animation has not become smaller. This is not about the image library, but about the implementation of the image viewing itself.

After selecting the image you are interested in, a full-screen image viewing window with navigation icons appears on the screen. The top line contains icons for deleting an image, viewing information about the image, calling the zoom window, and also rotating the image. Of these functions, special attention should be paid to the rotation of the image, since in this mode you twist the image around the corner along the central axis with your finger, and it is independently centered in the nearest position. Taking into account the smoothness of the rotation animation, the work on changing the position of the pictures may well take you a few minutes, putting aside the thought of Multi Touch - navigation. However, thoughts about controlling with two fingers on the screen again come up during image scaling, since the speed of image magnification is by no means pleasing to the eye, although then you can move around the image area again with smooth movements of the image on the screen.

The next wonders of animation for Windows Mobile - communicators open when scrolling through pictures with your finger across the screen, as a kind of carousel of thumbnails with reflections appears here, and the image selection is again tied to centering.

The last thing worth noting in the image viewer relates to the bottom line of virtual keys, where there are tools for scrolling through pictures, returning from the library matrix, as well as the Play button, which launches the usual Xpict Story, without any advanced features and other delights from the G700, G900 .

Music

To listen to music, there is a quite familiar tool from the multimedia panel, reminiscent of the organization of the library in the Sony Ericsson G700, G900, and only then similar to phones on the A200. It is quite natural that a different level of hardware capabilities entailed getting rid of possible slowdowns in the process of moving between menu items. And in the music section, items can be sorted by artist, album, and playlist. However, on top of this meager list of criteria, there is also a display of all the songs in a crowd, which can hardly be called the current listening mode. Of the interesting features of the display of lists, it is worth highlighting only the view of albums with the display of the cover in the upper right corner of the screen, while all other lists are more than standard.

In playback mode, the screen is literally crammed with all sorts of buttons and icons, although the first thing the hand reaches for is the album cover in order to bring it to full screen. But this does not happen, and you can not look for visualization in the player, while the rest of the possibilities are present, with the exception of one more. We are talking about an equalizer, which is simply not in the music player, and in the options menu there is a list setting, on / off repeat and random playback mode.

Sound quality

This parameter can be given a lot of attention, since in the Xperia X1 we are dealing with a dense sound at a sufficient volume level, a third higher than the latest phones on the A200. There is also clear reproduction with a minimum of noise, and deep bass, and soft highs, which could indicate an excellent implementation of this parameter. But, alas, a good study of the frequencies separately does not at all indicate a high-quality reproduction of the music itself, where the complex study of the frequency range is important. And here we are already faced with a low DAC bit depth, resulting in a flat, unexpressed middle and a drop in lows on multi-instrumental compositions. And we have no way out of this situation, just like there are no sound settings. Accordingly, at the output we have the usual audio path of HTC communicators, with a little more volume and an unnaturally flat sound without colors and dynamics. However, for pre-installed jazz compositions at 192 Kbps, the quality is quite enough, and for audiophile sound, you should turn to other solutions.

Camera

The Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 has a 3.2 megapixel camera module with autofocus optics and a weak LED flash. The module used in the communicator is quite comparable to what we saw in the C702, although this is where the camera similarities end and the series of differences begins. The camera interface is partly taken from the G900 smartphone, where we also actively used the touch screen for most actions, and here the widescreen display allows you to move the main buttons and indicators without affecting the main area of ​​the full-screen viewfinder. By the way, if you are still interested in using the entire screen area under the viewfinder, there are always image size options available that correspond to the Xperia X1 screen with an aspect ratio of 16 x 10.

But the main attention of the user quite naturally attracts the virtual key settings in the lower right corner of the screen. The key is assigned to call the menu for setting up various shooting modes, which is already familiar on the last two smartphones of the company, be it:

• selection of ready-made shooting scenes


• selection of the type of focus to taste (the usual auto, macro, infinity and focusing on the part of the frame indicated by the finger)


• turn on/off the LED backlight.

As you can see, the possibilities are by no means surprising with the breadth of coverage, although everything basic for operational adjustment is collected here. For the rest of the camera settings, you should already refer to the other settings section, located behind the same button in the lower right corner. In this section of settings, you can find almost everything that we lacked in the initial adjustment of the shooting, be it setting the white balance and color effects, choosing the image resolution and other little settings, which includes adding Geo Tag - marks and changing the sound of the electronic shutter.

Initially, it is better not to deal with evaluating the quality of photos from a communicator, since everything here is still divided into tolerable and good quality of images. Actually, as you can see in the following photo examples, Xperia X1 not only belongs to the category of good cameras in a communicator, but also raises the quality bar a step higher.
.

Like a phone

Despite the abundance of metal in the finish of the case, Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 boasts a good quality of cellular signal reception, slightly superior to most phones and smartphones of the company. The speaker in the device is distinguished by a 40% volume margin in the room, but in a noisy subway car it will be possible to increase the volume to the maximum. In the speech of the interlocutor, it is worth noting a somewhat unusual harsh transmission of medium frequencies, slightly muffled clean tops and a hint of a low-frequency range. The polyphonic loudspeaker cannot boast of loudness, and it will not be difficult to block it tightly. In addition to the average volume level, nothing interesting can be heard in the polyphonic dynamics, since there are practically no bottoms. And the middle creaks already at 70% volume, without pampering us with quality. The vibration motor in the communicator performs a little better, providing tangible vibration in the pockets of clothing over the entire area of ​​the device, and again thanks to the steel case for this.

findings

It's funny, but more than a year has passed since the announcement of some mythical Sony Ericsson flagship in the face of the Xperia X1 communicator. Now we are again fed with some new product without an index in the face, and we just have to calmly present our review to your attention, and to top it off, talk about the realities of the product on the market. This communicator today occupies an incomprehensible niche in shop windows in communication stores, providing a frightening mixture of a fashion product with an impressive price tag of 32,000 rubles, and on the other hand, this is the very "Xperia" about which there were rumors and some opinions of a diverse nature a year ago. Oddly enough, but over the past year the veil of novelty of characteristics really disappeared, the spark of manufacturability died out, and only two strong features remained in the product, if you forget about the Sony Ericsson logo for a moment. The product has a solid brutal design with a Sony Style keyboard, and there is a thick steel in which this fashion communicator is chained. And everything seems to be fine, but its cost somehow does not justify the year of waiting for the device on the market. At the same time, not every connoisseur of phones from this manufacturer wants to get many functions and new sensations from the undisguised Windows Mobile, and a lover of good communicators has already opted for Touch Pro or MAX 4G. It turns out that the backbone of potential Xperia X1 buyers can be no more than a few hundred thousand? And the way it is, because you can not create an ideal product for everyone, and any attempt will be broken by a flurry of criticism from reviewers.

© Tikhonov Valery, Test Lab
Date of publication of the article - March 3, 2009

Here is an excerpt from the press release: “The XPERIA X1 mobile communicator is distinguished by its unusual design and powerful functionality. Unique arc-shaped slider, with horizontal QWERTY layout and 3-inch touch screen, made entirely of stainless steel...”

Indeed, the design of the XPERIA X1 is very unusual: a large number of decorative and functional elements, the triangular shape of the keys of the external unit, the edges on the keys of the QWERTY keyboard, the metal case - all this creates a very pleasant, attractive, expensive look. The only thing that is not entirely true in the quote is that the case is completely metal. Yes, the front panel is entirely metal, with a characteristic “steel” texture, the silver edging on the sides of the slider is also metal, and only the back side of the case, divided into three parts, is not entirely steel. Only the battery cover is made of metal, although this steel "only" occupies about two-thirds of the surface. But the edges of the back are still made of plastic, however, very good quality. Steel is also quite good, does not bend, and, most importantly, practically does not get dirty with prints. On plastic, by the way, fingerprints and other body parts are not visible at all. Yes, looking ahead, I will say that the buttons are also made of plastic - and the black block under the screen, and all the keys on the QWERTY keyboard.

The slider mechanism is excellent - it opens without any significant effort, auto-finishing does everything by itself, you only need the desire to open the device and the initial push with your finger. When opened, the upper part of the case moves off and is fixed with a slight inclination to the keyboard. The lower inner part (also metal, by the way), on which the QWERTY keyboard is located, has a slightly concave shape. Plus, the design of the butt end with a silver edging emphasizes this concavity. Due to this, the effect of a "unique arcuate slider" is achieved. In addition to the beauty of this effect, the concavity of the keyboard and the elevation of the upper half make typing more comfortable, the device in the open state fits perfectly in the hands and rests on the index fingers.

Immediately about the keyboard: there are only 42 keys separated from each other by a fairly large distance, each of which has a diagonal edge (and the “big” keys: Tab, Enter and space have two whole edges!). The direction of the edges is from the edge to the center of the keyboard block, from top to bottom. On two standard keys (F and J) there is no less standard tactile designation of the center of the letter part of the keyboard - ledges-corners. It is very difficult to find them, however, they look beautiful.

Switching the language is convenient: you need to hold down the Fn key (the leftmost one in the bottom row, with a blue rectangle) and the Sym button next to it (it says so on it). The only bad thing is that you can't see which language is currently enabled.

There was no place for navigation buttons in the full layout, so the cursor will have to be moved using the joystick on the external key block.

The backlight of the keyboard is quite bright and uniform, all characters are perfectly readable in the dark.

There are no complaints about the convenience of a set of complaints: the keys have a small clear stroke, accompanied by a soft click, due to the gaps between the keys, there are practically no erroneous pressings. Working with the keys of the top row is also comfortable, because when typing with your thumbs, the latter (fingers, not keys) are almost parallel to the sliding part of the body, and the fingers do not rest against it.

Now about the external keyboard: firstly, it is plastic, and secondly: the keys have a triangular shape, which, however, does not worsen the convenience of their use. Two narrow silvery soft-keys are raised high above the surface, due to which they are very comfortable to press, although the first impression of their shape and size causes exactly the opposite thought. In the center is a large black rectangle - if you click on it - it will be a confirmation key. And if you swipe your finger over it, it will turn out to be a touch panel. Although it is small in area and quite deeply recessed into the body, swiping it with your finger will scroll through four items in the menu if you navigate along the long side, and three if you go along the short side. It is worth swiping your finger more slowly - then there will be five and four points already passed, respectively. Quite a convenient replacement for scrolling on the screen, especially if the scrollbar is narrow, but long, and you just need to scroll through nothing. For example, in the phone book. The scroll bar will help you find the first letter of the contact's name, and the touch panel will help you scroll through the list to the desired entry. Don't need a touchpad? It can be turned off.

Around the touch key is a rectangular frame with a kind of triangular "wings" on the sides. These are navigation keys. The navigation block is slightly raised above the surface, and there are no problems with pressing the keys: the “winged” ones already have a large area, and the narrow ones stand out clearly against the background of a flat touch panel and are easy to find blindly.

Screen. The screen here is a touch TFT-matrix, which has a widescreen resolution - 480 by 800 pixels, its physical dimensions are as follows: 39 x 65 mm, diagonal 3 inches (75 mm). It is possible to display up to 65,000 colors, which will not surprise anyone now, but this is quite enough: the picture is bright, the viewing angles are quite large, graininess is practically not noticeable at all. The only bad thing is that the screen is very easily soiled. This is not visible when it is turned on, but in standby mode all traces of its use appear. When the case is opened, the screen turns to a horizontal position - it slows down a bit, though.

Above the screen is a silver insert, under which is hidden a speaker slot. To the right of it is the peephole of the front camera for video calls, and to the left is the light sensor that controls the brightness of the screen backlight. The microphone hole is hidden in the junction of the front metal panel and the side edging on the bottom of the device. Such a small hole, and made not round, but in a corner. A trifle, it would seem, but even here they thought how to make it beautiful. At the same end there is a fastening for a strap - only those who are going to drown themselves will hang such a device on their neck, and on their hand, so as not to drop it, it will do. The top end is notable for the 3.5 mm jack – a first for SonyEricsson! (at the same time, the device is not positioned as a musical model, mind you) - and the power button of the device.

The stylus slot is located in the upper corner of the device. The stylus is removed from the socket with some effort, but it is rarely needed. But it won't get lost.

On the back side, in addition to the metal cover, there are two plastic sections. On the lid, only the names of the manufacturer (Sony Ericsson), the line (XPERIA) are engraved, and a small insert with the name of the model (X1) is made. The plastic parts are also not without built-in elements - closer to the bottom of the device there is a green Sonerik logo and an incomprehensible ledge. On the opposite plastic side is a 3.2 megapixel camera module with a flash, all this is slightly raised above the surface of the case, but slightly recessed relative to the edge that frames the whole thing, so the camera window can be scratched if it can (for sure it can, how could it be without it ), then not immediately and not much.

Under the steel cover, you can find a BST-41 lithium-polymer battery with a capacity of 1500 mAh, and already under it is a SIM card slot. There is also a slot for microSD memory cards under the cover on the right side (if you look at the device from the back), hot swapping of cards is supported (without turning off the device).

The sides are also not devoid of any buttons: on the left side there is a miniUSB connector and a polyphonic speaker hole, and on the right side there is a volume rocker at the top and a camera button at the bottom. If you look closely, you can still notice black narrow stripes on both sides of the device. Light indicators are hidden there - for any action from the list specified in the backlight settings (the user himself can choose which actions should be “highlighted”), two indicators start flashing on each side, and in different colors: the spectrum contains not only pure green or pure red color, the device, for example, notifies about recharging with a three-color signal: orange with purple and green. He's just pictured below in the photo. If flashing lights annoy you, you can turn them off completely.

We finished with the appearance, looked from all sides, now let's move on to the "insides" of the device.

Hardware and software component, communications

SonyEricsson XPERIA X1 is based on a Qualcomm 7200 processor (528 MHz), has 256 MB of RAM, of which, after turning on the phone, the user has about 200 MB left - this is quite enough for several “heavy” applications to work simultaneously. Of the 512 MB of memory for data storage, about half is initially available to the user, this is not much, but given the support for memory cards, there should be no problems with free space (although, alas, a memory card is not included).

Works SonyEricsson XPERIA X1 running Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional with proprietary shell X-panel. Nothing unusual can be singled out from the software: there is a contact manager on the SIM card, Adobe Reader, QuickGPS for updating satellite data, Google Maps for navigation, a Java application manager, the Handandgo InHand application - something in the spirit of a program catalog, where they are all paid.

GPS is represented by the built-in gpsOne chip on the Qualcomm 7200 platform, no surprises here. To work with navigation, the manufacturer offers only Google Maps, but you can install the program to your liking, if you wish. Google Maps is good for everyone, except for downloading the map via GPRS, it will be possible to use navigation only if you have Internet access. A-GPS finds the location quickly, but not quite accurately, and it took about five minutes to find satellites on a cold start. In the future, the launch was carried out faster - 1-2 minutes.

The OperaMobile 9.5 browser is installed as an alternative to the standard IE, it is familiar to us from HTC communicators. The browser supports bookmarks, history, screen settings (fit-width, mobile view, disable images, change font sizes), cookies, cache, and simultaneous use of multiple windows (up to three tabs), which Internet Explorer does not have by default.

For ease of use and activation of supported wireless networks, a wireless connection manager is provided, which, like Opera, is illustrated in the style of HTC's Touch Flo 3D shell.

Wi-Fi works flawlessly, connected access points and settings for them remembers for reconnections. It is possible to adjust the power of the module to save energy.

Bluetooth version 2.0 + EDR, all modern services are supported from profiles, including stereo sound transmission to Bluetooth headphones (A2DP), and the module itself works quite correctly.

When the device is connected via USB, it is possible to synchronize all information with Outlook and work with the built-in memory using ActiveSync, or work in the removable disk mode (this is for a memory card).

SonyEricsson XPERIA X1:: Overview:: X-Panel

X-panel is a proprietary interface for working with the communicator; one of the soft keys on the external keyboard block is specially allocated for it. Each panel is a kind of desktop, which can be changed using the Panel key.

Let's press this key. In total, up to 9 panels can be installed at the same time. If you don't like any of the panels, you can delete it and load some other one in its place, the link to the available panels goes in the first line. The only exception is the first panel - it is quite standard and cannot be removed. Let's start the description with it.

Today panel- a standard desktop that can be found in any Windows Mobile communicator. All its features and settings are standard and are carried out through the Settings menu.

SonyEricsson Panel 1 and SoyEricsson Panel 2- functionally identical panels, two of them were made so that you can configure them differently. Everything is more interesting here: let's start with the fact that the Panel settings item is assigned to the right soft key. I rarely change the settings of my phones, whether it's the interface theme or adding / removing application shortcuts on the desktop, but I use the contact book every day and many times. The developers of this panel, apparently, change settings more often than use the phone book, so here we have the Settings key assigned to the right soft key instead of Contacts. In principle, it’s very clear - by activating the panel, the user immediately sees that the panel settings are here they are, you don’t have to go to the Start menu and look for where to change something on the desktop. But it is impossible to remove these Settings from the soft key even after making all possible settings until you are completely satisfied with the functionality of the desktop, instead of the usual access to Contacts, the user is invited to change the panel settings again and again. Why not make a Settings Wizard that would turn on every time the panel is activated again? Or turn on the touch button in the corner of the desktop, and already hang all the settings on it? Of course, you can display Contacts on the desktop as a button - at least in the list of recently opened applications. But the right soft key is more familiar.

Now let's move on to the panel settings themselves: the desktop can simultaneously include a certain number of blocks, in both panels - 10 pieces maximum. The number of required blocks for each type of data can be different: a clock, for example, can take as many as 5 blocks (two analog clocks and a calendar), or just one (a simple digital clock). You can display only 10 or fewer blocks on the desktop. There is even a special counter for this at the top right, it shows how many blocks are activated. If the limit is reached, the system will not let you save the panel settings, you will have to remove something.

You can display tasks and calendar entries, you want one entry at a time, you want any number you need (but don’t forget about blocks!), RSS feeds, recent applications, necessary program shortcuts, quick access to any contacts, communication buttons (turning on Bluetooth modules , Wi-Fi, volume, etc.). Alas, you can’t select only the buttons you need: if you want to display only the Bluetooth button, you will get four more buttons with it - in general, almost a complete set of Comm Manager.

From the pleasant - there are two inactive buttons: they become active when you receive a new message or there is a missed call. This is very convenient.

See for yourself what desktops you can get.

Here you have access to all game-photo-video-music files, as well as to contacts. The gallery is made according to the same principle as in SonyEricsson photo-musical devices.

You can customize its appearance: choose a comfortable font size and turn off or change the background animation.

Contacts are basically a useless thing here, albeit a nice one. When you go to listen to music or watch a movie, you probably need contacts the least of all.

You can arrange a slideshow of photos or scroll through them one by one with your finger, you can expand it if it has the wrong orientation, you can delete it, and the magnification is done using the "Magnifier" button and the zoom bar.

The video is shown only in landscape orientation, the photo can be in any.

Games - there are Sudoku, Bejeweled 2 (like Tetris) and two standard ones - chic Bubbles and just Klondike.

The music player is not very functional, there are no sound settings, except for the volume. The screen displays information about the track title, album, artist, scroll bar, a standard set of player control keys and two buttons: shuffle and playback cycle. Through the Menu button, you can only add a song to the list and view the full information about the track. No equalizers or other sound enhancers for you. But there is a 3.5 mm jack. The sound quality and volume with the bundled headset are quite good.

Google Bar- here popular Google services are simply displayed on the desktop: Search, Maps, Mail, Calendar and Photos. Everything.

3D Fish panel- splash panel. I'm tired of all? Turn on and enjoy the white screen with a gray clock and three fish: two orange, one purple, floating across the screen. If you click on the fish, it swims away. No settings, contacts instead. Although here it would be possible to make settings just: change the fish, their number, gender, colors.

XPERIARadio panel- It's a radio. We connect the headphones, adjust the frequency manually or automatically, and save the stations you like by holding down the number key. The keys to which the waves are already assigned have a small circle in the corner, but there is nowhere to see the name of the saved station, since RDS is supported. You can output sound to the built-in speakers - there is also a special button for this.

There is another interesting panel in "Downloads" - SPB Mobile Shell. Its functionality is exactly the same as if it were on any other communicator. Pretty comfortable, but "normal".

SonyEricsson XPERIA X1:: Overview:: Camera

The communicator has a 3.2 megapixel camera with a flash, the settings are the usual:

Shooting Conditions: Auto, Portrait, Landscape, Twilight, Sports, Document

Focus: Flashlight, Auto, Macro, Infinity

Backlight: turn on and off

Shooting mode: single shot or burst

White balance: automatic, incandescent, fluorescent, sunny, cloudy

Effects: negative, overexposure, sepia, black and white

Image size: 3M (resolution 2048x1536 or 2048x1280 pixels), 2M, 1M, VGA, QVGA

Image quality: high quality, normal and economical (meaning the mode, I guess)

What can be said about the quality: outdoors with good lighting, the pictures turn out quite well, noises appear indoors and the color is distorted with automatic settings. Close-ups are not sharp as often as we would like, however, the text in shooting mode The document can then be read. Such a camera would be quite enough for a spy tourist to shoot a secret A4 document and snap a few sights for cover.

Video recording is carried out in VGA resolution (QVGA is also possible) at a speed of 15 frames per second. There are fewer settings than for the camera, but they are also available. In terms of quality, everything is pretty good, the frames “do not slow down”.

SonyEricsson XPERIA X1:: Overview:: Impressions and conclusions

The quality of communication is at a good level, the network did not disappear, but did not find it where it does not exist. Vibration and call volume are rather weak, and if the device is in a bag, it is easy to miss a call. The device showed a good operating time: with an average load (20-30 minutes of talks per day, Internet via Wi-Fi for about an hour, listening to music for 40 minutes, very frequent change and adjustment of panels), the device lasted two days and in the evening it already began to ask for recharging, threatening to lose all unsaved data.

What can be said about the communicator as a whole? Outwardly, everything is fine: a high-quality case, pleasant heaviness, a good display with a good response to pressing. Internally - an unusual X-panel shell, for those who are unusual and uncomfortable with their functionality - there is a SPB Mobile Shell panel, a Start menu and a sea of ​​applications on the Web, for users who do not need SPB Mobile Shell - there is 3D Rybki and a regular Today screen.

By the way, if we ignore the idea that all WM-communicators are created only for the business segment of users, even the most beautiful ones, then you can notice the same HTC Touch Diamond in the hands of many girls and men who are far from belonging to the business segment. The bells and whistles of the system, synchronization with Outlook, the amount of RAM and ROM and the functionality of the SPB Mobile Shell are not so important to them. They are much more interested in a beautiful unusual design and a beautiful unusual interface where you can scroll through photos with your finger and find out the weather for tomorrow in a very beautiful design.

For such a user, the SonyEricsson XPERIA X1 is a godsend. Not only is it expensive, and therefore non-mass, it is also beautiful in appearance, with still decent functionality. X-panel panels may not be the most convenient for those whom we mean by the term “user of the business segment of devices”, but for the user of the fashion segment, everything is quite good and quite convenient. XPERIA X1 is unlikely to be chosen for advanced functionality or for "best value for money," it will be chosen for its design. And the design is top notch. By the way, do you still think that a QWERTY keyboard is only for business users who write a lot of e-mails from their communicator during the day? Not true. For "ICQ" such a keyboard is the very thing.

Mid-range model with attractive design and balanced performance

Last spring in Barcelona during the Mobile World Congress, Sony not only felt proud of its flagship smartphone Xperia XZ Premium, which was favored by the press and critics, but also managed to introduce a new product from the middle class, which became the successor to the Xperia XA family. The new smartphone, dubbed the Sony Xperia XA1, does not have cool flagship chips, such as recording slo-mo videos at a speed of 960 frames per second, but it can also do something. Today we present a detailed review of one of the most balanced and affordable models of modern smartphones from the Japanese manufacturer.

Key Features of Sony Xperia XA1 (G3112)

• SoC MediaTek Helio P20 (MT6757), 8 cores ARM Cortex-A53 @1.6/2.3 GHz
• GPU Mali-T880
• Operating system Android 7.0
• Touchscreen display IPS 5″, 1280 × 720, 293 ppi
• Random access memory (RAM) 3 GB, internal memory 32 GB
• Support Nano-SIM (2 pcs.)
• microSD support up to 256 GB
• GSM/GPRS/EDGE networks (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)
• WCDMA/HSPA+ networks (850/900/1900/2100 MHz)
• LTE Cat.4/6 networks (B1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 20, 28, 38, 39, 40, 41, 66)
• Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac (2.4 and 5 GHz)
• Bluetooth 4.2
• GPS, A-GPS, Glonass
• USB Type-C, USB OTG
• Main camera 23 MP, f/2.0, autofocus, 1080p video
• Front camera 8 MP, f/2.0, fixed focus
• Proximity, lighting, magnetic field sensors, accelerometer
• Battery 2300 mAh
• Dimensions 145×67×8 mm
• Weight 143 g

Appearance and usability

Sony Mobile in the new season is not going to deviate from longstanding traditions: all new smartphones, including the Xperia XA1, use the familiar Loop Surface principle (loop surface). That is, the metal frame, bending, with its curved edges, enters all panels - front, back and end.

At the same time, the body continues to be "square", with sharp corners, this is also a signature touch of all mobile devices of the Japanese brand. Representatives of the company steadfastly endure all the complaints of users about the fact that the sharp corners of Sony smartphones tear their pockets, and continue to stand their ground.

The body of the Sony Xperia XA1 received a shape that is not quite familiar to ordinary smartphones with a very thin frame on the sides of the screen, but with very wide top and bottom indents. It turned out to be a thin and long, elongated device, and its sharp (without any rounding at all) corners lengthen it visually even more. Of course, the narrow device is well held in the hand due to a comfortable grip, but it cannot be said that, for example, Huawei Nova 2 with slightly wider sidewalls, but much smoother contours and rounded corners, lies worse in the hand.

The case turned out to be non-slip and non-marking, but its matte plastic back wall is instantly covered with numerous and quite noticeable scratches, this is noted by many users who have encountered a problem. The pretty Sony Xperia XA1 can quickly lose its presentable appearance if you don't take steps to protect it.

At the top of the front panel, in addition to sensors and the front camera, there is an LED event indicator.

Below, as usual for Sony smartphones, there are no touch buttons, but at the same time there remains an empty, unoccupied space almost two centimeters high. The device with such indents by modern standards looks somehow old-fashioned, old-school.

The glass surface of the panel has barely noticeable roundings on the sides, but the sloping edges are barely marked, the bends are minimal. A smartphone priced at 22,000 rubles did not receive a fingerprint scanner at all, and this is a rather strong minus of the Xperia XA1, there is no excuse for this at such a price.

On the back side there are only a single camera eye with a flash, also a single one. The flash is not very bright. These elements do not protrude beyond the surface, so the smartphone lies stably on a hard surface.

The hardware buttons are located on the right side face. The one that is responsible for power and blocking has a round shape, the rest of the buttons are of the usual shape, oblong.

Naturally, there is a dedicated key, traditional for Sony, responsible for working with the camera. The Xperia XA1 is not protected against dust and moisture.

Three cards can be installed in the smartphone at the same time: two Nano-SIM format SIM cards are placed on the sled, and next to it there is a separate slot for a microSD memory card, without a sliding tray. All connectors are covered with a convenient cover that does not need to be pulled out with a special key or paper clip. All Sony smartphones automatically reboot as soon as the SIM card sled is removed from the case, regardless of whether the cards are installed in the slots.

On the top end there is an audio output for headphones (3.5 mm), as well as an auxiliary microphone.

The bottom end is given over to the speaker output and the universal USB Type-C connector that supports connecting external devices in USB OTG mode. The main conversational microphone is located at the very bottom of the front panel, not at the end.

The Sony Xperia XA1 is available in four colors: white, black, gold and pink. The front panel under the glass in all cases matches the overall color of the case, which visually makes the design more coherent. In addition, Sony has decided to always set color themes for the interface design in accordance with the color of the case, which makes the image of the product complete.

Screen

The Sony Xperia XA1 features an IPS display with Corning Gorilla Glass. It is possible that formally this glass belongs to the category of 2.5D glass, but the sloping of the edges is very weakly expressed, the roundings are barely marked. Some kind of image enhancement technology is used without any designations and names. The screen dimensions are 62×110 mm with a diagonal of 5 inches. The resolution in this case is 1280 × 720, the dot density here is about 293 ppi. The frame around the screen has a minimum (about a millimeter of a black frame and about a millimeter of the case itself) thickness from the sides, a total of 2 mm. But the indents at the top and bottom are from 16 to 17 mm.

The display brightness can be adjusted manually or set to automatic settings based on the operation of the ambient light sensor. The AnTuTu test diagnoses support for 4 simultaneous multitouch touches.

A detailed examination using measuring instruments was carried out by the editor of the sections "Monitors" and "Projectors and TV" Alexey Kudryavtsev. Here is his expert opinion on the screen of the test sample.

The front surface of the screen is made in the form of a glass plate with a mirror-smooth surface, resistant to scratches. Judging by the reflection of objects, the anti-glare properties of the screen are better than the screen of the Google Nexus 7 (2013) (hereinafter simply Nexus 7). For clarity, here is a photo in which a white surface is reflected in the off screens of both devices (Sony Xperia XA1, as it is not difficult to determine, is on the right, then they can be distinguished by size):

Both screens are dark, but the Sony screen is still darker (its brightness in the photo is 108 versus 112 for the Nexus 7). The tripling of reflected objects on the Sony Xperia XA1 screen is very weak, which indicates that there is no air gap between the outer glass (it is also a touch sensor) and the matrix surface (OGS type screen - One Glass Solution). Due to the smaller number of borders (glass/air type) with very different refractive indices, such screens look better in conditions of intense external illumination, but their repair in case of cracked external glass is much more expensive, since the entire screen has to be replaced. On the outer surface of the screen there is a special oleophobic (grease-repellent) coating (effective, better than the Nexus 7), so fingerprints are removed much more easily, and appear at a slower rate than in the case of ordinary glass.

With manual brightness control and with a white field displayed in full screen, its maximum value was about 490 cd / m², and the minimum - 40 cd / m². The maximum value is high, and given the excellent anti-reflective properties, the image on the screen should be clearly visible in bright daylight. In complete darkness, the brightness can be lowered to a comfortable level. The automatic brightness control works according to the light sensor (it is located to the right of the logo on the front panel). In automatic mode, when the ambient light conditions change, the screen brightness both increases and decreases. This function depends on the brightness adjustment. If it is at its minimum, then in complete darkness the auto-brightness function reduces the brightness to 5.5 cd / m² (dark), in an artificially lit office (approximately 550 lux) sets it to 110 cd / m² (normal), in a bright environment (corresponds to lighting on a slightly cloudy day outdoors - about 10,000 lux) increases to 500 cd / m² (even slightly more than the maximum with manual adjustment). If the brightness slider is at half the scale, then the screen brightness for the three conditions indicated above is as follows: 50, 210 and 500 cd / m² (a little bright in the dark). If the brightness control is set to maximum - 110, 320, 500 cd / m² (the first two values ​​are too high). We were more satisfied with the option with a slider by about 10% - 30, 140, 500 cd / m². It turns out that the auto-brightness function works adequately and to some extent allows the user to customize their work to individual requirements. At any brightness level, there is no significant backlight modulation, so there is no screen flicker.

This screen uses an IPS type matrix. Micrographs show a typical IPS subpixel structure:

For comparison, you can see the gallery of microphotographs of screens used in mobile technology.

The screen has good viewing angles without color inversion (except for the very darkest when deviated along one diagonal) and without significant color shift even at large deviations of the gaze from the perpendicular to the screen. For comparison, here is a photo in which the same images are displayed on the screens of the Nexus 7 and Sony Xperia XA1, while the brightness of the screens was initially set to about 200 cd / m² (on a white field in full screen), and the color balance on the camera was forcibly switched to 6500 K .

Perpendicular to the plane of the screens is a white field:

Note the good uniformity of brightness and color tone of the white field.

And a test picture:

The colors are moderately saturated on both screens, the color balance differs markedly.

Now at an angle of about 45 degrees to the plane and to the side of the screen:

It can be seen that the colors have not changed much on both screens, but on the Sony Xperia XA1, the contrast has decreased to a greater extent due to the greater lightening of blacks, and there are also signs of inverting dark shades.

And the white box:

The brightness at an angle for both screens has noticeably decreased, but in the case of the Sony Xperia XA1, the brightness drop is slightly less. The black field, when deviated diagonally, is highlighted strongly and acquires a purple or reddish tint. The photos below demonstrate this (the brightness of the white areas in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the screens is the same for the screens!):

And from another angle:

When viewed perpendicularly, the uniformity of the black field is good:

Contrast (approximately in the center of the screen) is normal - about 860:1. The response time for the black-white-black transition is 25 ms (12 ms on + 13 ms off). The transition between grayscale 25% and 75% (according to the numerical value of the color) and back takes a total of 35 ms. The gamma curve constructed from 32 points with an equal interval according to the numerical value of the shade of gray did not reveal a blockage either in the highlights or in the shadows. The exponent of the approximating power function is 2.20, which is equal to the standard value of 2.20, while the real gamma curve deviates little from the power dependence:

Due to the presence of dynamic adjustment of the brightness of the backlight in accordance with the nature of the output image (brightness tends to decrease on dark images), the resulting dependence of brightness on hue (gamma curve) may not correspond to the gamma curve of a static image, since the measurements were carried out with sequential output of shades gray for almost the entire screen. For this reason, we carried out a number of tests - determining contrast and response time, comparing black flare at angles - when displaying special patterns with a constant average brightness, and not monochromatic fields in full screen. In general, such a non-switchable brightness correction does nothing but harm, since it reduces the visibility of gradations in the shadows in the case of dark images. In addition, this dynamic adjustment, when displaying any image other than a white field in full screen, significantly lowers the brightness, which impairs readability in bright light, and besides, constantly adjusting the brightness can be very annoying.

Color gamut close to sRGB:

The spectra show that the matrix filters moderately mix the components to each other:

As a result, visually the colors have a natural saturation. The balance of shades on the gray scale is good, as the color temperature is close to the standard 6500 K, and the deviation from the blackbody spectrum (ΔE) is below 10, which is considered acceptable for a consumer device. At the same time, the color temperature and ΔE change little from shade to shade - this has a positive effect on the visual assessment of color balance. (The darkest areas of the gray scale can be ignored, since the color balance does not matter much there, and the measurement error of color characteristics at low brightness is large.)

This smartphone has the ability to correct the color balance by adjusting the intensities of the three primary colors.

What we tried to do, the result is data signed as Corr. on the charts above. As a result, we slightly improved the balance on the white field, but in fact, it makes no sense to engage in correction in this case. In the settings, you can choose one of three correction profiles.

The photos above are for option Turn off. Note that the correction only works in Sony applications - when viewing images and, apparently, in a video player. Here's what happens if you choose a profile Extreme brightness mode:

The color contrast increases, nothing remains of the naturalness of the colors. In mode Image enhancement image correction is not so extreme:

Let's summarize. The brightness adjustment range of this screen is wide, anti-glare properties are excellent, which allows you to comfortably use your smartphone both on a sunny day outside and in complete darkness. It is permissible to use the mode with automatic brightness adjustment, which works adequately. The advantages include an effective oleophobic coating, the absence of an air gap in the screen layers and flicker, good black field uniformity, as well as a color gamut close to sRGB and a good color balance. The disadvantages are the low stability of black to the deviation of the gaze from the perpendicular to the plane of the screen, as well as the non-switchable dynamic adjustment of the backlight brightness. Nevertheless, taking into account the importance of the characteristics for this particular class of devices (and the most important thing is the visibility of information in a wide range of external conditions), the screen quality can be considered high.

cameras

The front module has a 1/4″ Exmor R sensor with a resolution of 8 megapixels, as well as a 23mm wide-angle lens with f/2.0 aperture and autofocus, but without its own flash. The maximum light sensitivity of the matrix is ​​ISO 3200.

The shooting quality is good: the image is bright, the sharpness across the entire field of the frame is satisfactory, there are no complaints about detailing.

For the main camera, Sony used its 1/2.3″ 23-megapixel Exmor RS module for mobile devices with a pixel size of 1.22 microns. The 23mm wide-angle lens has an f/2.0 aperture. The maximum sensitivity of the matrix is ​​​​ISO 6400, but only ISO 3200 can be set manually. There is a digital 5x Clear Image zoom and proprietary SteadyShot electronic stabilization, as well as fast hybrid autofocus.

The control menu is standard for all Sony devices, it is not very convenient, because the settings are scattered in different places, but for regular users this is no longer a problem. As standard, there are automatic and manual shooting control modes, it is possible to download and install additional modes. There is usually an AR effect with augmented reality.

Manual settings, as usual, offer access to shutter speed, ISO, exposure compensation, white balance, and focus options. True, the camera always turns on in auto mode if you use the side button.

The camera can shoot video at a maximum resolution of 1080p with the H.264 codec, there are no 4K and 60 fps modes. The camera is not perfect for video recording. Focusing does not fail, but the image is loose, the detail is not as high as we would like. The sound recording is clear, but the noise reduction system suppresses certain frequencies too much, deafness appears, the sound loses its natural liveliness.

• Clip #1 (27 MB, 1920× [email protected] fps, H.264, AAC)
• Clip #2 (25 MB, 1920× [email protected] fps, H.264, AAC)

	Sharpness across the field of the frame is not bad.
	Shooting indoors the camera is relatively good.
	The camera copes with macro photography.
	The text is well done.
	Numbers of the nearest cars are distinguishable.
	The sharpness of the plans is not bad.

The camera turned out, as follows from most ratings, not bad. It copes well in high light, but at the slightest drop, a large grain from the noise reduction begins to appear. However, it does not always spoil the details: in most cases, the noise reduction is quite accurate. It is not uncommon to notice small areas of blur around the edges of the frame. The rest of the camera is really good and will cope well with documentary shooting.

Telephone part and communications

MediaTek Helio P20 supports LTE Cat.6 with a maximum download speed of up to 300Mbps, and for some regions it is supported by the Sony Xperia XA1 model, while for others, slower LTE Cat.4 (up to 150Mbps) can be used . A large number of LTE FDD and TDD frequency bands are supported, including all three of the most common bands in Russia (Band 3, 7, 20). In the city limits of the Moscow region, the device did not behave quite confidently, it “caught” the network for a long time, it showed far from the maximum possible speeds in familiar test places, and there were always one or two “sticks” on the indicators, although this, of course, is not quite an objective measure. In general, I got the impression that once again the Sony smartphone is not very good with the sensitivity of the radio modem, such a sin is found in them.

In addition, Bluetooth 4.2 is supported, both Wi-Fi bands (2.4 and 5 GHz), there is NFC with Mifare Classic support, that is, the device works with an application for travel documents. You can organize a wireless access point via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth channels. The USB Type-C connector supports connecting external devices in USB OTG mode.

When dialing a number, Smart Dial is supported with a search by the first letters in contacts. In the phone book, you can find standard Android features for sorting and displaying contacts.

Software and multimedia

As a software platform, Android OS version 7.0 is used and its own proprietary shell, which changes little from series to series. However, updates happen and it's the closest thing to stock Android right now.

This is not the first time Sony Xperia smartphones have used Xperia Actions technology, which studies user behavior and helps in various situations with customizable settings and personalized recommendations. For example, Xperia can learn to detect what time you usually go to bed and wake up in order to dim the screen and lower the call volume at that time. Smart Cleaner automatically disables unused apps and clears the cache to free up memory.

Also familiar is the set of pre-installed programs, moving from model to model (Movie Creator, Sketch, AVG antivirus). By default, all Sony smartphones come preinstalled with the SwiftKey keyboard.

To play music, the device uses a familiar proprietary player with a familiar set of settings to optimize the ClearAudio+ sound.

The sound of the main speaker is rather faded and quiet, there are no two stereo speakers, as in older models. In headphones, the device sounds more or less worthy: the sound is clear, loud and rich, although low frequencies are not in abundance, and it cannot be called crystal clear. To use certain models of Sony's own headphones, Sony has pre-installed preset profiles. There is also a built-in FM radio. But there are no voice recorder applications in Sony smartphones, as usual.

Performance

The Sony Xperia XA1 hardware platform is based on a MediaTek MT6757 (Helio P20) single-chip system, made using 16-nanometer technology. This SoC includes eight 64-bit ARM Cortex-A53 cores in two clusters at 1.6 or 2.3 GHz. The dual-core GPU Mali-T880 is responsible for graphics processing. The amount of RAM is 3 GB, and the built-in flash memory is 32 GB. Initially free 23 GB of file storage and 1.7 GB of RAM.

MediaTek MT6757 (Helio P20) is a relatively recent 2016 SoC aimed at mid-range smartphones and tablets. It is quite productive: the level of Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 and noticeably more powerful than the previous MediaTek MT6755 (Helio P10). In the AnTuTu test, the hero of the review demonstrates quite worthy more than 60K points, this is a confident average level.

This SoC provides the system with confident performance and in real scenarios allows the smartphone to cope with any modern tasks. There are no problems with games either, all the games we tested, including Modern Combat 5, Mortal Kombat X and others, run without slowdowns.

Testing in comprehensive AnTuTu and GeekBench tests:

For convenience, we have summarized all the results obtained by us when testing a smartphone in the latest versions of popular benchmarks in tables. Several other devices from different segments are usually added to the table, also tested on similar latest versions of benchmarks (this is done only for a visual assessment of the received dry numbers). Unfortunately, within the framework of one comparison, it is impossible to present the results from different versions of benchmarks, so many worthy and relevant models remain “behind the scenes” due to the fact that they once passed the “obstacle course” on previous versions of test programs.

Testing the graphics subsystem in 3DMark gaming tests, GFXBenchmark and Bonsai Benchmark:

When testing in 3DMark for the highest performing smartphones, it is now possible to run the application in Unlimited mode, where the rendering resolution is fixed at 720p and VSync is disabled (due to which the speed can rise above 60 fps).

	Sony Xperia XA1 (MediaTek MT 6757)	Huawei Nova 2 (HiSilicon Kirin 659)	HTC One X10 (MediaTek (MT6755)	Asus Zenfone 3 (Qualcomm Snapdragon 625)	Nokia 5 (Qualcomm Snapdragon 430)
3DMark Ice Storm Sling Shot (more is better)	671	413	421	466	299
GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.1 (Onscreen, fps)	15	5,2	5	6	10
GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.1 (1080p Offscreen, fps)	6	4,7	5	6	4,6
GFXBenchmark T-Rex (Onscreen, fps)	32	20	17	22	20
GFXBenchmark T-Rex (1080p Offscreen, fps)	21	18	17	23	16

Browser cross-platform tests:

As for benchmarks for assessing the speed of the javascript engine, you should always make allowances for the fact that the results in them depend significantly on the browser in which they are launched, so that the comparison can only be truly correct on the same OS and browsers, and this possibility is available when testing not always. In the case of Android OS, we always try to use Google Chrome.

the most common formats that make up the bulk of the content available on the Web. Note that for mobile devices it is important to have support for hardware video decoding at the chip level, since it is most often impossible to process modern versions using processor cores alone. Also, do not expect everything from a mobile device to decode everything, since the leadership in flexibility belongs to the PC, and no one is going to challenge it. All results are summarized in a table.

Further testing of video playback performed Alexey Kudryavtsev.

We could not check the theoretically possible support for adapters for outputting images to an external device due to the lack of an adapter option that connects to the USB Type-C port, so we had to limit ourselves to testing the output of video files to the screen of the device itself. To do this, we used a set of test files with an arrow and a rectangle moving one division per frame (see “Methodology for testing video signal playback and display devices. Version 1 (for mobile devices)”). Screenshots with a shutter speed of 1 s helped determine the nature of the output frames of video files with different parameters: the resolution varied (1280 by 720 (720p), 1920 by 1080 (1080p) and 3840 by 2160 (4K) pixels) and frame rate (24, 25, 30, 50 and 60 fps). In tests, we used the MX Player video player in Hardware mode. The test results are summarized in the table:

well No 720/30p well No 720/25p well No 720/24p well No

Note: If both columns Uniformity and Passes green ratings are set, this means that, most likely, when watching movies, artifacts caused by uneven interleaving and dropping frames will either not be visible at all, or their number and visibility will not affect viewing comfort. Red marks indicate possible problems with the playback of the respective files.

According to the criteria for displaying frames, the quality of video playback on the screen of the smartphone itself is good, since frames (or groups of frames) can (but are not required) to be displayed with more or less uniform alternation of intervals and in most cases without frame drops. When playing video files with a resolution of 1280 by 720 (720p) on a smartphone screen, the image of the video file itself is displayed exactly along the border of the screen, one to one in pixels, that is, in its original resolution. The range of brightness displayed on the screen corresponds to the actual range - all gradations are displayed in the shadows and in the highlights.

Battery Life

The non-removable battery installed in the Sony Xperia XA1 traditionally has a small capacity of 2300 mAh. As expected, a smartphone with such a small battery, and even on the MediaTek platform, which has never been famous for its economical power consumption, does not demonstrate a high level of autonomy. The level, one might say, is barely satisfactory by today's standards.

Testing has traditionally been conducted at normal power levels without power saving features. Naturally, there is a proprietary Smart Stamina energy-saving mode, and Qnovo Adaptive Charging, a proprietary adaptive charging technology, is responsible for a more gentle attitude towards battery charging.

Continuous reading in the Moon + Reader program (with a standard, light theme) at a minimum comfortable brightness level (brightness was set to 100 cd / m²) with auto scrolling lasted no more than 13 hours until the battery was completely discharged, and with continuous viewing of video in high quality (720p ) with the same brightness level through the home Wi-Fi network, the device works for 8.5 hours. In 3D game mode, the smartphone can operate for about 4 hours.

From a conventional AC adapter, the smartphone is fully charged within 2 hours and 45 minutes with a current of 1.28 A at a voltage of 5 V. The smartphone does not support wireless charging.

Outcome

The device has already been presented in Russian retail, the official cost of the Sony Xperia XA1 is 22 thousand rubles. For this money, the user receives a balanced mid-level smartphone, not of the highest flight, but without noticeable failures. The screen, the camera, the performance of the hardware system, the set of communication modules, the sound in the headphones - everything is at a completely satisfactory and even good level. The sound of the main speaker and the level of autonomy are worse than we would like at this price, but for Sony products, overpriced has always been the norm. This does not stop true fans of the brand, they overpay for a popular brand, as well as for confidence in the high quality of the company's products.