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| Z5 Compact, Z5, Z5 Premium |
A few months ago there were rumours that Sony was going to get rid of their mobile division, similar to what they did to their laptop division, but fortunately it was finally denied by the President of Sony Mobile. What made the rumour believable was the fact that most smartphones makers are not making profit with each phone sale, even to a point of having losses per sale (post on the topic will come). Only Apple and Samsung are known to make profits of their smartphones (Samsung margin being only around $33 per phone).
Moving forward, Sony's smartphones are known to be one of those well-crafted premium device. It's a matter of time that they hit the market with an excellent phone. So at the recent IFA, Sony unveiled the much improved Xperia Z5. Along side the release of it is the Z5 compact and Z5 Premium which would be covered in different posts.
I bet you are wondering. The last Xperia Z was Z3, isn't the next one suppose to be Z4? Well, the Z4 did come out around earlier this year but it was only released in Japan, and it was quite a minor upgrade that Sony didn't export it out. The few rare countries that managed to get it, instead got the Z3+. Different name but same phone. Shows how minor of an upgrade Sony deemed it.
Before I start, here's a glimpse of the specifications on the Xperia Z5:
- 5.2-inch Full HD (1920x1080) 428 ppi
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 with Adreno 430 GPU 64-bit Octa-core processor
- 32GB of storage with 3GB RAM
- microSD slot with up to 200GB of expansion
- 23MP Sony Exmor RS f/2.0 rear camera with 5MP rear camera
- Android Lollipop 5.1
- 2900 mAh non-removable battery with STAMINA mode
- Waterproof and dust tight (IP68)
- LTE Cat 6
- PS4 Remote Play
- Single NanoSim
Sporting glasses and sharp rectangular edges, there is no denying that the Xperias are among the best built smartphone in the world. As most know, glass is like a fingerprint magnet and what Sony did to counter this is by instead fitting in a frosted glass. Wrapped with metal that is smoother compared to previous Xperias gives the Z5 a slicker look. 
On the side of it, you'll see a new larger power button that now accommodates a fingerprint scanner. It's a nifty solution since most of manufacturers would include a front home button just to have the fingerprint scanner or placing it at the back (something that personally for me feels weird). Next to the power button is a dedicated camera key that gives taking landscape pictures a natural feel. 
Dimension wise it's similar in size to the Z3 measuring 146mm x 72mm x 7.3mm. The screen on is a 5.2-inch Full HD 1080p screen, that takes a screen-to-phone ratio of 70.91%, with Sony's own Triluminos Display for mobile (found in their Bravia TVs). According to Sony, this allows their devices to display a wider palette of true-to-life colour. Apart from that Sony also included their X-Reality for mobile that should reduce noises, improve texture, outline, and pixel reproduction. To give the display a larger viewing angle, the Xperia Z5's display has the all-condition display with Dynamic Contrast Enhancer. 
Only Full HD when others are going 2K? In my opinion it's a smart move by Sony because resolutions higher than FHD on a small 5.2-inch doesn't quite make sense to me (plus you won't see much of a difference). Yes it's a nice feature to have but imagine the toll it would take on the battery. Going FHD has allowed the Z5 to have up to 2 days' of battery life. You read it right, up to 2 days. Sony fitted a 2900mAh battery in the latest Xperia Z and we've all known that the Xperia Z series has been known for its long durable battery life so it's not quite surprising (STAMINA Mode) . Standard nowadays is the Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0 capability which Sony stated to give a full day's usage from 45minutes of charging.
Although the Snapdragon 810 has received criticism for being a heat generator, its latest version should be a different story. This is the version that Sony is using in the Z5s. An octa-core 64-bit processor and 3GB of RAM to play around with, the Z5 should provide a smooth, lag-free xperience for the user. What powers the graphics is the integrated Adreno 430 that should handle the latest demanding games with ease.
Moving on to the most important part of a smartphone now is the camera. More specifically the rear camera. The Sony Xperia Z5 receives an major upgraded camera compared to its previous iterations, this time the new shooter is a 23MP f/2.0 Sony Exmor RS for mobile with G lens that is wide-angled (24mm) and allows more light to be captured.
Another aspect that Sony improved on its camera is its autofocus speed which is now ultra-fast, focusing on the object in only 0.03 seconds. Sony achieved this through its Hybrid Autofocus that combines contrast-detection for accuracy and phase-detection for speed. Other than that the camera has a 5x Clear image zoom and 8x digital zoom.
It is able to capture photos with an ISO of up to 12800. Sony also promises better low-light photos with their new Exmor RS CMOS censors. Recording 4K videos would be easier with the inclusion of Sony's trademark SteadyShot on this device.
The front camera meanwhile is a 5MP Sony Exmor R for mobile wide wide-angle lens (25mm) capable of shooting FHD videos and also has the SteadyShot technology for better selfies.
Audiophiles rejoice! The Z5 is said to be equipped with Hi-Res Audio with digital noise cancelling. Making your music library sound much clearer and closer to the original recording. To what extent is the difference remains to be tested.
Continuing its siblings, the Z5 is also waterproof with a rating of IP68. So spills or dunks should not hurt the device but Sony cautioned users to now take the phone deeper than 1.5m of fresh water and for no longer than 30 minutes. Sony states that usage in chlorinated pool is allowed as long as you remember to wash your phone with fresh water afterwards. Beware as voiding any of these terms would invalidate your warranty.
I would say as a conclusion the Xperia Z5 is a great phone! It's well built, certainly looks and feels premium, has an excellent camera, great display, a fast processor, long battery life compared to today's standards and is waterproof. 4 colours that are available for it are White, Graphite Black, Gold and Green. What more can you ask from a flagship phone. I do hope that the public realise this and give Sony another try. We need more competitors in the smartphone market to go against the likes of Samsung and Apple.
Here's a quick video on the Z5
Source: Sony, XperiaBlog, AndroidAuthority
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