Sony Xperia U Review

Introduction:

The Sony Xperia U begs to be noticed with its removable bottom caps in different colors and boxy design, clearly aiming for the younger crowd, but its capable hardware and affordable price actually make it suitable for everybody. 

We have a dual-core processor, the new NXT design line of Sony with the transparent strip in the bottom, a screen with good pixel density, and fast camera capable of HD video. On paper the only thing to hold the Xperia U back is its Android Gingerbread software, but do all these nice features work in sync in the latest Xperia phone for the mass market? Read on our review to find out...

In the box:

• Travel charger
• microUSB cable
• Spare bottom cap
• Warranty and information leaflets

Design:

Boxy like an old Volvo, the 12mm-thick Sony Xperia U is a shrunk copy of the Xperia S, complete with the curved back and the illuminated transparent strip at the bottom that lights up when you press the three capacitive “dots” above it. Here it can light up in different colors - white, blue, green, red, purple or yellow, depending on the theme and song you play, and this is pretty eye-catching. It also serves a double purpose by housing the antenna, thus allowing easy signal access for improved reception.

The Sony Xperia U is a breeze to hold and operate with one hand

You can compare the Sony Xperia U with many other phones using our Size Visualization Tool.

The illuminated transparent strip at the bottom lights up when you press the three capacitive “dots” above it

The navigational dots here are more responsive than on the Xperia S for some reason, the lock/power key is placed right underneath your thumb, and the volume rocker below it is comfortably long and wide, very easy to press, with good feedback. 

	Navigational dots below the display	Front-facing camera

The curved back and sides made with soft touch plastic feel nice, and, since we are dealing with a fairly small 3.5” display, the phone is a breeze to hold and operate with one hand. One expected advantage of a thicker phone is that it is easier to grab it lying flat and go, instead of prying some anorexic slab off the table, as is the case with so many sub-10mm handsets these days.

microUSB port (left)	Buttons on the right side	3.5mm jack (top)	Bottom edge
The sides of the Sony Xperia U

Back	Camera	Back cover removed

In order to spice things up for the target market, Sony has made the bottom section of the phoneremovable and replaceable with a cap of different color to suit your mood, clothes, or just because you can. There is an extra cap provided in the box, and a variety of other colors if you don’t like the particular combo supplied. 

Pulling the cap out to replace with another color requires just a firm grip and pull-down, but you won’t find any slots underneath, it’s just for appearance purposes. To insert a SIM card you’d have to push the back cover, and slide it upwards, easy-peasy. Thankfully the phone sports a regular SIM slot and a removable battery, so about the only vice in that department is the lack of microSD card slot for expansion of the 4GB internal memory.


Display:

No complaints about the 3.5” Reality LCD on the Sony Xperia U - it is sufficiently bright for outside visibility, with saturated colors and good viewing angles - better than on the Xperia S flagship actually, where contrast and brightness fade significantly from the sides. Here we only get a slightly yellowish cast when tilting on the right, and that’s about the only deviation.

Thanks to the smallish 3.5” size coupled with Sony’s typical 480x854 pixels of resolution we also have a very good pixel density of 280ppi, making text and small interface elements appear crisp and smooth. About the only gripe we have here is the lack of oleophobic coating on the display, so finger grease accumulates and gets smudged quickly and you have to wipe it pretty often.

Sony Xperia U 360-degrees View:

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Sony Xperia P Review

Introduction:

The Sony Xperia P is the company's first smartphone to feature WhiteMagic technology. What kind of witchcraft is that, you ask? Well, thanks to some display manufacturing ingenuity, the handset's screen is capable of outglowing almost any smartphone currently on the market, which ensures its excellent outdoor visibility.

Other than that we are dealing with a reasonably priced mid-range Android handset with some pretty decent specs. The processor inside it has a couple of cores ticking at 1GHz, an Exmor R camera of 8 mexapixel resides on the unit's back, and a shell made out of anodized aluminum protects the smartphone's internals. We cannot hide that we have high hopes for the Xperia P, so without further ado, let us fire it up and see how it performs. 

Box contents:

• Wall charger
• microUSB cable
• Wired headset with in-ear headphones
• Start-up guide

Design:

At a glance, the Sony Xperia P looks more or less like a slightly smaller version of the Xperia S. The curved back side, the sharp edges, the glowing transparent strip at the bottom of the device – all of these visual cues have been taken straight from the company's flagship. Of course, there is nothing wrong with that. The smartphone looks just as attractive as its boxy big brother, so we are more than happy with the way it has been designed.

The Sony Xperia P is one of the smaller (narrower) smartphones out there

What makes the Xperia P different, however, is that instead of plastic of one kind or another, Sony has chosen to treat its mid-ranger to an aluminum shell, which covers most of its back side, with the exception of areas where antennas are located. At first, the presence of premium materials is not evident, but then you feel the difference once the coldness of the anodized metal is sensed by your fingertips. The lack of a microSD card slot and the non-removable battery are the trade-offs associated with this design trait. At 10.5 millimeters, the smartphone is not too thick, but far from being impressively thin either, so it won't remain unnoticed while it is resting in the pocket of your jeans. 

Left edge	Right	Top	Bottom
The sides of the Sony Xperia P

Sony Xperia P is one of the smaller (narrower) smartphones out there, yet using it with a single hand might require a bit of an effort as the display is situated relatively far from the device's bottom side. As a result, your thumb might find it difficult to reach the very top of the handset's elogated body. On the other hand, the physical buttons, all of which are located on the unit's right side, are pretty easy to operate, and the 2-stage camera shutter is really convenient when taking photos. The transparent band below the display is where the usual capacitive Android keys are, and it is great to see that they are really responsive to the touch.

Front	Front-facing camera	Android keys

Back	Rear camera	The transparent band

Display:

We are genuinely amazed by how blindingly bright the LCD display on the Sony Xperia P can be. At 935 nits, its outdoor visibility is nothing short of excellent even when Mr Sun is shining right at the handset’s front side. That is thanks to Sony’s very own WhiteMagic technology, which we see in a smartphone for the first time, and hopefully not the last.

Brightness aside, the screen exhibits a great level of detail due to its 275ppi pixel density. The exact resolution is 540 by 960 pixels (qHD) spread over 4 inches of real estate. As a result, everything looks nice and sharp, from tiniest of text fonts to the smooth curves of home screen icons.

In terms of color representation, however, things could have been a bit more accurate. Unless the brightness is set to a high level, whites appear yellowish, but once the display is glowing near its maximum, shades of yellow start looking greenish. Thankfully, you won't be noticing these flaws all the time due to their dependency on the brightness setting, which gets adjusted automatically by default.

Sony Xperia P 360-degrees View:

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Samsung Galaxy Player 4.2 Review

Introduction:

As we’ve plainly pointed out in our review of theSamsung Galaxy Player 3.6, it would astound us to know that someone would even fathom choosing it over an entry-level Android powered smartphone from any of the prepaid carriers out there. Frankly, you’re throwing away $149.99 down the toilet with the purchase, but if you can somehow inch out and invest another $50 to the tally, there might be enough validity in buying the beefierSamsung Galaxy Player 4.2 as an alternative media player solution.


Design:

Wow! We have to admit that the change is dramatic between the Galaxy Player 3.6 and 4.2, as the latter simply looks and feels like the superior device. Although it’s still flaunting that typical Samsung-made design, it employs enough lovable qualities to appease us – like a solid build construction, lightweight feel, and streamlined body.

The Samsung Galaxy Player 4.2 has a solid build construction, lightweight feel, and streamlined body

Taking a peek around its sides, we’re presented with a host of things like its 3.5mm headset jack, microUSB port, volume control, power button, and a spot for a lanyard. Similar to the international version of the Samsung Galaxy S, the Galaxy Player 4.2 sports a dedicated home button with the capacitive back and menu buttons surrounding it. Moreover, it features a front-facing VGA camera and two speakers that hug closely to the top and bottom edges.

	Android buttons and speaker	Front cam and speaker

microUSB port and 3.5mm jack (bottom)	Power and volume keys (right)	Top side
The sides of the Samsung Galaxy Player 4.2

Around the rear, its 2-megapixel fixed focus camera is squarely in the middle towards the upper back portion of the device, while removing the plastic rear cover provides us access to its 1,500 mAh battery and microSD card slot.

Back	Camera	Battery compartment

Display:

Seriously, we were repulsed by the poor display thrown onto the Samsung Galaxy Player 3.6, but this time around, we’re happy to report that things are more suitable with the Galaxy Player 4.2. Specifically, it’s packing a well-sized 4.2” WVGA (480 x 800) LCD display that’s light years more agreeable to the eyes. Although it’s still not as attractive versus other displays, it’s nevertheless effective with most things.