My sexy new Sony Xperia Z1 White Review

Sony Xperia Z1 Phone Box Front

After a long awaited 2 weeks after pre-ordering, my sexy new Sony Xperia Z1 phone arrived! This following is my tiny tech review.

Pre-ordered for AUD $720 from Sony Center Brisbane, thanks to the price matchers in Melbourne. Normally they sell it for $779 pre-order.

Sony Xperia Z1 Phone Box Back

No unboxing video here, just the box it came in. Small square box sealed with shiny tape. As you can see from the back, the phone comes in 3 colors including the blue looking purple. Mine was the white one, which in reality is actually half black. In fact whichever color you choose, the front will be black.

Sony Xperia Z1 Phone Box Opened

My pre-order came with the usual charger and usb cable plus phone. A bonus speaker should be coming in the mail as well for the Pre-order promotion. No unboxing video here :D

Sony Xperia Z1 White Front

The phone does feel and look very very premium and the extra weight gives it a bit of heft. Definitely not a lady's phone, but also definitely NOT a brick. Compared to the Samsung Galaxy S2 and S3's I have used in the past, the phone is much bigger.

The 5 inch screen, covered with DragonTrail Glass and a screen protector, is the first smartphone screen that can be used in sunlight. Of note is the bit of backlight bleeding coming through the top edge of the screen but it is not really noticeable unless you display a pure black picture with the brightness cranked to maximum.

Seriously I don't know what the fuss is about the colors being faded when viewed at 45 degree angle. I could still see stuff on the screen quite well even at a 45 degree angle. AMOLED screens may be more colorful but when viewed normally, the display is fantastic, especially playing videos, just like a mini Bravia TV. My unit also did not have the yellow tint present on some other batches.

Sony Xperia Z1 White Back

The back with the 20 Megapixel camera is covered with a layer of Gorilla Glass 3. There is also a screen protector on the back as well. Camera pictures with the default camera app are ok in bright daylight but terrible indoors with a lot of noise.

I was almost thinking of returning the phone, but after installing the Samsung S4 Google Edition Camera app, the pictures turned out much better. Though the S4 app does not have a 20 megapixel mode, at least for indoor pictures, the noise is gone and at least its reassuring to know that the noisy pictures are a software problem, not a hardware problem. This major problem should be solved in the next software update (update 22/10/2013 : for the new firmware .237 the camera is slightly better in low light but still not as good as could be. Software still needs to be improved guys...)

Battery life on this phone is superb, in standby mode with stamina mode on and not using the phone, it only loses about 2% of charge overnight! yes 2%. I charged it to 100% before bed time and next day it was at 98%. Amazing!!

Sony Xperia Z1 Underwater

Of course, most impressive and another first for me was the ability to take the phone for a shower or swim. The Z1 passed my 1 minute soak test with flying colors! But underwater the only thing you can do is take pictures with the camera button. The touchscreen doesn't work at all. Also after a swim, you have to wipe the camera and let the surface dry before using it, otherwise the touch sensors just go 'crazy'

All in all, this is probably THE BEST smartphone on the market today. Ladies should probably consider the Galaxy S4 or the new LG G2. Guys, if you have the money, get one ASAP. Just do an immediate return if you get one of those dreadful yellow tinge(a few hard resets can solve the problem) or blue tinge screens. Also always remember to take your phone for a swim or shower once you buy it as a few units have been known to leak.

Tune in soon for my Xperia Z1 rooting and S4 Camera/Gallery installation guide.