Tech2 Touch

Category: Sony

  • Sony Xperia E4 Dual Cons and Pros Review

    Sony Xperia E4 Dual is sub 15k Android Dual sim smartphone. It is meant to compete with the likes of Moto G 2nd gen, Yu Yureka, Lenovo A7000, Redme smartphones etc. How well the smartphone fares when compared with the competitors?  We see the pros and cons of Sony Xperia E4 in this review.

    Sony Xperia E4 Dual is powered by 1.3GHz quad-core Mediatek MT6582 SoC with Mali-400MP2 GPU and 1GB of RAM. The internal storage capacity of the device is 8GB and supports microSD card upto 32GB.  It runs on Android 4.4.4 Kitkat along with Sony’s skin.  Though the skin is not heavy, devices comes loaded with many bloatwares.

    Sony Xperia E4

    Sony Xperia E4 sports 5 inch IPS LCD screen with a screen resolution of 540×960(qHD) which translates to approximately 220 ppi pixel density. The screen looks dull even with full brightness. The viewing angles and bright legibility are also not satisfactory. Though there is no mention of what kind of glass is used, the screen is scratch resistant as per the company.

    Sony Xperia E4 houses 5 MP primary camera which can record 1080p videos and 2MP front facing camera. There is nothing much to right about primary camera as its performance is below average. The front camera does the decent job. The connectivity features of the device includes 3G, WiFi, Bluetooth and USB. One of the highlight of Xperia E4 is its battery. It comes with 2300 mAh battery. In a video loop test, phone ran for more than 9 hours.

    Advantages and Disadvantages of Sony Xperia E4

    Pros of Xperia E4

    • Good Battery life. The performance of the battery is excellent in this price segment.
    • Decent front facing camera.
    • Decent cellular call quality.

    Cons of Xperia E4

    • Average performance: The Xperia E4 performance on day to day usage is mediocre. It lags and shutters. Even swipes registered as taps and opened apps instead of scrolling between home screens.
    •  Average Camera performance: The primary camera performance is below average when compared with the competition.
    •  Average Display: It has  low resolution screen coupled with low brightness and angles view angles.
    • No Android Lollipop Out of the box.
    • Expensive

    Verdict: Sony Xperia E4 is not recommended at this price. However, you can go for it if and only if you are hard core Sony Smartphone fan. Otherwise you can look for  Motorola Moto G(2nd gen), Yu Yureka or Lenovo A6000 .

    Sony Xperia E4 Specification

    • 1.3GHz quad-core Mediatek MT6582 SoC with Mali-400MP2 GPU and 1GB of RAM
    • Android 4.4.4 Kitkat
    • Dual sim with Dual standby.
    • 8GB internal storage and supports microSD card upto 32GB.
    • 5MP primary camera and 2MP front facing camera.
    • 2300 mAh battery.

  • How to Use Sony Xperia Smartphones as Modem

    Sony Xperia smartphones are known for the premium build quality and good performance.  The Xperia smartphones runs on the Android OS. This enables the Sony Xperia smartphone to be used as modem using the USB tethering and WiFi Hotspot features.  Here is the quick to tutorial on how to use Sony Xperia smartphones as modem to connect to internet from PC.  To name few, you can use Sony Xperia Z, Xperia ZR, Xperia C, Xperia E, Xperia M, Xperia L, Xperia T2 Ultra, Xperia SP, Xperia E1  as modem.

    How to use Sony Xperia Smatphones as Modem

    There are two ways you can use Sony Xperia device to connect to internet from PC/Laptop. One is the through WiFi hotspot and another through USB tethering. If you have Laptop or PC or tablet or iPad which has WiFi connectivity, then WiFi hotspot is the good option. If you dont have WiFi on your PC, the USB tethering is the best option.  Let us look into both these methods to use Xperia smartphone as modem.

    Using Sony Xperia Smartphone as WiFi Hotspot

    To use Sony Xperia smartphone as WiFi Hotspot you need to have mobile data enabled.  Once you enabled mobile data on Xperia smartphone, just follow the steps mentioned below.

    Sony Xperia WiFi Hotspot
    Sony Xperia as Modem
    • Go to Settings
    • Touch More
    • Touch Tethering & mobile hotspot

    Xperia Hotspot

    • Tap to Mobile Wi-Fi Hotspot to enable hotspot
    • You can customise WiFi hotspot settings such as Network SSID, password by tapping on to Set up Wi-Fi Hotspot

    Using Sony Xperia Smartphone as USB Modem

    You want to share the mobile data from Sony Xperia smartphone to a non Wi-Fi enabled device, then you need use Sony Xperia USB tethering features. To use USB tethering of Sony Xperia smartphone follow the steps given below.

    • Connect your Sony Xperia to PC using the USB cable.
    • Go to Settings in the device
    • Touch More
    • Touch Tethering & mobile hotspot
    • Tap and enable the USB enable.

    This will enable your Sony Xperia Smartphone as Modem to connect to Internet from PC.

  • How to Update Sony Xperia M to Android 4.3 JellyBean

    Sony started rolling Android 4.3 Jelly Bean firmware update to its midrange Xperia M smartphones. The latest Android update has the build version as 15.4.A.0.23.  The update brings lot of improvements on currently available features and adds few more new features. We will have a detailed improvement of Android 4.3 JellyBean update.

    Sony Xperia M Andriod Update
    Xperia M Firmware Update

    Sony Xperia M Android 4.3 JellyBean Update Features

    • Google Android 4.3 (Jellybean), bringing smooth UI and graphics enhancements
    • New version of Battery STAMINA Mode for longer battery life
    • Updated camera interface bringing Burst Mode, Superior Auto & More
    • Updated applications from Sony featuring Walkman, Album, Movies & More
    • Latest security enhancements from Android 4.3

    How to Update Sony Xperia M to Latest Android 4.3 JellyBean

    The Sony Xperia M can be updated through two ways. One is Wirelessly from the device and the other one is through USB cable and Sony Xperia PC suite.

    1. Updating Sony Xperia M Wirelessly from the device

    To check and install latest Firmware update on Xperia M, Goto Settings-> About Phone->Software Updates->System updates.

    If Update is available, you will get a notification of the new updates and option to download and install the update.

    2. Updating Sony Xperia M through PC Suite

    Installing new firmware update if it is a major one like this, it is highly recommended to use this method.  First you need download official Sony Xperia PC suite PC companion to your PC and install it. Connect your device to PC through USB. You will find notification if update is available. For download instruction on PC Companion you refer my previous post on Sony Xperia PC suite free download.

    Have you already updated to Android 4.3 Jelly Bean on Xperia M? Share your experience with new OS in the comment section below.

  • Sony Xperia Z1 Compact Review Price Tips

    It is a common practice from the major smartphone manufacturer to release mini versions of the flagship smartphone.  Here Sony has changed a little bit. It released compact version of the Xperia Z1 and not mini. That is it is just compact in size and equally powerful as bigger brother. Sony Xperia Z1 Compact price in India is Rs.35990.

    Sony Xperia Z1 Compact is powered by Quad-core 2.2 GHz Krait 400 CPU with Qualcomm MSM8974 Snapdragon 800 and Adreno 330 GPU. The RAM of the device is 2GB and has 16GB of internal storage. Xperia Z1 also supports microSD card upto 64GB and runs on Android 4.3 Jelly Bean. Sony has announced that, it will get Android 4.4 Kitkat update soon.

    Sony Xperia Z1 Compact Smartphone

     

    Sony Xperia Z1 Compact sports 4.3 inch TFT capacitive touch screen with 720×1280 pixel resolution and 342 ppi pixel density. The display is made up of Shatter proof and scratch-resistant glass and has Triluminos display, X-Reality Engine technologies.  It supports upto 10 finger multi touch.

    Sony Xperia Z1 Compact comes with 20.7MP primary rear camera with LED flash and auto focus. The camera feature includes 1/2.3” sensor size, geo-tagging, touch focus, face and smile detection, image stabilization, HDR, panorama. There is also a 2MP camera which is also can record 1080p video. The connectivity features of the device includes GPRS, EDGE, 3G, LTE, USB, Bluetooth and NFC. Sony Xperia Z1 Compact houses Non removable Li-ion 2300 mAh battery.  It is rated to provide upto 670 hours of standby time and 10 hours of talk time.  The device also a water and dust resistant.

    Sony Xperia Z1 Compact Disadvantages

    • Non User removable battery
    • Average loud speaker performance
    • No out of the box Android 4.4 Kitkat

    Sony Xperia Z1 Tips and Tricks

    Using Xperia Z1 as modem

    Sony Xperia Z1 Compact can be used as modem through WiFi Hotspot and USB tethering features. Just enable the WiFi hotspot in the device and complete simple configuration to access internet on other WiFi enabled device. To use Xperia Z1 Compact as modem through USB by connect the device to PC through USB. Now enable the USB tethering.

    Taking screenshot on Sony Xperia Z1 Compact

    To take screenshot on Xperia Z1 Compact just press and hold Volume down key and Power button simultaneously.  You will hear a shutter sound which confirms Screen shot has been taken.  You can access the screen by going to gallery.

    Sony Xperia Z1 Compact Specification

    • Android v4.3 (Jelly Bean) OS
    • 4.3-inch TFT Capacitive Touchscreen with 720p screen
    • 2.2 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 MSM8974 Quad Core Processor
    • Adreno 330 GPU and 2GB RAM
    • 20.7 MP Primary Camera
    • 2 MP Secondary Camera
    • Full HD Recording
    • Waterproof and Dust Resistant
    • 16GB internal storage
    • Expandable Storage Capacity of 64 GB

  • Update Sony Xperia Z Ultra to Latest Firmware

    As we all know, Sony has starting seeding firmware updates to its Xperia Ultra smartphones which brings new features such as Mobile X-reality engine, and few improvements to enhance the user experience. Sony Xperia Z Ultra has 6.4 inch Full HD display screen and powered by 2.2GHz Quad Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor with 2GB of RAM. The internal storage of the device is 16GB and it supports microSD card upto 64GB.

    Update Sony Xperia Z Ultra Tips and Tricks
    Sony Xperia Z Ultra

    Coming back to the firmware update Sony Xperia Z Ultra,  the last update which was named as 14.1.B.510. It is one of the major update from the Sony. The new Xperia Ultra Update brings support for Sony’s mobile X-Reality engine which promises to increase the overall playback quality of locally stored media files such as photos, movies by adjusting the sharpness, saturation, contrast, noise reduction and even reproduction of lacking pixels. There many more new features and improvements also comes along with the update. Below are the few of them. The total size of this major update is 770MB.

    • Overall performance increase and improvements in battery life.
    • New stock widgets – Clock, Alarm Clock and Calculator among others.
    • Multiple small apps can now be opened at once.
    • Refreshed design as far as the messenger and e-mail apps are concerned.
    • Superior Auto mode added to the camera appearance.
    • One-handed text input now possible.
    • Background UI has gone white-grey.

    How to Update Sony Xperia Z Ultra Smartphone to Latest Firmware

    1. You need to download and install the Sony Xperia PC Companion PC suite.
    2. Connect yout device to PC using the USB cable. Ensure that your phone is charged at least 75%.
    3. If there is update you will get a notification. Click on that. Continue to follow the on screen instructions to complete download and installation.
    Note: If update is smalll in size, you can update your Sony Xperia smartphone through Over The Air(OTA) feature too.