[Q] Xperia Mini ST15i or Google Nexus S? - Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini, Mini Pro, Xperia Pro, A

Hello! I have gone through all the reviews and what made me look in to this device is its cost and the loaded features. However before going in for it, I wanted to get inputs from the users about a couple of things.
First, How is the battery performance? Here is my normal usage pattern, about half an hour of 2G calls. Music for about an hour. Camera usage for about 5 mins. GPRS browsing for about 1-2 hours.
Second, How easy is it to type using the on screen QUERTY keypad?
Third, How is the browsing experience? I know that it supports full flash and it will load pages quite well. But what I am asking is how readable is the screen size and rendering. Since I travel everyday I will read engadget, techcrunch and so on while travelling.
Android Updates. It sure has a 1Ghz processor with 512 Mb RAM. Does this mean we will get regular updates from Sony Ericsson. I am actually fan of pure google experience. I wanted to buy the Nexus S, but since I saw this phone for a cheap cost i have given it a thought.
The Nexus S is available in India for about $400(Super LCD version, not the AMOLED version. EVerything else is the same). The Xperia Mini is about $250. Now the question is, paying another $150 would get me a pure google phone with larger screen and better browsing experience. Can somebody help me out here? I am in a fix here.

Hey, I've got a Mini Pro but i can help you with most of your questions.
I'd say my usage is similar to yours with the exception of using wifi instead of gprs/3g for the most part and I only had to charge my phone before the end of the day in the first few days of owning it because I was playing with it so much. These days, I use up around 60% battery during one day. This is with Data being always on, and no battery management apps. I don't mind the once per day charging.
I've tried on-screen landscape keyboard and it's perfectly fine, comparable to every other touch screen device. Portrait mode however, I use only for less than 3-4 word input since it's kinda cramped (and hardware keyboard is a great experience).
It's only while browsing that screen size might be an issue. Browsing experience overall is quite good as the phone is very powerful for that resolution. I do however sometimes feel 'claustrophobic' and wish for a bigger screen while browsing. But, It's not a big issue, at least for me, although you should try it out in the store by loading up some of your favorite sites.
As for updates, Sony has officially stated that all Xperia phones from 2011 will get Ice Cream Sandwich, with some delay as with every manufacturer. But an even better news, at least for me, is the official support of CM which is coming soon. I'd put CM on any phone I might own.
But in either case you'll be having a fresh android OS, and if you decide to go for official ROM you can install Launcher Pro or ADW and get an experience indistinguishable from a vanilla android. Some of the Sony's apps (camera, messaging and music player...) are actually better than vanilla ones, in my opinion. But I assume you will be able to install those in CM with little effort.
I was in a similar position, "is the extra money worth the bigger screen?". And for me it wasn't, but that's mostly because that extra money was the kind of money I just couldnt afford at that time. I was torn between Mini Pro and Neo, which is actually very similar to Nexus S but cheaper so check it out if it's available to you. Money won out in my case or else I would have gotten Neo. If you can afford it, go for Neo or Nexus!
Cheers

Related

To be or not to be?

Hi,
I'm looking for a QWERTY Android phone and the Mini Pro caught my attention.
Should I buy one? Should I wait for some other releases (HTC) ? Any other suggestions?
Sidenote: Can I install the latest Android on it? 2.2 I think.
Only 1.6 available for it atm. I think SE wants to officially release 2.1 or 2.2 sometime in September / October.
And what's you suggestion? Should I buy it or should I wait for other releases/brands?
It's a cheap device. And it's not the best if you're a power user.
I'd say wait for the HTC Desire Z if you can afford it.
I need the QWERTY keyboard, which the Desire does not have, from what I can see.
Any other suggestions?
The "HTC Desire Z" is a new phone *with* a QWERTY keyboard, also known as the HTC Vision:
http://www.slashgear.com/t-mobile-g1-blaze-aka-htc-vision-spotted-again-2695266/
Any idea when it will be available in Europe? Or any approx. price-tag?
It will be a GSM device.
I'd say about £500 unlocked.
Same price as the Desire when it was released.
And probably released in Q4.
hi rad-misu, could you provide us with more information on what you actually want in a mobile phone?
the x10 mini pro is very small and i like to use it as secondary phone (and android toy), but i wouldn't want it as my main phone. Since i prefer a larger screen etc.
FYI US Version available.
Purchase online from mobilecityonline.com.
They also have a retail store in NYC.
just picked mine up.
If u r a power user, the screen will be small for your eyes. I am x10 mini user. I love the phone (perfect for me), coz all I did was to make and receive call with occational web browsing.
I'm coming from a 1st gen HTC Touch Cruise and am looking for a mid-range device, something decent, not a state-of-the-art-tons-of-money gadget .
Android, QWERTY, browsing, and yes, a bigger screen would be a plus, but I can't seem to find any device with this specs at the moment. Am I missing anything?
The new Desire seems to be more on the expensive side.
I had a Touch Cruise for a while, actually, but couldn't stand WM and even less not having a keyboard. Before that I had lots of Treo's, and after the Touch Cruise I had a Blackberry Bold followed by a G1 which I happily used for almost a year, until I switched to a Mini Pro last month. So I know my smartphones
I loved the G1 for everything except the size and weight, and it was lagging sometimes. The Mini Pro offers me all that the G1 did but in a much better hardware package: small, lightweight, plus it looks terrific.
I can't be bothered that it isn't running a more recent version of Android, frankly I don't miss any of the new features. And I do consider myself a power user that tweaks and bends the configuration of my phones all the time, and uses the Mini Pro as a phone, browser, mail machine (both Gmail and Exchange), GPS, MP3 player, and what not.
If you don't fancy a big screen, then the Mini Pro is the best Android smartphone available today.
Being an IT guy, and not wanting to travel all the time with my laptop in my backpack, I bought the X10m, and it's enough to do a little vpn/ssh to diagnosis and repair some common servers faults.
Although the screen is little, the battery ( provided you use data/3g/wifi/gps only when needed ) lasts good, and it doesn't disturbe my pocket to handle it
For me, the best android phone right now ( small, lasts long, works good ).
That's exactly what I'm looking for.
I'm a webdesigner and I want a small device for some debugging on the go, ssh and so.
How is the browsing on this device? Any problems with it?
Phone-wise: Any problems with reception and/or calling in general? How fast is email? Any lagging in general operation?
As far as i know the X10 mini pro is one of the few devices with Android ánd QWERTY so your choice is already limited.
I've experienced no reception problems. Wifi is a bit weaker compared to bigger devices such as my laptop etc.
The wifi "problem" is understandable.
What about the RAM? How fast is this device? Any problems on this side?
On another note: what about the multimedia? I won't be using the camera too much, but being a Sony I suppose it takes (at least) decent pictures. (?!)
How is the music playback? External speaker especially.
Thanks for all you replies! Greatly appreciated!
Camera: LED flash and 5 MP but the picture quality isn't as sharp as my SE K810i (3.2 MP+Xenon Flash )
Music playback didn't test, but the external speaker and ringtone volume is extremely loud!
The device operate very smooth, no hangups. The low resolution of 320x240 make the devices operates quicker imho.
specs and review can be found here: http://www.gsmarena.com/sony_ericsson_xperia_x10_mini_pro-3147.php
On this dutch written site they review the x10 mini, it includes some benchmarks which speak for themselves.
http://tweakers.net/reviews/1708/sony-ericsson-x10-mini-een-kleine-stap-vooruit.html
Turns out the mini is a very fast android phone!
Sent from my U20i using XDA App
From what I can see those are pretty good results compared to those pricey high-end devices. Correct me if I'm wrong.

[Q] X10 vs Galaxy S (Input for purchasing decision)

Hi guys,
If you have or have had the X10 aswell as the Samsung Galaxy S, please give me some feedback in this thread.
Thanx
- Martin
my advice x10 coz sony ericsson more trusted mark and not big different in specifications
regards
I took a look to the thread,and everybody is saying the Galaxy is way faster and 100 times better, so there is no point for us X10 user to go there and tell that the X10 is better.There are a lot of threads here about the X10 Vs. Samsung ,Desire etc. I choosed the X10 with the best build,design,and almost if not the same specs as the other phones around.(and multitouch is not an issue for me).
So choose what you like.
Being a thread in the Galaxy S forum, I am aware that people there might be a bit biased. However, I must say that the Samsung does feel snappier so apparantly the better hardware aren't just there to look good on the specs. The display also looks good but I'm a tad worried about the pixel density on the Samsung after being an X10 owner (which I still am, for that matter).
However, you don't get better tests than from people using it every day, so I was wanting to hear pros and cons from people who have or have had both devices.
- Martin
EDIT: In the other thread, I've made a list of what I think are the pros and cons of each phone. However, I've only read about the Galaxy S and spend a little time with one in a store.
I'd wait for the 2.1 upgrade and see how they compare then.... I'm anticipating some significantly noticeable improvements...
My contract ends on september the 26th, so I can't get the new phone until the day after. I hope the 2.1 update is release at least a week before that. The same goes for the 2.2 update for the Galaxy, which is to be released soon(ish) aswell.
Hi if you put the thread in galaxy s forum I'm sure you will get mainly positive answers. I have a galaxy s and I will just list what I think.
First the bad
GPS is currently not very good, sometimes it works well and usually gets a fix very quickly but all too often it will randomly put you facing the wrong way if you stop in a queue and sometimes will not get a signal or lose signal
The screen although perfect size and excellent multitouch response uses a strange subpixel layout which when you look closely you can see the individual leds this makes the text fuzzy when small and also makes edges fuzzy (most people don't seem to notice this but I look close at my screen)
no camera flash - night vision mode is good though and prob gives better pics of outdoor night images than most - not good for close/indoor night stuff
The good
Im not gonna say a lot here (I'm sure you have already heard loads) but I will say this is the fastest phone I have used, no other android I've used is as fast, good at playing games and general use. It's a nice size - seems small even though it has a large screen (which contary to what I say above is the best screen I have used on any phone - just wanted to let you know it is not perfect - all amoled screens seem to have that effect)
Another big plus is that it's just about the most popular android phone there is and likely to be very well supported by Samsung and all of us.
It also has a few bonuses which you are unlikely to see on most other phones (tv out, free good apps from samsung, dlna, wifi tethering etc)
As you can tell the galaxy isn't perfect but it's the one I waited for so that's where my vote lies (especially if like me you like to play a lot of games many of the best need multi touch)
still you may have different needs than me, I suggest reading all the reviews you can find and trying them out if you can (try gsmarena for reviews I find them nice and detailed and generally unbiased)
EDIT - Just looked at your other post and see you already have a x10, my advice then would be to wait for the 2.1 update coming soon and see what you think, unless you have lots of money or can do an exchange relatively cheap then you might just wanna do that. Otherwise you might wanna hold out and see if anything even better comes out soon, im thinking 4.3" super high res dual core or 2ghz I'm sure they can't be too far off and your x10 should do until they do
badasschris said:
Hi if you put the thread in galaxy s forum I'm sure you will get mainly positive answers. I have a galaxy s and I will just list what I think.
First the bad
GPS is currently not very good, sometimes it works well and usually gets a fix very quickly but all too often it will randomly put you facing the wrong way if you stop in a queue and sometimes will not get a signal or lose signal
The screen although perfect size and excellent multitouch response uses a strange subpixel layout which when you look closely you can see the individual leds this makes the text fuzzy when small and also makes edges fuzzy (most people don't seem to notice this but I look close at my screen)
no camera flash - night vision mode is good though and prob gives better pics of outdoor night images than most - not good for close/indoor night stuff
The good
Im not gonna say a lot here (I'm sure you have already heard loads) but I will say this is the fastest phone I have used, no other android I've used is as fast, good at playing games and general use. It's a nice size - seems small even though it has a large screen (which contary to what I say above is the best screen I have used on any phone - just wanted to let you know it is not perfect - all amoled screens seem to have that effect)
Another big plus is that it's just about the most popular android phone there is and likely to be very well supported by Samsung and all of us.
It also has a few bonuses which you are unlikely to see on most other phones (tv out, free good apps from samsung, dlna, wifi tethering etc)
As you can tell the galaxy isn't perfect but it's the one I waited for so that's where my vote lies (especially if like me you like to play a lot of games many of the best need multi touch)
still you may have different needs than me, I suggest reading all the reviews you can find and trying them out if you can (try gsmarena for reviews I find them nice and detailed and generally unbiased)
EDIT - Just looked at your other post and see you already have a x10, my advice then would be to wait for the 2.1 update coming soon and see what you think, unless you have lots of money or can do an exchange relatively cheap then you might just wanna do that. Otherwise you might wanna hold out and see if anything even better comes out soon, im thinking 4.3" super high res dual core or 2ghz I'm sure they can't be too far off and your x10 should do until they do
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
very unbiassed reply..i'd like you to wait for some time... and compare both phones with upgrades.. every device has its pros and cons.. so know what you want out of a device and make your decision. possibly by that time something better than these two may come out in the market... theres no ending for this..
Id have to say that if the Samsung S had a decent flash (why they wouldn't include one is crazy), i would be pretty tempted to jump ship. They've already ported CM6 to it so the guys at Cyanogen must think its a worth while device and there support would be good enough for me.
galaxy is way better in almost every way. co-worker has it. played with it and from the first few minutes i knew that the galaxy s was a better phone. no question.
and every phone that came out or recently came out this year is moving on to 2.2 or even to gingerbread. x10 only going to 2.1? while 2.1 is better than 1.6, i'm still a bit disappointed.
The news of a psp phone intrigues me. If you like games I'd wait to hear more about that.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
I cant speak for the actual Galaxy S model but I did have the Captivate for 28 days. I loved the screen and it did play Asphalt HD very well. The GPS was mostly uses less and I wasnt crazy about the soft buttons. The lack of a camera led or notification led is a real bummer.
I have to be honest though. The Captivate was the buggiest Android (oem build) I have ever used. There are ways to "fix" some of the bugs but the GPS and shut down/reboot seem to persist.
Every phone has issues but the Captivate had a couple that I just couldnt live with.
The X10 has been a completely different experience for me. Very well built and very stable OS. I am not sure if this is thanks to AT&T having a newer build or not. I have no regrets with switching to the X10.
Sent from my X10a using XDA App
naplesbill said:
I cant speak for the actual Galaxy S model but I did have the Captivate for 28 days. I loved the screen and it did play Asphalt HD very well. The GPS was mostly uses less and I wasnt crazy about the soft buttons. The lack of a camera led or notification led is a real bummer.
I have to be honest though. The Captivate was the buggiest Android (oem build) I have ever used. There are ways to "fix" some of the bugs but the GPS and shut down/reboot seem to persist.
Every phone has issues but the Captivate had a couple that I just couldnt live with.
The X10 has been a completely different experience for me. Very well built and very stable OS. I am not sure if this is thanks to AT&T having a newer build or not. I have no regrets with switching to the X10.
Sent from my X10a using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 The led light and the notification led are very important to me. I agree with everything naplesbill said. Just to add a few more things, the screen on the x10 i think produces more realistic colors and thats with 16k atm so should be even better with 2.1 and 16m also text is sharper on the x10 vs the galaxy so if you browse and read things alot that is somthing to consider. The x10 is very stable and no lag like the samsung, its very well build and its beautiful. Overall great powerfull stable phone with unique looks. X10 hasnt let me down.

[Q] Will Android be the right choice for me?

Hi all, I'm new here, and new to the smartphone world in general.
I'm about to buy my first one, and it would be nice to hear your opinion about it.
My biggest concern about buying a smartphone is battery life, as I keep reading that most of them only last for a full day at most. Coming from an "old phone" (Sony Ericsson W580i) with an uptime of about 4-5 days, it would be quite a change, and could actually become troublesome.
My current choice would be a Sony Xperia, in particular the Xperia U, mainly for its design, size and price. It's an Android phone, and that's the reason why I'm asking for suggestions here: while I know Android is well regarded for its customization, I also heard that it's not the most "light" OS out there, generally requiring high hardware specs and energy.
The doubt came to me when a friend of mine bought a Samsung Omnia W, a Windows Phone: he probably just use it moderately, but its battery lasts for about three days, much longer than his previous Android phones (still one-day-life as he recalls).
I'm now wondering: is Windows Phone generally more "optimized", at least in its battery-management department, therefore lasting longer, or is it just the Omnia W having a really good battery?
From what I've seen WP also looks much smoother than Android, and that could actually set the point (buying a WP, that is). However, I know I wouldn't feel comfortable with WP, as its almost non-existant customization really isn't my thing.
The aspect in which you could probably help me out the most is: are there Android ROMs oriented towards a more light, battery-saving system? Would it be possible to achieve (at least) a 2-days uptime with an Android phone (in particular with an Xperia U)?
Keep in mind that I'm not planning on using it very intensely: no gaming, for example, and only synchronizing when needed (which means no full-time internet access).
Would it even be possible to make it last that longer just by careful app and resources usage/management? I don't even know if things might get better (or worse?) upgrading from Gingerbread to ICS.
Sorry if it's a bit long to read, thanks for your patience!
TL;DR version: how to make an Android Phone (Xperias in particular) last for at least 2 days.
Hi and welcome to the smartphone era
Smartphones' battery, in general, do not last more than a day. The big screen, the data transfer etc does not maker it worth creating larger batteries. Specially when people keep on wanting 'smarter' phones, which are thinner and lighter.
That leads most manufacturers to add a battery which will make it last a day.
But that aint bad - just plug it in every night.
I do not think windows phones are using less battery, again - if they would have used less battery the manufacturer would have installed thinner battery and gain points with a lighter and slimmer phone. Eventually it's all about usage. Keep using the phone with heavy games and you'll end up charging every couple of hours, let it sleep most of the day and you'll find out you can use it for two days without a single charge. That's the same of iOS, Windows and Android phones.
As per your assumption that you will be a light user, there's a saying that the appetite comes with the food. Never say never my friend, many of my family and friends had made that 'smartphone' move in the last couple of years, and most of them claimed they will not get sucked into that extra-phone-usage - needless to say they all check their emails, visit Facebook, read the news etc...
It's really an amazing era when every question you have, you could simply ask Google of Wikipedia and get answered
Bottom line - assume battery will be roughly the same on all phones. The plus in Android is the custom roms and kernels - you could always try some different kernel/rom which will give you a couple of more hours on your battery. There are great developers working hard on such things, and while the manufacturers aim for the avg. user, perhaps your usage is closer to some custom ROM
Another thing - if being online and available means that much, and charging every day, or during the day, is out of the question, try to get a phone whose batteries are replaceable (when you can open the lid easily, and place another battery in its place). Not all phones has that feature, not all android phones as well.
That's my two cents, HTH,
Raven.
I can only speak to the two Android phones I've had experience with: the Droid Incredible and the Droid x2.
The Incredible, I get about a day out of it if I am lucky. That is with rather light use. Mostly, some communication (a call or two plus many texts), email checking, and maybe a little browsing. To the phone's credit, I am generally in a poor reception area, which will drain the battery faster.
With the Droid x2, on the otherhand, I have witnessed much better battery life. Usually only charging every other day. However, it is used less and in an area with better reception.
I have never used a Windows phone, so I can't contrast these Android phones to anything for you. However, the going reasonsing (so I'm told) is that Linux has terrible power management in comparison to Windows. Here we are talking strictly about desktop/laptop operating systems. Nevertheless, I would think this generalization can be extended at least a little bit into the phone world.
My only experience with Android is my current phone, the HTC Explorer. This is a budget phone with a slower processor etc. than the more well known phones, but it's battery life is fantastic in comparison. It's currently sitting on 45% having been on for 2 days and 17 hours. (I have had WiFi on for most of that time, no 3G or GPS). It will generally last me 3 or 4 days of moderate usage at least (some texting, checking emails, FB etc. a few times a day, a little browsing, playing an occasional game or two). The more advanced the phone, the more power hungry it is likely to be. As mentioned above, slimmer phones will also often contain smaller batteries, so that is something to consider too.
I love Android. I came from blackberry about 4 or so years ago to Android and I was in love! Ive had android ever since. I will stay with android now forever I love it that much! With android the customization is amazing almost endless on a rooted device.
I love the capabilities. I could go on for hours about why I feel android is the best! I think once you try it you will understand why its so popular. Best of luck to you.
Sent from my Sensation using xda premium
Android is the mother of all OS
What say guys ??
Real Contributors Dont BeG for Thanks
Cheers
Thanks for your input guys, it's really helpful.
Since it seems that most phones are just "built" to last the bare minimum (and that actually makes sense, now that I think about it), I guess I'll just have to go along with it and see for myself if the change is worth it. I obviously hope it is
One interesting thing that you pointed out is that better hardware comes with heavier battery usage, and that's making me wonder whether a dual core CPU (like the Xperia U I had in mind) would be a hindrance, considering what I need the phone for (no gaming for example).
Then again, it wouldn't make sense to buy a lower-hardware phone at the same price of a better one, so that Xperia is probably the best choice I have right now.
And I'll keep my eyes open for custom ROMs that might suit my needs, even just knowing that system development is not just going one-way (that is, a "heavier, more powerful system") but takes into consideration even a more "moderate usage" is better than nothing.

[Q] Alpha once, nevermore? iPhone smoothness and support?

I've read and read, and looking for feedback from users who may be familiar with both platforms-the Samsung Alpha and the IPhone (5s or 6), hopefully that's not too taboo around here. I've always found XDA to be very helpful and objective, more so than random blog type reporting sites.
A little backstory: I've had a couple of bad phone purchases. Most of the problems are with the HTC models. I had a One X+, and that model wasn't supported for long due to it's mid-model upgrade chipset. it was powerful, but was often very very hot, so much so that plugged in and using navigator it would shut down. Not plugged in it would kill battery very quickly. The One came out short time later and HTC announced One X+ would not longer be updated. I hate the trend for bigger and bigger phones, I really like to use with one hand. I invested in HTC One Mini, thinking it was very similar to full size (M7) model, especially from initial (seemingly biased) reviews now. Initially it seemed fine, but after installing a few apps it's very slow and jerky most of the time. Especially long lag between apps, attributed mostly to it's small RAM size of 1gig. It's a nicely made phone for the most part tho. It took weeks to realize this, and after a factory reset it improved but shortly got worse again.
Most of my friends have either the SGS5, or the majority use Iphones (5s or 6). These have become my options as well, except that SGS5 and iP6 are larger than I'd like.
Enter the SG Alpha. My concern is long term support for this phone, and smooth operation without killing the battery or jerky throttled down operation. Would you say this phone works smoothly, and if you can compare to IOS phones? I really don't want to buy a Iphone, but most everyone tells me they just work and I'm tired of fighting, hacking and modifying Android (which hopefully doesn't sit too poorly in this forum ) I also like Widgets, and IOS does not have those.
Thanks!
aldridgec said:
I've read and read, and looking for feedback from users who may be familiar with both platforms-the Samsung Alpha and the IPhone (5s or 6), hopefully that's not too taboo around here. I've always found XDA to be very helpful and objective, more so than random blog type reporting sites.
A little backstory: I've had a couple of bad phone purchases. Most of the problems are with the HTC models. I had a One X+, and that model wasn't supported for long due to it's mid-model upgrade chipset. it was powerful, but was often very very hot, so much so that plugged in and using navigator it would shut down. Not plugged in it would kill battery very quickly. The One came out short time later and HTC announced One X+ would not longer be updated. I hate the trend for bigger and bigger phones, I really like to use with one hand. I invested in HTC One Mini, thinking it was very similar to full size (M7) model, especially from initial (seemingly biased) reviews now. Initially it seemed fine, but after installing a few apps it's very slow and jerky most of the time. Especially long lag between apps, attributed mostly to it's small RAM size of 1gig. It's a nicely made phone for the most part tho. It took weeks to realize this, and after a factory reset it improved but shortly got worse again.
Most of my friends have either the SGS5, or the majority use Iphones (5s or 6). These have become my options as well, except that SGS5 and iP6 are larger than I'd like.
Enter the SG Alpha. My concern is long term support for this phone, and smooth operation without killing the battery or jerky throttled down operation. Would you say this phone works smoothly, and if you can compare to IOS phones? I really don't want to buy a Iphone, but most everyone tells me they just work and I'm tired of fighting, hacking and modifying Android (which hopefully doesn't sit too poorly in this forum ) I also like Widgets, and IOS does not have those.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alpha is best compact phone ,
Exynos 5430 is very fast and never lagged .
Phone is very fluid with Stock rom , and overall Best phone .
Camera is very superb overall , but average on low light . Video recording quality is mind blowing and Beyond imagination .
i was confused between Alpha and ip5s , but i choose Alpha ,
Main reason was Alpha has 32 gb . While 5s priced nearly same but only 16 gb .
and 32 gb was out of my budget .
if u have unlimited budget than u can go for iphone 6 64 gb too.
If not than go for Alpha
aldridgec said:
I've read and read, and looking for feedback from users who may be familiar with both platforms-the Samsung Alpha and the IPhone (5s or 6), hopefully that's not too taboo around here. I've always found XDA to be very helpful and objective, more so than random blog type reporting sites.
A little backstory: I've had a couple of bad phone purchases. Most of the problems are with the HTC models. I had a One X+, and that model wasn't supported for long due to it's mid-model upgrade chipset. it was powerful, but was often very very hot, so much so that plugged in and using navigator it would shut down. Not plugged in it would kill battery very quickly. The One came out short time later and HTC announced One X+ would not longer be updated. I hate the trend for bigger and bigger phones, I really like to use with one hand. I invested in HTC One Mini, thinking it was very similar to full size (M7) model, especially from initial (seemingly biased) reviews now. Initially it seemed fine, but after installing a few apps it's very slow and jerky most of the time. Especially long lag between apps, attributed mostly to it's small RAM size of 1gig. It's a nicely made phone for the most part tho. It took weeks to realize this, and after a factory reset it improved but shortly got worse again.
Most of my friends have either the SGS5, or the majority use Iphones (5s or 6). These have become my options as well, except that SGS5 and iP6 are larger than I'd like.
Enter the SG Alpha. My concern is long term support for this phone, and smooth operation without killing the battery or jerky throttled down operation. Would you say this phone works smoothly, and if you can compare to IOS phones? I really don't want to buy a Iphone, but most everyone tells me they just work and I'm tired of fighting, hacking and modifying Android (which hopefully doesn't sit too poorly in this forum ) I also like Widgets, and IOS does not have those.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With this phone you cant go wrong on performance, i have it for a month now and i am amased how smooth and fast it works. Tried most of the functions that it offers and they work pretty fine, also like you, for me this size is the last acceptable one and it lays comfortably on the hand. Now i havent used an iphone, neither i will, but i can say for sure that it feels better than any apple products around i have had in my hands to test. Battery is good even for the 1860 maph that it has i can take out a day and a half or maybe two with 4 hours SOT, plus it is removable and its expected a new more powerfull one from Samsung. As for the android since you already have used a phone with it i really wouldnt go much deeper into it. So finally my opinion is that you should defenetly choose the alpha.
Sent from my SM-G850F using xda app-developers app
tileeq said:
With this phone you cant go wrong on performance, i have it for a month now and i am amased how smooth and fast it works. Tried most of the functions that it offers and they work pretty fine, also like you, for me this size is the last acceptable one and it lays comfortably on the hand. Now i havent used an iphone, neither i will, but i can say for sure that it feels better than any apple products around i have had in my hands to test. Battery is good even for the 1860 maph that it has i can take out a day and a half or maybe two with 4 hours SOT, plus it is removable and its expected a new more powerfull one from Samsung. As for the android since you already have used a phone with it i really wouldnt go much deeper into it. So finally my opinion is that you should defenetly choose the alpha.
Sent from my SM-G850F using xda app-developers app
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Click to collapse
+1

Why and how did the Z5C made me switch to an iPhone

Hello,
I bought my Z5 Compact in december 2015 to replace my broken Z3C and I quickly realized numberous flaws that I will list here. But first, I'm gonna talk about the good things.
It's a really well build phone. Nothing to say there, it's nearly perfect and way better than the Z3C which was already pretty good (but way too fragile). The design is beautiful, probably one of the nicest in stores.
The camera autofocus is also very good and the depth of field is nice. It must be a very good sensor.
Some apps are really well done, like the launcher, Music, Gallery or TrackID.
Now let's talk about the bad things.
1) The camera. The app is really slow to launch, it's also slow to take a picture, and it's not everytime the same amount of time. Sometimes it takes 2 seconds, sometimes 5 seconds, you can't trust it.
Most of the pictures are very blurry on the sides and it's just not on par with other flagships. It's also very noisy, incredibly bad for something that's supposed to be as good as the Galaxy S6 camera. Even my Moto E takes better pictures sometimes.
Also, after i take 2-3 pictures it makes the phone lag for a few seconds which is really frustrating when you paid $500 for this thing.
2) The performance. Most of the time it's pretty acceptable, but if I compare it with the Z3C it's just not as smooth and responsive. It's faster, but not as smooth.
There are sometimes little lags, little latencies, it's still OK but not as good and I would say it should be way better if I look at the specs.
Sometimes, usually when I opened snapchat or the camera, it lags like hell to the point where it's unusable. And it happens really often, not even always when the phone is hot so this is not a S810 issue.
3) The Marshmallow update. I really liked what they did with the Marshmallow beta on the Z3C so I was really excited to see what they would do on the Z5C. And I was again disappointed. Yeah, it fixed most of the performance issues, but it's still really not that good, and I hate the way they updated some apps.
Why the hell is the notification bar BLACK in the settings, in messages and in some other apps ? It's not Android 4.3 anymore, they really need to improve their UI.
4) The custom rom support. There is only one custom ROM and it still has a lot of issues, it's by far the worst phone I've ever had for that.
5) The battery life. It's not terrible, but it's really not that good, especially compared to the Z3C I expected way better results.
6) The way Sony handles the Z5 series. Marshmallow came so late, when the Z3 already had an incredibly good "beta" version for like 6 months. And now I learn that the Android N beta is available on the Z3 ?? What the hell, we also paid our phones ! I feel like they are giving up on this phone and they just say "f*ck you" to the stupid people who've had the weird idea to buy that thing.
I asked them on twitter and they said "it's for developpers" with a gif of a woman rolling her eyes. Well this is completely stupid, because first, I could be a dev, and second, it's not for devs at all, it's for people who want to try it and give feedback.
So you have my opinion, after all it's not the worst phone ever, most of it is really good but a lot of thing are bothering me.
I'm buying an iPhone SE next week after six years of Android and 16 Android Phones in these 6 years. So this must actually be pretty bad because I never felt the need to switch to iOS with any of the phones I owned, even the Moto E. It's also my use of a phone that's more adapted to iOS right now, but still this phone is one of the main reasons.
I hope my bad english didn't bother you and I hope this was somehow interesting to read.
Thank you
I agree...
Unfortunately I must agree with your opinion regarding Z5 Compact. Especially the part regarding the camera lags is very true. Also the AF system fails sometimes on the random basis.
On my Z5C I had already the camera broken (after two months of using the phone) and fixed via warranty claim together with the fingerprint sensor which was working when it liked to.
Now I can see that the phone has bent a little bit while carrying it in the pocket and this bending has led to the broken phone frame (in the fingerprint area where the frame has only two thin plastic straps around the sensor). The worst thing is that I can also see some dust inside the lens so it means that the whole body is not sealed any more probably due to that broken frame.
I have also some concerns regarding the Sony's software (Android 5.1.1.):
1) The gallery application is not customisable at all. For example you cannot change the sorting order or exclude / include some folders.
2) No call blacklist for automatic call rejection (this function is built in into my old Samsung S4 Mini)
3) Very limited customization of alarm schedules (automatic alarm offs etc., I can adjust something but not exactly what I want)
4) The calling screen is hard to distinguish from the phone number information screen. Sometimes I'm not sure if I'm actually calling somebody or just checking the contact info (there is only one small blinking symbol during the actual calling out).
5) No scheduled SMS option (again, this is present in my old Samsung S4 Mini)
6) Very week LED light (compared to S4 Mini)
7) The analog radio tuner is not sensitive enough for high quality stereo reception (compared to S4 Mini)
8) The built-in e-mail application (Microsfot Exchange client) has problems with displaying e-mails correctly => for example the title has big font and the e-mail body small tiny letters (again compared to S4 Mini e-mail app). It also does not show the contact pictures which are stored on the Microsoft Exchange server (=> pictures are visible in S4 Mini).
Overall I'm quite disappointed with that phone model. Luckily it's my business phone so I didn't have to pay for it.
I bought an iPhone SE and used it for about two weeks. I am back on my Z5C. I got tired of the restrictions in iOS that I take for granted in Android. I will keep the SE as a spare since no one else makes a good small phone.
I don't think you'll find many people here telling you that leaving the z5c is a bad decision lol but the iOS transition if you've never played with it will leave you far more frustrated. Simple tasks are cumbersome and customizability is slim. I have wanted the 5, 5s, 5c, 6, 6s, SE when they were all released but the iOS is a serious flaw. Android is faster in maneuvering through the OS and customizability is limitless so I've been settling for mid range phones for YEARS just to keep a one handed phone. I'd suggest maybe getting a iPod touch to play with to test the iOS waters before making the plunge.
gfarm said:
Unfortunately I must agree with your opinion regarding Z5 Compact. Especially the part regarding the camera lags is very true. Also the AF system fails sometimes on the random basis.
On my Z5C I had already the camera broken (after two months of using the phone) and fixed via warranty claim together with the fingerprint sensor which was working when it liked to.
Now I can see that the phone has bent a little bit while carrying it in the pocket and this bending has led to the broken phone frame (in the fingerprint area where the frame has only two thin plastic straps around the sensor). The worst thing is that I can also see some dust inside the lens so it means that the whole body is not sealed any more probably due to that broken frame.
I have also some concerns regarding the Sony's software (Android 5.1.1.):
1) The gallery application is not customisable at all. For example you cannot change the sorting order or exclude / include some folders.
2) No call blacklist for automatic call rejection (this function is built in into my old Samsung S4 Mini)
3) Very limited customization of alarm schedules (automatic alarm offs etc., I can adjust something but not exactly what I want)
4) The calling screen is hard to distinguish from the phone number information screen. Sometimes I'm not sure if I'm actually calling somebody or just checking the contact info (there is only one small blinking symbol during the actual calling out).
5) No scheduled SMS option (again, this is present in my old Samsung S4 Mini)
6) Very week LED light (compared to S4 Mini)
7) The analog radio tuner is not sensitive enough for high quality stereo reception (compared to S4 Mini)
8) The built-in e-mail application (Microsfot Exchange client) has problems with displaying e-mails correctly => for example the title has big font and the e-mail body small tiny letters (again compared to S4 Mini e-mail app). It also does not show the contact pictures which are stored on the Microsoft Exchange server (=> pictures are visible in S4 Mini).
Overall I'm quite disappointed with that phone model. Luckily it's my business phone so I didn't have to pay for it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hm,
can be summed up with:
close to AOSP/stock-Android.
My decision to go with the Z5 was because it's more close to AOSP, well - guess what ?
I also got used to Samsung's "bloat" and customizability - so in certain parts is was a kind of shock to see to limitations of Sony's ROM,
but if you're getting the phone with the attitude of rooting and unlocking the bootloader anyway to install a custom ROM,
it's somewhat different
Not talking about you,
but it's kind of ridiculous:
people are complaining that Samsung's ROM is too bloated, too much features, overloaded,
then when they switch to a device with slim, minimal ROM - then complain, too
Seems like folks don't know what they really want after all
Solution:
Get a device which offers über-bloated ROM but also Option of AOSP,
then wait until the "perfect" ROM is out - or get your hands dirty and modify and optimize the ROM yourself :silly:
This is XDA after all
civicsr2cool said:
I don't think you'll find many people here telling you that leaving the z5c is a bad decision lol but the iOS transition if you've never played with it will leave you far more frustrated. Simple tasks are cumbersome and customizability is slim. I have wanted the 5, 5s, 5c, 6, 6s, SE when they were all released but the iOS is a serious flaw. Android is faster in maneuvering through the OS and customizability is limitless so I've been settling for mid range phones for YEARS just to keep a one handed phone. I'd suggest maybe getting a iPod touch to play with to test the iOS waters before making the plunge.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I bought an iPod Touch 6 and used it for one week, now I have the SE and it's a real pleasure to use. I wouldn't have done that a year ago but now my use has changed and I don't really need android anymore. Actually there are really not so much that I miss from Android, it's really better for me (but of course it will depend on how you use your phone).
Otherwise the SE is faster, like REALLY faster, the camera is 100 times better and I prefer the form factor so I'm really happy for now :good:
flolaff said:
Yeah I bought an iPod Touch 6 and used it for one week, now I have the SE and it's a real pleasure to use. I wouldn't have done that a year ago but now my use has changed and I don't really need android anymore. Actually there are really not so much that I miss from Android, it's really better for me (but of course it will depend on how you use your phone).
Otherwise the SE is faster, like REALLY faster, the camera is 100 times better and I prefer the form factor so I'm really happy for now :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's good news! The amount of accessories available for it are pretty cool. You can even buy iPhone 6 mini conversion housings for it. 4" are a bit too small for me however, 4.3" seems to be the sweet spot I'm always looking for. I'm a heavy root user and change the themes on my phone weekly so I'm not leaving Android anytime soon lol
sorry to disagree with you in certain things... well i have had 5 Xperia Z5 (the regular one) and since i'm into buying and selling Xperia phones, the Z5 compact and the Z5 Premium was the most impressive Sony phones... talking more about the Z5C because the Z5P didn't have for a long time to talk about it much... Z5 compact which i'm owning right now is very smooth and never lagged for me, the camera is great, front and back... the camera shot delay not really as you described it, it not as faster as the big Z5 but it's good! remember it's 2GB while the big is 3GB... most of the time i use the manual mode, and even with the auto... pictures are sharp, so i think you need to have steady hands or tripod.....
to summarize all about Z5C, it's a compact flagship that you won't find it's specs or capabilities in any other Mini from the other competitors....
....i know it's a user preference, but i'd be very honest to you to tell you switching from Z5C to iPhone SE is the dumbest decision i've ever heard about knowing that that iphone SE is a redesigned/redefined iPhone 5 or 5S....
i'm not biasing z5c because as i said, i didn't like the Z5 as much as i love the Z5C in everything, even though the Z5 is a bit more powerful with that extra ram, but the build quality in certain parts of the phone, Z5C has it better.
and i couldn't keep the Z5P because of the high price, so the half of it's price got me a Z5C which is more than fair and convenient for me.
now i have 2 Z5 compacts (im selling one for my friend).... the first i bought for $196 because i need to fix it's micro sd card slot, also with no accessories.. and the other for $276 without accessories but as brand new with no issues, and im keeping for me. also i noticed in Marshmallow both devices has the sound quality improved and more louder compared to 5.1.1 and they both equal in both speakers, with a dB meter test app.
don't be annoyed with my comment, and again it's a user preference but i wanted to share my experience with Z5c... so yours or mine aren't the reference for the Z5C but it could help others to have decisions before buying any phone.
thank you.
Funny why you swapped to iphone but not a other android device that might service your needs. But shame to see that many only know 2 brands of phones.
Nidhal AKA the king said:
sorry to disagree with you in certain things... well i have had 5 Xperia Z5 (the regular one) and since i'm into buying and selling Xperia phones, the Z5 compact and the Z5 Premium was the most impressive Sony phones... talking more about the Z5C because the Z5P didn't have for a long time to talk about it much... Z5 compact which i'm owning right now is very smooth and never lagged for me, the camera is great, front and back... the camera shot delay not really as you described it, it not as faster as the big Z5 but it's good! remember it's 2GB while the big is 3GB... most of the time i use the manual mode, and even with the auto... pictures are sharp, so i think you need to have steady hands or tripod.....
to summarize all about Z5C, it's a compact flagship that you won't find it's specs or capabilities in any other Mini from the other competitors....
....i know it's a user preference, but i'd be very honest to you to tell you switching from Z5C to iPhone SE is the dumbest decision i've ever heard about knowing that that iphone SE is a redesigned/redefined iPhone 5 or 5S....
i'm not biasing z5c because as i said, i didn't like the Z5 as much as i love the Z5C in everything, even though the Z5 is a bit more powerful with that extra ram, but the build quality in certain parts of the phone, Z5C has it better.
and i couldn't keep the Z5P because of the high price, so the half of it's price got me a Z5C which is more than fair and convenient for me.
now i have 2 Z5 compacts (im selling one for my friend).... the first i bought for $196 because i need to fix it's micro sd card slot, also with no accessories.. and the other for $276 without accessories but as brand new with no issues, and im keeping for me. also i noticed in Marshmallow both devices has the sound quality improved and more louder compared to 5.1.1 and they both equal in both speakers, with a dB meter test app.
don't be annoyed with my comment, and again it's a user preference but i wanted to share my experience with Z5c... so yours or mine aren't the reference for the Z5C but it could help others to have decisions before buying any phone.
thank you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, let's agree to disagree. The Z5C is the best compact android phone (I still think that iPhone SE is better, but i can't forgo the versatility of android.)
What really disappoints me is that the older Z3 gets an Android N Developer Preview. I was like, what the heck! The older phone gets this privilege while the newer Z5 doesn't? It almost feels like Sony betrayed the Z5 users. But this is about the only Con of the Z5 though.
Sent from my E5803 using XDA-Developers mobile app
I've had my Z5c for about a week. My current daily driver is a Moto X 2013. I'm really liking the the Z5c, but I have to admit I'm having trouble letting go of the X - its just a pleasure to hold and use. If Motorola followed Apple's lead with the SE and packed an updated package into the Moto X body, I would buy it in a heartbeat.
I'll reserve comment on the Z5c and post in a more appropriate thread once I've spent more time with it. I'm not rooted yet (still on the fence) but once I threw some Nova Prime at it, I began to really enjoy my journey.
@flolaff
I totally agree with you. Add to your list Broken Adaptive Brightness. I'm planning to change the Z5C as soon as there a new Nexus.
Sent from my E5823
Nidhal AKA the king said:
sorry to disagree with you in certain things... well i have had 5 Xperia Z5 (the regular one) and since i'm into buying and selling Xperia phones, the Z5 compact and the Z5 Premium was the most impressive Sony phones... talking more about the Z5C because the Z5P didn't have for a long time to talk about it much... Z5 compact which i'm owning right now is very smooth and never lagged for me, the camera is great, front and back... the camera shot delay not really as you described it, it not as faster as the big Z5 but it's good! remember it's 2GB while the big is 3GB... most of the time i use the manual mode, and even with the auto... pictures are sharp, so i think you need to have steady hands or tripod.....
to summarize all about Z5C, it's a compact flagship that you won't find it's specs or capabilities in any other Mini from the other competitors....
....i know it's a user preference, but i'd be very honest to you to tell you switching from Z5C to iPhone SE is the dumbest decision i've ever heard about knowing that that iphone SE is a redesigned/redefined iPhone 5 or 5S....
i'm not biasing z5c because as i said, i didn't like the Z5 as much as i love the Z5C in everything, even though the Z5 is a bit more powerful with that extra ram, but the build quality in certain parts of the phone, Z5C has it better.
and i couldn't keep the Z5P because of the high price, so the half of it's price got me a Z5C which is more than fair and convenient for me.
now i have 2 Z5 compacts (im selling one for my friend).... the first i bought for $196 because i need to fix it's micro sd card slot, also with no accessories.. and the other for $276 without accessories but as brand new with no issues, and im keeping for me. also i noticed in Marshmallow both devices has the sound quality improved and more louder compared to 5.1.1 and they both equal in both speakers, with a dB meter test app.
don't be annoyed with my comment, and again it's a user preference but i wanted to share my experience with Z5c... so yours or mine aren't the reference for the Z5C but it could help others to have decisions before buying any phone.
thank you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Okay, but I feel like I would've get a way better experience with a Galaxy S6, which just is way better in everything, or even a Nexus 5X or anything. Part of the problem is the S810 which really sucks (Z3c was way smoother), and the other part is the camera. It is "ok" but compared to the S6/S7/G4/G5/5X/6P/6S/SE or any other flagship camera, it sucks, really.
And no, the SE is not "a redesigned iPhone 5". It has the specs of the iPhone 6s with a 4 inch screen, which is exactly what I wanted, and everything about it is way better than the Z5 Compact (except maybe the speaker).
RiTCHiE007 said:
Funny why you swapped to iphone but not a other android device that might service your needs. But shame to see that many only know 2 brands of phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't "only know 2 brands of phones". As I said, in the last 6 years I've had phones from HTC, Samsung, OnePlus, Sony, Motorola and even some other brands that I forgot. I just feel like the only options right now for a really complete package are Samsung and Apple (maybe HTC but I don't really trust them anymore), and the S7 is too big for me, so I choosed the iPhone SE. It just seemed like the best option for me and so far I really like it.
Yep, I feel the same like you... Interestingly, I also used to have a z3c with the very good concept android 6.0 beta before a thief robbed it out of my hand... Well, I hoped the z5c would even be better.... But no, unfortunately, it's worse, even though the main hardware is better. The firmware is quite buggy and I absolutely agree that the battery life could be way better....
I am underimpressed with a few things about my Z5 compact, but I'll tell you why I will keep it: lanyard mount.

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