Sony Xperia ion characteristics. Sony Xperia ion LTE - Specifications. A mobile network is a radio system that allows multiple mobile devices to communicate with each other

Contents of delivery:

• Smartphone
• Network adapter
• USB cable
• Stereo headset
• Documentation

Before the Sony Xperia TX goes on sale, the ion is the flagship of the company's mobile division. Let's see what kind of device it is, how it will please or disappoint.

Design, construction

If the Sony Xperia acro S came to us straight from Japan, then the ion is a product originally created for the US market. You have to understand that for any company that produces smartphones, to make a joint project with American operators means a kind of victory - great circulations, great and fame. Orders are rather big, as a rule, they are hundreds of thousands of pieces. The device in question was sold (is being sold) from the AT&T operator, the decision on deliveries to Russia is rather strange - since the appearance of ion on sale confuses cards in the Xperia line. I do not think that there are many people who are ready to understand what is happening with the Xperia, many still believe that the best thing from Sony now is the Xperia S. In fact, until the TX goes on sale, it will be the ion that will remain the most the very device from Sony. Due to display size, features, camera. I don’t know how good or bad it is, I’m just stating a fact.

The device itself, to put it mildly, is great. A sort of weighty shoulder blade. It comes in a regular package, there are two body colors, black and red, I got red. It is curious that even if I would never walk with a smartphone of this color, but it is not at all feminine - keep in mind, here it is not a delicate red and not crimson, but a dark red. The entire front is black, with red battery cover and velvety plastic areas at the top and bottom. On the back you can see the traditional logo, below it is the Xperia inscription. The design of the photographic area is amusingly made, a large camera lens, under it is a flash circle, below is an area with perforation, here is a microphone. On the left side there is a massive cap, under which there are HDMI and microUSB connectors, on the top there is a 3.5 mm jack. Accessories for Apple, it seems, should fit, in fact, the EarPod does not work. Above the display is the front camera lens, earpiece, light and proximity sensors. There is also a small indicator light, it blinks if something happens to the device, for example, during charging.

Dimensions are 133 x 68 x 10.8 mm, weight is 144 grams. This smartphone looks much better in black, and there is one good addition - almost the entire back is made of metal. As for the size, it's easy to explain everything here - the ion has an impressive size and quality display. In general, this device can be safely attributed to the category of mini-tablets just because of the screen. Naturally, now in terms of resolution there has been a step forward in a number of devices, and ion is not on the wave here, but the screen is still good.

Comparison with Apple iPhone

To insert microSIM and microSD cards into your phone, you need to remove the top cap, just pull it off. The assembly of the smartphone is good, nothing creaks or cracks, there are no extra gaps either. I used the device as a second phone for a long time, during this time nothing terrible happened to the body, except that the paint slightly peeled off from the frame around the camera lens.

Display

As I said, the diagonal of the TFT display is 4.55 inches, the resolution is 1280 x 720 pixels. Glass protects the screen, the glass is not subject to scratches, there is a film invisible to the user, as in many other Sony devices. Capacitive screen, multitouch supported, four fingers maximum. In my opinion, the screen is good by today's standards, everything is in order here with viewing angles, colors, contrast. If you are used to watching videos on the road, then a smartphone with such a display will help in a bold undertaking, the same can be said about browsing websites, and about games, and about working with programs. Size matters, and a device with a 4.5-inch display really goes a little beyond the scope - it's not clear what to call such a device. After all, this is already really a thing at the junction of the world of smartphones and the world of tablets.

But the price to pay for the size of the screen is the size of the case. And before buying, I would recommend twirling ion in your hands. There has not yet been a single person who would not say: "What a healthy shovel."

Control

On the right side there is a power button, a little lower - a volume rocker. Considering the fact that the ends are chamfered here, it is not very convenient to press these buttons, plus, they do not have such a deep travel. You need to get used to it. Below on the right side there is a camera button, which is very cool, many of us are used to using the hardware control for shooting. If the display is locked, you can press and hold the button, the camera starts up and immediately takes a picture. The camera can be started by sliding the unlock slider not to the right, but to the left.

Under the display there are four buttons traditional for Android, this is a call to an additional menu, Home, return and search. The buttons are touch-sensitive, backlit, underneath there are strips. Sony had a proprietary feature - the usual buttons in Android-based devices, it's a pity that modern devices have abandoned this. You can get used to the sensors, they are sensitive, but it would be better to see the traditional solution.

The screen, as you know, is also one of the controls, there are no problems with the sensitivity and processing speed.

OS, performance, features

While I was using ion, there was an update called 6.1.E.1.20. The version is Android 4.0.4, you can read about the OS in the review on our website.

Pro performance: uses Qualcomm APQ8060, dual-core processor, 1.5Hz, Adreno 220 GPU, 1GB RAM. The device is quite nimble, this also applies to launching applications and working with them. But there is also an oddity, for example, the backlight goes out with some twitching.

Peculiarities:

• In the call settings there is an item "Noise reduction", reduction of background noise during a call, by default this function is enabled. I tried to use it when music was playing next to the speakers, the people whom I called did not notice much difference (I tried both with noise suppression turned off and with it turned on). But on the street, if there is wind, the work of the function is noticeable

• There is an xLOUD mode, an increase in the volume of the speakers, I recommend turning it on immediately, it becomes noticeably louder
• There is no automatic setting in the brightness settings, but there is a light sensor
• Among the display lock modes, there is unlocking using the owner's face, the function works quite normally - they say that the battery runs out much faster if you use this method
• To take a screenshot, you must press and hold the power button and volume down
• A number of applications have been customized, for example, this is a player. It's called Walkman, you can set the equalizer yourself or use presets, there is also surround sound. But there are no such settings as ClearStereo, this is the prerogative of other devices. The sound quality is not bad, but the same iPhone 5 is a cut above in this regard, I listened using the same headphones, the same tracks - the ion is not so loud, the sound is dull

• Preinstalled with Evernote, McAfee Security, Astro (file manager), NeoReader (QR code scanner), Moxier Pro, Opera Mini and Wisepilot for navigation. There is an Electronic Arts game downloader, you can try before buying. I would very much recommend that you immediately install the Chrome browser, I like it in both the iOS and Android versions

• Custom widgets - clock, control of wireless interfaces and basic functions, help, Timescape, Walkman and others
• It is curious that for audio, in addition to standard files, Ogg support is declared
• When connected to a TV, a special menu (TV Launcher) appears, but I'll talk about this in a separate review.
• As in the case of the Sony acro S, there is nowhere written about the possibility of AVI playback, but the device copes with such films with a bang, which you can see in the screenshots. It's good that the user does not have to install additional software.

According to official sources, the device works in UMTS HSPA + 850 (Band V), 900 (Band VIII), 1700 (Band IV), 1900 (Band II), 2100 (Band I) networks; GSM EDGE 850, 900, 1800, 1900. Don't count on LTE, it's in the ion version for AT&T.

Wireless interfaces

Like other top Sony smartphones, this device can do a lot, it supports Bluetooth, version 2.1 with EDR, the ANT + profile for sports wireless gadgets works, GLONASS, NFC, DLNA are supported. Naturally, there is Wi-Fi. It is a pity that a specific HDMI cable for a specific “short” connector was not added to the kit, I don’t know where to look for it for the user.

Memory

The device has 1.3 GB of memory, 11.24 GB is available to the user, you can always expand your capabilities by adding a microSD card (up to 32 GB). It seems to me that Sony can also put more memory inside, after all, most smartphones are positioned as multimedia, and if you often take photos and videos, then the built-in memory will very quickly come to an end. Why not put 32 or 64 GB? This has long been no unseen.

Nutrition

The device uses a 1900 mAh battery, it seems, you can count on a long service life. It seems to me that among other "androids" ion is really a long-liver, I talked for half an hour a day, took more pictures, listened to music. If you remove the backlight, you can achieve work within a day and a half. But with active use, get ready to look for an outlet in the late afternoon. In general, everything is typical.

Camera

The camera resolution is 12.1 MP, it can shoot video in FullHD, as always with Sony, when taking photos there are many necessary and not very effects - a panoramic 3D view, a multi-angle 3D view, a regular panoramic view. You can choose a shooting method, touching a button on the display, just a key, or a combined method, it was quite possible to do without this setting. For a quick start, their own scenarios are provided, by clicking on the button, you can start the camera and take a picture, or just start the program. If you wish, you can disable the function altogether. I took all the shots for the material using automatic mode.

Naturally, for most consumers, the sensor resolution has been and remains the key parameter. The numbers, it seems, should speak for themselves. Marketers are used to hitting innocent heads with incomprehensible but sonorous terms, here are 4 cores (!), 12 MP (!), 64 GB (!), FullHD and full stuffing. In fact, the main question is why I need it, and whether I need it. The camera in the Sony Xperia ion can help you capture (and capture quality) a slice of reality. But is such permission necessary if many smartphone owners are now posting photos on Instagram or Facebook? I do not think. It seemed to me that post-processing of images suffers slightly, they are quickly saved, but the colors are painfully bright, sometimes unnatural. But otherwise ion was a pleasant surprise, especially with details. Yes, in some of the shots you can see that the camera misses, there is chromatic aberration, the colors are knocked out, but if you shoot on a sunny day, you will be surprised looking at the shots on a computer. For example, I really liked how the ion copes with shooting a portrait, you can even make out the pores, there are no problems with colors and details. In poor lighting conditions, it makes no sense to hammer on the area with a flash, this can just give the opposite effect, it is more curious to try to shoot something as it is.

The Sony Xperia Ion smartphone was presented at the beginning of the year, but it only reached our latitudes closer to autumn. Initially, the company planned to sell this smartphone exclusively in the US from AT&T, but then changed its mind and decided to expand the geography of availability. The model LT28h entered the Russian market, which differs from the LT28i in the absence of support for LTE networks. In our country, they are still developing, and the Sony Xperia V is on the way, so whoever needs to have support for this type of connection in their phone, it makes sense to wait for a waterproof novelty. The Xperia Ion is a slightly different bird. This is one of the company's two smartphones with a 4.55 ”screen (the other is the Xperia T / TX) and the only device on the market that combines such dimensions and a metal body, which makes this phone quite interesting. Let's take a closer look at it.

Specifications Sony Xperia Ion (LT28h):

• Network: GSM / GPRS / EDGE (850/900/1800/1900 MHz), WCDMA / HSPA up to 42 Mbps (850/900/1700/1900/2100 MHz)
• Platform (at the time of announcement): Android 2.3 Gingerbread, now Android 4.0.4 ICS
• Display: touchscreen, capacitive, multitouch, 4.55 ", 1280 x 720 pixels, HD Reality, Mobile BRAVIA Engine, 16 million colors, TFT, 322 ppi
• Camera: 12.1 megapixel, flash, autofocus, Exmor R, Full HD-shooting (1080p)
• Front camera: 1.3 MP, HD video
• Processor: dual core, 1.5 GHz, Qualcomm MSM8260 Snapdragon S3
• Graphics chip: Adreno 220
• RAM: 1 GB
• ROM: 2 GB
• Internal memory: 16GB (eMMC)
• Memory card: microSD (up to 32 GB)
• A-GPS, GLONASS
• Wi-Fi (802.11b / g / n), DLNA
• FM radio
• Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
• microUSB 2.0
• 3.5mm headphone jack
• Distance and position sensors, digital compass, gyroscope
• Audio: MP3, AAC, AAC +, eAAC +, AMR-NB, AMR-WB, MIDI, OGG
• Video: MPEG4, H.264, H.263
• Photo: JPEG, BMP, WBMP, PGN, GIF, PNG
• Battery: 1900mAh
• Talk time: up to 10 hours in GSM networks, up to 4 hours in WCDMA networks
• Standby time: up to 400 h in GSM networks, up to 350 h in WCDMA networks
• Operating time in music player mode: up to 12 hours
• Video playback time: up to 3 hours
• Dimensions: 132 x 68 x 10.6mm
• Weight: 144 g
• Form factor: candy bar with touchscreen
• Type: Smartphone
• Announce date: January 9, 2012
• Release date: 2 quarter 2012 in the USA, 15 August 2012 in Russia

Video review

Design, construction and equipment

The phone comes in a standard box for the latest Sony-backgrounds. Inside you can find a reinforced EP850 charger unit, high-quality MH750 headphones, a charger cable and synchronization with a PC, as well as a bunch of pieces of paper with information on the rules for using the gadget and warranty obligations. NFC tags were not found in the kit, alas, but this could be a nice addition for this not the cheapest smartphone.

We received a red device for testing, there is also a completely black one. It looks much harsher and feels a little different than red, but the latter looks very fresh and will certainly appeal to the beautiful half of humanity (although it is very suitable for guys). The device lies well in the hand, although the dimensions and weight, of course, affect it. I am glad that the device is monolithic. Perhaps even the most monolithic of all Sony smartphones to date. Unless the Xperia Acro S can compete with it. Which, however, is not surprising, because both smartphones have a minimum of moving parts. In the Xperia Ion, only the top cover is removed, under which the slots for microSIM and microSD are hidden. The lid holds tight and will definitely not loosen over a long time of use. This is a non-removable cap for the Xperia P (review), which, in theory, should not be removed. In general, the Xperia Ion from the back is very similar to this representative of the NXT line, except that there is no transparent strip.

On the back side you can see a 12-megapixel camera and a flash, the Sony Ericsson logo, which has already started getting rid of in new devices and accessories, a nice loudspeaker grill (loud enough not to miss a call). The lid itself is made of metal and cannot be removed, and the inserts are made of soft-touch plastic, which, fortunately, does not fit like the Xperia S. with natural color reproduction and normal viewing angles. It should be noted that the company now and then mentions a 4.6 "display, significantly rounding up the size. But it would be more correct to count 4.55 ”, which is what we are doing. Pixelation is not striking, and the screen itself is quite bright and contrasting. It is a pleasure to watch videos on it. Of course, black is not as black as AMOLED displays, but the colors are calmer here. In addition, as shown by a recent comparison of foreign colleagues, the Xperia Ion screen is much more contrast and brighter than the display of the latest Xperia T smartphone, which, although it boasts a more detailed picture, looks much worse. In addition to the screen, on the front side you can see an earpiece, a front 1.3-megapixel HD camera, a proximity sensor, an LED and four touch keys, which are illuminated with separate stripes. There is no light sensor here, the display brightness is adjusted manually. It is listed in the white paper, but benchmarks do not see it. I also did not notice that the brightness adjusts to the lighting level.

The right side of the device is equipped with a power key, volume buttons and camera activation. The smartphone boasts support for the FastCapture function, which allows you to take pictures from a locked state, so a separate button can come in handy. On the left side there is a cap that hides the microUSB and microHDMI connectors. The plug sits tightly, but wobbles a little, but during use it did not loosen a millimeter, so it inspires confidence. The top of the Ion invites us to use headphones and plug them into a 3.5 mm jack, while the bottom of the device is equipped with a microphone and a mysterious slot leading somewhere into the depths of the smartphone and apparently intended for opening it in a service center.

By the way, it was not possible to find a strap mount on the case, so this is one of the few Sony smartphones lacking such an important detail for someone. To be honest, wearing a huge, heavy, metal bar around your neck can only be impatient in one case - if you want to go to the bottom of the river.

In general, the design of the phone leaves a very pleasant impression, the build quality is excellent, there is practically nothing to complain about. Would always be like this, Sony! It seemed that the device is much more convenient to use with the left hand than with the right. The touch keys are quite comfortable to use, but they may take some getting used to.

Software

In terms of software, the Xperia Ion completely repeats the Xperia S (review) and others like them, being its full software clone. The phone has been updated to the latest firmware from Android 4.0.4. Accordingly, all the goodies available to the Xperia S in this update have migrated to the Ion. It uses the already familiar proprietary shell of the company, which cannot boast of unreal animation effects like in Sense or the possibility of deep settings like in TouchWiz, but is quite simple and stylish, and most importantly, easy to use. I like the Sony interface for its minimalism and uniform style. If he still sometimes worked a little smoother and faster, then he could safely be called ideal.

The desktop is presented in the form of five screens, there are themes. The menu allows you to customize the list of applications as you like. In the Settings, you can find familiar to the company chips like xLOUD, which is responsible for increasing the speaker volume, and Mobile Bravia Engine, which makes viewing photos and videos a little more pleasant by adjusting the color and contrast. In practice, this is not very noticeable, but upon closer examination, you can see small differences.

With the release of Android 4.0 firmware, settings for lock screen notifications and changing its wallpaper have become available. In the Xperia section, you can see a few more branded chips - PlayStation Certified, which means that the device supports PlayStation games and the PlayStation Mobile service, which, however, does not work in our country and is not going to yet, which, however, does not prevent you from making him think that you are American, and use it more or less fully. Information about such manipulations can be found on the Internet, but I am more than sure that the procedure for this setting will discourage many from all the desire to use paid ported games from PSone and some others, which can be downloaded from a lot of places and used with some PlayStation emulator available on Google Play. This section also houses the integration of Facebook into Xperia, which allows you to share various information from your smartphone directly to this social network, without using the proprietary Facebook application. In the input options, you can select the type of keyboard, its mode and skins, as well as configure the required functionality.

Interesting applications include the Walkman player with many settings, an advanced equalizer, various visualizations, a selection of music for the mood, downloading data about tracks from the network and the ability to edit information about them, an Album gallery with a breakdown of all images by date, a location map and displaying pictures and photos in network accounts linked to the phone. It is also worth noting Films, which is a video player with an online mode capable of loading various information about films and videos.

The radio is pretty simple. It's good that it exists, otherwise it has now become fashionable to abandon it. In the application, you can recognize songs using Track ID, like songs on Facebook.

There is a Flash application, it works very simply and clearly.

Notes allows you to create small notes and memos, and the widget of this application will always remind you of this. Syncing with Evernote looks like a nice touch.

Of course, the aggregator of all social activity, Timescape, which appeared already in the Xperia X10 and has not changed much since then, has not gone anywhere either. The application is a feed of events from your social networks, and various desktop widgets will help you keep track of your friends' statuses and their activity on Twitter, Facebook and Foursquare. There are some additional extensions available on Google Play.

Messages, Contacts and Phone are downloaded from Xperia to Xperia. Very user-friendly applications, pleasant to use.

The Alarm and Clock can be set to start when the charger is connected in the settings menu of Smart Connect accessories. This is quite convenient if you put the device on charge before going to bed. There is also a Stopwatch and a Timer.

Track ID appeared in Sony Ericsson phones and allows you to identify songs heard, for example, in a cafe, simply by recording a short passage.

Connected devices are used to synchronize the contents of your smartphone with various wireless devices, or to play files from your devices on your phone.

Perhaps the most important of all applications is Backup and Restore. It appeared in the Android 4.0 firmware and allows you to back up all your settings and applications in case of unforeseen situations.

Media Remote is a program for controlling various Sony equipment using your smartphone.

Energy saving allows you to configure various power supply parameters operating on a schedule or in relation to NFC tags, as well as activated by pressing a button of a special widget.

Update Center keeps track of all system and application updates on your phone.

Smart Connect is used to connect and configure various smart accessories such as SmartWatch. It also allows you to set various scenarios for the behavior of the device when performing certain functions.

There are several third-party apps preinstalled. These are Evernote (for notes), Moxier Pro (for mail), Opera Mini (for browsing), Wisepilot (for navigation), McAfee (for virus protection), Office Suit Pro (for creating and editing documents), Neoreader (for recognizing barcodes), Adobe Reader (for reading PDF files), Astro Manager (for viewing files in the phone memory and on the SD card) and the EA app store.

The rest of the programs are standard for Android.

Camera

The 12-megapixel camera module is similar to that in the Xperia S. Accordingly, the quality of photos is comparable. In general, I like the result, although it is, of course, very far from the Nokia 808 PureView (review). Video in Full HD quality is also good. I liked the very quick work of the viewfinder. The camera interface is standard for Sony. Exmor R technology allows you to take good pictures in low light, but it does not always succeed and not in all lighting conditions. Below you can see examples of photos compared to the Xperia P, which has an 8MP camera.

Sony originally released the SONY XPERIA ion smartphone in the US market for the local cellular operator AT&T. In the states, the smartphone, as they say, went to the masses and the company decided to release it in other markets, including Russia.

But the following story turned out: officially, the smartphone began to be sold in our country only in September, this is a very late date for such a smartphone. At this time, analogs from competitors are already being sold on the market in full, for example, the Samsung Galaxy SIII costs 22 thousand. rub., there are excellent smartphones from LG and HTC. The price at the start of the SONY XPERIA ion was 24 thousand. rub. and the phone went unnoticed, as they say, "not flooded"!

For Sony itself, this means absolutely nothing. This is not a flagship for the company, the flagship is still SONY XPERIA S. If so, the SONY XPERIA ion is a "plug" between the SONY XPERIA S and the expected new flagship SONY XPERIA TX.

Nevertheless, there is something to tell about SONY XPERIA ion .....

Device Specifications

Manufacturer: Sony

Model: Xperia ion

Year of issue: 2012

Opera. system .: Android 4.0.4

Battery capacity (mAh): 1900

Dimensions (mm): (width x height x thickness) 68 x 133 x 10.6

Weight (g): 144

Processor type: Qualcomm Snapdragon S3 MSM8260

Clock frequency (MHz): 1500

RAM (MB): 1024

ROM (Mb): 2048

Built-in memory (GB): 16

Communications: GSM 1800, GSM 1900, GSM 850, GSM 900, UMTS 1900, UMTS 2100, UMTS 850, UMTS 900

Wi-Fi: 802.11b, g, n

Other: EDGE, GPRS, GPS, HSDPA, HSPA +, HSUPA, NFC, UMTS / WCDMA, GLONASS

Screen Size: 4.55

MultiTouch: Yes. 10 touches.

Screen protector: Yes, Sony proprietary glass.

Screen resolution (px): 720 x 1280

Screen type: TFT

Video accelerator: Adreno 220

Rear camera (Mp): 12

Autofocus: Yes

Photo flash: Yes

Front camera (Mp): 1.3

Speaker: Mono

Headphone output: 3.5

Other: FM Radio, G-Sensor, Gyroscope, Light Sensor, Proximity Sensor, Digital Compass

Memory cards: microSD, microSDHC, microSDXC

Ports: microHDMI, microUSB

Features: Sony Exmor R camera sensor, Mobile BRAVIA Engine screen

Packaging, equipment

The smartphone comes in a flat rectangular packaging. The package contains a picture of a smartphone and brief technical information. The same packaging for smartphones: Sony XPERIA U, Sony XPERIA Sola, Sony XPERIA P, Sony XPERIA S.

Equipment:

2. USB cable.

3. Charger.

4. Warranty card.

5. Various documentation.

6. Adapter for microSIM card.

The battery is not removable. As you can see, the equipment is budgetary. It's strange that the manufacturer didn't include an HDMI cable in the kit.

Appearance, design

Outwardly, the SONY XPERIA ion looks just fine. For me personally, this is one of the best designs on the smartphone market. Moderate thickness, sharp corners, pleasant weight, monolithic black body all create the look of a fashion model. When the screen is off, the entire front of the smartphone becomes a single whole, it looks very impressive. The phone fits perfectly in the hand thanks to the rounded back. In appearance, the smartphone is suitable for both men and women, but the execution in red is more suitable for the weaker sex.

The smartphone is made of high quality matte and glossy plastic. The back is made up almost entirely of metal with a nice texture (invisible vertical stripes). The top and bottom are made of matte plastic inserts. Glossy plastic runs along the perimeter of the screen. Few prints remain on the screen and the back of the smartphone.

The build quality of the SONY XPERIA ion is simply excellent, I would even call it a reference. There is simply nothing to find fault with. Everything is done as high quality as possible. Naturally, there is no backlash, creak or other defects. For build quality, the highest score.

Functional connectors on the device body:

1. At the top, exactly in the middle there is a 3.5mm headphone jack.

2. On the right side there is a key on / off / unlock / lock the smartphone. Below is the volume rocker. At the very bottom there is a separate key for the camera.

3. At the bottom there is a microphone hole.

4. On the left side there is an HDMI and USB connector, which in turn are covered with a single plug. It is good when various connectors on the case are covered with caps, as this significantly reduces the risk of dust getting into the connector or damaging it.

5. On the front of the smartphone there are: proximity sensor, speaker, front camera lens, notification LED. At the bottom of the screen there are touch keys: menu, home, back, search. The keys are white and have no backlighting. The backlight is only in the form of stripes under the keys themselves. Controversial decision. The inscription "XPERIA" is under the keys. There is no automatic brightness control sensor.

6. On the back of the smartphone is the main camera, flash, second speaker, inscription and logo "XPERIA".

Functional elements

The smartphone has Android 4.0.4 version. An update to 4.1 is rumored to be promised before the end of the year. The main menu is built according to the 4x5 formula for three desktops. Installed a skin from Sony called TimeScape, this is one of the best skins. The shell itself has extensive customization options. Menu navigation is smooth and without any delays.

Support for microSDXC memory cards has been implemented. 64GB card. works great.

As mentioned above, the smartphone has a separate button for using the camera. A snapshot can be taken both from the locked state and directly when the camera is active. A very convenient function, you can always take a picture at the right time. In the camera settings, you can turn off the shutter sound, which is good when you need to take a picture, so to speak, in secret. The sensor that is installed in this smartphone is exactly the same as that of the SONY XPERIA S. The 12MP camera allows you to take excellent pictures and even in the evening the pictures are obtained at a good level. I also think that at the moment this is still one of the best cameras in a smartphone.

Sample photos:

The camera allows you to shoot video in the now fashionable format as FullHD at a frequency of 30fps. The video looks quite good on a 42-inch FullHD panel.

Screen. The screen size is 4.55 inches. MultiTouch 10 touches. The screen resolution is 1280x720 pixels. TFT type. Excellent screen for color rendering (natural colors), great sharpness. This screen does not have an air gap between the screen and the protective glass, so the image on the screen looks just amazing, as if alive, you want to touch it. It is a pleasure to watch the movie in HD format. Keep in mind that a protective film is already glued on the screen by the factory method, which will additionally protect the screen from scratches. The screen behaves well in the sun, information is almost always discernible. The only thing is the viewing angles, they are not very large. With a strong deviation, the colors on the screen fade, but this is most likely nitpicking rather than some significant drawback. There is a large margin of brightness, which is very good.

I will say a few words about the touch keys: they have some sort of inhibited reaction to touch, sometimes you have to press two or three times for some kind of action to take place. Sometimes this disadvantage is very annoying when you need to quickly do something.

I really liked the sound in the smartphone. The speaker is moderately loud. There is a "fancy" equalizer with extensive sound settings. The smartphone has a Walkman application, which also hints at the musical component of the smartphone. Excellent bundled headphones. In general, lovers of quality music will be satisfied. This smartphone is perfect for the role of an MP3 player.

The smartphone has an HDMI connector, which allows you to display any information on the monitor or TV screen. It is very convenient to view captured photos or videos.

In work, testing

The smartphone is equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon S3 MSM8260 processor and an Adreno 220 video accelerator. This is certainly not the best "hardware" filling considering the end of 2012, but nevertheless, this bundle allows you to play modern 3D games quite comfortably. N.O.V.A 3, Dead Trigger, etc. go without problems. When working in 3D, the smartphone heats up noticeably, but this does not affect its work in any way.

Results in synthetic tests:

There is a full-fledged GPS module. There are no navigation problems so that it makes no sense to dwell on this point in detail. Works with Navitel.

Wi-Fi. This smartphone has problems with Wi-Fi. The signal is not very strong, perhaps it is a problem with the metal cover and the poor location of the antenna.

I liked the quality of the transmitted speech. The sound is very clear with no interference or distortion. All thanks to the second microphone which is responsible for noise suppression.

Implemented the possibility of fast charging. It takes about 45 minutes to fully charge.

Out of the box, the smartphone has support for the following formats: 3GPP, MP4, Matroska, AVI, WebM, so there is no point in installing the player separately.

There is also an NFC chip in the smartphone. For some reason, it was not possible to establish work on this protocol with the Samsung Galaxy SIII ...

Battery life

The smartphone has a 1900mAh non-removable battery. The power consumption test results are as follows:

1. Work in the "just phone" mode - 92 hours.

2. Play MP3 file. Headphones, maximum volume - 27 hours.

3. Work in a mixed cycle: games, Internet, video, calls, music - 12 hours.

4. Video playback - 6 hours.

The indicators are quite consistent with the declared density of the battery. However, playing an MP3 file in time seemed small.

conclusions

The smartphone will turn out to be almost perfect. The price for it is falling rapidly and if you want a smartphone with an excellent design, workmanship and camera, then you should definitely look towards the SONY XPERIA ion.

Competitors. At the time of this writing, the cost of the SONY XPERIA ion is 21.890 rubles. In the price range up to 22 thousand. rub you can buy: HTC One X, LG P880 4X HD - as you can see, these are solutions on 4 core processors and here SONY XPERIA ion simply loses outright to competitors. And for 20.350 rubles. we get the Meizu MX M032 with the Galaxy SIII stuffing.

pros

1. Excellent appearance.

2. Excellent build quality.

3. Very good camera.

4. Good sound.

5. Resistant to scratches on the case.

Minuses

Of the minuses in this smartphone, I would only single out the not too responsive touch control buttons.

I repeat: an almost perfect smartphone. And one of those for which I would like to change my Galaxy SIII.

The world debut of the Sony Xperia ion smartphone took place at the beginning of the year and only a week ago it reached Ukraine. The new Xperia represents a work on the mistakes made when the Sony Xperia S was released. Does this mean that the Xperia ion is now the flagship? Yes, although Sony is convinced that the Xperia S is still the flagship, but we understand that this is not the case. Therefore, we will treat the assessment of the top model with the utmost rigor.

The dimensions of the device are comparable with the flagships of Samsung, LG, HTC. To understand how much, let's compare several smartphones

Sony Xperia ion- 133 x 68 x 10.8mm, 144g
- 137 x 71 x 8.6mm, 133g
- 132 x 68 x 8.9mm, 133g
- 134 x 70 x 8.9 mm, 130 g
- 128 x 64 x 10.6mm, 144g

It would seem that the difference in thickness between S and ion is 0.2 mm, which is difficult to notice even when comparing head to head, but a larger smartphone is "given out" by the sidewalls expanding to the back side, which also worsen the grip of the smartphone. The ends have the same appearance. In fact, it turns out that the dimensions of the Xperia ion could be close to the Xperia S, but only if you compare their front parts. Surprisingly, the 5mm high and 4mm wide was rated as a "shovel" by the owner of the Sony Xperia S. Which once again underlines the fact that everything is relative.

Sharp corners prevail in the design of the smartphone. The front panel is covered with mineral glass. The plastic surrounding the glass is made flush with it. This means that putting the phone on a table with the display down is not recommended, as there is a possibility of spoiling the appearance of the device.

At the top is the speaker, HD camera lens, proximity and light sensor, and event indicator. At the bottom there are four touch-sensitive keys - "Menu", "Home", "Back" and "Search". The latter suggests that the design of the device was developed long before the Sony Xperia S released a few months ago, in which the use of this useless key was abandoned. The second element that prompts this idea is the backlighting of the keys. It is located directly below the key icons and looks like small glowing stripes.

Looking at the smartphone from the front, you notice that it has more from Sony Ericsson 2011, for example, Sony Ericsson Xperia ray, than from Sony Xperia S, Sony Xperia acro S. the design of the smartphone is less expressive.

On the left edge there is a retractable plastic cap, under which the MicroHDMI and MicroUSB connectors are hidden.
On the opposite side, four hardware keys are visible, two of which are combined into one oblong one responsible for volume control. The remaining two are the power / lock button at the top and the camera button at the bottom. Sony Xperia ion is the second smartphone with a large display, in which the unlock key is located not on the top end of the case, but on the side. Thanks to the "correct" placement, you do not have to train your thumb by stretching it in length. All keys protrude above the body level just enough so as not to attract attention and can be easily groped blindly.

There is one hole at the ends of the smartphone. At the top is the headphone jack and at the bottom is the microphone. The case is slightly raised around the 3.5 mm jack. Why this was done is not clear to us. Perhaps one of the design delights.

The back side is convex. Its main part is made of aluminum, while the area in the area of ​​the ends is made of plastic, which is caused by technical necessity, since there are antennas of wireless communication modules. Such a sacrifice had to be made on the sidewalls, on one side there is a plastic cap, and on the other - a plastic insert around the mechanical keys.

At the presentation of the Xperia ion, I could not determine where the SIM card is inserted, but it turned out to be in the same place as the memory card slot. Both of the Micro format. To access them, you need to move the upper part of the case away from you with considerable effort. Fortunately, this action will not have to be carried out often, so there is no need to talk about it as a minus.
With such a proven solution, it is not clear why Sony Xperia S decided to use a removable back cover, which is only needed to install a SIM card. On the other hand, even with a minimum of collapsible parts, the body of the smartphone creaks. Perhaps, by making a removable cover in the S-ke, the manufacturer provided the owners with the opportunity to fight squeaks with their own methods?

The camera lens is edged with a protrusion, which is most likely designed to protect it from scratches. Below it, closer to the center, there is a flash, a mesh of slots for a speaker and, of course, the Sony Ericsson logo. I wonder when the company will come up with a new one?

So what about the design, ergonomics, build quality and materials of the device? The smartphone is really not small, but those looking for a compact device will never look towards such giants. As befits a top-end device, the display diagonal is 4.6 ″ and its resolution is 1280x720 pixels. The materials used are not satisfactory, as is the build quality. The only thing that surprised me was the presence of squeaks, which are almost impossible to eliminate at home. Unless you have a hex screwdriver. The smartphone fits well in the hand, and using a properly placed unlock key doesn't require any special skill.

Operating system and interface

You can write one thing here - read the review, since the interface is one-to-one with the one we described six months ago. At the presentation, a fresh version of the Android 4.0.4 operating system was installed in the smartphone, respectively, it remains to be hoped that an update for the Xperia ion is not far off.

Platform

Another part of the review that completely repeats Sony Xperia S. There are only two differences - half the amount of ROM, which is directly related to the second - the presence of a memory card slot. Everything! Chipset that includes two ARMv7 cores Qualcomm MSM8260 one and a half gigahertz each, graphics core Adreno 220 and 1 GB RAM... It may seem that such characteristics do not correspond to the vision of the flagship for mid-2012, but even this is quite enough for comfortable work with any applications or games, moreover, Qualcomm MSM8260 has other advantages - low power consumption, which with a 1900 mAh battery h gives good results. In numbers, this is a day of work with a small amount of calls, using a camera, automatic syncing over Wi-Fi, and communicating on social networks.

Display

Traditionally, for the latest Sony devices, the No air gap technology is used, which means there is no air gap between the display matrix and mineral glass. In practice, this translates into higher brightness and a pattern-on-body effect. Compared to the LG Optimus 4x HD, the brightness is the same, the Optimus 4x HD has better viewing angles and the Sony has better sharpness, even without the Mobile Bravia Engine. Sony has obvious problems with viewing angles, as soon as the screen is tilted away from 90º, the colors start to fade. But at typical viewing angles, the picture is pleasing to the eye, and in the sun the Sony performed well.

Camera

The final test also copies what we already described, but since we could not compare the Xperia ion and Xperia S in the same conditions, we went the usual way - we checked the camera in various situations, including the work of image stabilization. In the meantime, a few words about the camera itself. The Sony Xperia ion has the highest resolution matrix among 12 MP Androi smartphones available in Ukraine. The maximum resolution of the recorded video is 1920 x 1080 pixels at 30 frames / s, 12-15 Mb / s bitrate, and two-channel audio.
You can start the camera through the menu or using a mechanical key. Its functionality is configured in the menu, and when you press it for a long time, the camera starts with freezing of the frame, starts the camera without fixing, or no action at all. The key is two-position, which allows you to use it for focusing with subsequent fixation. During video recording, you cannot focus using this key, but the camera does it automatically.
Testing has shown that when photographing and shooting video, the use of stabilization deteriorates the final result. Therefore, we advise you to disable this function.

Sample 12 MP photos

Examples of 12 MP photos, left - stabilization on, right - stabilization off

Examples of Full HD video, with about stabilization

Examples of Full HD-video, b without stabilization

Outcomes

To the question: “Was the Sony Xperia ion better than the Sony Xperia S?”, We answer - yes! In our opinion, the Xperia ion wins over the S in everything, it's another matter whether you can use a smartphone with such dimensions, because the new product is larger. The second parameter, more subjective, design is already a matter of taste.
If we talk about official prices, the advantage will be on the side of Sony Xperia S, which is quite logical, it appeared earlier, and Sony's requests were much more modest. The recommended cost for Sony Xperia ion is UAH 7,500. We are sure that the market will quickly make the company descend from the skies. We do not undertake to assert which price is "correct" (minus earnings on the new product), but we can assume that by the beginning of September it will be at the level of 5500-6000 hryvnia.

Sony Xperia Ion is a controversial product from a well-known brand. On the one hand, everything seems to be fine in it: a nimble set of chipsets, a good display, a pleasant appearance and good cameras. But on the other hand, this gadget was originally developed for the US market with all the resulting adaptive nuances. The brand entered into an agreement with AT&T for the exclusive supply of Sony Xperia Ion smartphones, but then something went wrong, or maybe, on the contrary, everything turned out too well, but Sony decided to expand the geography of the device's availability.

The gadget began to be sold in the European and Asian markets, and a year after the presentation it appeared in Russia. In the domestic market, the Sony Xperia Ion LT28h model has become entrenched, which differs from the similar LT28i by the lack of support for LTE protocols. In this connection, those who like to work in 4G networks are better off bypassing or browsing foreign online stores.

So, the subject of today's review is the Sony Xperia Ion LT28h smartphone. The characteristics, advantages and disadvantages of the model, as well as the opinion of specialists in this field, together with user reviews, will be considered in this article.

Contents of delivery

The gadget comes in a nice box made of thick cardboard in a brand-specific black and white color. On the front you can see the image of the smartphone itself, and on the back the most remarkable characteristics of the Sony Xperia Ion. The box turned out to be small due to the competent arrangement of all internal elements.

Inside you will see:

• the device itself;
• power adapter (EP850);
• USB cable for charging and synchronizing with a PC;
• stereo headset (MH750);
• manual and specification with detailed specifications for Sony Xperia Ion;
• warranty card.

The package bundle, for its price category, can be called modest - you will not see any covers, films and other cosmetic entourage here. But maybe it's for the better, because many owners prefer to buy such accessories, as they say, according to their taste and color. Nevertheless, some users in their reviews of the Sony Xperia Ion are extremely upset by the lack of even a simple case for a model of this class.

Appearance

The gadget looks big and at first impressions it resembles a weighty "spatula". The case received only two colors - black and red. Moreover, the latter cannot be called purely feminine, because the gamma was chosen precisely dark red, and not some kind of raspberry or soft strawberry.

The front part, regardless of the color, is black, and the back is made of velvety plastic and a textured lid in the selected range. Below you can see the familiar logo of the brand with the words "Xperia". The appearance of the camera eye on the Sony Xperia Ion differs markedly from other similar smartphones: a bulky lens with the same rather big flash and perforation for the microphone. On the left side, you can see a large plug, under which the micro-USB interface and HDMI connector are hidden. The upper end is reserved for the standard audio output "minijack" 3.5 mm.

The upper front part is occupied by the peephole of the front camera, a decorative grill for the earpiece and proximity sensors with lighting. There is also a small indicator light that shows the current state of the Sony Xperia Ion (battery charging, almost empty, shooting, etc.).

With its dimensions - 133x68x11 mm - the gadget weighs 144 grams, which is a bit too much. Many owners in their reviews more than once complained about the massiveness of the design and weight, including: the device will easily pull off your shirt or blouse pocket, and also make you shake your hands from the weight after even a short use. Nevertheless, many see only a plus in such dimensions, calling the gadget a mini-tablet with all the ensuing advantages.

As for the assembly, there are no critical complaints here: there are no gaps, nothing backlash, no creaks or crunches while working with the device. The top cover, which opens access to the micro-SD and micro-SIM interfaces, sits tightly, but not enough to run after the tool to open it, just pry it off with your fingernail and remove it correctly.

Display

Sony Xperia Ion is equipped with a sensible TFT-matrix with a 4.55-inch display and a resolution of 1280 by 720 pixels. The screen received pretty good protection, where the glass excludes minor scratches, and also has an almost invisible film typical for the brand's devices.

The display is of a capacitive type, so multitouch technology is fully supported. The picture quality is at a fairly high level: rich colors, true picture and balanced contrast. The viewing angles of the Sony Xperia Ion are also good: you can easily flip through photos or watch a video in the company of one or two like-minded people.

The size of the screen allows you to wander around the Internet with due comfort, play games and work with other "android" applications. The owners' comments on this matter are ambiguous: someone is quite satisfied with the large screen with good visualization, well, someone complains about the downside - the massiveness of the case. Therefore, before buying, it is better to turn the Sony Xperia Ion phone in your hands and only then decide which side is critical for you - a large display or the heaviness of the device.

Interfaces

On the right side there is a button to turn off the gadget, and below it there is a rocker to control the volume. Some owners complain about overly beveled ends, where the button operation is not as convenient as in other smartphones. In addition, the keys themselves require a certain skill and adaptation due to the shallow stroke. At the very bottom of the right side there is a button for activating the camera, which is very convenient. Many users are used to the hardware shooting control: when the display is locked, you can hold down the camera key, after which it will launch, taking the first frame.

Under the main display are four familiar "android" buttons: "Menu", "Home", "Back" and "Search". Touch-type keys are backlit in the form of stripes. In the Sony Xperia Ion, the company has decided to completely abandon the usual traditional control buttons, so many fans of the brand will have to get used to sensitive sensors.

As for the screen itself, there were no problems with the speed of processing clicks. The manufacturer has made work on the mistakes that it made in past generations, and now everything is fine here.

Performance

The performance of the Sony Xperia Ion LT28h is based on the well-proven Qualcomm APQ8060 processor, running on two cores with a frequency of 1.5 Hz. The graphics component fell on the shoulders of the Adreno 220 series accelerator. The RAM (1 GB) is quite enough for comfortable work with the interface and applications. Nevertheless, on some particularly "heavy" games, you will have to reset the graphics settings to a medium or even low level, in order to avoid a drop in FPS.

Sony Xperia Ion feels great in UMTS HSPA + networks on protocols from 850 to 1900 Band. As mentioned above, there is, alas, no support for LTE networks. If you cannot do without it, and you like the phone, then the only option is to look through the offers of Sony distributors on foreign Internet sites (model LT28i). The only thing is that you have to competently reflash the phone, that is, fully adapt it to our realities, but already with support for 4G networks.

The owners in their reviews are generally satisfied with the performance of the smartphone. There were no serious remarks, and as for working in high-speed networks, a good half of users are quite satisfied with the 3G format, and faster Internet access is needed more for a computer than for a mobile gadget.

Storage devices

About 11 gigabytes out of 16 gigabytes of memory are available to the user for their needs. If this is not enough, then it can always be expanded using third-party SD-cards, up to 32 GB. In general, it is not clear why Sony, positioning its smartphones as multimedia, and with the existing dimensions, cannot equip the gadget, for example, with a 32 or 64 GB drive. The technical capabilities and dimensions of the device allow it to be done, but the engineers stubbornly do not want to add the built-in memory to the devices.

Wireless protocols

The smartphone supports standard Wi-Fi and Bluetooth protocols starting from version 2.1 (EDR), works well on ANT + profiles, which are used in conjunction with sports gadgets, and also has the ability to communicate with GLONASS, NFC and DLNA.

Cameras

The front camera has received acceptable characteristics, so there will be no problems with Skype and other messengers, and for more it will not work (which is not necessary). But the main camera deserves special attention.

The 12.1-megapixel matrix is ​​capable of shooting video in high resolution and has an impressive set of effects: 3D panorama, multi-angle view in the same 3D, fish eyes and other useful and not very entourage.

The user can choose a shooting method: a regular key, a touch button on the display, or some specific customizable combination. It is also possible to quickly launch with your own presets: button and shooting, button and only start the program, etc. Fortunately, all additional functionality is easily disabled and you can work with the familiar settings that were enabled by default.

Naturally, for most users, the key point regarding the camera's capabilities is the megapixel ratio of the matrix. The figure seems to be impressive for a smartphone, but that's not the point here. Marketers constantly put pressure on the already loaded heads of users with all sorts of incomprehensible, but rather sonorous terms: here's 4 cores, 12 megapixels, 128 gigabytes, ultra-HD and full stuffing. In fact, the main question here is different: do I, the owner of the phone, need all this "beauty"? Speaking specifically about the Sony Xperia Ion, the device is able to capture a piece of the desired reality, and very high quality. But why does he need such a high resolution, if most of the owners, judging by the reviews, upload their pictures somewhere on Instagram or VK. And to work with stunning landscapes and reserved animals, there is a special professional technique. Therefore, any criticism here will be ambiguous.

Yes, on some materials you can see that the camera sometimes misses the mark, it happens that it knocks out some color, nevertheless, the picture turns out to be detailed and natural. The smartphone showed itself well during daytime shooting, but the night life did not work out for it: even a bright flash will not help to get a really high-quality frame in low light, but rather, on the contrary, it will aggravate everything. Otherwise, we have a sensible matrix that does not differ in something supernatural, but makes just normal and detailed pictures.

Autonomous work

The battery of the Sony Xperia Ion is quite modest - only 1900 mAh, which is clearly not enough for this platform. "Android" -brothers have always been distinguished by their energy-hungry, and our respondent was no exception.

When the smartphone was fully loaded (high-definition video, Wi-Fi, maximum screen brightness), the battery was discharged in three to four hours. If you find in the same "Google Play" a sensible energy saving program, then you can increase the battery life by 20 percent of the available resource. Otherwise, you will be forced to charge your phone almost every evening.

Many users in their reviews are perplexed why a smartphone with such a large screen and an impressive set of chipsets was equipped with such a modest battery. Apparently, the manufacturer had his own reasons, which he preferred to keep silent about.

Summarizing

On popular online trading platforms, the cost of the gadget fluctuates around 15,000 rubles. Judging by the experts in this field, the price is quite balanced. Here we must not forget that our respondent is a stylish multimedia gadget, not an eight-core rocket that will take you into space for “heavy” applications.

For this money, you will get an unusual and at the same time interesting design, a metal case (back cover), a good screen, a full set of wireless modules, support for all popular formats "out of the box" and an acceptable amount of memory.

As for the telephone component itself, there is also complete order here: the quality of voice transmission is at a high level with a loud speaker, albeit with slightly raised high frequencies. Separately, it is worth noting the fact that the work with networks in the Xperia Ion is implemented almost perfectly. The same iPhone of the fifth series in this regard loses significantly: in the place where Sony has caught three nets, in the same place the Apple gadget catches only one, and even then after a while.

Naturally, it was not without a fly in the ointment. This role is played by inconvenient touch buttons under the display, side keys "under the bevel", to which you need to get used to, and a massive case, by no means intended for the back pocket of jeans. This also includes mediocre battery life with such a modest battery and a stupid plug for the mains adapter, where it seems like it will break down with the next charge.

One could advise to dig a little and buy a direct competitor of the model - the third Galaxy from Samsung, but the Ion's appearance is clearly more interesting. And in general, most of the problems that users sin in their reviews are not related to the phone itself, but to the Android platform, so anyone who is looking for a stylish device with a large display and smart “stuffing” can advise a gadget.