Introduction

Style, quality and uncompromising - perhaps these three words can describe a smartphone Sony Xperia Z Ultra. The device is beautiful, large, but without high-quality iron, all this is worthless. Fortunately, this does not apply to Sony. How did Sony manage to combine performance and style?

Design and appearance

Of course, the appearance of this smartphone is unique and is its main advantage in relation to all competitors. It is gratifying that Sony some time ago decided on the design concept of their mobile solutions, and now all newly released smartphones have a recognizable and subtle, in all meanings of the word, style. We remember how long the Japanese company went to this. Perhaps, from the very moment when push-button phones and smartphones dominated the market and the brand Sony Ericsson was an example of design with character and a triumph of style, for which her products were loved. In the last couple of years, design in Sony smartphones and tablets again dominates the technical characteristics, for which the Japanese can be especially thanked. After all, we are all so tired of the monotonous remnants of Chinese-Korean factories. But back to the smartphone.

The Sony Xperia Z Ultra has tempered glass on the front and back, on which, during assembly, transparent films with an anti-reflective coating and the corresponding markings were glued: Sony, XPERIA, NFC icon. Over time, these films become covered with scratches, so individual enthusiasts peel off these films in a simple way. The screen has almost symmetrical indents on all sides, so in this case it becomes quite difficult to recognize where the top and where the bottom of the smartphone is.

As for the metal frame, the chips and scratches on it are practically invisible, so you don’t have to worry about this item.

The side frame of the Z Ultra is made of metal and has a surface that mimics rough-hewn metal. The color of the side faces matches the color of the case, which can be white, purple or black.

Various connectors are scattered along the perimeter of the frame, which are covered with plastic plugs. Under the latter is a slot for a memory card, a slot for a micro-SIM card, a micro-USB port. But the connector for connecting a smartphone to the docking station remained open, as well as the 3.5 mm headphone jack.

The design of this connector is such that it does not allow moisture to pass through, even with acceptable standards for the smartphone to be under water. However, Sony still does not recommend connecting the headset within three hours after diving and until the moisture has completely evaporated.

Another waterproof connector is the branded port for connecting a docking station, which, of course, is sold separately. It is for the best, since any accessory in the kit always increases the cost of the product. And not all users need a docking station.

As a general rule, any product that has some sort of distinctive design is quite fragile and can hardly stand extreme handling. This principle does not work in this situation. One should not be surprised at the use of such protection systems in a mass product, since for Japan this has long been an industry standard. According to the company, Xperia Z Ultra is able to spend under water for about 30 minutes when submerged to a depth of half a meter. IP55/IP58 protection standards speak for themselves. The main thing is not to forget to properly cover all the plugs, which the smartphone warns about every time you use any connector.

Particularly warms the soul is the fact that the most common breakdown according to the assurances of service centers (drowning the device in the toilet) is not terrible for the Sony Xperia Z Ultra.

Below is the main speaker, the volume of which leaves much to be desired. The reason for this is the use of special membranes that protect the speaker from moisture penetration. On a street with active traffic, it is easier to miss a call. In such cases, only a vibrating alert can come to the rescue. Nevertheless, the volume of the subscriber's voice in the conversational dynamics is more than sufficient.

A distinctive feature of all mobile devices from Sony is a round button on the side of the device. Underneath it is quite close to the rocker key to adjust the volume, which leads to frequent accidental pressing of both keys. The button travel is soft, clear and pleasant.

Interestingly, the designers have equipped the Xperia Z Ultra with a lanyard hole. This is not a popular move in our time, however, the smartphone can be additionally secured with a string on the wrist or, God forbid, on the neck. 212 grams is no joke. By the way, the dimensions of the device are 179 x 92 x 6.5 mm. For clarity, g consider comparing the dimensions of a smartphone with the main market players:

Sony Xperia Z Ultra- 179 x 92 x 6.5mm, 212g

Lenovo K900- 157 x 78 x 6.9mm, 162g

samsung galaxy Note III - 151.2 x 79.2 x 8.3mm, 168g

HTC One MAX- 164 x 82.5 x 10.29mm, 217g

Asus Fonepad 6- 164.5 x 88.8 x 10.3mm, 210g

As you can see, in terms of its dimensions, the Z Ultra continues to lead. But the HTC One Max overtook the Japanese smartphone by 5 grams in weight, although such a difference is almost impossible to feel in everyday use. The Sony Xperia Z Ultra is the thinnest device among the competitors presented - some 6.5 mm, but still it's not thin enough to be a leader. The Huawei Ascend P6 on the market with its 6.18 mm bypasses the smartphone from Sony.

Equipment

Included with the device is nothing unusual. First of all, this is a box made of thick glossy plastic, and secondly, only the necessary accessories: microUSB cable, charger, headset and Western ear pads.

Usage

Of course, tenths of a millimeter don't matter in normal use, and the Sony Xperia Z Ultra is astoundingly thin, adding extra comfort points to the smartphone. Indeed, if the device had a thickness comparable, for example, to the Asus Fonepad 6, then using the Z Ultra would be extremely inconvenient.

When buying a smartphone like the Sony Xperia Z Ultra, you need to be completely sure that such a diagonal of the display (6.4 inches) and dimensions of the device will really be in demand. Holding a smartphone and operating it with one hand is very difficult, even for people with a wide palm and long fingers. In addition, Z Ultra hardly fits into the pockets of trousers or jeans, so before buying you need to figure out for yourself how and where the smartphone will be carried. Going somewhere easy is not about the Sony Xperia Z Ultra.

The downside and pleasant side of such a size of a smartphone is that it replaces two whole devices - a smartphone and a tablet. It does not fully replace, but is rather a compromise solution. Typing on the Z Ultra isn't as comfortable as it can be on a tablet. Due to FullHD resolution, all objects on the Sony Xperia Z Ultra screen look quite small. Fortunately, in the smartphone settings, you can choose the size of application icons and fonts.

About pleasant. The Sony Xperia Z Ultra is amazingly comfortable to read books, play games or watch movies. The diagonal of the display, low weight (compared to tablets) and a very thin body allow you to hold the device in your hands for a very, very long time. There is no characteristic whining of the hands, which appears after long-term use of even small tablets.

Display

The display in smartphones with a diagonal of more than 5.5 inches plays a decisive role. Dimensions, time battery life, specifications and even price - the display determines it all. The screen of the Sony Xperia Z Ultra is made using IPS technology, which means a pleasant, close to the original color reproduction of any image. The diagonal of 6.44 inches (163 mm) is the main advantage of the Z Ultra. Sony set a matrix with a resolution of 1920 by 1080 px and a value of 344 pixels per inch.

The screen is covered with tempered glass, which, in turn, is covered with a factory film with an oleophobic and anti-reflective coating. If the anti-grease layer does not cope well enough with fingerprints, then the anti-glare coating really saves from direct rays of light and the display remains well readable in the midday sun.

The screen is very sensitive to touch. There is a certain amount of users who are even annoyed by this, but it's always nice when you can follow the tiniest link without scaling the page in the browser. Once such sensitivity was peculiar only to iPhone displays.

In the dark, the viewing angles do not suffer and the image does not fade even at the largest tilt. Of course, the brightness loses its strength and a slight yellowish tint is possible on a white background, but it is not at all critical.

Brightness, of course, is controlled by the ambient light sensor, which works fairly well, as does the proximity sensor.

It is worth comparing the color reproduction and viewing angles in the Sony Xperia Z Ultra with the iPhone 5. The latter clearly wins in terms of brightness, but the iPhone has stronger contrast.

Characteristics

The Sony Xperia Z Ultra has one of the most advanced SoC processors Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974), with a frequency of 2.2 GHz and with 4 Krait 400 cores. The Adreno 330 chip is responsible for graphics performance, and 2 GB of RAM is available for overall system performance, which is more than enough for the vast majority of users.

The popular smartphone testing app AnTuTu showed very interesting results. The tested Sony Xperia Z Ultra scored 34,690 points, which exceeded the level of Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and, surprisingly, the Sony Xperia Z Ultra itself! Obviously, the software is being updated and optimized. At the time of testing, the smartphone was running Android 4.3. Although currently available for download latest version — 4.4.

Sony Xperia Z Ultra has the following specifications:

Performance

Quad-core (Krait 400) SoC Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974), 2.2 GHz

Video accelerator GPU Adreno 330

operating room android system 4.2.2 Jelly Bean (current version 4.4)

Memory

RAM 2 GB, internal memory 16 GB (actually available over 11 GB)

microSD card slot (up to 64 GB, SDXC support)

Display and case

IPS touch display, 6.44″, 1920×1080, 344 ppi

Dust / moisture protection (standards IP55 / IP58)

Battery 3000 mAh

Dimensions 179.4×92.2×6.5mm

Weight 212 g

Connection

GSM GPRS/EDGE 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz

3G UMTS HSDPA 850, 900, 1700, 1900, 2100 MHz

Data transfer HSPA+ up to 42/5.8 Mbps (download and upload)

LTE (Model 6833 Bands I, II, III, IV, V, VII, VIII, XX)

Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4 + 5 GHz), hotspot mode WiFi access, WiFi Direct

DLNA, NFC, MHL, OTG

GPS/Glonass

cameras

Rear (main) camera 8 MP, autofocus

Front-camera 2 MP

In terms of performance, the Sony Xperia Z Ultra performs well. Not a single animation in the smartphone interface has ever twitched; programs open as quickly as possible and without any delay. For all the time of testing, there was not a single crash of the firmware or the fact of incompatibility of the main popular programs. The work done by Sony's software optimization specialists is commendable.

Often a manufacturer, trying to create a fashion product, forgets about the main purpose of the device. It's about the quality of the connection. The assertion that any modern smartphone must, above all, be able to call well, has recently been subjected to various criticisms. However, Sony has built a smartphone with reliable cellular signal reception even in remote places, where, for example, the iPhone 5 interrupts and loses connection.

LTE works great for domestic mobile operators and is available only in the C6833 modification. The same goes for the rest of the Z Ultra transmitters. When everything works and there is nothing to complain about, it is always wonderful.

Camera

The smartphone has a 2 megapixel front camera. It allows you to shoot photos at a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels and has tolerable image quality. In addition, it allows you to shoot video in FullHD resolution at 30 frames per second. This module is not intended for anything other than communication via video calls. The camera cannot produce high-quality "crossbows", but perhaps this is the value of such shots.

As the main camera, the Sony Xperia Z Ultra uses an 8-megapixel sensor of its own design - Exmor RS with autofocus and back-illuminated BSI (Backside Illumination) matrix. The quality of the pictures taken from the main camera is hard to praise. But first things first. Sony loves their settings and knows which ones are best for the user to use. Obviously, for this reason, the iAuto mode is set by default in the camera, in which a very small number of settings are available to the user. This mode is completely automatic and independently determines the best settings for white balance, sensor sensitivity, resolution, and more. In addition, when you quickly launch the camera from the lock screen, auto mode always opens. Only the corresponding desktop application remembers the previous shooting settings. This arrangement is not always convenient.

In order to change the resolution and set the shooting parameters yourself, you need to switch the camera to manual mode M (Manual). In addition, the camera has additional shooting modes. It is possible to download and install additional photo programs that will be available directly from the camera. However, the need for all these modes is doubtful, due to the lack of any significant settings and not always high-quality implementation.

The maximum image resolution is 3264 x 2448 megapixels (8 megapixels), but the HDR (High Dynamic Range) mode lowers the maximum resolution to 7 megapixels (3104 x 2325 megapixels).

Of course, the camera has many settings inherent in "adult" cameras, such as a timer, focus mode: single, multi, object tracking, etc. ISO settings are available up to 1600. Of course, there is exposure metering, image stabilizer and white balance.

In the photo scene settings, you can select preset modes for various shooting conditions: landscape, night portrait, high sensitivity. Interestingly, there are also a number of exotic modes, such as gourmet, pet, delicate skin and others.

Now about the properties of photographs. Image quality is very average, about the same as the 2010 models. The clarity and detail of the image is unpleasantly lame, as is the automatic processing of colors and transitions between different shades. I propose to consider examples of the obtained images.

And now attention! 100% crop:

In the night shooting mode, the device cannot cope with the amount of noise and distorts the colors greatly. Depth of frames and pleasant blur (boke) is almost impossible to achieve. Z Ultra's automatic mode conscientiously chooses the correct exposure, but, in combination with other nuances of the sensor, this does not save the situation.

A little disappointing is also the lack of a built-in flash. Sometimes this feature is quite in demand.

Sony Xperia Z Ultra is capable of shooting videos in Full HD resolution at 30 frames per second. At the same time, the smartphone records video in MP4 format files. The image stabilizer is not very noticeable, but the tracking autofocus does track subjects really well.

I suggest that you familiarize yourself with examples of video taken from the Sony Xperia Z Ultra camera.

Standard shooting:

One more example:

Smartphone does not have separate button to release the camera shutter, which sometimes makes it impossible to take pictures. For example, difficulties arise under water. Due to the response of the Z Ultra screen to any conductive object, the smartphone stops responding to any touch underwater. There are two ways out: use a timer (2 or 10 seconds) or third-party programs that reassign the shutter release to existing buttons.

Battery

The battery in the Sony Xperia Z Ultra is non-removable, that is, there is no back cover. The battery capacity is 3,000 mAh and the battery life is really enough for a day and a half of moderate use of the smartphone with all interfaces enabled and periodic data exchange in the background. With very active use (games and watching videos), the Z Ultra will last a maximum of up to the evening on one morning charge. The results are not bad, rather slightly above average among similar devices.

Sony has taken care of users by equipping their smartphone with a Stamina power saving mode that blocks data transfer when the screen is off. To help save energy, there are also such functions as turning on Wi-Fi only in places where it operates (determination via geolocation), sending background data at set intervals, and other useful settings. In addition, Z Ultra itself does not forget to give advice to its owner on the power consumption of a smartphone.

Software behavior

The Sony Xperia Z Ultra is a smart smartphone, so it comes with many of the most different programs- helpers designed to simplify the life of its owner. This is ideal. Register here, share the link there, don't forget to check this one - such advice inevitably and periodically disturbs the owner. Such imposition is not very disturbing, but it would be better if there were no such utilities at all. In any case, this disease manifests itself in all products from major market players.

Sony Xperia Z Ultra presents an interesting and extremely useful My Xperia service, thanks to which you can find a stolen or lost smartphone, delete all data from it or remotely lock the device. Read more about this in the article.
Searching for a smartphone using My Xperia

Another feature of the smartphone is that the Sony Xperia Z Ultra does not have a proprietary browser. Its place is successfully taken by Chrome. Advantage or disadvantage, everyone will determine for himself. However, Chrome runs smoothly and crisply, as it should.

Sound

Enough has been said about the external speaker. Now about the sound quality in the headphones. You can safely not even unpack a standard headset if you are used to good sound quality in headphones. For better sound, you can connect your own headphones.

Only in this case, the Sony Xperia Z Ultra will be able to shake up its musical capabilities. The playback quality is at a very good level and is about the same level as any flagship device.

conclusions

We started with three words that can describe a smartphone, and I propose to finish with one - ultra. In the Sony Xperia Z Ultra, almost all the characteristics can be described with this word. Of course, with the exception of the average camera, the lack of a flash and pre-installed programs of dubious usefulness. And, if in the first case, lovers of photographing a lot and of high quality can safely bypass the smartphone, then it is quite possible to live with the second.

Should I buy the Sony Xperia Z Ultra now?

Now is the best time to buy this Japanese giant. In federal networks, the cost has dropped to 24,990 rubles, and in gray channels, a smartphone can be purchased at a price below 20,000 rubles. At the same time, Z Ultra remains in demand in all its technical specifications and the only available mainstream device with such a monstrous display size. However, you can buy such a device only if you are completely sure of the need for such a whopper, or if you have a great desire to try on a large smartphone for yourself. Be that as it may, any experience, even a negative one, is also an experience.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen! We continue our cooperation with Sony. And today, at the next review of smartphones, we have a novelty in the field of large smartphones or small tablets (as it suits you). phablet(English phablet from PHone + TABLET; also a flanchet or ceiling lamp from Russian. PLANSHET + TELEPHONE) - a term denoting a class of mobile devices with touch screen diagonal from 5 to 7 inches. Phablet combines the qualities of a smartphone and a mini-tablet. Also known as "Tablet Phone", which is more understandable for the Russian-speaking population. Actually, this name in the form of "phablet" can already be considered the official designation of such devices. For those who are not yet aware of everything that is happening, I will only say that the diagonal of the screen of our "baby" is only 6.44 inches. In this review, I will try to call this gadget the old fashioned way, namely "smartphone".

About SONY.

Sony's founding year is considered to be 1946, when former colleagues in the defense enterprise Akio Morita and Masaru Ibuka met in Tokyo bombed by American aircraft. Friends drank sake, congratulated each other on having survived the war, and immediately decided to organize some kind of production.

The initial capital of the partners was small: 84,500 yen, or $ 375 at the exchange rate of that time, most of which Morita borrowed from his father, a successful distiller. This money was enough for Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo, the Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Company, to operate on the second floor of a dilapidated shopping center on May 7, with a staff of 20 people (all of these people were former employees of the same defense plant).

The "Telecommunications Engineering Company" finally changed its complex name in 1958. Akio Morita, who by that time had become responsible for promoting the company's products, not without reason assured: “In order to gain a foothold in the global market, we need a different name - simple, short, easy to pronounce and memorable. And instead of hieroglyphs, you need to use the international Latin alphabet. For example, Americans could not pronounce not only Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo, but even the abbreviation Totsuko - and selling a product manufactured by a company with an unpronounceable name in the USA would be, to put it mildly, not easy. At first, Morita and Ibuka wanted to shorten the name of their offspring to three letters - TTK, but then problems would inevitably arise in the domestic market. After all, TTK is very similar to TKK - the Japanese railway company. And then, rummaging through dictionaries, the friends fished out the Latin word sonus - “sound”, which, in their opinion, ideally reflected the direction of the company. Slightly modernizing it, Morita and Ibuka came up with the word sony, which was destined to become the company's international name.

Now Sony Corporation is one of the five leading brands in the world, along with Coca-Cola, Apple, Gillette and McDonald's. All these industrial giants, except McDonald's, were created either at the end of the last century or at the turn of the century. But the history of the Japanese corporation Sony is only 50 years old. The founding fathers of the company started with a small workshop in a dilapidated post-war Tokyo. Sony is one of the fastest growing companies in the world today; even during economic crises, its shares continue to grow in price, and experts estimate the cost of Sony at 37.5 billion dollars. Sony is the No. 1 brand for Americans, ahead of Coca-Cola and General Electric, according to a survey by the Harris Statistics Center. Upon learning of this, Akio Morita said: "I knew that in the end Sony would become an American brand."

Technical characteristics of the device.

General characteristics.

Standard - GSM 900/1800/1900, 3G.
Type - smartphone.
Operating system - Android 4.2.2.
Case type - classical, monoblock.
Case material - metal, glass, plastic.
The design is waterproof.
SIM card type - micro SIM.
Number of SIM cards - 1.
Weight - 212 g.
Dimensions (WxHxT) - 92x179x6.5 mm.

Screen.

Screen type - color TFT, 16.78 million colors, touch.
Touch screen type - multi-touch 10 touches, capacitive.
Diagonal - 6.44 inches.
The image size is 1080x1920.
Number of pixels per inch (PPI) - 342.
Scratch resistant glass is available.

calls.

Type of melodies - polyphonic, MP3-melodies.
Vibrating alert - yes.

multimedia capabilities.

Camera - 8 million pixels, 3264x2448.
Camera features - autofocus.
There is a front camera, 2 million pixels.
Audio - MP3, FM radio.
Headphone jack - 3.5 mm.
Video output - MHL.

Connection.

Interfaces - USB, Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct, NFC, Bluetooth.
USB host yes.
Satellite navigation - GPS/GLONASS.
A-GPS system - yes.
Internet access - WAP, GPRS, EDGE, HSDPA, HSUPA, HSPA+, email POP/SMTP, email IMAP4, HTML.
DLNA support - yes.

memory and processor.

Processor - Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 MSM8974, 2200 MHz.
The number of processor cores is 4.
Video processor - Adreno 330.
Built-in memory - 16 GB.
The amount of RAM is 2 GB.
Support for memory cards - microSD (TransFlash), up to 64 GB.

Food.

Battery capacity - 3000 mAh. built-in.
Talk time 16 hours
Waiting time 820 hours

Other features.

Speakerphone (built-in speaker) - yes.
Profile A2DP - yes.
Sensors - illumination, proximity, gyroscope.
Features protection level - IP55/IP58 standards.

Protection level.

All of Sony's latest flagships are IP55/IP58 water and dust resistant, and ours is no exception.

IP-rating (Ingress Protection, input protection) was adopted by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC-International Electrotechnical Commission). It consists of two numbers and determines the ability of a computer or other device to resist the penetration of solids and liquids. The first digit indicates the level of protection against the ingress of dust and other solid objects, the second digit characterizes the level of protection against the ingress of liquids.

Protection against ingress of solid particles (first digit).

0 - No protection.
1 - Protection against the penetration of solid particles with a size of at least 50 mm (hand).
2 - Protected against the penetration of solid particles with a size of at least 12 mm (fingers).
3 - Protection against penetration of solid particles with a size of at least 2.5 mm (tools, cable).
4 - Protection against the penetration of solid particles with a size of at least 1 mm (thin instruments, wire).
5 - Protection against the ingress of dust in quantities that do not affect the performance of the product.
6 - Complete protection against dust penetration.

Protection against penetration of liquids (second digit).

0 - No protection.
1 - Protection against vertically falling drops of water (condensate).
2 - Protection against drops of water falling at an angle not exceeding 15° from the vertical.
3 - Protection against raindrops falling at an angle not exceeding 60° from the vertical.
4 - Protected against splashing water from all directions.
5 - Protected against water jets from all directions.
6 - Protection from waves.
7 - Protection against water penetration when immersed to a depth of 1 m.
8 - Protection against the ingress of water during prolonged immersion under pressure.

According to this table, it can be judged that the Sony Z Ultra can withstand water jets from any side and direction, as well as immersion in water to a depth of 1 meter and no more than 30 minutes. Immersion in sea water is not recommended.

Packing, equipment.

The smartphone comes in a white cardboard box. Moreover, the entire package corresponds in size to the smartphone itself. On the front side is an image of a smartphone in color, and on the back side is a brief Technical information. Opening the box, you can see that there is a shipping film on the screen. The rest of the package is at the bottom of the box.

History from life. I have a friend who really wanted this device, but there was no money for a new one. I decided to buy on the Internet flea market for 19 thousand rubles. Upon examination, it turned out that the back of the smartphone was badly scratched. The seller in the person of the girl lamented the lack of covers during the purchase of a smartphone. As a result, the price was easily reduced to 15 thousand rubles. The seller did not know that the scratches are only on the protective film. It's just that the film is glued so perfectly that it is simply invisible during everyday use.

Equipment.

1. The smartphone itself.

2. Charger.

3. USB cable.

4. Docking station.

5. Warranty card.

6. Quick user guide.

In general, a bad tradition has recently begun not to equip top smartphones with at least the most elementary headphones. You feel strange when you buy a device for 25 thousand rubles. and not finding the headphones in the package. It feels like something was stolen from you. If it goes on like this, then soon they will only sell the smartphone itself and nothing more. The equipment looks especially poor against the background of the Sony Xperia Sola. A distinctive feature of almost all smartphones from Sony is the presence of protective films on the screen of the smartphone glued at the factory. In our case, the film is pasted on the front and back.

Appearance, design.

It's Sony Style, baby! There are not so many companies on the market that monitor the appearance of their products. Sony is one of them. Ultra continues the unified style of all the latest flagships of the company. What is this single style expressed in? And everything is very simple! No matter how you pick up a tablet Sony Tablet Z, Sony Xperia Z smartphone and Sony Xperia Z Ultra smartphone in appearance, they can be said to be completely different, this is a single style in everything. The front and back parts of these devices can be said to be exactly the same, and only perhaps the camera eye, and other colors give slight differences. Let's say the black Sony Xperia Z Ultra looks exactly the same from all sides. These are strict and elegant body lines. No round corners or protruding body parts. Business device, if you will. The thickness of the smartphone is only 6.5mm. and it is the thinnest smartphone in the world considering the size of the FullHD screen. Ultra looks great with a business suit, or is perfect for the role of an image gadget at a corporate meeting, this is not the kind of smartphone that you can carry around in slippers or sweatpants. The screen size is 6.44 inches, which can not be called comfortable for one-handed operation. Even if you hold with one hand at the very base, then the maximum where you can reach with your thumb is the middle of the screen, the rest of the area remains inaccessible. With the release of this device, the company closed the entire scale in size.

There is a 5 inch smartphone, a 10.1 inch tablet and the golden mean in the face of our smartphone. First of all, this smartphone is suitable for those who have 5 inches is not enough, and 10.1 is already a lot and believe these people are not few. The frames around the perimeter of the screen cannot be called thin. On the right and left sides it is 6mm., Below 17mm., With a touch strip of keys it is already all 25mm., At the top, the edge width is also 17mm. Such a wide framework in our case is not just. As I already said, the thickness of the smartphone is very small, and it was necessary to place the "iron" part somewhere, so I had to go this way. However, you get used to this aspect pretty quickly.

Various colors available: black, white, purple:

Manufacturing materials.

Well, as they say, everything is in chocolate! Basically no plastic. And only the volume control key is made of plastic. The smartphone has an all-aluminum base painted black. This base is in the form of a metal edging around the entire perimeter. Even plugs for connectors and those made of metal. Rear end as well as the front is closed protective glass. The type of glass is the company's own development and its name does not officially appear anywhere, although many argue that this is nothing more than Corning Gorilla Glass 3. The power button remains unpainted and contrasts quite strongly against the general black background. Here we actually have such premium materials used in the manufacture of this smartphone. Few people on the market use this combination of materials for the manufacture of flagship devices. According to this indicator, of course, it is worth praising the company. But keep in mind that glass and metal do not tolerate drops on a hard surface very well, the probability of breaking the back or front is high. However, at the moment there are already many different cases for this smartphone on sale.

Build quality.

Sony is also very responsible in the manufacture of their products. This smartphone is protected from moisture and dust, which naturally imposes certain points in the manufacture. The body is completely monolithic and non-separable. At home, it is impossible to disassemble a smartphone without damage. Naturally, there are no squeaks, backlash or gaps, and even more so. If you want to imagine what the perfect build looks like, then the Ultra certainly meets this standard.

Compared to Huawei Honor and Samsung NOTE II:

Functional connectors on the body of the device.

And so let's see what connectors the manufacturer supplied his device with:

1. An additional microphone is located on the top end.

2. On the right side in the upper part there is a 3.5mm headphone hole. For the first time in smartphones, this connector is not covered by a plug. The contacts are placed outside the connector. A little lower is a plug under which there is a slot for a memory card (hot swap is supported) and a slot for a Micro-SIM card. Power button and brightness button.

3. There is a lanyard hole in the bottom right corner. Many manufacturers have already forgotten such an important element for some.

4. The main microphone is located on the bottom end.

5. Micro hole on the left side USB connector and a contact pad for installation in a docking station.

6. On the front side: distance sensor, light sensor, front camera lens, status indicator, Sony logo. Touch control buttons are placed on the screen itself. Both speakers are also located on the front side.

7. On the back of the main camera, NFC detection zone, Sony and Xperia logo.

functional elements.

Screen.

As mentioned above, in our case we have just a giant screen of 6.44 inches. TFT-IPS capacitive with support for 16 million colors. Full HD, 1920 x 1080 pixels. But since the smartphone control buttons use part of the unused screen area, the true resolution is 1836x1080 pixels. The density of pixels per inch is 342 ppi. However, even with this value, individual pixels are not visible on the smartphone screen. Multi-touch up to 10 touches.

This type of screen supports the ability to enter information with any metal object. You can use a pen, paper clip or nail if you like. The viewing angles are the maximum possible.

In the sun, the picture practically does not fade and the information can always be read. It just so happened, but the screen quality is better than in the same Sony Xperia Z, there is no obvious shift to gray tones when the screen is tilted. In this type of screen, there is no air gap, which contributes to even better color reproduction, the image seems to be right at your fingertips. X-Reality technology significantly improves image quality, but this is noticeable only when viewing any content on the screen itself. Very good contrast, the colors themselves are quite natural, you can even say such as they are in nature. It seemed to me that there was not enough brightness at the maximum value. However, we still have one of best screens on the market.

Camera.

Main camera Exmor R 8 MP. The company deliberately limited the module so as not to compete with the already released Z and Z1 smartphones, and in fact, Ultra loses to them in terms of image quality. This module does not represent anything supernatural. There are small flaws with the white balance, and even in low light, noise in the frame is very noticeable. Taking pictures in the dark will not work because there is no flash. There is autofocus and digital stabilization. The maximum resolution for photos is 3264 x 2448 pixels and video is 1080p at 30 fps. The camera is very fast, pictures are taken and saved almost instantly. The pictures themselves are still of good quality, there is sharpness in the frame. The camera interface is not overloaded with settings, everything is very accessible and understandable. The only thing I thought was that the camera went too far with the HDR mode in the "Best auto setting" mode. The front camera has a resolution of 2MP. and of course suitable only for video communication. Work in Skype did not cause any problems.

Sample pictures:

Video example:

Android OS and interface.

Ultra running operating system Android 4.2.2.

A well-known branded interface from Sony is installed on top, everything is redesigned from the dialing window to the color of the main menu.

An update to 4.3 is on the way. The main menu is built according to the 5x6 formula, these are two desktops with installed programs.

Widgets have been removed from the main menu and now they are activated by a long press on the main screen, wallpapers and themes are also concentrated there.

The bottom row for the most used apps can hold 7 icons. The most important innovation is the ability to use the smartphone completely in landscape mode, both on the main screen and on the application screen. This is true if you use a smartphone when you have it in the docking station. The interface itself is very smooth and fast, there are no hints of lags or brakes, the sensor instantly responds to your touch.

Traditionally, let's quickly go through the most significant applications in a smartphone:

walkman.

Actually proprietary and one of the best music players. Displays your music collection. You can sort by artists, tracks, albums, or create your own list.

Sony select.

Games, applications, music and videos - all the best just for you. Sony Select selects only best apps and services, and you can easily access them. What's more, Sony Select only shows you apps and services that are guaranteed to work on your Xperia device. Some kind of alternative to the Play Store if in a word.

smart connect.

What happens when you connect your Xperia smartphone to another device? FROM free application Smart Connect is up to you. Any device you connect to your smartphone, be it a SmartTag, a headset or a charging dock. Smart Connect activates any apps or features that you have specified for a particular accessory. You can select one or more actions. When a headset is connected, Smart Connect launches music player. When you connect your Xperia smartphone to the charger, the Smart Connect application puts it into "night" mode - turns on the alarm and the "silent" mode.

Sketch.

Pretty good and functional application that allows you to use your smartphone as a drawing tablet.

office suite.

The program provides the creation, viewing and editing of Word, Excel and PowerPoint files on mobile device. OfficeSuite includes support for Microsoft Office files. The program works great with text editors, providing opening and viewing DOCX files, editing Microsoft DOC files and RTF, TXT formats.

Xperia Privilege.

Not so long ago, Sony introduced its unique application that can be used exclusively on devices from the Sony Xperia line. The purpose of this program is simple - with its help, each owner of these gadgets will be able to access the most diverse and unique content. The Xperia Z1, Z Ultra and Tablet Z offer an exclusive entertainment package with great movies. Enjoy them through the Xperia Privilege app, which can be found on the Apps screen of your smartphone or tablet or downloaded from the Google Play store.

In work, testing.

CPU. The smartphone has the top-end Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 CPU at the moment. Of course, there is a more recent version of 805, but smartphones based on this processor are not yet on sale, so we consider our processor to be the best at the moment.

SoC Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 is designed for flagship smartphones. According to the creators, it provides 75% more performance than the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro. The Snapdragon 800 is made using 28nm technology. The Snapdragon 800 is powered by a quad-core Krait 400 CPU up to 2.3GHz and an Adreno 330 GPU. The latter has twice the performance of the Adreno 320. The SoC supports dual 800MHz LP-DDR3 memory chips, achieving a maximum memory bandwidth of 12 .8 GB/s. The single-chip platform includes a Hexagon V5 digital signal processor, an LTE modem that provides data transfer rates up to 150 Mbps, Wi-Fi 802.11ac and Bluetooth wireless modules, USB controller 3.0 and radio. Provides playback and recording of video with UltraHD resolution. Due to the presence of two image processors, the single-chip system is compatible with cameras up to 55 megapixels. Snapdragon 800 supports DTS-HD and Dolby Digital Plus sound processing technologies, and also allows you to display a picture on screens with a resolution of 2560 x 2048 pixels. Also, this processor supports 4G data transfer and is compatible with Russian standards. We buy SIM card with 4G tariff and forward.

Needless to say, at the moment this is the ideal solution if you use a smartphone for games. At the moment, there are simply no games yet that could put this smartphone on the shoulder blades. All tested games from N.O.V.A. 3 and ending with Dead Trigger 2 as they say just fly on this tablet. There is one small drawback. During the game, the area with the touch buttons is not removed from the screen and therefore false clicks take place, which leads to the exit from the game. Given the huge screen and incredible performance, playing on this smartphone is a pleasure.

Synthetic test charts:

Memory.

The main memory in the smartphone is 16GB. When the system and all applications are loaded, 11GB remains for free use. Installation of games and applications on a memory card is not provided. Supports work with MicroSDXC cards. Random access memory 2GB and after downloading remains 1.2GB. Oh, when such a bright moment comes when the developers of top-end smartphones realize that the presence of 16GB. memory, and in fact less is catastrophically small for this kind of device.

Wi-Fi works great, no problems in the process of operation did not reveal. Naturally, the smartphone itself can act as a Wi-Fi access point. Wi-Fi Direct has not gone anywhere either - allowing devices to connect directly to each other without an additional intermediate link in the form of a router. There is also Wi-Fi Display - provides wireless transmission image and sound from one device to another nearby, using a simple and secure discovery and connection procedure. For example, a web page opened on a PC can be displayed on a nearby TV, while a picture viewed on a smartphone can be simultaneously viewed on the smartphone's screen.

GPS/GLONAS.

Simultaneous support for two navigation standards, American GPS and Russian GLONASS, has been implemented. Thanks to this, a cold start takes about one minute. Separately, you cannot select the GPS or GLONAS mode, they work in pairs. Such a tandem provides greater satellite detection or more accurate positioning on the ground. In my case, 22 satellites were displayed, which is a very good indicator and a new record for the entire time I tested smartphones with the GPS / GLONAS function.

Speech quality.

The smartphone has two microphones, which naturally only had a positive effect on the quality of transmitted and received speech.
Moreover, the design of the latter is very successful, they do not overlap with hands and have a large sound absorption area. The interlocutor is heard very well, as well as you. The earpiece speaker is excellent as well. No complaints were found in this aspect. I was pleased with a fairly strong vibration signal given the final dimensions of the smartphone.

Video.

Out of the box, the smartphone perfectly digests all known video formats, so installing a third-party player is not required for the first time.

Sound.

But according to this parameter, the smartphone upset me. The sound is quiet, and very quiet. Even at maximum volume, the sound is easy to miss and you do not even need to be in crowded places for this. So, I advise you to select tunes with a maximum bitrate. Moreover, the state of affairs is not saved by any software improvers. This is the price paid for the protected case of the smartphone. Otherwise, the sound quality is quite good. Since there were no headphones in this package, this test item was left out.

USB-OTG.

The smartphone supports the connection of various peripherals. So, without any problems you can connect: a mouse, keyboard, USB flash drive, joysticks, etc. For example, the PS4 joystick works great in Dead Trigger 2.

Accessories.

Docking station DK30.

The package includes a Sony Z Ultra charging dock. Complete charging has a capacity of 1.5A, which allows you to fully charge your smartphone in 3 hours.
The magnetic connector allows you to securely attach your smartphone to the docking station with one hand. The magnet guides the smartphone charging port to the dock connector and establishes a connection. Adapters included. With the included interchangeable earbuds, you can use the Xperia Z Ultra Smartphone Dock with or without a case. The smartphone installed on charging is located at a convenient viewing angle. You can check messages or view smartphone content. Your Xperia Z Ultra is firmly and securely docked in the docking station.

Headset Sony SBH52.

A rather interesting Bluetooth headset was also given for review. You can make calls like you would with a regular phone, or listen to music and receive calls hands-free. When you receive a call on your smartphone, you can see who is calling you on the headset display. You can use the headset to view recent calls and make calls. You can move around by leaving your smartphone in your pocket, bag, or anywhere within Bluetooth range (up to 10 meters). You can connect the headset to your smartphone with one touch when help NFC module, just touch rear panel smartphone to the back of the headset. You can use headphones with a headset to listen to music. Just plug the headphones into the headset. You can view the artist name and song information on the headset display. You can also read the incoming SMS message using the headset. The headset has a built-in FM radio with RDS (Radio Data System) support. The headset itself is splash-proof and can be used in the rain.

Offline work.

The capacity of our battery is 3000 mAh. Given the huge FullHD screen and a fairly powerful processor, it will be quite interesting to test this parameter.

1. Work in the "just phone" mode, calls only. This is not the total talk time, but a certain number of calls - 57 hours.

2. Work in mixed mode: calls, Internet, video, games - 11 hours

3. Playing MP3 file in headphones, the maximum volume is 65 hours.

4. Video playback, sound and screen brightness for a maximum of 5 hours.

5. Work in 3D applications (games), sound at maximum, screen brightness 75% - 4 hours.

Conclusions.

Here is such a rather stylish and interesting device from Sony. I must say right away that the device is not for everyone. It is unlikely that this smartphone will look concise in a female hand because of its size. During the week of testing when talking on this smartphone people look askance at you, especially when you put such a spatula to your ear. Before buying, you need to clearly understand why you need such a device. In principle, already this size can be attributed to the category of mini-tablets, but where else can you buy a mini-tablet on the Snapdragon 800? If you use it as a phone, then I think the use of the above-described mini-headset is simply necessary.

Who are the competitors? Yes, actually no one! If we take all the characteristics into one whole, then this product has no competitors. For those who are interested, you can simply compare the following products in size: Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3, Huawei Ascend Mate 6.1, OPPO N1 5.9, HTC ONE MAX 5.9, Nokia Lumia 1320 6.0. But none of these smartphones can match the performance and build quality of the Ultra. And only Nokia Lumia 1520 with a 6-inch FullHD screen has the same processor, twice the amount of main memory and a better battery, but it runs on Win 8, and comparing two different ecosystems is not entirely appropriate....

PROS:

1. High-quality screen.

2. Excellent workmanship.

3. Water proof.

4. An abundance of various branded accessories from Sony.

5. Performance for the future.

6. Docking station included.

MINUSES:

1. No flash.

2. Very quiet speaker.

That's all ! Thank you all for your attention who took the time to this review. Thanks to DNS for the review site. Thanks to Sony for providing the smartphone for review.

When large smartphones, or phablets, were just starting to appear, they caused surprise and a desire to troll both the devices themselves and their owners. Then this format became more familiar and today the display diagonal in a top-end smartphone ranges from 4.7 to 5.2″. But Sony decided to go further and released a smartphone that surprises, but does not make you want to joke about it. It's just that the Sony Xperia Z Ultra is trolling itself perfectly, because I did not find a brick that was larger.

Xperia Z Ultra is already quite a tablet device, with a display diagonal of 6.44″, the smartphone is very close to Nexus 7 in screen size. Therefore, it is convenient to use this smartphone if you do not let go of the tablet. In that case, combining it with a phone is a good idea. But even after the Galaxy Note 3, the size of the Z Ultra turned out to be excessive for me. Something like this:

But besides Galaxy Note 3, I also use iPhone 5s. Compared to it, the Z Ultra resembles a bus parked next to the Gnome children's bike.

My hands are rather big, but even in them the smartphone looks big. In the two weeks that I used it, I found both advantages and disadvantages of this size. The latter are associated, for the most part, with the transportation of the device. If the Galaxy Note 1,2 and 3 are quite comfortable for me to carry in the front pocket of my jeans, then the Z Ultra does not fit there. You need to put it in your breast pocket, if there is one, or in a bag.

But I think that the buyers of this gadget know exactly what they need from a large smartphone, and in their eyes there will be much more advantages than inconveniences. It was not without reason that I mentioned people who have a tablet that does not get out of their hands. Event organizers, designers, hipsters – a smartphone can appeal to many. Moreover, it is favorably distinguished from competitors by water resistance.

The smartphone is available in three colors: black, like ours, white and purple. In the same colors you can find other models of the manufacturer.

After the Xperia Z, which turned out to be interesting, but with a lot of “sides”, the Z Ultra has become a qualitative step forward: it has a better display, more comfortable elements placed on the body. For example, the headphone jack is not covered with a plug, which I did not like at all in the Z-ke. The Z1 did the same, but the screen quality in it turned out to be the same as in the Z of the first generation. That is, Z Ultra, at the moment - the best in terms of display quality among Sony smartphones.

The case is protected according to IP55 and IP58 standards, the device can be immersed to a depth of 1.5 meters and kept there for up to 30 minutes. Moisture protection of smartphones is very cool, you don’t sweat when you get a call on the street in rainy weather, you don’t sweat when you put your smartphone on the kitchen table, and I even used such a device on vacation to photograph reefs and fish.

On the sides of the Xperia Z Ultra, there is a MicroUSB connector, slots for a memory card and a MicroSIM card, a lock key and a volume rocker below it.

Given the size of the device, I can call the location of all this convenient. For example, it would be foolish to place the volume rocker above the waterline of the smartphone, because not a single thumb can reach there. Here, this key is located at the bottom - quite convenient.

The smartphone is made of glass and plastic, although the side edge looks like metal. However, the design is very pliable to torsion, the rigidity is low. If you forget to take your smartphone out of your back pocket and sit down somewhere, you can easily get a broken screen. Nothing critical, but the design could be made more rigid, because the tablets are larger, but many of them are much more rigid.

Display

The smartphone has a 6.44″ display, the matrix type is IPS. Even at such a diagonal, Full HD resolution gives a pixel density of 342 per inch. That's more than the 4″ iPhone 5s display. But the main thing, as I said above, is the screen quality, it is much higher than in the Xperia Z and, unfortunately, than in the new Z1. There are good viewing angles, the picture does not turn into a solid light background at an angle, the information is easy to read. It is convenient to read on such a screen, so the minimum brightness is very important and it is comfortable, but the maximum brightness may not be enough to view content on a sunny day. In general, I was extremely pleased with the screen. It is not the best, but it is large and of high quality, and for Sony smartphone a high-quality display is already good. But he has another feature that not every smartphone on the market can boast of - the ability to use pencils, keys, knives and other conductive objects as a stylus. It's cool, but there are two "buts". First, when compared with a stylus, for example, the S-Pen in the Galaxy Note 3, if you need to enter something with it, the stylus will always be in the smartphone, and a pencil or other conductive object is not always at hand. Secondly, the same S-Pen is notable not for what it is, but for the fact that it is an electronic analogue of a pen / pen / pencil. The harder you press, the fatter the imprint - everything is like in life. Such a pen recognizes up to 1024 gradations of clicks, but a pencil or a key is not capable of this. However, the ability to use third-party items for control and input pleases.

Camera

Photos of this device are not the main trump card. This is exactly the case when I say: "For documents - just right." True, there is no flash, in a dark room and they can turn out to be blurry. In good light, the pictures come out decent, as do the videos.

The stock camera app is just about more functional than the Z1, which is clearly more geared towards photography. Here, for example, right at hand there is the inclusion of the HDR mode. And a sea of ​​possible scenes like Beach, Gourmet, etc.

Photo examples

Specifications and Software

As far as I understand, the Sony Xperia Z Ultra was the first smartphone with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor and Adreno 330 graphics. In this regard, there is no need to talk about lags in the interface, as well as in games. The device is expectedly fast in any task, but in demanding games like the RR3, the heat is quite noticeable. The case does not get hot, but in the summer it will be a little uncomfortable to play, it seems to me. RAM - 2 GB, available for installing applications and content - 11 of the declared 16 GB.

Autonomy was not impressive, as I expected, at 3000 mAh, a miracle did not happen, it is far from the tablet autonomy of the Z Ultra. The smartphone easily falls short of the night if you use it regularly. Twitter, FB, browser - it's within the power of the Z Ultra battery, but it's worth playing a little, watching a video, as the lack of battery capacity becomes obvious.

• Dimensions: 179 × 92 × 6.5 mm.
• Weight: 212 g.
• Operating system: Android 4.2.2 JB.
• Processor: Quad-core, Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974), 2.2 GHz
• Graphics: Adreno 330.
• Display: TFT, 6.44 '', 1920 × 1080 pixels, 342 ppi
• Memory: 16 GB flash.
• RAM: 2 GB.
• Camera: main - 8 MP, video recording in 1080p, front - 2 MP.
• Wireless technologies: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC.
• Interface connectors: 3.5 mm headphone jack, Micro USB.
• Battery: Li-lon battery 3000 mAh.

The Android version of the Sony Xperia Z Ultra is 4.2.2 JB. A proprietary Sony shell is installed on top of it. One of the main features of the interface are small applications. These are windows with applications that you launch on top of the main screen. For such a display thing is convenient.

Conclusion

Sony Xperia Z Ultra is clearly not a mass product. But it is definitely able to please many, it is convenient to show a presentation, watch a movie and even edit a document on it. I'm not talking about reading, because the screen here is completely comparable in size to readers. Playing on the device is also more convenient than on 4 or even 5″ smartphones. Add water resistance to this, and on vacation you can not take a tablet at all, and in the evening, taking a bath, you can re-read the entire feed on Twitter and RSS.

Smartphones today are getting bigger and bigger, but models with a diagonal of 5 inches or more are already being called phablets or tablet-phone hybrids. But where to put the Xperia Sony Z Ultra? The 6.44-inch display with Full-HD resolution sits right between phablets and tablets with a phone function. In our article, we will consider how convenient the giant turned out to be, what advantages it provides in work. We can immediately say that surfing on it is simply fantastic, as is watching movies. But will the smartphone cope with other tasks? We will talk about this in our article.

The smartphone/tablet hybrid measures 179 x 92 mm. Inside, modern hardware is used, three colors are available on the market (black, white, purple), but with only one amount of internal memory (16 GB, expandable via micro-SD).

Appearance, design, hardware

Visually, Sony decided to keep the style of the Xperia Z line, the differences are noticeable only in the details. Of course, the appearance can be called attractive, the software stuffing of the smartphone harmonizes well with it. Due to the large dimensions, the manufacturer managed to reduce the thickness to only 6.5 mm, which is impressive considering the hardware. Inside, a modern "system on a chip" Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 is used, the display has a Full-HD resolution, add to this a decent-capacity 3050 mAh battery.

Of course, the battery is non-removable. But the thin design has its downsides: Sony's built-in camera isn't impressive (at least on paper, but more on that later). The 8MP resolution of the Exmor RS sensor isn't significant compared to the (8.5mm thick) 20.7MP sensor, so the Z Ultra isn't likely to make us happy in camera tests, at least theoretically. But megapixels aren't everything, as HTC's super-megapixel camera showed. Also somewhat disturbing is the lack of an LED flash, which also helps with focusing.

Interestingly, the phablet is IP certified, as are the Z and Z1 smartphones. AT this case we receive IP55/58 certification, i.e. protection against dust and moisture with immersion up to 1.5 meters (30 minutes). The expansion slots (SIM, micro-SD) are protected by covers, but there is no cover for the headphone jack due to new technology. It is also somewhat annoying that the 3.5 mm headphone jack is located on the side, so it is better to choose a headphone model with an angled plug. However, you are unlikely to carry a smartphone with a 6.44 "screen in your jeans pocket, it will also be exposed from many pockets, so connecting a headphone mini-jack will actually be less of a problem than it might seem at first glance.

The back of the Xperia Z Ultra is made of glass and is not scratch resistant, as we saw in our test unit. The same goes for the touchscreen bezel, which Sony claims can be operated with any conductive stylus. In practice, any pen works fine, you do not have to constantly carry a stylus with you, as in the case of the Galaxy Note. At the same time, you will have to part with additional features S Pen, such as hover and gestures in the air, copy, etc.

But the pen should not be too sharp, not to mention the metal tips: they will simply scratch the screen, even a protective coating is unlikely to help. By the way, about scratches: they are very thin and visible only when illuminated from the side, but for a device that costs 30 thousand rubles in Russia (600 euros in Europe), scratches are hardly acceptable.

In landscape orientation, the smartphone benefits from stereo speakers and a 16:9 display with Full-HD resolution - considering the diagonal of the display, it does an excellent job of playing movies. Yet few other smartphones on the market are as well-suited for multimedia as the Z Ultra. Watching movies on the device is really pleasant, the sound is also good, since the speakers are located very reasonably, you rarely cover them with your hands. However, low frequencies should not be expected - this is due to the thin design and technical limitations.

In general, the Xperia Z Ultra has a lot of positive aspects. However, you should forget about using your smartphone with one hand or carrying it in your jeans pocket - but the Z Ultra is not intended for this. If media playback is your top priority, then you'll have to make some compromises. Working with any conductive stylus is fun at first glance, but we still won't get the full touch capabilities of Samsung's S Pen devices.

Ergonomics / in work

69.5% of the screen surface of the Xperia Z Ultra is occupied by the display - here the smartphone performs better, which we criticized for inefficient use of the front panel, in contrast to. Because of its size, the Ultra Z is quite proportionately complex, although if you put the smartphone to your ear during a call, it will all look a bit out of the ordinary. The density of 1.98 g/cm³ is relatively high. But it is associated with a very thin design, as well as a decent weight of 212 g. In any case, a large smartphone does not feel heavy.

In the hands of the Xperia Z Ultra lies well, working with a smartphone is a pleasure. But, as we said above, it is better to forget about working with one hand.

How about competitors?

It is difficult to find direct competitors, most of the phablets on the market are larger than 5 inches, but still less than 6". In size, the new Sony is approaching 7-inch tablets with phone functions, but Sony is clearly positioning its product as a niche product, so it certainly has its target audience Here are some of the premium competitors that the Xperia Z Ultra can compare to, along with some of the standout features:

• Phablets (up to 6 inches): Samsung Galaxy Note 3 (S Pen with digitizer), Acer Liquid S2 (4K video recording)
• Phablets (6 to 7 inches): Huawei Ascend Mate, Samsung Galaxy Mega (both are not real competitors due to significantly worse hardware)
• Tablets with phone function (7 inches): ASUS Fonepad 7, (both are significantly larger and heavier + the display is noticeably worse)

One of the largest yet thinnest smartphones we've tested

One of the largest and yet thinnest smartphones we've tested.

Equipment

There is nothing superfluous in the branded box. In addition to the hulk, you will receive a power supply, a microUSB cable, as well as quick guide user.

Design

In the fall of 2012, only the lazy did not joke about the size then new iPhone which are very different from the previous model. Most of those jokes apply to the Xperia Z Ultra as well. This is what the flagship Sony Xperia Z would look like if it were driven by a skating rink. External similarity is maximum, only the dimensions have changed. The curves of the case, barely rounded corners and the strict, but undoubtedly stylish design remained the same. In addition, the phablet is also protected from moisture and dust, it is certified according to the IP58 standard.

Most of the huge front panel is occupied by at least big screen, surrounded by classic and not the narrowest frames.

The entire front panel is covered with protective glass, under which there is also a webcam, an event indicator, as well as light and proximity sensors.

All available connectors are located on the side faces and tightly closed with plugs.

Except for the headphone slot, which is always open.

The right panel also houses a round power and unlock button, as well as a dual volume rocker.

The entire back panel is also covered with protective glass. She looks amazing!

Of the functional elements, there was a place on it only for the main camera. The NFC symbol is also applied there.

The smartphone weighs relatively little for its size - about 212 g.

The device is available in white, black and purple colors.

Display

It uses a 6.44-inch TFT-matrix with FullHD resolution. To say that the Triluminos screen is gorgeous is an understatement. The display has maximum viewing angles, natural color reproduction, high reserves of brightness and contrast.

Watching movies on such a screen is a pleasure. And thanks to X-Reality technology, videos and photos will be displayed with less noise, even more saturated colors with a clearer picture.

Ergonomics

The Xperia Z Ultra is undeniably huge. The device is large but not heavy. And even if the smartphone does not fit in every pocket, its dimensions for the most part had a positive effect on ergonomics.

The front and back sides are covered with scratch-resistant protective glass. As already noted, the case is protected from moisture and dust. And this is often one of the important components when choosing a smartphone.

The device lies well in the palm of your hand, but only a few will be able to use it with one hand. On the other hand, screen keyboard so large that two-handed typing is not difficult. The layout has a large number of settings for personalization, stroke input, as well as one-handed typing.

Separate touch buttons the smartphone did not receive, so the Back, Home and Open applications keys are part of the interface. When watching a video in full screen, they prudently hide so as not to interfere.

Sound

A small speaker can easily compete with the acoustics that are installed in tablets. The Xperia Z Ultra delivers loud, rich sound with excellent frequency balance. You can not only watch movies, but also listen to your favorite music without using headphones. Although in high-quality headphones you will get even more aesthetic pleasure from musical compositions, regardless of their genre.

A large number of parameters and settings will allow you to customize the sound to your liking. Or enable ClearAudio+ mode for automatic optimization.

Interface and software

The device is running an operating system Google systems Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean with a proprietary interface and a sufficient number of pre-installed applications.

The user is traditionally greeted by the unlock screen, which contains widgets.

If protection is not selected, then all you need to do is swipe your finger up or down.

You can create up to 7 desktops containing widgets, application shortcuts, and icon folders. You can change the background and also choose one of the color themes.

The touch keys perform their standard functions. But on the menu open programs there are shortcuts to frequently used applications.

The shutter has up to 10 quick settings buttons that can be changed in the corresponding menu item, and also displays the date and time, as well as active notifications.

In the application menu, programs are located in the workspaces that appear on the right. A panel appears on the left that allows you to change the grouping and sorting of programs, find, remove or download new add-ons.

Pre-installed clients Evernote, Facebook, Hangouts messenger, McAfee antivirus, NeoReader for reading barcodes and QR codes, OfficeSuite 7, and a file manager.

Smart Connect helps connect digital devices to your smartphone and set up events.

Social Life combines various web channels and sites, as well as social networks for easy reading and tracking news.

Sony Select is an online marketplace with recommended apps and games.

Track ID helps to identify the artist and the title of the song being played.

Update Center simplifies the process of updating the system and pre-installed applications.

In addition, applications for taking notes, meetings, copying and restoring the system, as well as creating drawings and sketches are preinstalled.

Performance

The smartphone is equipped with the latest mobile technology. It is equipped with a Qualcomm MSM8974 Snapdragon 800 processor with four Krait cores at 2.2 GHz, an Adreno 330 GPU, 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal memory, which can be expanded using a microSD card with a maximum capacity of 64 GB.

In most synthetic tests, the gadget took first place in the ranking. And in everyday use, even half of the computing resources are not used, so the smartphone easily copes not only with high-quality video, but also with the latest resource-intensive games. And when surfing the web, pages are rendered almost instantly.

Camera

The main 8 megapixel camera is equipped with autofocus and digital stabilization, but did not receive a flash. You will have to use the screen as a flashlight. The maximum photo resolution is 3264 x 2448 pixels, and video is 1080p at 30 fps.

The camera interface is as simple as possible and is not burdened with unnecessary settings and buttons. The application starts almost instantly, so you have every chance to capture even the most unexpected moment of everyday life.

A large number of modes are available to the user: automatic, normal, burst shooting, graphic filters, scene modes and, of course, video shooting.

There are settings for white balance, exposure, sensitivity, as well as HDR-photo and image stabilizer.

Photos and videos are of high quality, natural colors and minimal noise levels.

Photo examples:

Video example:

Communications

The standard set of interfaces for this year's top smartphones includes Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC, GPS with A-GPS and GLONASS support, as well as Wi-Fi Direct and DLNA technologies. All of them are available in the Xperia Z Ultra, which means that there will definitely be no connection problems. In addition, there are versions of the smartphone with 4G support.

Kit wired interfaces also quite standard. On the right side face, behind a long flap, there are slots for Micro-SIM and microSD cards.

On the opposite side, a microUSB connector with MHL support is hidden at the top, and in the center there is a proprietary connector for connecting to a proprietary docking station.

Working hours

Despite the thin body, the smartphone has a non-removable lithium-ion battery with a capacity of 3050 mAh. It delivers unexpectedly long battery life, despite the voracious huge screen and powerful hardware. In order to completely discharge the smartphone, you need to talk on the phone for more than a day, watch a video for about 9 hours or browse the Internet.

In moderate use, which includes an hour of talk time, a couple of hours of web surfing and one full-length movie a day, the device will easily last two days.

Power saving modes can significantly increase the operating time. This is especially true of the STAMINA function, which turns off gluttonous Wi-Fi and mobile transmission data when the screen is off.

Impression

We have mixed feelings after use by Sony Xperia Z Ultra. A huge smartphone on the one hand, and a rather compact tablet with the ability to make calls on the other. In any case, the unique Full HD screen, the most powerful stuffing, nice interface and excellent sound quality are unlikely to leave anyone indifferent. Moreover, instead of two gadgets, you will need one. The main thing is not to be embarrassed when you answer the phone.

PECULIARITIES

6.44 inch screen

Thickness 6.5mm

Full HD resolution

8 MP camera

Protected body

sexy design

Qualcomm Snapdragon 800

High performance

Quality sound

User interface

SPECIFICATIONS

• Model Sony Xperia Z Ultra C6802
• Standard GSM 850/900/1800/1900, HSDPA 850/900/1900/2100
• Dimensions 17.9 x 9.2 x 0.65 cm
• The weight 212 g
• CPU Qualcomm MSM8974 Snapdragon 800 2.2GHz Quad Core
• GPU Adreno 330