Advantages Sony Xperia Z3v is a top-notch Android phone, waterproof for up to 30 minutes, can stream games from nearby PlayStation 4 through remote playback, and has expandable storage space.
The bad design is a return to the earlier Xperia models, not as smooth as the standard Xperia Z3.
The bottom line Sony’s Xperia Z3 variant is almost the same as the overall phone on Verizon, although the external design is slightly outdated.
Buying a mobile phone can sometimes be a maddening process: what makes one change different from another? Suppose you have been eager to use Sony’s latest Xperia Z3, which is a very good and stylish phone. It is available in the United States through T-Mobile. But if you are a Verizon customer, you can choose Xperia Z3v. Consider the “v” of “Variant” or “Verizon”, just know that this is very similar to Z3: the same processor, storage, RAM, PlayStation 4 game streaming capabilities, 5.2-inch 1080p screen, waterproof case, and almost the same Camera (a little bit).
The main difference lies in battery life and design. There is no way: Verizon’s Z3v is not as attractive as the standard Z3. In fact, it looks more like the early Xperia Z2.
This is a very good phone. Is this a great phone? Xperia Z3v has a lot of new competition in an environment where more and more impressive Android options are packed with cutting-edge specifications. But be aware that if you can tolerate a slightly outdated design, it is still one of the best smartphones in the fall: it is not as cutting-edge as it was a few months ago.
Sony’s Xperia Z3 has a stylish black overall design: large blocks of black glass, metal edges and transparent, cool, thin, and minimalist feel, which are hard to find anywhere else.
Xperia Z3v is not Z3. Very close-this phone also has black glass on both sides (Xperia Z3v also comes in white, which looks good too). It looks very clean. But the body design is the same as the Xperia Z2 earlier this year: slightly thicker and thicker, but the appearance is equally stylish.
Clear glass looks great, but it is a terrible fingerprint magnet: I hope to polish it often. Compared to the curved metal edge Z3, the black plastic bumper edge gives the Z3v a cheaper feel.
The Xperia Z3v feels good to hold, but it is a bit square and sharp in the hand. It lacks the curved and comfortable feel of other phones such as Motorola Moto X. But it is one of the flatter phones on the market. In this sense, it is a bit like the iPhone 6 (but thicker, wider, and more square).
The power button is located in the middle of the right edge, next to the volume rocker and the separate camera shutter button. The port doors for Micro-USB, microSD and SIM cards are hidden along the edges and must be kept closed to make the phone waterproof (or, we should say, highly waterproof: 1.5 meters immersion for 30 minutes).
It is really a submersible: I immerse my phone in a glass of water and use it to take pictures even when underwater. The separate shutter button is designed for this. Don’t use it in the ocean (it can only be soaked in fresh water), but this phone can withstand leaks, rain, and other damp and wild adventures calmly.
Xperia Z3v is equipped with a 5.2-inch IPS display with a full HD resolution of 1,920×1,080 pixels; it is like having a 1080p TV in your pocket. The brightness and color quality look great, although it is a small step behind the ultra-bright OLED display on Samsung’s high-end phones. However, to most people, it looks great-it is still one of the better displays I have seen.
Yes, there are more and more Quad HD monitors with higher resolutions, offering close to ridiculous pixel-per-inch ratios-but this also leads to battery consumption, and this screen size does not provide considerable resolution improvements.
There are narrow speaker grilles on both sides of the screen that can emit sound, making the audio look almost invisible. Movies and games sound good, but the maximum volume is not that high; you will want to plug in headphones.
Xperia Z3v uses the same 2.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor as Xperia Z3, which is slightly better than the Snapdragon 801 in Z2 at the beginning of this year. However, its 3GB memory is better than average. In our benchmark test, the Z3v is good and fast, but its mashup with other top phones has declined. This phone does not have a faster Snapdragon 805 processor, which can be found on phones such as Droid Turbo (also unique to Verizon) and Google Nexus 6. Even so, to be honest, this is enough speed for almost anyone’s needs. There is no app lag, and the phone feels very fast and responsive. But early next year, this phone seems to be behind the curve.
The Z3v comes with 32GB of onboard storage space, and can add another 128GB via the microSD card slot: expandable storage space is a welcome additional feature, but not always available on Android phones. The battery is not removable.
The camera on the Xperia Z3v is similar to the camera on the Xperia Z3: a 20.7 megapixel rear camera with a 27mm Sony G wide-angle lens and 4K video recording capabilities. This sounds absolutely amazing on paper, but in practice it is not so amazing. Nevertheless, it is still one of the best smartphone cameras on the market.
Sony’s camera application has a variety of modes, including fully automatic “Advanced Auto”, manual mode with a large number of exposure and color quality settings, and some fashionable novel augmented reality applications that can subtly add virtual dinosaurs or fish to you (Stupid but weird) interesting) and optional 4K video recording. In normal mode, the camera shoots at 1080p.
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