Decent screen, fast processor, solid build
Have to wait for 4.2 Jelly Bean, no HDMI port, camera could be better
It's not the top of the Xperia tree, but the Sony Xperia XP makes a good impression as a more than capable midrange Android with some nifty features.
As the name suggests, Sony has more or less combined the best bits of the Xperia S and the Xperia P to produce the SP (see what they did there?). The SP comes in below the Xperia Z in Sony's current canon, with reduced specs in almost every area, though it makes a pretty good impression with what it has.
There's no set price for the Xperia SP yet, but estimates are suggesting it will be around the £330 mark.
Design
It certainly looks more like those other midrange phones than the glass symphony of the high-end Z. Its 4.6-inch screen looks considerably smaller than the Z's 5-inch's, and it's also a bit less sharp with a resolution of 1,280x720 pixels rather than the bigger phone's full HD 1,920x1,080 pixels. That amounts to a ppi of 319 -- well short of the Z's 440ppi but more or less the same as the highly regarded Samsung Galaxy S3.
At this level though, the devil's in the detail and while text on web pages may not be quite as sharp at full zoom, and contrast levels may not be quite as distinct, in general use it still looks very good indeed. Movies look smooth and sharp too, thanks in part to Sony's Mobile Bravia 2 engine, but there's no HDMI port to stream movies or pics direct to your TV though.
It has the Z's large circular power button sticking out at the side but unlike its big brother the SP has added a dedicated camera shutter button and the rear casing is textured plastic rather than glass. That might mark it as a bit cheaper, but it feels perfectly fine, if ever so slightly on the chunky side at 10mm thick. The brushed aluminium frame around the edges lends it a touch of class and Sony's see-through plastic bar at the bottom lights up depending on what you're doing -- charging, message alerts and different colours to mirror what's on screen when you're playing music or viewing your photo gallery.
There's no sign of the water resistance we've been seeing on some recent Xperias and which looked like it might become a standard feature. That makes it no different from other smartphones in this category and less likely to distinguish itself.
Features and performance
The SP does without the Z's quad-core processor with 2GB RAM in favour of a dual-core chip with 1GB RAM. However, it claws something back with a higher clock rate -- 1.7GHz instead of 1.5GHz. It makes good use of it too, and nips along very nicely when it's switching between apps, playing HD games or opening web pages. It delivered an AnTuTu performance benchmark score of 16,223, which certainly puts it within spitting distance of the 18,440 we measured on the Z.
Perhaps surprisingly, the operating system on board is the 4.1 version of Android Jelly Bean, rather than the very latest 4.2. They look similar, with much the same features, but you don't get the lockscreen widgets which allow you to go straight to an app of your choice and you miss out on a few extra features on the camera app as well as some minor improvements to security and functionality. But you do get the function shortcuts on the pull-down menu -- Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, sound etc, which comes in handy. The keyboard permits swipe typing so you can complete words without taking your finger off the screen -- very handy once you get used to it. Sony says we can expect an upgrade, but hasn't said exactly when.
As usual, Sony's skimmed the OS with its own interface tweaks so you get some distinctive icons (distinctive, but not necessarily better than standard Android). There's some borderline bloatware too with features like Sony's Unlimited Music and Video services that allow you to stream media for a monthly subscription fee.
They're okay, with a good range of material, but neither stands head and shoulders above competitors like Spotify or Netflix.
Camera
The 8-megapixel camera with LED flash is a step down from the Xperia Z's 13-megapixel number, but it still manages to pack in a few of Sony's imaging tricks to lift it above the average, such as the Exmor RS sensor, which helps you achieve better results in less than ideal light conditions.
Still, class shows, and the more expensive phone certainly delivered pictures that are sharper and more detailed than the SP's. Colour balance is a little more washed out than we'd like, as is the amount of noise that tends to creep in. The VGA camera on the front gets the video calling job done, but with the minimum ability it can get away with.
There's 8GB of memory on board and you can add a further 32GB via microSD card.
The 2,370mAh is a little bigger than we might have expected and copes reasonably well with the demands placed on it -- we comfortably got more than a full day's use out of it.
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Conclusion
The Sony Xperia SP is really a very fine mid- to high-end Android smartphone. Well built, with a good range of features, it's a little down the affordability ladder from true high-enders like the Xperia Z but in most cases the compromises are understandable in view of the price.
You pays your money and you takes your choice -- so long as you don't need the cutting edge of mobile technology, this is a solidly crafted smartphone that delivers where it needs to and as the more affordable handset, it should have no problem becoming the more popular of the two.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
