Sony xperia zl c6503 black. Sony Xperia ZL review: defenseless flagship. Information about the make, model, and alternative names of the particular device, if any

In January 2013, at CES 2013 in Las Vegas, the Japanese company Sony introduced two premium smartphones. More attention was paid to the Sony Xperia Z smartphone, enclosed in a thin, glass and waterproof case. Another model called Xperia ZL is very similar to the Xperia Z in terms of technical characteristics, but still different. The Zet El model cannot boast of dust and moisture protection, but it has the largest ratio of display area to front side area of all existing phones, i.e. it is the smallest phone with a 5-inch screen on earth (at the date of the announcement).

Smartphone overview

Specifications Sony Xperia ZL

Dimensions: 131.7 x 69.8 x 9.8 mm
Weight: 151g
Available colors: black, white
Networks: GSM 900/1800/1900, 3G, LTE
Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro Quad-Core (APQ8064) @ 1.5GHz
GPU: Adreno 320
RAM: 2 GB
Built-in memory: 16 GB
Memory card slot: microSD up to 32 GB
Operating system: Google Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean)
Display: 5" LCD, 1920x1080 pixels, multi-touch up to 10 touches
Rear camera: 13 MP with Exmor RS sensor
Front camera: 2 MP with Exmor R sensor
Battery capacity: 2370 mAh
Interfaces: IrDA, USB, Wi-Fi, NFC, Bluetooth, TV-out, MHL
Navigation: GPS (A-GPS) and GLONASS
Other: accelerometer, proximity sensor, ambient light sensor, gyroscope, magnetometer

Appearance

As the manufacturer itself notes, when creating the Xperia ZL smartphone, engineers tried to remove all unnecessary details in order to focus users' attention on a 5-inch display. Apparently, the engineers succeeded, because the phone stands out with its compact size compared to other 5-inch devices, while the device's display itself occupies a record 76 percent of the front panel. True, the thickness of the “ZL” model is almost 2 millimeters thicker than the “Z” model - 9.8 mm versus 7.9 mm. Although, what is a difference of less than 2 millimeters? The dimensions of the smartphone are as follows: 131.6 x 69.3 x 9.8. Weight 151 grams.

In 2013, the company decided to move on to a new design concept. Previously, it was the Iconic Identity concept (NXT series) - many remember those models by the transparent insert at the bottom of the case. Then there was a series of devices in the "arc" style with a slight curve in the form of an arch, which first appeared at Sony Ericsson in the "Xperia arc" model.

Now in smartphone Xperia Z El a new balanced design was implemented OmniBalance. The new concept makes the device symmetrical. The back panel is made of plastic, which has a corrugated surface. It is noteworthy that the corrugated surface is used only in the black phone. In the white version of the device, the back wall is made of soft-touch plastic. The frame around the perimeter of the device is made of wear-resistant glass-filled polyamide. In the hand, the device lies comfortably and does not slip.

On the right side of the device, in an ideal place, is the “proprietary” aluminum power button, which fits perfectly right under the thumb of the right hand; a little higher - the volume rocker, also made of aluminum. It's nice that the power button was not placed on top, since it would be very problematic to reach it while holding the phone in one hand. Below the power button is a mechanical button to start the camera. On the top edge is a 3.5 mm headphone jack; on the left side there was a place for a microUSB connector (with MHL), with which the smartphone is charged and communicates with the computer.

The device is available in two colors: black and white.

Screen

The basis of the front panel of the model "ZL" is a new display with a diagonal of 5 inches and Full HD resolution. The pixel density is 443 ppi, i.e. more than the famous Retina on the iPhone 4/4S/5. Note that each pixel of this device has 3 sub-pixels, unlike Samsung's PenTile pixels, where there are only 2 sub-pixels. The Xperium ZL pixel is an independent unit, and a pixel, for example, in the Samsung Galaxy S4, can only fully work together with neighboring pixels that complement each other (they are different).

The screen was produced using the company's own technology. Reality Display without an air gap, so that the touch panel is closer to the display.

Glass
Removed layer of air
touch layer
Display

The OptiContrast panel enhances image clarity in bright sunlight and reduces glare. Thanks to this panel, the borders of the screen, when the black phone is turned off, are practically invisible.

Another technology Mobile BRAVIA Engine 2, mainly relevant when viewing photos and videos. It enhances the contrast, makes the image on the screen brighter and clearer.

Whites are bright here, while blacks are deep and almost as rich as Super AMOLED displays. The color saturation changes slightly as the viewing angle changes. But even such a small defect does not spoil the overall positive impression of the display.

Camera

Main Sony Xperia ZL camera has a resolution of 13 megapixels. The smartphone has the world's first sensor for mobile devices Exmor RS which supports shooting HDR video, thanks to which you get excellent pictures and videos in difficult conditions, when there are both very bright areas in the frame and, on the contrary, too dark areas. HDR allows you to expand the dynamic range, and you will not lose details when shooting, either in the shade or in the sun.

There are many different modes in the camera settings, among which it is worth noting Superior Auto mode. It automatically recognizes shooting conditions, lighting conditions, etc. If necessary, HDR mode and noise reduction can be automatically turned on.

But that's not all ... The camera was equipped with all sorts of other chips. There is shooting of panoramic photos (technology Sweep Panorama), the ability to shoot photo in video mode, as well as a burst mode that allows you to take as many pictures as you want at a speed of 10 frames per second (the pictures taken in this mode have a resolution of 9 megapixels).

The camera in this device is one of the main advantages over its competitors. The pictures are decent, there is almost no noise. It cannot be said that the camera of the ZL is the best on the phone market (after all, it falls short of the Nokia 808 PureView), but it is undoubtedly one of the best.

In the lower right corner on the front panel, which is somewhat unusual, is the front camera with a resolution of 2 megapixels with an Exmor R sensor. Basically, the front cameras are installed at the top, although this “bottom” arrangement has been encountered before. The front camera, as well as the rear camera, can record Full HD video and take pictures in HDR.

Filling

Xperia ZL / Z are the first smartphones of the company that are built on the platform of a top-end, but already inferior chipset - a quad-core processor Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro (APQ8064) clocked at 1.5 GHz. This processor works asynchronously, i.e. its cores start and stop depending on the degree of load, which can significantly save battery power. The same processor has another important function - it has a built-in LTE / 4G modem that supports the frequencies of Russian operators.

Helps the processor to process 3D graphics Adreno 320 GPU.

The device has a module with 2 GB of RAM. Built-in flash memory fixed amount - 16 GB. Fortunately, the smartphone provides support for microSD memory cards (officially up to 32 GB, but the device perfectly recognizes 64 GB flash drives).

How long can modern smartphones remain relevant? Usually, it depends on the manufacturer, who continues to support the smartphone, releasing new firmware and supporting it to the latest.

Very much relevance depends on the component base of the phone. Flagship devices get the very best components, which are often ahead of their time when budget smartphones are content with outdated technology.

As long as possible, you can use the flagship devices of well-known manufacturers (A-brands), which have the latest spare parts and receive software updates for several years. Just about one such device I wanted to tell you.

Specifications Sony Xperia ZL C6503/C6502:

Display - TFT matrix, 5 inches, resolution 1980 × 1080 pixels, density 441 ppi, screen-to-face ratio 76%
Chipset - Qualcomm APQ8064 (S4 Pro) 4 cores, frequency 1.5 GHz. Video accelerator Adreno 320, frequency 533 MHz
Memory - 2 GB RAM, 16 GB ROM, microSD card slot up to 32 GB
Main camera - 13 MP, Exmor R
Front camera - 2.1 MP
Battery - 2370 mAh, STAMINA support
Dimensions - 131.6 x 69.3 x 9.8 mm with a weight of 151 grams
Interfaces - micro-USB, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, NFC
OS - Android 4.1 with an update to Android 5.1 and a proprietary shell Xperia Home
Colors - white, black and red

Experience using Sony Xperia ZL for 3 years

It so happened that more than three years ago I became the proud owner of a Sony Xperia ZL smartphone, which I continue to use to this day. By the way, I consider it one of the most successful Xperia devices in recent years.

This model was announced in January 2013 at the CES 2013 electronics show along with the first smartphone under the letter Z.

Then, Sony decided to rethink its lineup with the introduction of the OmniBalance design concept, some of the ideas of which are still used today (for example, the round power button in budget smartphones).

The flagship was the Sony Xperia Z, which had water protection, powerful hardware and an attractive design. Prior to this, a rugged smartphone was considered to be a simple device in a massive body, and Sony showed that this may not be the case.

His younger brother was the Xperia ZL - the same "Zetka", but without moisture protection and in a different case. At the same time, ZL had at that time the maximum indicator of occupying the screen of the front panel - 76% of the screen / front panel ratio! This made it the smallest smartphone with a 5-inch screen.

3 years in one hand

I'll start with why there was no desire to change it to newer Sony Xreria models. The fact is that Sony has been supporting this smartphone with new firmware for a very long time. The initial release was Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. Subsequently, the phone received Android 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 5.0 and the latest official version was Android 5.1 Lollipop.

This allowed us to use the latest applications today. Also, with each firmware, the number of system bugs decreased, and the speed of work grew.

wear resistance

The case of the smartphone turned out to be very strong. He survived many falls on the floor (linoleum, tile, asphalt), was exposed to moisture and dust, low and high temperatures. In my white version of the Xperia ZL, after 2 years, paint began to peel off on various elements. Otherwise, everything is very good: there is no backlash, no staggering, the camera window and the screen are not overwritten, it is still not a shame to take it in hand. I want to note that my friend, the black version of this smartphone, does not have such problems with paint.

Camera

Xperia ZL is equipped with two cameras: front 2.1 MP and rear 13 MP Exmor R. As for the front camera, its capabilities were enough for a long time. When the phone first came out, "selfies" were not yet so popular, so something better in 2013 was rare. Of course, now even budget devices have 5 megapixel modules, so in this regard the device looks outdated.

However, the quality is enough for video calls through any services. The location of the camera in the lower right corner of the smartphone was not very convenient, which did not allow you to talk while holding the phone vertically.

The rear camera on the Xperia ZL has proven itself over the years. The quality is acceptable even now. In good weather, decent shots are obtained, the video shoots also well. However, due to the lack of performance, I had to abandon AR modes, as they work very slowly and heat up the phone a lot.

I bring to your attention a selection of some, in my opinion, successful shots taken over the years:

Screen

The strength of the Xperia ZL at the time of its launch was the screen. The FHD matrix provides a pixel density of 441 ppi, which gives maximum clarity even now. The screen is made using TFT TN technology, so the picture is inferior to any modern IPS and AMOLED matrices, it has poor viewing angles, which is one of the main disadvantages of the device. The main advantage I consider high brightness and readability in direct sunlight.

Performance and battery life

The platform used is Qualcomm APQ8064, 1500 MHz, also known as S4 Pro, Adreno 320 video accelerator and 2 GB of RAM. At the time of release, it was one of the most powerful platforms. The smartphone just flew on it, and any toys went without problems.

Now the performance of the device is not enough and only thanks to the optimized firmware the device can be used, although many applications, such as 2Gis, take a very long time to load.

What is there to be surprised, because even the budget smartphone Xperia XA of 2016 on the Mediatek P10 platform is more productive. The heating of the device is noticeable, which, with prolonged use of the phone, begins to literally burn hands.

From left to right: Antutu, Geekbench and 3dmark.

Battery life was not the strongest point of the device. A 2370 mAh battery, coupled with a voracious platform and a TFT screen, is clearly not enough for long-term work.

However, the STAMINA mode helped a lot, which saved precious percentages of the charge. I want to note that after three years of use, with about one charge per day, the device still does not require a battery replacement. The capacity, of course, has fallen, but the percentages do not “jump”, although there is a noticeable reduction in battery life.

Soft

The latest firmware version runs on Android 5.1 Lollipop, which can already be considered obsolete. In this case, you can bring the phone to a modern look through various programs.

For example, I became a member of the Xperia Home Beta program, which allowed me to get a new version of the shell. Application icons from the Xperia X line can be obtained by installing the appropriate themes from the store. Also, I really liked the new official Sony themes in the spirit of the PlayStation.

The speed of the system is decent, everything works pretty quickly.

Communication and sound

There were no complaints about the quality of communication. The sound of the speaker is loud, but it became such only on the latest firmware versions. Before that, it was much quieter, which was pretty annoying. The vibration is strong, but very strange in sound, rattling. The sound in the headphones is decent for its time.

Xperia ZL had two versions with a difference in 4G support, there is no dual SIM version. I got the C6502 model, which differed from the base one by the lack of 4G. For a long time, this did not create problems, since 4G coverage in 2013 was worse than it is now.

Very unusual compartment for SIM and MicroSD cards. There is also an insert with information and a forced reboot button.

*******

As a result, I can say that the Xperia ZL faithfully served its intended term and continues to function properly.

What advantages can I put on this gadget after such a long use?

Pros:

Stylish design

Powerful platform for its time

Long-term software support for the device from Sony

Good cameras

Excellent screen behavior in the sun and its high resolution

Small size for 5″ screen

Minuses:

- Small screen viewing angles

– Phone case in white version is prone to peeling paint

- Inconvenient location of the front camera

Xperia ZL is a worthy representative of Sony's smartphone lineup, created in an era when the company showed very interesting, competitive and desirable devices. Sony Mobile tried to support this device as much as possible, which inspires respect and a desire to continue using the products of the Japanese company.

There is only a logical question: what can be taken as a replacement? For a long time, Sony produced beautiful, but inferior phones in key parameters, which pretty much crippled the mobile business.

The Z1, Z2, Z3 and Z3 + (Z4) lines are no longer relevant, since they do not have a fingerprint scanner, the front cameras are weak, some of the models have problems with marriage and overheating, and so on.

The Xperia Z5 series costs almost the same as the Xperia X and XZ, but the shell is outdated, the scanner is not the most sensitive and the cameras are worse. To make things worse, the industry shifted to a USB-C connector, which I find more convenient and modern, which immediately made a lot of good smartphones with old micro-USB obsolete.

The situation changed in the spring of 2017, when the stunning and balanced Xperia XZs was presented at MWC. Finally, smartphones have appeared that are more modern than the old ZL in every way, and this difference is already felt very strongly.

New items do not have, at first glance, weaknesses and are filled with the spirit of Sony Style to the eyeballs. If their prices are competitive, then good sales are guaranteed.

If you still use old Xperia devices, then tell us about them in the comments. What do you want to change them to and why?

pros

excellent sound, excellent screen, high performance, no lags, fits well in the hand!

Minuses

The battery is not removable, there is no possibility to replace it with a more powerful one. The charge with average use in STAMINA mode holds 1.5 days - not enough. With full load on the phone - Internet, movies, games - 1 day. Charges for a long time.

Impression

there was a choice between XPERIA Z and XPERIA ZL. Since I am not an active person and the water resistance of the phone is not important to me, I settled on the ZL model. The quality of the assembly is excellent, there are no backlashes, there is no creaking, we were pleased with the dimensions of the phone. It is smaller than Z and the screen covers almost the entire surface of the phone. Excellent lies in the hands. The back cover is corrugated, does not slip. does not collect fingerprints. I just turned on the phone and immediately received a message about an update from lags (if anyone remembers the XPERIA Z was dead from lags), Sony fixed this problem almost immediately. The screen is great! In the sun, everything is very readable. The quality of video playback and photo viewing is just super! There is a white banas. I mean that the stock video player does not read avi, but I downloaded the MX player and forgot about this problem. The sound quality is Sony. The stock Walkman has so many settings that there is no need to download something extra. Camera - no complaints at all. Auto mode is enough for the eyes. Offal - on the level! Not much in terms of performance, but XPERIA Z beats. There are no lags.

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pros

Price / (functional quality), Beauty (especially white) and body quality,

Minuses

Speaker sound, little screen

Impression

Yuzayu 10 days flight is normal. A very nice model (I admit that her appearance influenced the choice not least) hid it in an expensive leather case and shed tears ... THIS IS UNFAIR. Taking into account the price drop (it happened in Ukraine), when the Z1 was released, the model became even more interesting in terms of price-quality ratio. For one-handed use, the dimensions are marginal but still comfortable. The brightness of the screen is quite enough (everything is better than an amole in the sun), there is a problem with a color change when viewed from an angle, but ... why should I look at it from an angle ONCE) and everything is still readable TWO) although it’s not clear why they didn’t make it perfectly shorter minus completely little minus. Stunningly pleasant to the touch plastic on the back (envy and cry Samsung galaxy s4). The camera... I don’t shoot weddings for him, perhaps I can find better ones, although again, not much shorter - at the level. Autonomy is not bad for an android, I live for 2 days, and the life time primarily depends not on calls, but on the time of the screen and the loading of the processor (here I opened my eyes to everyone, because no one expected;))), but with By properly setting the bucket (turning off unnecessary functions, competently silencing games, etc.), this indicator can be slightly raised. Comparing it with Z, which I turned in my hands before the final choice in favor of Zl, I’ll say that, as for me, it’s more pleasant in my hand and a little smaller in size, there are no plugs and the sound is louder (I don’t call underwater), there is an IR port for f- remote control, all this, given the same hardware platform and lower price, influenced my choice. Now I’ll scold a little for a change, here the sound of the speaker is not very ... no, it’s loud (again, not very, but enough), but after the Nokia n95, which Sonya hasn’t sounded to me faithfully for many years. SCHOOL!!! the phone is not for musical change, mind you!!!

Choose this phone for looks and price and you will be satisfied. If you want advanced functionality and performance, look at the Galaxy C4, XTC one, or Sonya, but Z1

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Package Contents: Telephone, EP880 USB LAN charger, MH-EX300AP wired stereo headset, 3 pairs of ear tips of different sizes, EC801 USB cable, warranty card, manual, packaging

Product description

Sony Xperia ZL

The cameras of our smartphones are created using the same technologies and on the basis of...

The device works with Micro-SIM cards of all GSM operators.

Sony Xperia ZL- all the best from Sony in the new smartphone. Introducing a high-tech smartphone with Full HD support.

Incredibly clear and very bright display provides a full sense of presence. Developer experience...

The device works with Micro-SIM cards of all GSM operators.

Sony Xperia ZL- all the best from Sony in the new smartphone. Introducing a high-tech smartphone with Full HD support.

Incredibly clear and very bright display provides a full sense of presence. The experience of BRAVIA TV designers is now being used in the creation of mobile device screens. Get in the middle of the action with Full HD (1080 x 1920) Reality Display. High pixel density and superb brightness for incredibly crisp and legible images, even in sunlight. Mobile BRAVIA Engine 2 automatically optimizes images for crisper, brighter images. It also offers the best in contrast and color management.

Amazing photo and video quality in any light. Our smartphone cameras are built with the same technologies and components as the best Sony cameras, so you can capture incredibly clear photos and videos anytime, anywhere. With a fast response 13-megapixel camera and Sony's latest generation Exmor RS mobile sensor, the Xperia ZL Android mobile phone captures stunningly clear photos anytime, anywhere. Are you an expert in settings? Superior Auto mode automatically turns on HDR and noise reduction when needed.

One touch to access the world of entertainment. Discover an easy and fast way to transfer music and photos from your smartphone wirelessly. One-touch screen mirroring with NFC technology allows you to easily view all the content of your phone on your TV screen. Just touch your phone to the BRAVIA remote control and your photos or music playlists will appear on the TV screen. No wires, no buttons - no complications.

Sound for entertainment. Your Xperia ZL comes with a high quality stereo mini headset. The MH-EX300AP mini headset from Sony features superb sound quality, allowing you to enjoy sound that is close to the original. Enjoy music, games and movies to the fullest. A comfortable mini headset with in-ear headphones lets you enjoy high-quality sound during your entertainment. And if you get a call or send a message, you will immediately know about it.

Xperia ZL can now become a new impetus for the Japanese corporation. The gadget is very similar to the Xperia Z: it has the same design and finish, but does not have IP57 certification.

Main disadvantages:

non-removable battery;
weak camera;
slightly thicker than Xperia Z;
questionable back panel build quality and aesthetics.

The difference between the Xperia Z and Xperia ZL essentially comes down to different sizes, finishes and security. The plastic case here doesn't look as good as glass, but it has its advantages. Waterproof is of course a big plus, but not everyone needs it.

Sony Xperia ZL comes in a box identical to the Xperia Z smartphone. Note that the kit includes an A/C adapter, a microUSB cable and a headset with an extra pair of headphones.

The gadget is a 5-inch smartphone with the smallest footprint. Its dimensions are 131.6x69.3x9.8 mm. The closest competitors are 139mm tall for the Xperia Z, 136.6mm for the Galaxy S4 and 137.4mm for the One.

However, the Xperia ZL is the thickest of all the listed smartphones at 9.8mm. But these features do not cause inconvenience. The device is comfortable to use.

One of the significant disadvantages is the low class of finishes, the lack of elegant design. But this, of course, is not a cause for concern, since the plastic looks very good.

The smartphone is one of the most compact gadgets with a 5-inch Full HD screen. Compared to the Xperia Z, the new phone has significantly reduced the top and bottom bezels on the front side. Perhaps this is the reason for the location of the front camera in the lower right corner. This, of course, is unusual, but such a solution has already been encountered earlier in N9. The bezels around the display have also been reduced to a minimum.

Hardware buttons are placed on the screen.

Above the screen you can see the speaker and the company logo. Sony smartphones usually ship from the factory with a scratch-resistant glass screen protector, and the Xperia ZL is no exception.

The back panel is made of plastic, the patterned texture of which makes it easier to use the phone, as it is securely held in the hand. But at the same time, we note. It looks very sticky. On the back side is a 13-megapixel camera lens, which protrudes slightly above the surface. Next to it is a speaker grille and an LED flash.

A noise-reducing microphone with the Xperia logo was placed above the lens.

The panel looks like it's removable, but it's not. In order to access the microSIM card slots and , you need to open the shutter at the very bottom of the smartphone. This is not only physically inconvenient, but aesthetically it does not look very good.

The build quality of the device is good.

There is a microUSB port on the left side of the phone, which doesn't have a plug unlike the Xperia Z.

On the right, you'll find a paired volume rocker at the top, a power/lock button, and a two-stage camera button.

It's always handy to have a separate camera shutter button on your smartphone.

The top of the Sony Xperia ZL only has a 3.5mm headphone jack.

In the lower left corner there is a special eyelet for the lace.

In general, Sony Xperia ZL is quite comfortable to use: the controls are conveniently located and have a very good response.

Performance and software

The smartphone uses Snapdragon APQ8064 S4 Pro chipset with 4 Krait cores clocked at 1.5GHz, Adreno 320 graphics accelerator and 2GB of RAM. As we expected, the gadget scores the same benchmarks as the Xperia Z.

Even despite the more powerful chipsets (such as the Snapdragon 600) on which the Galaxy S4 and Optimus G Pro smartphones are based, our phone still has enough performance to handle even the heaviest applications without problems.

The Sony Xperia ZL came in fourth in the Benchmark Pi, Linpack and AnTutu tests, and came in fifth in the Quadrant.

Interestingly, in GeekBench 2, our smartphone scored less than the Xperia Z.

When testing the gadget in GLBenchmark with a fixed resolution, the Xperia ZL did not disappoint, being in the same place with the Xperia Z.

In an important Epic Citadel test, the gadget showed excellent results, comparable to other flagship devices.

The browser on the Sony Xperia ZL is Google Chrome, which is much faster after the latest update, clocking in at 1290ms in the Sun Spider test, outperforming the Xperia Z, Optimus G and Nexus 4.

In BrowserMark 2 and Vellamo, the smartphone took 4th place.

As a result, Sony Xperia ZL showed good performance.

The gadget runs on the operating system Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean.

Built-in memory - 16 GB. There is support for Wi-Fi, GPS / A-GPS / GLONASS, FM radio, Bluetooth 4.0, 3G and LTE networks.

Screen

Surprisingly, we found that the Sony Xperia ZL has a better screen than the Xperia Z. Given that they are both identical in terms of specifications (5-inch display with a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels and a density of 441 ppi), they are manufactured by the same manufacturer, but we assumed that this was due to a single deviation, and not the fact that Sony developed a separate screen for the Xperia ZL.

The TFT display is based on Mobile BRAVIA Engine 2 technology, which increases contrast and sharpness, reduces noise, and saturates colors to make them more pleasing to the eye.

The contrast is really good. However, the screen in this indicator is inferior to HTC One, LG Optimus G Pro, HTC Butterfly, not to mention the Super on the Samsung Galaxy S4.

The gadget has not very large viewing angles.

Sunlight readability is good.

Camera

Sony Xperia ZL is equipped with a 13-megapixel camera that can take pictures with a resolution of 4128x3096 pixels. However, if you use the default enhanced auto mode, you will only get a resolution of 3920x2940 pixels (i.e. a 12-megapixel image).

The difference between the enhanced auto mode and the normal one is that the gadget itself tries to determine what kind of scene it is shooting and will set all the image parameters accordingly. This includes saturation, contrast, metering mode. In normal mode, only the exposure is automatically set, and you can experiment with other settings.

The improved auto mode tells you how the gadget will set up the camera and you can easily intervene if you think that the picture will not be very high quality. But our experience shows that almost all the time the settings were good. So if you're not a photography enthusiast, it's best to stick with the improved auto mode.

The Xperia ZL smartphone offers all kinds of features, including face recognition, Smile Shutter, geo-tagging, touch capture and mode.

The improved auto mode produces photos with pleasing, if slightly oversaturated, colors. Fine details are visible well, noise levels are average, and dynamic range and contrast are excellent.

Overall, the results are good, although we wouldn't say there's a noticeable advantage over good 8MP cameras.

If you switch to normal mode, you'll get images that look more natural, not oversaturated. This will give you more headroom if you plan to process the photos later.

We also took panoramic pictures. It turned out to be a very good panorama.

The Sony Xperia ZL is capable of shooting Full HD video at 30 frames per second. The gadget also offers HDR for shooting video.

We were disappointed that the Xperia ZL can capture photos while recording video, but only at 1MP resolution. This, however, is not very significant.

You can see very good detail in the video. The bitrate fluctuates around 17 Mbps.

Below is an example entry.

The benefit of HDR shooting isn't always as clear as we'd hoped, but it still adds some detail in the highlights.

An example of shooting with HDR.

Battery

The smartphone comes with a 2370 mAh non-removable battery, which is 40 mAh more than the Xperia Z. It is a bit surprising that according to official information, the battery is only rated for 13 hours of talk time over 3G networks and up to 500 hours of standby time. (versus 14 hours and 530 hours for the Xperia Z, respectively). It is possible that different displays can explain the situation. But our dedicated battery test also found the Xperia ZL to be less durable.

So, Sony Xperia ZL showed a result of 44 hours of battery life (while the gadget is used 2 hours for calls, an hour for watching videos and an hour for web surfing per day), which is 4 hours shorter than the Xperia Z. But it's still decent result.

With separate testing, the following data was obtained: the battery lasts for 15 hours 22 minutes of calls via 3G networks, for 6 hours 4 minutes of web surfing and for 5 hours 28 minutes of video viewing.

You also need to consider that the smartphone has a special endurance mode developed by the company that allows you to get much better battery life.

Price

The cost of Sony Xperia ZL in the Russian market is 27,490 rubles.

Sony Xperia ZL video review: