Accelerometer(or G-sensor) - sensor of the device’s position in space. As a main function, the accelerometer is used to automatically change the orientation of the image on the display (vertical or horizontal). Also, the G-sensor is used as a pedometer; it can control various functions of the device by turning or shaking.
Gyroscope- a sensor that measures rotation angles relative to a fixed coordinate system. Capable of measuring rotation angles in several planes simultaneously. A gyroscope together with an accelerometer allows you to accurately determine the position of the device in space. Devices that use only accelerometers have lower measurement accuracy, especially when moving quickly. Also, the capabilities of the gyroscope can be used in modern games for mobile devices.
Light sensor- a sensor that sets the optimal brightness and contrast values ​​for this level illumination The presence of a sensor allows you to increase the battery life of the device.
Proximity sensor- a sensor that detects when the device is close to your face during a call, turns off the backlight and locks the screen, preventing accidental clicks. The presence of a sensor allows you to increase the battery life of the device.
Geomagnetic sensor- a sensor for determining the direction of the world in which the device is directed. Tracks the orientation of the device in space relative to the magnetic poles of the Earth. The information received from the sensor is used in mapping programs for terrain orientation.
Atmospheric pressure sensor- sensor for precise measurement of atmospheric pressure. Is a part GPS systems, allows you to determine altitude above sea level and speed up location determination.
Touch ID- fingerprint identification sensor.

Accelerometer / Geomagnetic / Gyroscope / Light / Proximity

Satellite navigation:

GPS(Global Positioning System) is a satellite navigation system that provides measurements of distance, time, speed and determines the location of objects anywhere on Earth. The system is developed, implemented and operated by the US Department of Defense. The basic principle of using the system is to determine location by measuring distances to an object from points with known coordinates - satellites. The distance is calculated by the delay time of signal propagation from sending it by the satellite to receiving it by the antenna of the GPS receiver.
GLONASS(Global Navigation Satellite System) - Soviet and Russian satellite navigation system, developed by order of the USSR Ministry of Defense. The measurement principle is similar to the American system GPS navigation. GLONASS is designed for operational navigation and timing support for land, sea, air and space-based users. The main difference from the GPS system is that GLONASS satellites in their orbital motion do not have resonance (synchrony) with the rotation of the Earth, which provides them with greater stability.

An inexpensive smartphone from Sony (22,990 rubles for the Dual version) with an interesting design, LTE, two separate slots for SIM cards, a slot for a memory card - good gadget for their money…

Characteristics

• Case materials: plastic, metal, glass
• operating system: Android 6.0
• Network: GSM/EDGE, WCDMA, LTE (nanoSIM)
• Screen: IPS LCD, 5”, capacitive, HD, automatic adjustment backlight level
• Processor: MediaTek Helio P10 8-core 64-bit processor
• Graphics system: Mali t860
• RAM: 2 GB
• Data storage memory: 16 GB, microSD memory card slot
• Main camera: 1/3-inch 13-megapixel Sony Exmor RS sensor, LED flash, fullHD video,
• Front camera: 8 MP
• Interfaces: 3.5 mm for headset, NFC
• Navigation: GPS/GLONASS (A-GPS support)
• Additionally: FM radio, fast charging(Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0)
• Features: LTE supported, FM radio, two SIM card slots and one separate microSD slot
• Battery: 2300 mAh, supports fast charging
• Dimensions: 143.6 x 66.8 x 7.9 mm

Contents of delivery

• Smartphone
• USB cable
• Charger

Design, construction

Appearance devices are simply a delight, and that’s why Sony Xperia The XA is sure to gain some popularity this summer, being relatively small and inexpensive smartphone appeared just in time, in the summer, when many people want something compact for their shorts pockets. Girls will also like the gadget, the colors “golden lime” and “rose gold” are very popular now, and thanks must be given to Apple - pink, new black and new gray for gadgets, it is simply impossible not to release a device in this color now. At our first glance, it was just such a device.

It also reminded me of a smartphone Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray, there is something in common in the size and shape of the case.

Although in terms of price it is, of course, not at all Ray, the Sony Xperia XA is already inexpensive at launch and fills a very important niche now, a sort of “budget plus segment” - basic characteristics, but good design. Therefore, communicating with a smartphone is like walking through a minefield, looking for where the savings are, and finding them.

Well, here, take the materials. Back cover made of plastic, fingers do not slip, but scratches are clearly visible, I accidentally put it in my pocket with the keys, and hello, several at once below. The inserts on the ends are made of metal, under the flap there are full-fledged two slots for nanoSIM and one slot for microSD - there is no need to cut anything off or go to any tricks, it’s nice. The familiar cool button on the right, but there is no fingerprint sensor, the volume rocker could have been made longer - but there is a camera button.

The speaker at the bottom is loud in a quiet room, but somewhere on the street you can miss a call, the microUSB connector has no plugs, and on the back there is an NFC area, flash and camera. There is no protection from water, nor from dust, so be careful on the beaches. The 3.5 mm jack is on the top end, so take care of the device in the rain, drops can easily get inside during a call.

Device dimensions - 143.6 x 66.8 x 7.9 mm. So why is design good? As you know, this is always a very subjective question, some people like it, some don't, but I can try to explain why people like XA. Firstly, there is a screen without frames and glass with rounded ends, for many this is already a kind of marker - something new and interesting. Secondly, the smartphone has a minimum of decorations and Sony applications - but the wallpapers and icons are well chosen. Thirdly, it seems like a budget device, but here you have Xperia Care, and Sony Xperia Store, and Xperia Lounge - a person feels care and a certain exclusivity from the first minutes. It's funny to you, but are there such services in other smartphones in this price category? Then, here you can really get a discount on a speaker or accessories; the Lounge is worth a look. I also tried the service for transferring data from Xperia to Xperia, it doesn’t work very well with applications, not all of them were installed, but dragging photos, videos and contacts helps.

Another thing I noticed is that the Sony Xperia XA is completely flat! There is no camera protruding, no buttons protruding (only on the side), and therefore it is convenient to use, convenient to put in and take out of your pocket, comfortable to hold in your hand during a conversation - your finger clings to the rough back part and does not slip. It also seems like a trifle, but you know, it’s the little things that make up the impression of a thing.

The Sony Xperia XA has a wonderful design, there are no questions at all, and this is a big plus of the device among other gadgets in this price category.

Display

As soon as I removed the film, I noticed that the glass did not have an oleophobic coating, my finger stumbled, it is most convenient to perform some operations by pressing a fingernail or even a stylus to the screen. Please note that films or glasses for XA are still crooked, that is, they cover the front part and leave the ends open, it looks terrible, it is better not to buy anything than to buy something like this. And keep in mind one more thing: the lack of an oleophobic coating affects not only when simply moving through the menu, but also when entering from keyboards that support swipe, you cannot quickly move your finger. The difference with any smartphone that has a coating is obvious - even if it’s a well-worn iPhone 6S Plus, where it’s almost worn off and fingerprints appear instantly. Fingerprints on the Sony Xperia XA are also clearly visible on both the front and back, so a device in white, gold or pink will look best and neatest.

The diagonal of the IPS display is 5 inches, the resolution is 1280 x 720 pixels, the rounded ends have a positive effect on the impression - the light indicator on top seems to float in the air, the display seems to have no frames, formally they still exist, albeit almost invisible. I believe that many will rush to buy the Sony Xperia XA, having licked their lips at the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge, of course, there more features, completely different characteristics, but the glass is also rounded! “So it’s almost the same!” - I’m quoting here the consumer thoughts I overheard in the store. It’s both funny and sad, and the price encourages you to buy. Of course, it’s not the same at all - I would advise you to try working with the screen on samples in showrooms before purchasing.

So, the screen characteristics are not the best, but the display size is small, so during normal use the HD resolution is not noticeable. Although, if you look closely at the clock, the icons... In general, it’s better not to look at anything and just use the device. Although when viewed from the side the screen fades.

I don’t know if this is Sony’s design work or a common thing for Android, but the calendar has very funny pictures for each month, it’s cool and intelligently drawn. The music player has its own design, its own wallpaper, themes, several applications, but, like the Z5 series, it has taken a course towards reducing third-party software - there are few utilities, pure android, a minimum of “improvers”, many people like it.

I believe that oleophobic coating in 2016 is necessary for a device at any price point.

Modifications and performance

Let me remind you that the two main modifications, XA (F3111) and XA Dual (F3112), use nanoSIM; in the version with two SIM cards, you can use two cards and a microSD memory card without dancing with a tambourine, separate slots. I personally like the Dual version better, and the price difference is small.

operating room Android system 6.0, MediaTek processor Helio P10, Mali t860, 2 GB is responsible for graphics random access memory, 16 GB of internal memory - it’s better to immediately count on microSD card. Sony doesn't forget to include a radio, which some people really like. The default music formats supported are MP3, 3GPP, MP4, SMF, WAV, OTA, Ogg Vorbis, FLAC, ASF. Profile Bluetooth 4.1, Wi-Fi MIMO, NFC,

LTE is supported, with MegaFon everything worked as expected.

Working hours

Battery capacity - 2300 mAh, among the features it is stated to work for two days, Sony Xperia XA has friends STAMINA modes and Ultra STAMINA, the first disables only some features (GPS, vibration, regular synchronization is disabled, etc.), the second simply disables the network connection in all ways, telephone, SMS and a number of the most necessary programs, although I would argue with some. For example, you can definitely do without a radio. Both functions can be enabled independently, and in order to achieve two days of work, you will have to do this; in simple mode it is not possible. The smartphone works for a day under normal load, with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi turned on; if you want more, learn to use the standard energy-saving functions, reduce the backlight. You know everything yourself.

The kit comes with a regular charger; using the UCH12 power supply, you can enjoy the benefits of fast charging - 10 minutes of connection to the network, 5.5 hours of operation. Convenient if you are somewhere in the city, but then you will have to fork out for UCH12. Quick Charge 3.0 (Class A) technologies from Qualcomm and Pump Express+ 2.0 from MediaTek are supported; charging works not only with X, XA, but also with the Z5, Z3 series. Price charger in Russia is still unknown.

Cameras

Front camera 8 MP, main 13 MP Sony Exmor RS, LED flash. There is support for HDR, hybrid autofocus, some functions like five-fold Clear Image zoom came here from the Sony Xperia Z5 - but it’s better to do without zooming. It is not clear why the device does not remember the set parameters, let’s say I chose manual settings, maximum resolution, took a few pictures, went to the menu, then I started the camera again, and there it was in auto mode again. And you constantly have to go into the settings, switch between 13 MP and square frames and 9 MP and pictures with a normal aspect ratio. In general, this has been the case at Sony for a long time - and also, if you start the camera from a button, you can’t change the settings as you wish.

The video looks like this.

The front camera is 8 MP, wide-angle, with autofocus, several people can fit into the frame.

In the additional menu you can install various applications for the camera, but keep in mind that this is not a flagship, and some add-ons will work slowly.

I liked the speed of autofocus and camera launch.

conclusions

Prices so far are as follows: 21,990 rubles for the version with one SIM card, 22,990 rubles for DualSIM, not bad.

The vibration is felt in your pocket, the reception quality seemed worse to me than with the same SIM card in the iPhone 6S Plus, but, of course, the devices cannot be compared, different prices, different worlds.

A simple question, is it possible to live with the Sony Xperia XA after the flagship expensive devices? Eh, if only they had added an oleophobic coating, there would have been no questions at all - this is my biggest complaint against the company. The smartphone called XA is beautiful, fast, has a good camera, and “empty” Android will appeal to those who are used to setting everything up themselves. It’s good that the DualSIM version has two slots, and it’s good that they didn’t forget about the slot for memory cards. I advise owners to immediately find a suitable film or glass; the UCH12 charger will also come in handy.

To answer the question above, it’s quite possible to live with XA.

Among the presented flagship solutions of the X-series from Sony in 2016, one of the most interesting was the smartphone Sony Xperia XA. It should be noted that the device does not have the highest performance, but it will find many buyers. Mainly because of its design.

New design

Despite high performance Sony Xperia X Performance, many buyers will prefer the XA series. That's because Sony Xperia ha It captivates with its design: compact, thin and neat. The five-inch HD display is hidden behind protective 2.5D glass. But main feature What the Xperia X and X Perfomans do not have is the lack of side frames. This solution can be found in ZTE Nubia Prague S or ZTE Blade V Plus, which the new Sony somewhat resembles. But still, some signs make it clear that this is an Xperia. And, despite the plastic back, rounded frame, and the usual keys on the side edges, the smartphone does not look like the Z-series. This makes it unique among other devices from Sony.

Technical capabilities

The device runs on the Mediatek platform and, despite the productive Helio P10, it’s a stretch to call it a flagship. In general, the characteristics are quite enough for many everyday tasks: 2 GB of RAM, as well as 16 GB of permanent memory, a 2300 mAh battery, an eight-megapixel front camera and a thirteen-megapixel main camera. Isn't this enough for comfortable use? In addition, the new product supports the operation of two SIM cards - and this is much more important for many consumers. There is also a microSD slot with a capacity of up to two hundred gigabytes. It is also important that there are all modern wireless interfaces, including NFC. In addition, support for LTE is declared, the advantages of this wireless network Every day more and more users evaluate it.

Although the device looks attractive, it belongs more likely not to the flagships, but to the mid-range line price segment. On the other hand, the frameless 2.5D display creates the feeling that you are holding a modern, exclusive device in your hands. First of all, the smartphone will be of interest to women, especially if we talk about the pink version.

The main models of the new line of Sony smartphones. Now it's time to get acquainted with the youngest representative of the series - Xperia XA. There is nothing funny in its name; XA should be read as “x hey” or “x a”, but in no case “ha”. In my opinion, the name XS would be more suitable for the device - it is narrower, thinner and lighter than the original Xperia X, simpler in terms of hardware, but much more interesting in appearance and in some other ways.

Technical characteristics of Sony Xperia XA:

• Network: GSM/GPRS/EDGE, WCDMA/HSPA, LTE
• Platform (at time of announcement): Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow
• Display: 5", 1280 x 720 pixels, IPS, Mobile BRAVIA Engine 2
• Camera: 13 MP, 1/3"", f/2.0, hybrid focus, Clear Image Zoom 5X,
• Front camera: 8 MP, 88 degrees, HDR
• Processor: 8 cores, up to 2 GHz, MediaTek Helio P10 MT6755
• Graphics chip: Mali-T860 770 MHz
• RAM: 2 GB
• Internal memory: 16 GB
• Memory card: microSD (up to 200 GB)
• A-GPS and GLONASS
• Bluetooth 4.2
• LDAC, DSEE HX, High-Resolution Audio, Clear Audio+, S-Force Front Surround
• Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n/ac)
• microUSB 2.0
• 3.5mm jack
• Battery: non-removable, 2300 mAh
• Dimensions: 143.6 x 66.8 x 7.9 mm
• Weight: 137.4 g

Video review and unboxing

Equipment and design

The packaging of the smartphone differs from the Xperia X in material and shape. The box is made of softer cardboard in the style Xperia line Z - flat and rectangular. The external design and coloring are similar to the Xperia X, but there are no separate compartments or boxes inside. The device is supplied with a charger unit (regular, not reinforced), a cable and paper documentation. In total, four color variants of the smartphone are being released on the market: black, white, gold and pink, with pink available only for the version with one SIM, although pink is only a name. More like salmon or coral with shimmers in different lighting (sometimes it seems almost orange).

Externally, the Xperia XA inherits the design concept of the C5 Ultra smartphone (review) with minimal side frames. The solution is nice, fresh, compared to the Xperia Z line, it was a breath of air and even now remains so next to the new Xperia X and X Performance. The Xperia XA attracts primarily with its compact size and infinite screen. The body turned out to be smaller, lighter and more convenient than that of the older X-Xs, despite the same display size. There are only two complaints about the appearance: very sensitive plastic on the back and a weak oleophobic layer on the front panel. The back easily collects scratches even with careful handling, and the display does not wipe off marks very well and readily collects fingerprints. Compared to devices without an oleophobic layer, everything here is not as bad as it could be, but on such a spectacular frameless display it was worth applying something more gliding and resistant to dirt. Look for films by size, in general. And don't forget to buy a case.

The smartphone differs from the Xperia X and X Performance in several ways. There is no all-metal body, and only the frame is made of metal. However, the build is excellent in all cases. The NFC platform is located in the traditional place for Sony Xperia - on the rear panel (for Xperia X it is to the left of the front camera). The new product does not have stereo speakers, nor does it have a finger scanner, but the power and volume buttons are located in more convenient and familiar places. Moisture protection is not declared for the smartphone, nor for the Xperia X (only the X Performance has it). Slots for memory cards and nanoSIM are hidden under a flap in both smartphones. The notification LED is located to the left of the front camera, whereas in the Sony Xperia X it is hidden in the earpiece.

Despite the same sized 5" displays, the Xperia XA's screen is noticeably simpler than that of the Xperia X. It is much dimmer and turns blue or yellow at different angles. The dual-SIM version of the Xperia XA, unlike the Xperia X and X Performance, cannot boast double volume internal memory, so don't count on more than 16 GB (of which 11 GB is available to the user). In addition, the Xperia XA is not eligible for bonuses when purchasing until the end of July - a year of additional warranty on the display and its free replacement, six months Google Play Music and 12 Sony films. The potential owner can only count on 3 months Play Music, which are activated when you first subscribe to the service. That's it, a free screen replacement in case of damage would definitely not be superfluous here. A bezel-less display is much easier to break than a screen with thick side frames.

Software

The smartphone works under Android control 6.0 with the latest edition of the Xperia Home shell, but in a somewhat simplified form - there are a lot of differences from the Xperia X interface. So, there are no online recommendations when starting a search by swiping from the center down or on the left screen of the application menu, there is no support for Remote Play and Dualshock controllers, double tap to wake up the display and launch the camera by double pressing the power button. To improve images, Mobile BRAVIA Engine 2 technology is used, not X-Reality (although the principle of operation is the same - they make the picture richer for photos and videos). There is also no automatic sound optimization for any connected headphones (there are only a few branded headsets), and there is no DSEE HX technology, which enhances the sound of very compressed music files to normal level.

Otherwise, the interface is similar, all new design elements and sections are used, themes are tailored to the colors of the smartphone, the Xperia keyboard has given way to Swiftkey with the Sony theme, and the power settings contain energy-saving STAMINA and Ultra STAMINA modes (hello to all users of old Xperia who were deprived of these functions with update to Android 6.0).

Camera

Unlike Xperia X Xperia smartphone The XA received a 13-megapixel main camera module and an 8-megapixel front camera instead of 23-megapixel and 13-megapixel in the older model. At the same time, the device retained the main advantage of the flagship - hybrid tracking autofocus. The interface is externally similar to the Xperia X, but the only functional difference is the absence smart mode SteadyShot stabilization and the ability to fully shoot in all modes and scenarios in full 13 megapixel resolution (Xperia X in some cases has a limit of 8 megapixels). By default, it is proposed to take photos in a resolution of 9 MP, video is recorded only in 1080p quality with 30 fps, but with the ability to record HDR video, which the Xperia X does not have. It smells like a dirty trick, doesn’t it?

The main problem with the Xperia X and Xperia X Performance cameras was overheating when using focus tracking in photos or videos. The Xperia XA, surprisingly, does not have this problem, and the camera interface works faster and saves pictures faster than the Xperia X (but not faster than the X Performance). Moreover, the photographs are also different for the better. Photos taken on the Xperia XA turn out to be more detailed, more accurate in color and with less noise in daylight, but the automation sometimes makes mistakes in white balance and raises the ISO in the dark. This is where manual mode comes to the rescue, in which the set ISO values ​​​​correspond to what you see on the screen (the Xperia X has some strange problem with this: ISO 400 and ISO 800 look equally light). One more thing: it’s much easier to shoot macro on the Xperia XA, it focuses much more readily on close objects than the Xperia X and allows you to get a more or less successful shot with accurate focus on the first attempts, and not on the tenth.

Sony Xperia XA - Sony Xperia X:

Sony Xperia XA - Sony Xperia X

Exactly the same can be said about auto mode. On the Xperia XA it works more accurately and more stable, whereas on the Xperia X you risk getting six different frames out of six in color and quality. For some reason, the Xperia X camera takes longer to think and does not always select the optimal scenario for the right conditions. The device especially misses the mark with Night Scene, resulting in too many attempts to get a clear shot with the right light and color. IN manual mode The Xperia XA again has more space (full resolution, no problems with ISO), and in low-light conditions the smartphone does not overexpose frames and does not try to embellish the picture, although it has a little more noise than the Xperia X. As you may have noticed, The Xperia XA has a less wide viewing angle, and here it would seem that the points are on the side of the Xperia X, but the geometric distortions of the cars in the photo above negate this advantage. In general, in this photo, the Xperia X’s automation did something terrible, turning the trees into mush, raising the contrast and highlighting the background (and this is the most successful shot of a series of several).

Sony Xperia XA auto - Sony Xperia X auto:

Sony Xperia XA manual - Sony Xperia X manual:

As for the front cameras, the Xperia XA received an 8 MP module with wide-angle optics, a 1/4" matrix and an f/2.0 aperture, while the Xperia X boasts a 13 MP module with similar optics, but a 1/3" matrix and exactly the same aperture . Both have a skin softening effect, both cameras record Full HD video with electronic stabilization. Xperia Video The XA writes worse than the Xperia X. The exposure is not smooth, although the picture stabilizer works well and the sound is clear. The presence of the HDR video function allows you to shoot videos with extended dynamic range and it is strange that the Xperia X does not have this function. The Xperia XA, on the other hand, does not have an auto-scene selection feature when recording videos, whereas the Xperia X does.

For a long time now, Sony's mobile division has been receiving a lot of criticism due to: unreasonably high price, late design changes, not the best software optimization, in particular camera software. And this is just what immediately comes to mind. Were the Japanese able to correct all the shortcomings in the new line?

Equipment

The Sony Xperia XA1 smartphone came for review in a simplified version. Inside I found only the smartphone itself, a wire with Type-C connector for charging and a set of instructions. Remembering my previous one, I mentally prepared myself for the fact that again I wouldn’t understand anything and would have to read tons of text in the manual.

The commercial version, of course, has a power supply that supports fast charging technology (MediaTek PumpExpress 2.0). Unfortunately, I can’t tell you the exact parameters of the power adapter or the charging speed.

Design

I thought that Sony would not be able to please me with anything in terms of the appearance of the smartphone, but I was deeply mistaken. continues the tradition of smooth rectangular shapes with sharp corners. And you know, I would still prefer exactly this form factor than a smartphone made in the shape of soap.

My previous device was, which I really liked for its bright design and jy was also made in the shape of a brick. Personally, it’s more pleasant and comfortable for me to hold just such a smartphone.

	Length	Width	Thickness	Weight
Sony Xperia XA1 (5’’ screen)
iPhone 6S (4.7’’)	138,1
Xiaomi Mi 5S (5.15’’)	145,6	70,3

Thanks to the almost complete absence of side frames, the width of the Xperia XA1 is only 67 mm! With one hand you can completely grasp the smartphone so that your fingers touch without any problems. Accordingly, you can reach the opposite side of the screen with your finger.

On the front side there is a 5-inch display. Above him is present front-camera, LED notification indicator, light sensor and earpiece, and under the display there is only a lone microphone for calls.

Initially, when I first looked at the Sony Xperia XA1, I thought that there were stereo speakers installed on the front side, it really looked like that. After all, there is enough free space. The upper and lower frames “eat up” as much as 36 mm from the total length of the smartphone, which is 145 mm.

There are also no unnecessary design elements on the back side, apart from the NFC tag emblem. For what? For what? It's as if Sony is telling everyone: “Hey, look, our new smartphone has NFC support!” Well, of course, it wouldn’t be here if the price was over $350.

Although, there is no fingerprint scanner and the body is made entirely of plastic...

But I can’t say that I treat plastic with any mistrust. Any material has its pros and cons. The main advantage of this is the weight. The smartphone is incredibly light.

The Xperia XA1 is a pleasure to hold in your hands. At the same time, nothing slips or falls out of your hands.

In addition to the NFC tag logo, there is a camera, a single-color flash and the brand name on the back side.

There are no buttons on the left side; there is only a slot for a SIM card and memory card. At the same time, the slot is not a combination slot, just one plug for two ports.

There are three buttons on the right side: volume rocker, round button on and at the very bottom the shutter / camera button. Just a couple of sentences about the last one. For left-handed people, the button is simply ideal for taking selfies. The little finger lies exactly on the point where this key is located.

At the top end there is a 3.5 mm headphone port, and at the bottom there is an input for Type-C and a multimedia speaker. The sound is average; at maximum volume, wheezing begins to appear.

By the way, Sony offers 4 color options for the smartphone: white, black, gold and pink.

Generally, appearance of Sony Xperia XA1 It gave me a lot of pleasant impressions, although the Japanese company has not changed a similar design for many years. It will be interesting to look at their version frameless smartphone in future.

Display

The smartphone has a 5-inch IPS matrix with HD resolution. Some may consider that such a resolution is no longer enough in 2017. And I will say that the quality of the display itself plays a big role, so that the colors do not fade when you look from different angles. And this is exactly the Xperia XA1. In addition, individual pixels on the screen are not distinguishable.

• 5-inch IPS screen
• resolution 1280 x 720 pixels
• 294 dpi

The smartphone's display itself is of decent quality. The picture is not inverted at large viewing angles, only black color can take on a slight purple tone. With stock color correction settings, there is a clear shift towards warm shades. White color with a slight yellowish tint.

For AMOLED lovers, there are settings that allow you to create a similar picture typical for these displays. With a slight shift to blue and cool tones.

There is also an oleophobic coating, which really pleased me. The finger glides across the screen very easily, any stains are removed in one go. It’s enough to just swipe your jeans or a rag a couple of times (which no one ever carries with them). By the way, the display is covered protective glass Corning Gorilla Glass. Which generation is not specified.

Specifications

• MediaTek Helio P20 processor with 8 ARM Cortex-A53 cores, of which 4 operate at frequencies up to 2.3 GHz and another 4 at frequencies up to 1.6 GHz
• Mali-T880 graphics
• RAM 3 GB LPDDR3 (free after reboot 1100 MB)
• 32 GB internal memory (approximately 19 GB available for user)
• Micro SD card support (slot on left side)
• IPS display with a diagonal of 5 inches and a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels (294 ppi)
• 8 MP front camera (1/4-inch Exmor R sensor for mobile devices, 23mm f/2.0 wide-angle lens, maximum ISO for photos and videos - 3200)
• 23 MP main camera (1/2.3-inch Exmor RS sensor for mobile devices, 23 mm f/2.0 wide-angle lens, 5x Clear Image zoom, maximum ISO level for photos 6400, video - 3200)
• 2300 mAh battery + fast charging MediaTek PumpExpress 2.0
• ports USB connections Type-C, 3.5 mm audio output
• OS Android 7.0
• sensors: light and proximity sensor, accelerometer, gyroscope
• dimensions: 145 x 67 x 8 mm
• weight 143 grams

Wireless capabilities:

• 2G, 3G, 4G LTE Cat. 4/Cat. 6 (lanes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 20, 28, 38, 39, 40, 41, 66)
• support for one or two SIM cards (2 Nano)
• Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n), Bluetooth 4.2, NFC, FM radio
• Navigation: GPS, A-GPS, Glonass

The most important question regarding performance: how does the MediaTek processor perform? Branded shell from Sony allows the smartphone to work quickly in everyday applications. There are no system lags or freezes during operation.

But at the same time, the processor heats up quite a bit. Due to the plastic case, the smartphone instantly becomes warm. The result is that the Sony Xperia XA1 is always warm in your hands.

2D games run comfortably, but 3D games are more difficult. I reviewed it with the same processor, but it had 6 GB of RAM installed. If my memory serves me correctly, games ran more quickly and smoothly on this smartphone than on the Sony device. But in games like: Asphalt 8, N.O.V.A. 3, GTA: San Andreas, Modern Combat 5, Mortal Kombat X - I did not experience severe discomfort. Plus, we must remember that there is a display with HD resolution, which helps reduce the load on the graphics chip in any case. But FPS in World of Tanks Blitz varied from side to side. At high settings, the smartphone ranged from wild freezes in the heat of battle to 45-50 frames per second in a calm environment.

Also, when checking in CPU-Z, I saw that not a single processor core goes to sleep. In fact, even when idle, the smartphone uses all 8 cores, albeit at different frequencies.

The multi-touch test showed support for only 4 touches. Is this even normal? In a device of this class and at this price, you expect the standard 10 touches. After all, more is better. And nothing else!

Another big difference from flagship smartphones from Sony is that the Xperia XA1 lacks moisture protection at all.

Photo and video

The front camera is represented by an 8-megapixel Sony IMX219 sensor with f/2.0 aperture. It seems that even in low light you should get good pictures. Especially when the manufacturer calls its smartphone a camera phone. In practice, the selfie camera feature is a bit disappointing because expectations were so high.

There is a clear lack of detail on the face. The background absolutely does not want to blur. Although, the camera instantly identifies the person in the frame and tries to take the most successful shot.

Even in good light, it is difficult to get a detailed and blur-free photo. Girls definitely won't like it! The video is recorded in 1080p / 30 frames, there is no stabilization.

The main camera is a Sony IMX300 sensor with 23 megapixels. I’ll answer the question right away: “Is there any sense in having a 23 MP camera?” Almost none!

It’s better to have half the pixels, but adequate autofocus, flash, and stabilization for both photos and videos. There is none of this.

From the examples everything is clear at once: although there are optics with a high aperture ratio, this in no way saves you from strong glare and noise in automatic mode. In general, I suggest forgetting about it and photographing with manual settings.

Autofocus on a smartphone is very poor. The easiest and most common shot can be taken on the second or third try. However, I can’t take many pictures in a couple of seconds. The device needs to think for a while after shooting to display the frame in the gallery.

The flash fires synchronously with the camera shutter only once. I don’t remember this at all in my latest reviews to smartphones.

Good flash performance

Poor flash performance

At the same time, by correctly setting the settings in manual mode, you can get extremely pleasing pictures to the eye. For example, a macro photo with a high level of detail in the foreground and a very natural bokeh effect in the background.

The maximum quality for video recording is 1080p/30 frames. And this is in a smartphone for 22 thousand rubles. At the same time, the video itself turns out to be jerky, the clarity in the frames is not enough, and there is no stabilization. The light is generally adjusted jerkily.

Battery life

The biggest problem with the Sony Xperia XA1 is battery life.

The smartphone has a battery capacity of only 2300 mAh, which is simply prohibitively small for 2017. Now even the most budget options have larger batteries.

An hour of playing with regular toys consumes a quarter of the charge, surfing + playing music takes about the same amount from the battery. If you do not use low-power modes, your smartphone will never survive from morning to night. At best, hours before 6 pm. This smartphone is definitely not for long trips.

In 118 minutes of walking, when I went out to take street photos, while listening to music and using 4G Internet, and the display brightness was turned up to the maximum level, the device lost 60% of its charge.

Sony, as always, has two proprietary power consumption modes:

1. Stamina - without any noticeable losses, it allows you to extend the life of your smartphone by a couple of hours; applications begin to be unloaded from memory much faster.
2. Ultra Stamina - a smartphone turns into almost an ordinary dialer without much functionality. This allows you to add a couple more hours of work.

Bottom line

Smartphone Sony Xperia XA1 turned out to be very ambiguous. Externally, the device looks cheerful, it is beautiful, elegant and does not feel like a budget device at all. But! As soon as you start getting to know technical characteristics- it becomes sad.

The main disadvantages include:

• no fingerprint scanner
• small battery capacity
• weak software at the cameras
• lack of stereo speakers, although there is stylization for them
• mini-problems with unclear operation of the cores and the number of supported touch points

In principle, the Sony Xperia XA1 will appeal to those who come to communication stores or large electrical stores to buy a phone. I'm talking about those who are poorly versed in modern technologies and trends and cannot adequately correlate price / quality parameters.

Knowledgeable people know very well that there are much nicer options at an approximate cost. For example, and