Gadgets and stuff: Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact

It's hard to find an Android phone that's easily pocketable, has reliable battery life and to do more than just making calls or messages these days. The compact mobile phone market is filled with cheap and low end hardware phones. A 1GB RAM/8GB ROM phone is not going to give me that satisfaction if I need to do more than just making calls/messaging.

It's all about the size

If the first priority is small form factor and anyone who doesn't mind paying near flagship phone price, then this is definitely a must-have smartphone. I would have preferred if the Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact has less bezels at the top and bottom of the screen. It's probably a design limitation, to cram all that feature-packed hardware in a small form factor. But it would still be great to shrink the existing bezels without compromises. The 9.3mm thickness of the phone doesn't bother me. In fact, it's thicker body gives me a better grip and confidence when holding the phone.

720p screen is a bad idea?

Not really. A 720p resolution at this screen size works great and comes with alot of benefit. Less pixels means less load on the GPU and runs cooler, therefore saving more power. Gaming, user interface, browsing runs really smooth, rarely any hickups.

Full HD resolution on this screen will be overkill. Text and other things will be hard to read at default. I can increase the size of icons and text in Android settings, but not all items/apps/websites will work. So it will defeat the purpose of having that extra screen estate. I don't think it's worth it just for that little bit of sharpness advantage.

The limited 32GB internal storage can be a real breaker for alot of people.The system alone takes up a whopping 9GB of internal storage space. And another 1.7GB of pre-installed apps. Frankly, that's not alot of space left for the user.

What's in the package?

I've ordered the Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact from Sony online store a week ago. The package came with a free soft/TPU case and a plastic screen protector. The model number printed on the box is a G8144 Rev.2 . I was surprised that an earphone and Sony's quick charger is included. I've seen other reviewers' unboxing, only a normal charger was provided. So I'm happy that Sony has included a fast charger out of the box.

This particular unit I have on hand here is made at a fairly new Sony's factory in Thailand.

Check out this phone on Amazon.com. Although the fingerprint sensor is disabled by default in the US, it can be easily enabled by flashing the international/European firmware. Also check if your carrier supports GSM for voicecalls(2G) and SMS.

Here are some photos of the Xperia XZ1 Compact.