Sony Xperia ZR review

Sony Xperia ZR comes from Xperia Z mini family. It's something like a “downsized" version of Xperia Z. With a 4.5- inch HD display, 13MP camera and the Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, this phone is everything but average. Compared to SONY's high-end devices , Xperia ZR had to stay somewhere in the middle. However, this doesn’t mean that this is bad thing. On the contrary, it is high-middle class phone, which is reflecting the price. In addition, this model offers standardSONY water resistance, which only adds to his appeal. This is especially important because the Xperia ZR competes with rivals such as HTC Mini One, Nexus 4 and the Samsung Galaxy S3.

Sony Xperia ZR design

Phone fully corresponds to the original Xperia Z, so we can say that both phones want to be in premium segment, mainly due to a very thin body of just 10.5 mm. Ok, this is not the best result, but in practice very friendly. Xperia Z has a thickness of only 7.9 mm, but this phone is therefore more costly. The lower price is also affected by the case made ​​of plastic, which is a magnet for fingerprints. However, as this is a Sony phone, it is clear that the plastic is a quality material that is still comfortable to hold. Micro USB and audio port are covered by plastic cover to prevent water from entering the inside of the phone. Since the covers are made of plastic, not rubber, it can be a bit of trouble over their movement. The external keys are located on the right side. Here are all the keys, the power, volume and camera button. They are nicely located (except the volume one because it’s at the bottom of the phone which is not practical), but are a bit harder to use and might not be so pleasant to touch. For example, the camera button is very small, so you will need time to get used to it. The same thing is with the SIM slot, which can be easily damaged.

Sony Xperia ZR screen

If there were any compromises in terms of design, there was none of there here. The display is in 720x1280 pixels resolution, which gives a very good 323 pixels per inch, which is somewhat worse than the competitor HTC Mini One, which has 341 ppi. The picture quality is very good, colors as well. The viewing angles are pretty disappointing. Fortunately, Xperia ZR has Mobile Bravia engine, so the display of multimedia content is very good. The screen of 4.5 inches seems pretty good. Ok, it is clear that for some 5-inch is standard, but in this particular diagonal display reflects its compactness. I think for 0.5 inches you will not loose quality, but you’ll get the handiness.

Sony Xperia ZR software

Sony Xperia ZR runs on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean, which is a little disappointing since version 4.3 is widespread. Sony's interface is still good and easy to use. In doing so, it looks very nice, and abounds with animations that can be quite interesting.

Sony Xperia ZR specs and performance

Xperia ZR is powered by quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro processor with 1.5 GHz. This powerful processor is combined with a great Adreno 320 graphics and 2GB of RAM. Xperia ZR is definitely a gaming phone, so if someone does not have money for something better, ZR can be an excellent choice. The phone works very well. No annoying stopping, so users don’t have to waste time and wait for a slow phone to do something. When the memory is concerned, Sony has decided to install 8GB, which is ok, but not great when we know that it is available only 4.6 GB. However, there is a microSD slot so the memory can be increased to a maximum of 32GB. 2300mAh battery should be sufficient for almost two days of use, but in reality is different. Official data says that the battery is sufficient for 13 hours of 3G talk and 21 days standby, but in practice you will have the phone at your disposal for day and a half.

Sony Xperia ZR camera

The camera on this phone is easy and pleasant to use. There is also plenty of shooting modes, including Super Auto mode, which automatically adjusts the camera to circumstances in which you want to shot the photos. The application is quite good and quickly activated and shooting time is almost instant. The camera has 13MP and the image quality is still mediocre. It often happens that the images are darker than they should be. An additional problem is the zoom. When you zoom in, you can get photos of poor quality, but still quite decent for a phone. Despite LED flash pictures indoors were worse than expected. The biggest problem is video shooting, which is in full HD resolution, but suffers from a lack of exposure, and there is nothing of full HD video at the end.

Sony Xperia ZR conclusion

Sony Xperia ZR has a lot of compromises. However, despite this, the phone offers decent performance and provides a pleasant experience of using. The main objections are plastic, average battery and camera and poor viewing angles of the screen. Between positive and negative sides, it seems that Sony Xperia ZR still has a lot to offer. Firstly there is a relatively large screen with a picture that’s not perfect, but that is far from bad. Do not forget the powerful quad-core processor! When all things considered, it is clear that the Sony Xperia ZR is a decent phone, but its high price will put many away. Therefore, alternatives may be Nexus 4 or HTC One Mini. Photos and video:sonymobile.com