Tag: Sony

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Sony Xperia Z3 Compact Crushes “Mini” Smartphone Competition

06_Xperia_Z3_Compact_White_GroupI try not to editorialize TOO much while covering press releases, but I am bothered by the “bigger is better” trend in smartphones. Flagships are starting to blur the boundaries between “regular” sized and “phablet”. Mini phones are almost always hamstrung versions of their larger stablemates. In Android land, there is exactly one mini phone which still retains higher-end specs, and Sony just gave it a refresh.

The Z3 Compact steps down to a 4.6″ display with a 720p resolution, it loses 1GB of RAM (down to 2GB), and it packs a smaller battery at 2600 mAh versus its big brother’s 3100 mAh. Besides those, it retains almost all of the hardware from the larger Z3. You’ll find the same Qualcomm 801 Quad-Core processor. Both have stereo speakers, and water submerge-able builds.

30_Xperia_Z3_Compact_White_BackThe Compact has the same 1/2.3″ camera sensor packing 20MP, 4K video, and optical image stabilization. Plus Sony will be bringing PS4 remote play to both the Z3 and the Compact for you console gamers out there.

It’s a largely premier specs sheet. At a time when even Apple will be moving up in screen size, and with the mid-range market getting hammered, Sony is providing a shot in the arm to a segment of the smartphone market which is often ignored. Pricing and availability will follow soon, and you can read Sony’s full PR below.


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Playstation 4 Price Rising to $449 in Canada Starting Today

sony ps4In an odd response to “changing market conditions” Sony is bumping up the price of the PS4 console, Playstation Camera, and the Dualshock 4 controller.

Starting today, the PS4 will jump $50, from $399 to $449, the Dualshock and Camera now retail for $64.99, and games will also increase in price by about $10 over USA prices.

This move makes sense to a degree as the current exchange rate puts the Canadian dollar at around 90 American cents, which would bring the price difference pretty close to that rate adjustment, as $399 USA is about $443 Canadian at the time of this posting.

As a platform strategy however, the timing on this increase is tricky. Sony still enjoys a sales lead, but rival Microsoft has been chipping away at that, and currently has no plans to raise the price of the XBox One which remains at $499 in Canada. Sony’s bump here brings the stock PS4 (without a camera) to within $50 of the XBox which includes the Kinect camera and tracking system.

Consoles exist to move software however, and Microsoft is only adding a $5 premium to their games up north, largely eroding the cost advantage Sony enjoyed when you factor in a console, and additional controller, and actually buying a game to play on that new system.

NPD sales data for February showed Microsoft selling just over 90% of what Sony moved over the same time period, and we’re about to see the impact of Titanfall, which has all the buzz and momentum of being the first true “Next Gen” hit. It’s impossible to declare any kind of “winner” this early into the console life cycle, but thankfully the competition is about to get a lot more interesting.

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Sony unveils Waterproof Xperia Z2 Smartphone & Tablet

A pair of exciting announcements from Sony out of Barcelona. Following in the wake of selling off their PC division, Sony is doubling down on their Xperia line up with the Z2 phone and Z2 Tablet, and happily both of these multimedia powerhouses will survive a swim.

Xperia_Z2Xperia Z2 Phone

It’s a power packed combo including all of Sony’s best gear.  A 5.2″ HD screen is powered by a Qualcomm 801 quad-core, 3GB of RAM and a phablet-sized 3200mAh battery.

For Android photogs, Sony is packing a 20.7 megapixel 1/2.3″ sensor with optical image stabilization. That puts it firmly in Nokia Icon territory for light sensitivity and achieving shallower depth of field in photos and videos. It will also be capable of shooting 4K video, making it one of the more formidable combinations of optics and tech in the Android ecosystem.

Xperia Z2 Tablet

Xperia_Z2_Tablet_BlackPushing forward with slates, the Z2 Tablet features a 10.1″ “Full HD” Live Colour LED display, also powered by a Qualcomm 801 quad-core and a 6000mAh battery. Two models will be available, WiFi only and LTE.

Sony pushing gaming and multimedia, hopefully as a tease for future Playstation Now compatibility, are bragging on DUALSHOCK3 wireless controller game play. For work, they’ll have a custom Bluetooth keyboard cover and stand available for purchase.

Both the Z2 Tablet and Phone are waterproof, feature integrated noise reduction when using Sony ear buds, and they’ll also both be eligible for a special entertainment package including six Sony Pictures films, one of which is ‘Captain Philips’, and a 30 day free trial for Music Unlimited.

Both Z2’s will launch globally this March. Full press releases are below.

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It’s a Cloud Services World. We just pretend it’s about the hardware…

server rack front panelsWe all like to speculate about what’s coming down the pipe, what “THE FUTURE” will look like. One thing is becoming abundantly clear however, a good chunk of what’s coming is going to be delivered via networked, over the air, services. AKA The Cloud.

I know, shocking revelation. I’m sure none of you saw that coming, which is why it’s a good thing you read this blog, as I’m pretty terrific at delivering the obvious. All joking aside, we’re seeing some pretty exciting trends, and a few concerning ones.

Storage & File Delivery
This was essentially a proof of concept that basic data intensive services could work online. Putting larger files onto a server for easier delivery than email or “sneaker-net” style solutions. From YouSendIt to DropBox and everything else in between, we’ve flirted with the cloud primarily to sync and share information. It’s only been recently that data networks have gotten robust enough to offer…

Media Services
We’ve had Youtube for about nine years now. It’s made such a profound impact that it’s difficult to remember the internet without it. Of course, the push for HD video, and then competing services like Netflix and Hulu, really took hold over the last couple years. Online streaming radio is hot right now, and improved sharing and creation tools have lead to…

Collaborative Services
It’s not enough that we can upload a document. Multiple people can now work on it at the same time instead of emailing revisions back and forth. It’s not enough that I can vlog in front of a webcam, I can now broadcast to a live audience with multiple participants and have that automatically added to my Youtube channel.

So What Comes Next? Continue reading “It’s a Cloud Services World. We just pretend it’s about the hardware…”

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UPDATED: Sony’s Next Stage? Reforming TV Business, Selling Off PC Division

Sony logo*** Update: Enobong Etteh from BooredAtWork.com joined me on Youtube to discuss all the Sony news announced today (embedded below)*** 

It seems to be the major challenge for large corporations, adapting to current market trends, and attempting reorganization.

Sony has their hands in a lot of different tech markets: phones, PC’s, TV’s, Cameras, Playstations, and media (TV/Films/Music). That’s a big ship to steer, and they’ve attempted two previous company wide reorganizations in 2009 and 2012. Ahead of their positive third quarter financial statement showing a 20% revenue increase over the same period in 2012 thanks to the PS4. Unfortunately they’re forecasting a shocking $1 Billion loss for the fiscal year, and now  Sony is announcing their next major corporate reform plans.

Their intention with TV’s is to reduce R&D costs, and streamline manufacturing. They’ve reduced losses from this division from 147 Billion Yen to 69 Billion Yen over the course of a year, and they estimate they should be able to reduce that further to 25 Billion Yen ending fiscal year 2013. They don’t expect the TV division to become profitable until early 2015 (ending fiscal year 2014).

sony-vaio-flip-575x368More drastic, Sony is also selling off their VAIO PC division. Rumors pointed to VIZIO or Lenovo possibly acquiring them, but it’s now official that Sony will be selling to Japan Industrial Partners Inc.  It’s unknown how much the PC line will be sold for. Sony will cease design and production of new PC models after the current announced line up of PC’s is released this Spring.

On top of these measures, Sony will also be cutting 5000 jobs in response to this new poor forecast. In early trading this morning Sony stock is up almost 5% following the announcements.

Enobong Etteh from BooredAtWork.com joined me in a Google Hangout to discuss the announcements:

Full Sony press release below.

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#CES2014: Sony Wows with Xperia Z1 Compact, “Uncompromising” smaller Android Smartphone

sony xperia z1 compact ces tease announcement android smartphoneI don’t often get excited about phone announcements, but Sony has me very interested.

The biggest problem in the Android ecosystem right now is the lack of premium smaller form factor devices. Smaller screens are seen as entry or mid-range phones. It completely gives the market away to the iPhone when “Premium” only means 4.7″ screens and larger.

Sony is looking to change that with the Z1 Compact. A 720p 4.3″ display is powered by the most bleeding edge guts we can currently pack into a phone.

sony xperia z1 compact ces tease announcement android smartphone camera

The Qualcomm 800 processor is a screamer on larger higher resolution phone screens, so it should be even more of a beast here. 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage with a MicroSD card slot will be handy as the camera bolted to the back is a 20MP shooter with optical image stabilization. Even the battery is class standard at 2300mAh, a capacity often found in larger screen phones.

Not only are the guts impressive, the design is attractive as well, with a solid machined aluminum shell. The Z1 Compact also continues in Sony’s recent tradition of making their phones water resistant, helpful insuring your smartphone might actually last the two year contract you signed up for.

Every bit of this phone is a step in the right direction for those wanting a premium high end smartphone in a smaller form factor. Sony released a video tease of the Z1 Compact embedded below.

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Want to use a Flash Drive on a phone or tablet? Sony launches drive with full sized and Micro USB connectors!

Sony-2-in-1-USB-open-1024x866This one’s pretty much for the Android users.

Did you know that most modern Android Phones support USB host to some degree? That means you can often connect low power USB devices to your phone or tablet, and the device will recognize them. Does your phone lack a MicroSD? You can probably augment your storage with a USB Flash Drive. Of course this often means have to keep track of an adapter cable, one that will convert your phone’s Micro USB port into a full sized USB port.

Sony’s new 2-in-1 drive offers up a potential solution for this issue. With a full sized USB 2 jack on one side and a Micro USB on the other. This should make sneaker-netting your files between computer and mobile device much easier. While Cloud Storage can help expand our gadget’s capabilities, sometimes it’s just faster and easier to go old school Plug & Play.

Sony says the device will work on most Android devices starting with Android 4.0.3 and newer. Prices start at $20 for an 8GB drive and scale up to $63 for 32GB. Drives should be available starting January 2014.

Full PR after the jump!

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Google adds Sony Z Ultra to Google Play Edition stock Android Portfolio

sony z ultra google play editionNo sooner do we post on the LG GPad 8.3 GPE, then we discover the Sony Z Ultra is also playing ball.

Yup, we now have a proper phablet offering for those who want a true-blue stock Android experience on a larger screened phone. Offering up a 6.4″ 1080p display, it’s also the first GPE device to rock Qualcomm’s screamer Snapdragon 800 quad core. 16GB of storage on board with a MicroSD card slot, and the Z Ultra is also water resistant. A nice little touch there, helping the survivability of a somewhat pricey gadget.

Speaking of price, you’ll drop $649 for a Z Ultra of your very own. Not a bad price at all for a proper phablet, and it looks like handsets should be shipping out in 1-2 days. Get at it folks!

Sony Z Ultra GPE on Google Play

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