topic Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour. in Off-Topic

Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

viridis — Wed, 10 Sep 2014 21:04:26 GMT

OK, whilst at the moment I'm unable to go through the Z3's dedicated apps and features dependant on hardware(ps4 remote - maybe soon, cam iso 12,000 - maybe not).

I have now got what is as close to 100% of the system ui running on the z2.

I'll run through as many of the different visual differences the Z3 has in comparison to the current Sony ui presently on the Z series.

The home screen.

The new home screen is near enough exactly the same as the current Z series however larger icons allround is a slight change. The font is also narrower and seems sharper (it's not, but appears sharper). Also the new clock is present and looks that little nicer than previous stock clocks.

The wallpapers

Similar to the current range, the Z3's wallpapers have been refined and now look even sharper, the usual waves have had a slight overhaul and look more clearer and defined on the new ui.

The live wallpaper no longer changes colour but instead you now have the option of choosing the waves colour, and there's quite a selection to choose from. The live wallpaper also is a LOT smoother when swiping and looks great.

The themes have also been updated with less fancy farty names and instead themes are now simple colour names.

The app drawer

Nicely filled with the larger icons and clearer font, it's a nice difference and scrolls smoother.

On the whole, the look is not an upgrade, it's not different... It's refined. Everything from the visual range has been made clearer, smoother and optimised for a large display.

I'll hopefully be adding more to this thread before the Z3 launches with (hopefully) a few more of the new features tested out.

As a first glance opinion, I like what I see.

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

MI5 — Wed, 10 Sep 2014 21:08:41 GMT

Looks good... Which ROM are you using?

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Sep 2014 21:10:28 GMT

Very nice.

Thank you for sharing.

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

viridis — Wed, 10 Sep 2014 21:13:34 GMT

Stock UK unbranded z2, ported over the launcher after removing stock Sony one. The pushed all wallpapers into system.
Got ps4 ready but waiting on the app update and ps4 update to 2.0(guess)
Will be porting new X-reality over with new "Vivid" system settings tomorrow.
Other system apps will follow that.

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

MI5 — Wed, 10 Sep 2014 21:22:19 GMT

Nice little project

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

viridis — Sat, 13 Sep 2014 20:57:02 GMT

X-Reality and Super-vivid

Finally got it stable without force closing settings and album

The new image enhancements are now found in a sub section of "DISPLAY"

The menu gives the option of off, X-reality or Super-vivid

I'll give samples later but for now I'll give you the description of:

Makes images and movies look like the amoled colours some are used to.

Imo oversaturated is not a benefit.

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

MI5 — Sat, 13 Sep 2014 21:15:17 GMT

You're doing great

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

jonsie — Sat, 13 Sep 2014 21:30:04 GMT

Interesting, looking good

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

viridis — Sat, 13 Sep 2014 23:51:28 GMT

OK, this should work.

Picture with no enhancements.

Picture with X-reality.

And picture with new Super-vivid mode.

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

aldaweb — Sun, 14 Sep 2014 09:01:47 GMT

Have to agree, it looks over saturated on both the "enhanced" pics.

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

Cleoriff — Sun, 14 Sep 2014 09:20:34 GMT

In terms of photography I much prefer the first image. The 2nd two look unreal ...and yes, as if they have been enhanced (when no enhancement was needed)

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

jonsie — Sun, 14 Sep 2014 10:17:07 GMT

The 'natural' picture is the better one for me too. I'm not a great lover of enhanced images.

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

viridis — Sun, 14 Sep 2014 11:56:52 GMT

A shot not from the preinstalled samples.

Again enhancements off

X-reality on

Super-vivid on

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

MI5 — Sun, 14 Sep 2014 12:00:50 GMT

I'd go for x-reality in both cases (but I am used to Samsung screens) as I like a bit of vibrancy but not too much....

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

viridis — Sun, 14 Sep 2014 12:01:09 GMT

As, what I would call, a Sony "fanboy" my honest opinion of Super-vivid is, it's disgusting and makes colours "pop out" to the point of losing fidelity in images, I realise some people like that kind of colour, but I guarantee those that are buying the phone for its camera, dont.

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

viridis — Sun, 14 Sep 2014 12:03:23 GMT

@MI5 I've had galaxy's this is another level, X-reality was perfect as it was on z1,2.
Imo that's one area Sony didn't need to improve.
I prefer the X-reality without vivid.

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

viridis — Sun, 14 Sep 2014 12:12:58 GMT

You can see how a smooth gradient has lost its fidelity and detail in the last pic. Instead of a seamless gradient, the image is broken into bands of over saturation.

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

viridis — Mon, 15 Sep 2014 02:03:50 GMT

Soft bricked at copying over some settings ui stuff lol.
Will recover backed up image and try,try,try again.

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

MI5 — Mon, 15 Sep 2014 07:56:06 GMT

We've all been there before

Re: Xperia Z3, The (kind of) guided tour.

Toby — Mon, 15 Sep 2014 08:32:58 GMT

Very nice review viridis!

I'll see if I can acquire some for Try the Tech