Apple iPhone 6 vs Sony Xperia Z3

Introduction

It's time for us to clash the 4.7” iPhone 6 with Sony's flagship for the season – the 5.2” Xperia Z3. Sony's phone has a bunch of tricks up its sleeve that will help it against the popularity of the iPhone line, like a waterproof chassis, 20 MP camera, and stereo speakers, so let's brawl these two out, and see who comes out on top...

Design

Strutting premium thin chassis, the iPhone 6 and Z3 are some of the best-looking devices on the market, and Sony's phone is waterproof at that.

The Xperia Z3 is not a small phone for its 5.2” screen diagonal, especially when you compare it with some screen-to-phone size champs at the same display size. This is due to the fairly wide top and bottom bezels, which holds true for the iPhone 6 as well, but since it has a smaller screen, the iPhone 6 is still much easier to use with one hand, against the Z3. Those comparatively wide bezels on both handsets are there for a reason, though – in the case of the Z3 they house waterproof stereo speakers, while the iPhone 6 flaunts a state-of-the-art fingerprint sensor in the circular home key underneath the display. The two phones are both rather razor-thin and pretty light, though, which helps acknowledging them as elegant, despite the unimpressive screen-to-phone ratios.

The iPhone has a finely crafted, premium metal design, but Sony's creation, with its rounded corners and glass chassis, is a looker, too, plus it sports a high IP68 waterproof rating.

Looking around the sides, we find the signature OmniBalance design circular power/lock key at the right of the Z3, which is a bit wobbly, and requires you to bend your thumb to feel and press, while the lock key on the iPhone 6 is placed comfortably right under the tip of your thumb. The Z3 has a lot more going on at the right side, as you can find the somewhat too thin volume rocker there, the microSIM and microSD slots, and the dedicated two-stage camera shutter key. Both the card slots, and the microUSB port on the left are covered with protective flaps, ensuring the waterproof chassis, and if you are too tired to pry them off for charging the phone, there is a magnetic connector on the left of Sony's phone for USB charging with a separate cable.

Looking at the premium glass or aluminum backs, what we don't like on both handsets is the camera placement in the upper left corner, as it is too near the edge, and very easy to cover with your finger when filming.

Displays

Marred by decrepit color presentation compared to the iPhone 6, the Z3 screen makes it up with size and resolution.

The iPhone 6 has a 4.7” panel with 750 x 1334 pixels resolution, which returns a lower, 326ppi pixel density, compared to the Z3's 5.2 inch panel at 1080 x 1920 pixels and excellent 424ppi. Still, the pixel density on both displays is more than enough for any need, and small text, as well as tiny details look sharp and discernible.

Here the iPhone beats it – its colors are very accurate, while the Xperia Z3 not only has most of the colors out of whack, but its screen is very cold, too. Sony clarified that it actually did this on purpose, as the trend for TV screens is now colder whites, which are recognized as brighter by the brain, compared to the natural-looking ones. Be that as it may, we'd prefer to go shoe-shopping on the iPhone, rather than the Z3. Granted, you can adjust the white balance of the Z3 panel from the display settings, done by boosting the intensity of the three basic colors, which looks a bit artificial.

On the other hand, Sony's Z3 display tech allowed it to achieve more than 700 nits of brightness in our measurements, which also results in better outdoor visibility than the iPhone 6. In addition, the new LED backlighting is even more power-efficient than before. Combined with the “memory on display” tech, which doesn't use graphics processing power for refresh when displaying static images, the Z3 screen allows for some record battery life in the category, color-credible or not, but more on that later.

As for viewing angles, since we have quality LCD panels, both handsets are showcasing well here, with a slight advantage for the iPhone 6. Sony's 5.2” display can also be operated with gloves on in a super-sensitive mode, which could come in handy during the winter months.