Sony Xperia C Review

Call quality

We were pleasantly surprised by the Xperia C, as calls were clear, realistic and loud. Better still – this held true for both sides.

If you're looking for that extra bit of audio oomph, you could activate Sony's ClearPhase feature, which tones down volume slightly in exchange for quality, though we can't say we saw a stark improvement.

All in all, the Xperia C hits the nail on the head in this particular department, just as it should.

Battery

Battery life on the Xperia C is simply outstanding -- it's the current king of the hill in our battery benchmark test, and that's for three main reasons. For starters, the qHD resolution screen is relatively easy on the processor, which in turn is pretty frugal with power consumption, thanks to its efficient Cortex-A7 cores. Finally, the non-removable 2390mAh cell may not be the biggest you've heard of, yet it's proven to be exceptionally large for the needs of the Xperia C.

In other words, expect two days of usage on a single charge, even three if you go easy on Sony's marathoner.

Conclusion

We've always stood firmly behind the idea that any smartphone should be viewed as a package, and not simply as the cumulative score of each individual piece of hardware and software inside. This is especially true for budget-friendly devices like the Xperia C, as no manufacturer has really managed to offer a no-compromise device just yet. But we must be getting closer, as even Sony, with its traditionally expensive products, is now rising to the challenge. Of course, considering that the Xperia C was created with Asia and the Middle East and Africa in mind, we do have to note that its price of about $230 (¥1388) is on the higher end of the budget spectrum. This means that local superstars, like Xiaomi and ZTE, have their phones going for considerably less – about $130 (¥799) for both the dual-SIM Xiaomi HongMi and ZTE v967s, for example. Both of these sport a better, 720p screen, and the former even runs a better chipset and a comparable shooter. All said, you still get an all-round great bundle with Xperia C, and one worthy of bearing the Sony logo on its back.

So in conclusion, we actually enjoyed fondling with the Sony Xperia C, and that speaks volumes on its own. Individual things, like the display, could have been better, yet at the end of the day, they felt perfectly adequate.