Sony Xperia E dual Review

Introduction:

The Sony Xperia E dual is the thrifty Scotsman's dream phone come true – cheap, versatile, and able to work with two SIM cards simultaneously. That latter feature allows one to take advantage of two carriers' deals from a single device, or have two separate phone numbers – one for business and one for personal matters. At the same time, the Xperia E dual provides access to Google Play's vast library of Android applications. It also has acceptable hardware specs, such as a 3.5-inch screen, 1GHz processor, and a 3.2MP camera, so all the basic necessities seem to be covered. But is it any good for what it costs? Well, let's find out!

The box contains:

• Wired stereo earphones (model MH401C)
• microUSB cable
• Wall charger
• Quick start guide and FCC statement

Design:

We have to give credit to Sony for making the Xperia E dual visually appealing. Okay, it surely isn't going to win any design contests, especially when it's made out of squeaky plastic, but for an entry-level smartphone, the device actually looks quite nice. The handset's back side is curved inwards, which makes it easy to handle and operate, while the texture adds character and additional grip. The unit itself is 11 millimeters thick, which is within the acceptable norms.



You can compare the Sony Xperia E dual with many other phones using our Size Visualization Tool.

A nice addition to the Sony Xperia E dual is the embedded notification light on the bottom. It is of the RGB kind so it glows in a different color depending on the type of pending notification.

Underneath the smartphone's screen we see three capacitive Android buttons – well spaced so that one can't press them by accident. On the right side of the device reside all its physical buttons – a volume rocker, lock key in the middle, and a camera shutter. Our only complaint about them is that the volume rocker is likely to be too small for some users.


Display:

Sony has outfitted the Xperia E dual with a small, low-quality screen that may be passable, but fails to impress us in any way. It measures 3.5 inches in diagonal and has a resolution of 320 by 480 pixels. Punching these numbers into a calculator gives us a poor figure of only 165ppi, which explains why graphics are rough around the edges and why text looks jagged. The color depth and viewing angles are also mediocre.

When using the Sony Xperia E dual outdoors, you'll want to have its screen brightness turned up to the maximum. Otherwise, it is simply unusable as its surface reflects too much light. Too bad that a light sensor isn't present so you'll have to adjust the screen brightness manually.