Sony Mobile could hit the wall soon

"El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First!" (lightningzone) 02/01/2015 at 15:25 • Filed to: None

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Despite having a clear brand strategy, good products and a core lineup, that's less cluttered than the lineups of other Android OEM's, Sony's mobile division is burning cash faster than MC Hammer with a limitless AmEx black card.

Unfortunately for them, all that spending isn't putting the Xperia brand on the third place in the global phone sales race right after Samsung and Apple, but they're being beaten by LG, HTC, Microsoft and Xiaomi(aka attack of the clones phone maker).

Now Sony is looking for a solution to this problem, and is considering merging the mobile division into a joint venture with another company(kinda strange since just a few years ago Sony pushed Ericsson out of Sony Ericsson) or selling the lot.

Some rumors were talking about a rival Japanese company, that's less relevant on the global phone scene, wanting to buy Xperia and use it. So Panasonic Xperia? Toshiba Xperia? Sharp Xperia?

What should be happening to Xperia in your opinion?

And if you want to by a Sony phone, the upcoming "4" line, could be one of the best/last chances to get one.

V8soundRIOT- Now Has a V8 > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 02/01/2015 at 15:29

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Apparently they will be building the next-generation of Nexus phones .

Shady Balkan Subject, Drives an Alfa > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 02/01/2015 at 15:30

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Sadly Xperias, even if good phones when it comes to specs, with a nice price tag, are plagued by unreliability. The hardware fail just too fast. I just don't have a friend that owned an Xperia that didn't go kaput in less than 2 years. Form top of the line to entry level, they just fail too fast. Sony Ericsson was the brand to go before the whole smartphone crazy, but now they are just there, one of the many Sony failings.

Now I will go shed a tear for my favorite phone ever the K800i(a Bond phone, nonetheless).

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > V8soundRIOT- Now Has a V8 02/01/2015 at 15:32

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My last 3 phones were from Sony, but I never been a fan of those Nexus thingies.

KirkyV > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 02/01/2015 at 15:37

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I like the look of the Z3 Compact, particularly in red, but I kinda swore off skinned android phones a few years ago—it's been Nexii ever since. I'd get one, if I were in the market for a new phone and it didn't have a skin. As is, I'll probably end up with something from Motorola when it's time to upgrade; they're pretty much the only people making non-giant mostly-stock Android phones these days.

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > Shady Balkan Subject, Drives an Alfa 02/01/2015 at 15:38

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I had no trouble with a Sony phone(but I never kept one more than two years because that's the average length of my mobile contracts), the Samsung I had before I switched to Sony was crashing like crazy(and wasn't waterproof).

Shady Balkan Subject, Drives an Alfa > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 02/01/2015 at 15:45

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I don't like Samsungs and all of family's Samsungs were also plaugued by problems, albeit they were all entry to medium specs. I am more or less an HTC fanboy, even if they also have annoying problems.

A girlfriend of mine had an Xperia Z, which was unusable after only 8 months(crashes, freezing, unable to call, random calls or the funniest of all, taking pictures at random, at night) and she didn't even used it for more than talking, Facebook and Viber.

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > KirkyV 02/01/2015 at 15:48

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But the Sony skin is quite nice.

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > V8soundRIOT- Now Has a V8 02/01/2015 at 15:55

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Also, that design isn't really fitting the rest of the Xperia lineup.

It is looking a bit like the rumored/leaked Xperia E4, to be honest.

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > Shady Balkan Subject, Drives an Alfa 02/01/2015 at 15:59

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You know that mobile phones can also get viruses, right? That sounds like a bad case of virus, and it isn't a manufacturer's fault if you you download/open infected stuff.

KirkyV > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 02/01/2015 at 16:00

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It's not as bad as a lot of them - TouchWiz is probably the worst - but I'm still not what you'd call a fan. I quite like prompt updates, too.

Shady Balkan Subject, Drives an Alfa > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 02/01/2015 at 16:28

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I know and scanned everything with Avast, but nothing was found and as I said, she didn't even use the net for nothing more than Viber and the occasional FB post and no files where downloaded, so it was either the Android bugging out as hell or the hardware.

Ann Hiro > Shady Balkan Subject, Drives an Alfa 02/01/2015 at 16:43

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Gotta love anecdotes. I have an Xperia S that's still trucking, and several members of my family are rocking even older models.

That said, they do suck when it comes to updates for their phones, at least as far as my ol' Xperia S is concerned.

SonorousSpeedJoe > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 02/01/2015 at 16:48

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I suppose having a bigger presence in the four major carriers' physical stores would help - there isn't much beyond Verizon's Z3v and T-Mobile's Z3, IIRC.

I don't really know how to make their marketing more effective, especially when they're going up against Xiaomi's hunger marketing and at-cost prices - all of the other manufacturers are having a hard time with those tactics, too. Since the Z3 apparently has a great camera (though I've heard that it has a problem with adding a red tinge to photos), maybe they could make a rival for HTC's Desire EYE. Playing up the Z3 Compact's battery life could help, too.

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > Shady Balkan Subject, Drives an Alfa 02/01/2015 at 17:04

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Maybe it was something wrong with that specific model, because I had a Z(right after I had a Xperia S and before the Z3 I have now). It worked perfectly for 2 years, and I bet it still works if I take the time to look for it.

I got a purple Xperia M for my little cousin, for her birthday last year, and she still had it this year. And trust me, that girl is a total klutz.

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > SonorousSpeedJoe 02/01/2015 at 17:44

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M&M2 were nice mid range phones. And there's a M2 Aqua coming soon, that will bring waterproofing to the mid range segment.

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > SonorousSpeedJoe 02/01/2015 at 17:50

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As for selfies, the Xperia C has you covered.

SonorousSpeedJoe > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 02/01/2015 at 18:07

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I see.

There's also the product cycle - their plan is for the flagship Xperia Z line to get two new iterations per year, right? I think it might be best to keep it to one-per-year to maintain enough of a difference between the Z4 and Z5 - I feel that the current strategy would encourage consumers to hold out for the Z5 when the Z4 comes out or go for the Z4 (which could be mostly the same and less expensive) when the Z5 comes out.

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > SonorousSpeedJoe 02/01/2015 at 18:21

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If they keep losing money, it may not be a Z5.

I also believe carriers have a problem with Sony and with the fact that Sony isn't offering giant incentives like HTC or Xiaomi is doing.

moonlightit > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 02/01/2015 at 18:55

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and thats quite a shame to hear, because im a Z2 owner and I'm quite disappointed it does not get the recognition it deserves, its miles ahead of any Galaxy Phone, people do really go for the crappiest of the crap thats best advertised (the iPhone and the Galaxy S series)

El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! > moonlightit 02/01/2015 at 19:14

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I don't care what people think about my stuff. I only care about what I think about my stuff.

moonlightit > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 02/01/2015 at 22:28

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Im not implying I wish people would own more Z2s cause I think its undeserving

But really its a better product OVERALL, better build quality, less obnoxious UI skin, more features, if theres one thing in it i can complain about is the camera thats sometimes sub-par. but other than that?

its miles ahead of any Galaxy phone I owned or NExus or HTC, and definetly wayyyy better than any iPhone.

Shady Balkan Subject, Drives an Alfa > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 02/02/2015 at 09:30

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Actually thinking about it, I will say the problem is, for where they are made. I live in eastern Europe so we get lower quality of everything with a higher price tag.

chickenfeed > El Relámpago(LZone) - Humanity First! 02/02/2015 at 15:54

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That's a shame because the Xperia line is top notch.

chickenfeed > KirkyV 02/02/2015 at 15:58

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I've got one in white. It really is a great phone. The skin is just that btw. All they seem to have done is make Android look a bit more Sonyish. That's it. Also, it had been quite some time since any ohone of mine went 3 days between charges.