Sony has announced a massive overhaul to its Xperia line, adding new smartphones and more.
Sony has brought two new handsets to the line-up; the Xperia X and the Xperia XA.
The Xperia X is a mid-range handset featuring Qualcomms Snapdragon 650 processor; a chip that sits right in the middle on performance benchmarks. The device has a curved glass display and rounded frame that is a stark design change from the current monolithic Xperia aesthetics. The XA takes this a step further, with an edge-to-edge display that appears almost bezel-less.
It features an all-new Predictive Hybrid Autofocus, developed in close collaboration with Sony’s Alpha camera engineers, that lets the user predictively capture action before it’s happened to avoid blur in fast moving shots. The battery features new technology brought across by Qnovo, which allows the cells to charge much more dynamically, avoiding damage and prolonging the life of the battery by “up to twice as much”.
Not content with just announcing smartphones, the company also added a plethora of new accessories to its range; with a camera, earpiece and projector joining the Xperia family.
The Xperia Eye joins what other companies have already shown this year, a 360 degree camera that can be worn much like a GoPro and used while on the move. The device integrates facial and voice detection to allow hands-free capturing of images, allowing users to worry less about the selfie and more about the perilous mountain they may be trying to scale while wearing one.
Xperia Ear is essentially Google Glass minus the glass; a wireless ear-piece that provides you with information such as your schedule, weather and the latest news while on the move. Rated as IPX2, it should be able to withstand a bit of rain here in the UK, though you can’t exactly go swimming in it. One of the nifty things about the Xperia Ear is that the case doubles as a charging bay, so you can essentially charge the thing while you have it in your pocket. If you’re rocking a powerbank, it could be a convenient and less messy way of juicing things up. You can ask it the usual things such as making a call, performing an internet search, dictating a message or navigating to a certain location. The device connects to your phone via both NFC and Bluetooth but you’ll need the application installed to use it. Battery life is rated at one day at normal use and it’s available in Graphite Black from summer 2016.
The Xperia Projector is perhaps the most interesting of the bunch, allowing users to control the device with touch, voice and hand gestures just as you would with your regular smartphone screen. It will project onto any surface, clear or otherwise and offer some form of interaction.
Lastly, and not to be outdone in the personal assistant field, Sony has announced their own version of Siri, Google Now and Cortana… Dubbed the “Xperia Agent”. There’s a catch though, as Xperia Agent is an actual physical unit that can be added to your current smarthome setup. Powered by Sony’s voice technology, it can respond to a number of commands and has a built-in camera and projector display for projecting content onto surfaces. Billed as a “vision for a personalised assistant”, it responds to voice and gestures much like any other, providing the user with relevant information, communication assistance and home appliance controls.
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