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Screen, design and PS4 Remote Play
Sony's latest flagship handset, the Xperia Z3, is here and not only is it an excellent smartphone, but it also launched alongside the Xperia Z3 Compact, a scaled down variant that packs almost the same level of power into its smaller frame.
The Xperia Z3 Compact shows Sony is serious about compact handsets because despite its smaller stature and lower price, the Z3 Compact doesn't make too many compromises, which means choosing between the two isn't quite as straightforward as it first appears - is cost important?
What will you lose by downsizing? Don't worry though - we've put them to the test and decided which is worth your hard-earned dollarpound.
Screen
The biggest difference between the Sony Xperia Z3 and the Z3 Compact is the screens of the two devices. The Xperia Z3 rocks a 5.2-inch full 1080p display, giving the Z3 an impressively sharp and vibrant pixel density of 424ppi (pixels per inch).
Despite its name, the Z3 Compact isn't exactly small with a 4.6-inch screen - still a very reasonable size (especially if you're coming from an iPhone), although the resolution takes a hit along with the smaller dimensions, with a 720 x 1280 display, leading to pixel density of 319ppi.
The lower density means that the image quality isn't quite as sharp as the Z3, but that really doesn't mean the screen is terrible to look at.
-420-90.JPG "Despite the difference in size, both screens are bright and vibrant")
Actually, Sony made the right choice about going for a lower resolution with the Z3 Compact. When browsing websites graphics and text are displayed well, and if the resolution had been any higher on the smaller screen it might have made it a little too uncomfortable to read.
One thing I did notice when placing the Xperia Z3 and the Z3 Compact side by side was that with images and webpages with white backgrounds, the Z3 Compact has a slightly blue hue, giving a cooler (in the temperature sense) look, where the Z3 has a more accurate white level.
Overall, if you're going to be doing a lot of gaming, watching movies and browsing the internet, then you'll appreciate the Z3's larger size and higher resolution, but if you don't fancy the large 5.2-inch display, the Z3 Compact's screen still does a very decent job.
PS4 Remote Play
One of the most interesting features of the Sony Xperia Z3 is PS4 Remote Play, so it's good to see that Sony has seen fit to include it with the Xperia Z3 Compact as well.
This feature allows PlayStation 4 owners to stream games from the console to the Z3 or Z3 Compact via their home network, and if that feature sounds good on paper, the good news is that it works very well in practice on both smartphones.
Because the process basically uses the PS4 Remote Play app to stream the game content, similar to how the Netflix app streams movies, the differences in hardware between the Z3 and the Z3 Compact do not affect remote play.
Instead, the only difference between the two handsets boils down to the screen; if you want to stream PS4 games in full 1080p resolution on a larger screen, then the Z3 is the clear winner.
That doesn't mean that games streamed to the 720p screen don't look impressive, and if you go for the Z3 Compact you'll still get a very good Remote Play experience, but for wow factor alone I have to hand it to the Z3.
Ruggedness
As with previous products in the flagship Xperia Z range, both the Xperia Z3 and the Xperia Z3 Compact are rated at IP65, meaning that as long as all the flaps cover the various ports of the devices, they are dust tight and protected from " low-pressure jets of water from all practicable directions", which is good news if you accidentally wander into a car wash.
-420-90.JPG "Both the Z3 and the Z3 Compact are dust and waterproof")
Both handsets are IP68 rated as well so they can be kept under 1.5m of fresh water for up to 30 minutes.
Having that level of robustness on an expensive flagship device such as the Z3 is great, especially when it doesn't affect the stylish aesthetics either, and the fact that Sony has brought the same level of protection to the cheaper Z3 Compact is also commendable.
This means that if you're just after a water and dust-proof smartphone and little else, the Z3 Compact is an excellent choice as it offers a cheaper cost but is no less rugged.
Sony Xperia Z3 vs Xperia Z3 Compact: Design
The Xperia Z3 and Z3 Compact both sport similar forms, but underneath that the biggest differences between the handsets can be found.
Both phones feature what Sony calls its OmniBalance design, which is supposed to make the handsets look good no matter what angle you're looking at them from, as well as feeling comfortable to use whichever way you hold them or what tasks you're performing.
Because of the smaller size and lighter weight of the Z3 Compact (which I'll talk about more in a bit), OmniBalance works best with the smaller smartphone.
It really does feel comfortable in the hand as you use it to make phone calls, play games, take photos and more.
The larger and heavier Z3 by contrast isn't quite as comfortable to hold, especially if you have smaller hands, leaving the handset feeling less versatile than its smaller sibling.
-420-90.JPG "Covers keep both handsets waterproof without sacrificing aesthetics")
This leads me on to the biggest differentiator between the Xperia Z3 and the Xperia Z3 Compact: size and weight.
The big 5.2-inch screen of the Z3 necessitates a similarly large body, with dimensions of 146 x 72 x 7.3 mm and a weight of 152g, meanwhile the Z3 Compact's dimensions are a fair bit smaller at 127 x 64.9 x 8.6 mm with a weight of 129g.
This means there's a pretty stark difference between the two handsets, and it's one that could help you make up your mind when choosing which handset to go for.
Elsewhere the design of the two handsets is very similar, with both sporting glass backs and fronts and plastic sides that give the phones a bit of extra protection when dropped, which means both are very good looking devices.
-420-90.JPG "Both handsets share similar designs")
There's no doubt that the 5.2-inch screen of the Z3 is lovely, but it makes the whole phone rather large with some parts of the screen difficult to reach if you're using it one handed, and the extra size and heft of the handset will certainly not go unnoticed, especially if you carry your smartphone in your pocket.
The Z3 Compact has no such issues so if you're after a phone that's powerful yet small enough to carry around with you and use one handed, then the Z3 Compact is definitely the handset to go for.
Performance, battery, camera and verdict
Interface and performance
Both the Xperia Z3 and the Xperia Z3 Compact come with Android 4.4 installed with a tweaked interface that doesn't bring any huge differences or innovations to the stock Android experience, but adds a few Sony-centric themes, icons and apps.
Because of this the initial experience is remarkably similar on both handsets, although the user interface has been scaled up for the Z3, but thanks to the increased screen resolution everything looks clear and sharp.
-420-90.JPG "Both handsets run Android with Sony's custom interface")
On the smaller screen the interface looks good and works pretty decently as well, so again it really depends on your preference for screen size.
The slightly beefed up specs of the Xperia Z3 means that Android 4.4 still feels as smooth as on the Xperia Z3 Compact, despite the more demanding higher resolution screen.
An important thing to note, however, is that while both smartphones offer the same positive experiences of Android 4.4 with the custom Sony interface, it means they also share some of the negatives as well, with apps on both phones sometimes crashing and becoming unresponsive.
This is particularly evident when you try to film in 4K video on either handset, as both devices quickly overheat, causing the Camera app to stop working.
Sony has confirmed that the Xperia Z3 will be updated to Android 5.0 Lollipop sometime in February 2015, and although we don't have a date for when the Z3 Compact is being updated to the latest version of Google's mobile operating system, Sony has promised that it will be updating the smaller handset to Android 5.0 Lollipop as well.
For the most part Sony has done a commendable job of keeping the hardware specifications between the Z3 and Z3 Compact pretty equal.
While other companies often cut the specs as well as the size when they bring out a compact version of a flagship smartphone (just compare the HTC One Mini 2's specifications to the larger HTC One M8), Sony has stuck a lot of the premium hardware found in the Z3 in the Z3 Compact.
The Xperia Z3 and the Z3 Compact share the same Snapdragon 801 chipset with Adreno 330 GPU and 16GB of internal storage (although the Z3 can also come with 32GB).
Due to the similarity in specifications the results of the Geekbench 3 benchmark tests we ran on the handsets were also pretty close, with the Xperia Z3 scoring 2737 and the Z3 Compact netting 2798.
While the Z3 Compact has a respectable 2GB of RAM, the Xperia Z3 boosts this to 3GB to help keep Android running smoothly on the higher resolution screen.
The fact that the same Adreno 330 GPU is featured in both handsets means that gameplay can feel slightly smoother on the Z3 Compact, where the graphics processing unit is only displaying 720p graphics.
When running at 1080p resolution on the Z3, the Adreno 330 GPU can struggle, but that said, graphics look superior on the full size Z3, so you may find a slight hit on frame rates is a worthwhile sacrifice.
Battery
With the bigger body of the Xperia Z3 it's little surprise that Sony has seen fit to include a larger battery, with a capacity of 3100 mAh, compared to the Z3 Compact's 2600 mAh.
Although on paper the Z3 should have a markedly increased battery life, in reality a lot of the benefit from the larger capacity is negated by the additional power it takes to display content on the larger higher resolution screen.
In our battery test, where we have a high definition video playing full brightness, the Xperia Z3 Compact's battery dropped by 23% down to 77% after 90 minutes. During the exact same test the Xperia Z3 actually did worse despite its larger capacity, dropping 31%, leaving just 69% of the battery left.
This clearly demonstrates that the larger 1080p screen comes at a cost to battery life, so if you're not too bothered about full high definition graphics and videos and value a longer lasting handset, then the Xperia Z3 Compact is the smartphone to go for.
In day to day use both handsets can go around a day and a half on battery life, though less if you're an avid game player, or web surfer. They also come with the same power saving settings as well which can help you eke out a few more hours away from a power socket.
If you rely heavily on your phone and go for long periods of time between being able to charge the device, then the fact that the Xperia Z3 Compact is better at holding on to its battery life is definitely worth consideration.
If you're never too far from a charge point or power socket, then this won't be such an issue, though you'll find yourself waiting a bit longer as the Z3 refills its bigger battery.
Camera
Sony has plenty of experience thanks to its camera division, so it's not surprising to see some pretty impressive technology here including 20.7 megapixel resolution, an Exmor RS sensor, a Bionz processor and G Lens technology.
It's once again great to see that Sony has included the same snapper in both handsets, rather than cutting down the Z3 Compact's capabilities and this means that both devices also benefit from an improved high level ISO mode for better photos in low light conditions.
They also both have access to the various settings of Sony's camera app such as timeshift slow motion, live YouTube streaming and augmented reality effects.
As you would expect photographs taken on both the Xperia Z3 and Xperia Z3 Compact look identical thanks to the shared hardware, so no matter which handset you choose, you'll be happy with the photographs.
However it also means that both handsets fall down pretty much identically when it comes to shooting 4K video. Both handsets offer the feature, and both handsets manage to overheat and crash when taking 4K video that's longer than a minute or so.
Because of the more compact build the Z3 Compact is slightly more prone to over heating, but it's a sad – and inexcusable considering the price of the handsets – fact for both devices.
With the smaller build the Xperia Z3 Compact is worth considering for photos alone, as it makes it easier to carry around and whip out when inspiration strikes, while the larger body and higher price of the Z3 doesn't bring any benefits to budding photographers.
Calling, messaging and internet
Due to the similarity in software and hardware between the Xperia Z3 and Xperia Z3 Compact, both devices handle the essentials pretty similarly, though the size difference between the two does result in some differentiation.
For example calls are handled pretty much the same, with the devices sharing the various sound quality and EQ settings that Sony has included.
However I found that voice calls were slightly easier to hear on the Z3 Compact due to the smaller handset, which has resulted in a shorter distance between the speaker and the microphone.
The larger Z3 has the speaker and the microphone further way from each other, which sometimes results in people you call not hearing you terribly well, as the microphone is slightly further from your mouth.
Conversely, the bigger screen of the Z3 makes typing text and instant messages easier, as the keyboard's larger keys are easier to hit correctly, so there's fewer mistakes when you're frantically typing.
Both handsets covers the basics well, though if you want the best voice call quality the Z3 Compact is slightly better, but if text messaging and instant messages are more your thing then the Z3's larger screen will make your life easier.
Price
Price is another big difference between the Xperia Z3 and the Xperia Z3 Compact. You can get a sim-free Xperia Z3 for £437 ($590, AU$849) – a price tag that's very much in the premium range. Now that the handset has been out for a while you're also able to get it free with a new mobile network contract for around £38.50 per month.
The Xperia Z3 Compact can be had for a fair bit cheaper, at around £362 ($468, AU$699), with monthly contracts of £34 a month.
The fact that the Xperia Z3 Compact is almost £100 cheaper, and yet still comes with most of the features of the Xperia Z3 means that it is by far the most tempting of handsets between the two.
The Z3's higher price tag gets you a larger screen, higher resolution and slightly more RAM, so if those are important to you then the extra money will probably be well spent.
However if you can live without those extra features we'd recommend going for the Xperia Z3 Compact and saving your money without encountering too many compromises.
Verdict
The fact that Sony has done such a good job of keeping the Xperia Z3 and the Xperia Z3 Compact so similar in features and hardware means that when deciding which one to go for you can confidently look at the big differences between to the two to help make up your mind.
If you're a big fan of watching movies and playing games on your smartphone, then the Z3 with it's 5.2-inch screen and bright and vibrant 1080p resolution should definitely be considered, and once you see the screen in person you certainly won't be disappointed.
-420-90.JPG "The Xperia Z3 and the Xperia Z3 Compact are both very good smartphones")
The larger display also helps if you like typing with two hands, as the enlarged keyboard can be used comfortably.
However if the thought of such a large smartphone already weighs your pocket down in anticipation, then the more modest size of the Xperia Z3 Compact should be to your liking. It's certainly not a tiny phone, but compared to the Z3 it is a lot more comfortable to carry around.
The lower price is also a big selling point of the Z3 Compact and could well be the deciding factor for many people, so the good news is that despite the lower price tag the Z3 Compact comes with plenty of the Z3's features including the 20.7 megapixel camera, fast processor and PS4 Remote Play.
It essentially boils down to if you want a compact yet powerful smartphone, go for the Z3 Compact, but if you want a big, vibrant screen for media and you don't mind shelling out a bit more, the Z3 is the handset for you.
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