XPERIA X1 vs iPhone: spend now or save?




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Vincent was lucky enough to score some hands-on time with the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 in Barcelona this morning, and of course being our resident iPhone addict had his trusty Apple cellphone to slap down and snap some comparison shots. But how does the X1 really compare against the iPhone; it’s the comparison many will be making over the coming months.

Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 vs Apple iPhone

Check out the full gallery of XPERIA X1 vs iPhone photos after the cut!

XPERIA X1 vs iPhone

In terms of pure hardware and cellular connectivity, the X1 does rather outshine the iPhone. Sony Ericsson have packed an ARM-based Qualcomm chipset running at 520MHz into their handset; now while Apple chose a CPU capable of 667MHz, so far it’s throttled back to around 500MHz to save power. If they’re roughly equal on raw grunt, it’s high-speed data access where the XPERIA X1 shines: both have WiFI, but the Sony Ericsson’s HSDPA/HSUPA easily outguns the iPhone’s EDGE connection. The X1’s WVGA 800 x 480 display is physically smaller, at 3-inches, than the iPhone’s 3.5-inch screen, but the Apple phone only manages 320 x 480 resolution.

Apple do beat the X1 on internal memory, though; out of the box the XPERIA only has 400MB, expanded via microSD card, whereas the iPhone is available in 8GB or 16GB sizes (though the memory cannot be added to via a memory card). GPS on the X1 is another point in Sony Ericsson’s favour, as is the hardware keyboard (although it does make the XPERIA 5mm thicker than the iPhone: 110 x 53 x 16.7mm for the X1, 115 x 61 x 11.6mm for the iPhone.

What will likely make the biggest difference is the software environment. Time – and sales – have shown that Apple’s intuitive and attractive mobile OS X is enough to persuade users to look beyond the shortcomings of EDGE; it’s a reputation for usability Windows Mobile would love to have. Sony Ericsson are obviously hoping that their XPERIA Panel Interface – a group of finger-friendly shortcut tiles and menus – will gloss over WM’s shortcomings, leaving us to revel in all those third-party apps (that don’t require handset hacking to install) and true push-email, but we’ll have to wait for Vincent’s hands-on video to see just how much they’ve achieved that.

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71 Responses to “XPERIA X1 vs iPhone: spend now or save?”

  1. Surur says:

    Plus the camera is 3.2 megapixel vs the iphone’s 2 megapixel, and has autofocus vs none on the iphone, plus does 30 fps VGA video, vs none on the iphone.

    Not to mention a 3.5 mm headphone jack you dont need an adaptor for. Or how about using standard mini-USB to charge?

    With Opera Mobile 9.5 this device will really rock. Its going to cost more than the iPhone off course, but unlike the iPhone it will be worth every penny.

  2. gurv says:

    I think you should also mention the 3.2mp camera on the Xperia and video calling.

  3. RooV says:

    who cares about video and bigger camera if u have no space to save it on? how much uregonna get like 100 pics? or 10 min of video?

    Thanks a lot

  4. slosh says:

    i havent found any info if this phone is going to have Instant messaging capabilities. does anyone know any info on that?

  5. Gili says:

    RooV – If you had read properly you would see that it has a MicroSD slot. So, that means you can get up to 12GB of storage at one time, not to mention, that you can store photos on multiple cards!

  6. Struan says:

    This phone will definitely have instant messaging if it’s running WM. It’s gonna be awesome.

  7. Diego says:

    I think if they make a second iphone version with hdspa soon xperia will have no change, but otherwise its probably going to be a big contender.
    Anyone else dislikes the triangle-shaped buttons?

  8. Sanchez says:

    What about the Xperia only haveing 65K colors vs iPhone’s 16m? Xperia with the higher resolution, but not enough color quality.

  9. BoyBawang says:

    iPhone has power saving Proximity and Ambient Light sensors. While Xperia don’t mention anything about it.

  10. sony ericsson says:

    any news on the price of Xperia???

  11. from Sony Ericsson says:

    X1 still in development, until released, it is a prototype, so that you cannot firmly ensure the right specification on it. If it has Windows Mobile 6.0 or a newer one you don’t know, about the main processor, the same thing… So all you can do is wait!

    x1 will surely be a strong enemy of iPhone!

  12. mark says:

    In answer to your question about IM, because it is based on Windows Mobile, you will have access to Live Messenger, Yahoo IM, Communicator Mobile or any other IM service available on Windows Mobile. The other item missing, real PUSH email from your exchange server!!!!

  13. SE says:

    for Sanchez: do you really think x1 has only 65k colour screen?? I think you should think first before saying such stupid things!!! if you don’t know, I explan you it is TFT screen so that it affords hight resolution with a hight number of colous…

    PS: Experts on the matter say that X1 internal memory will be reavaliated so that we can expect more…

  14. SE says:

    x1 has another great weapon for music lovers: it has stereo bluetooth, so it means that you can hear you music with wireless devises… great!

  15. SE says:

    forget the 3.5mm jack!

  16. Saam says:

    Don’t tell me that you really are comparing a true PDA-like cell phone with a toy like iPhone! Since X1 is going to run Windows, you can play almost everything on it, no need to convert, no need to spend more money and energy on a stupid ideas from Apple! besided huge amount of features which iPhone does not have any idea about them, just because it’s a toy.

    The only reason that Apple is successful is that most of the people don’t know what they’re talking about!

    Products like X1 are for intelligent people not for ordinary ones.

    All Apple products are nothing but toys which are just designed for stupid people who don’t know what a serious product is!

  17. applehater says:

    i have seen a picture of th x1 running on windows mobile 6.1

  18. Khurram Mirza says:

    I have an iPhone, where as I used to own WM PDAs before. It definitely is a pleasure to use it but lacks a lot of essential features. Worst are lack of Bluetooth connectivity, no video, cant see flash videos on Internet, clumsy grip, even 3rd party software are no match for office like features. Good points are the screen quality and interface and speed. I would like to to for X1 as it promises these two things as well.

  19. Khurram Mirza says:

    In addition there is no copy paste in iphone. You can take a snap shot of a whole page but cant select what you want. As far as X1 is concerned, i’d rather habe a model slightly thinner without a sliding QWERTY. Lets hope they make such a model.

  20. Brian Bawalan says:

    I haven`t really experience the power of this XPERIA thing but as far as I can see the sonyericsson X1 will be more on the track rather than the iPhone.

    Eventhough the iPhone gain more popularity in the public because of its unique style and approach and it is look like the brother of the iTouch also with its high type of memory used.

    By the way any news when will it be release in the philippines? where talking about the price?

  21. Luka says:

    How can you compare Xperia X1 with iPhone?!
    It’s like comparing it to Motorola RAZR!

    You should have compared it to other serious GSM/PDA hybrids from HTC or E-TEN… Before i saw this phone i wanted the Glofiish X800, but i decided to wait for this beauty :P

    I agree with Saam, iPhone is just a toy. And at first i was really surprised that Apple would release such a technologically crippled phone, but now i see that they did the right thing.
    People are stupid – if a commercial tells them this is a great phone, they believe it. And so they could put such a high price on a phone that is cheap to make, as it has no technologies of todays phones.

    Big (but low resolution) screen, and a lot of (only internal) memory and the crowd is shivering with excitement. Just like iPod – most other brands are better, but iPod just sounds cool :)

  22. Sam says:

    The XPERIA X1 and all other sony ericsson phones DONT use microSD cards they use memeory sticks. Ither a duo or in this case a micro (also known as an M2 card)

  23. Mike says:

    Actually on Engadget it also said that the XPERIA X1 would be using microSD, they were surprised that it wasn’t going to have Memory Stick either.

  24. Sanchez says:

    The X1 may be better than the iPhone, but Apple’s marketing will make sure that the iPhone will seem much more successful due to sales.

  25. Sanchez says:

    And SE, what’s with the attitude, bro? No need to call me stupid because you’re sexually frustrated.

  26. SanchezVS.SEXXX says:

    from our point of view,
    SE is a technical person who knows about technical stuff(s). He looks into the features of each phone based on “the phone” itself and not based on mere “hearsay” (eg. business dictations, emotional influence, trends, and the like).

    For Sanchez; although he knows some technical stuff(s), and able to compare the two phones based on that, he tends to see the “tip of the ice berg”. (dig deeper bro, more than 50% is under water). Maybe, Sanchez just bought an iPhone he has to protect. peace man!

    anyway, for us; application wise and hardware specs, X1 is deffinitely over iPhone!!!

    Note: it is from Sony.

    (group of engineers: ECE, COM.E, Software engineer, Systems engineer)

  27. n95 says:

    u guys dont even know whats good the nokia n95 came out earier than bothof these phones and kills them on the spot so no matter what u say the n95 kills them all till a new one comes out once again nokia rules

  28. Blazta says:

    WoRd…. Saam ;D

  29. archangel says:

    Dead STRIPS??? guys any ideas if xperia will have the same problem???? you know the bottom part of iphone not usable … many iphones have been returned due to this hardware issue (mine was not an excemption)… mannnn xperia looks hot!!! and the features are to die for …

  30. X1 v N95 says:

    I have a Nokia N95, and it’s a good phone, but I’ll probably upgrade to the X1. One the hardware side, the N95 has got a better camera, but other than that, I think the X1 is equal or better in just about every way, plus it isn’t so thick.

    On the software side, the N95 is crap. I used to have a cheaper Windows Mobile phone from HTC: it was boring, and the phone was lacking in features, but the software ‘just worked’. In contrast, the Symbian OS in the N95 is slow, and crashes all the time, especially if you do more than basic phoning and texting, just like the last Symbian phone I had.

    The UI on the N95 is also poorly designed compared to WM . I haven’t bothered to try an iPhone, since it’s too crippled to be interesting, but the UI does look good. The Xperia UI might be competitive with the iPhone UI, but even if it isn’t, the X1 is so much better in every other way (except slightly thicker, but then not so wide) that I’m not too bothered about that.

    If Apple release an iPhone with modern features, instead of an obsolete phone with a pretty UI, maybe I’ll look at it, but right now I think my next phone will be an X1. I’ve always liked Nokia hardware, but this Symbian crap is too buggy and poorly designed to compete with Windows Mobile, and probably with OS X too, so I can say my next phone definitely won’t be a Nokia. They make nice hardware, but really ought to dump Symbian, and use Windows Mobile or something else — anything else.

  31. RaXa says:

    Comparin Xperia X1 wid iPhone .. Ok .. what to cOmpare? Looks ?? Or Screen Resoloution? Or Screen Size?? That’sit ? what elSe that TOY (iPhone) Got? Even it’s bLuetooth of no Use .. China’s Copy Of iPhone is Better .. atLeast it’s bluetooth works.. lol .. these were the parts only to compare.. DIG MORE if u want to .. buh u’ll get nOthing..

    PeaCe!!!!

  32. hodari says:

    SAAM do not insult us. I use a MACBOOK PRO, windows etc and I started out on Apple IIe before MSDOS Version 1.0 was born. Apple does make good laptop hardware and the OS is very well designed. No OS is perfect neither Leopard nor VISTA and that goes for IPHONE as well. I would have bought the IPHONE but due to lack of a physical keyboard, I decided to stay away. I continue to use my TREO 680 and will wait for EXPERIA. I do not get emotional, rather I decided what is good for me and it may not necessarily be good for someone else. That is why we have different companies, different OS, different cars – it is called CHOICE!. Thanks

  33. Tough_GUY says:

    Guys let us be honest…
    Whether we like or not, iPhone has the most spectacular graphical user interface!
    Its slim design and wide screen provides a thrilling experience that outweighs any other phone in the market.
    HOWEVER, X1 proves to be the best phone ever due to its 3.2MP Camera, the ease of inputting data (esp. the QWERTY keyboard), windows mobile,…etc

    I have got the latest 16GB iPhone but definitely looking forward to turn into the Sony Xperia X1…In any case, yes iPhone proves to be a kind of a TOY..one that is somewhat is “feminine” in nature!!!

    Cheers

  34. Jack says:

    All I would say, Sony is stands behind their product, and they are a respectable electronic company.

  35. Shug says:

    “for Sanchez: do you really think x1 has only 65k colour screen?? I think you should think first before saying such stupid things!!! if you don’t know, I explan you it is TFT screen so that it affords hight resolution with a hight number of colous…

    PS: Experts on the matter say that X1 internal memory will be reavaliated so that we can expect more…”

    SE what a rude reply. According to most sites, well actually all of them so far including the sonyericsson site, the X1 has only got 65K colors compared to the P1i that has 256K colors and the apple iphone that has 16M. Can you clarify if you do believe that you know everything. By the way, YOU should think first before YOU say stupid things.

  36. seo pune says:

    whats the price difference?

  37. Ali says:

    Sam says:
    March 4th, 2008 at 11:24 pm
    The XPERIA X1 and all other sony ericsson phones DONT use microSD cards they use memeory sticks. Ither a duo or in this case a micro (also known as an M2 card)

    To Sam: This is actually not quite true… I used to own a SE K850i (code name Sophia) and it had slots for both Memory Stick Micro AND MicroSD, which is quite impressive… Before I bought a MicroSD card for it I called the SE technicians to ask if there were any difference in performance if using either of the types of Cards and I was assured that there wasn’t any difference and the technician agreed that it was smarter to buy MicroSD since it’s cheaber and offers more capacity…
    To SE:
    There is no reason at all to be rude in a discussion board cos then no one will be convinced by you and no one will take you seriously… I got my first Ericsson soon 10 years ago and have had more than 10 models since… Even though I definately think Xperia is way better than the iPhone (even though almost none of us have tried it yet!) but people are allowed to tell what they think without being insulted and everyone is allowed to make the choice they want without anybody else making fun of them or insulting them…

  38. Peregrine says:

    Sony? A respectable electronics company? Maybe back in the day. Since the PSP and the PS3, I have lost all, if any, respect I ever had for Sony. I don’t like their gaming products, I don’t like their phones, and their sound products are horrible. My Sennheiser headphones make anything made by Sony look like toys. I’ve yet to see a Sony a product that has any real life over 2 years. Everyone I know who has a Sony stereo, it no longer works and it sits in the corner collecting dust. They may look and operate nicely for a while, but they never last any longer then they are designed to.

    Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not bashing this particular phone, but anyone trying to compare it to an iphone… there just isn’t a comparison. The iPhone’s specs are fairly impressive, but no they aren’t the highest of high end. However, the size of the screen and the extremely intuitive and user friendly interface makes it a very comfortable mobile device. But thats the kicker. It’s a mobile device more than it is a phone. As a phone, it’s definitely not the best thing out there, and barebones it has relatively limited functionality and features. However, application support is what makes the iPhone incomparable to any other mobile device. There is no other device in the world that is having software developed at the same rate as the iPhone/iPod touch. The Appstore has changed the game entirely. If you don’t like paying for programs, there’s always Installer, which is essentially the same thing, but not legit. Not only that, but does the X1 have a 3-D accelerometer? Can you remotely access your desktop from an X1? Control advanced music or lighting software via wifi? How about check the security cameras at work, or dim the lights in your home?

    The iPhone is a mobile network device that just also happens to be a phone, whereas the X1, N95, etc are all phones first, and thus are better at being phones. The iPhone is unfortunately tagged too hard as a “toy” and people aren’t realizing the fact that it is currently the most powerful business tool in the world.

  39. Suresh says:

    “Peregrine says:
    August 27th, 2008 at 10:47 pm
    The iPhone is unfortunately tagged too hard as a “toy” and people aren’t realizing the fact that it is currently the most powerful business tool in the world.”

    hahahahahahaha what a comedy………….most powerful business tool

  40. Madison says:

    well the iphone is pretty awesome, then my brother told me about the xperia x1(He has an iphone) and i was in shock of how cool the design was. i looked at his iphone and said, “the only reason this thing is so popular because it’s made by apple and it is an amazing touch screen. between the two i will have to side with the X1 because its more of a phone rather than the iphone that has music, itunes, app store, safari, and all that other stuff that is morely a toy. the X1 has bluetooth that works well, amazing camera for a phone, and a qwerty keyboard.

    The Arc Slider will be awesome.

  41. Ashkan says:

    Hey, just got my Xperia X1, i think its a gr8 phone but the touch is kinda slow, some updates on the softwares and it will rock ! and yes iphone is just a toy.

  42. Ettam says:

    Everyone complaining about the memory, if you can afford the phone, i think you can afford a good memory card on 8GB, and then you have as much as the 8GB iPhone. I really don’t think you need 16GB anyway…

  43. sam. says:

    What site do you go on to but the phone?
    i cant seem to find it anywhere.

  44. Dean says:

    “Peregrine says:
    August 27th, 2008 at 10:47 pm
    Not only that, but does the X1 have a 3-D accelerometer? Can you remotely access your desktop from an X1? Control advanced music or lighting software via wifi? How about check the security cameras at work, or dim the lights in your home?…

    …people aren’t realizing the fact that it is currently the most powerful business tool in the world.”

    Must a phone have a accelerometer, and what practical use would it be for x1? Oh yes, let’s turn the phone to the right and use the keyboard upside down…

    I don’t see Iphone able to control music/lighting and securities camera’s so what’s your point in knocking Xperia.

    and it’s the most powerful business tool in the world??? It seems like you don’t crawl out of your hole much… Blackberry ring any bells???

  45. ThatFlashGuy says:

    Okay this Peregin guy is obviously a fanboy.

    I know the Iphone. Its a good apps phone and has good ipod/mp3 qualities but the camera, blutooh and functions doesnt impress me. Its a strong phone none the less. I cannot lie about that. Its very strong and it deserves praises for that but thats it. I use it a lot(i do not own it. Im merely on a samsung j706 until i get working and find a job so i could buy an X1. Im still in school but the X1 blows me away and i cant resist. 562mhz? You know how strong that is? Stronger than a ps2,psp,ds,gamecube,dreamcast and alot of decent computers that run single-core 200mhz. This beauty is strong. People are underestimating it. The only reason why Iphone is successful is because people go with crazes. Mainly teenagers. I am in that age group but seriously i look in shame. Almost everyone has an ipod because they think its cool. The only reason i’d get an ipod is for features which is why im looking at the 4g Ipod Nano but my Sansa e280 is fine for me right now. I hate this stupid same old song how sony is unreliable and lost their “shine”. What did they lose. AGAIN with the god damn crazes. Just because some people said the PSP and ps3 is stupid eveyone jumped on. I did the samething 2 years back. I looked from my errors and went prop ps3. Its an amazing system. Stupid crazes ruin good things. The ps3 has blutooth. SEVEN of them. No console ever had 7 controller ports!!!! Thats revolutionary. The new format: Blu-ray. Thats sony thinking forward. Wireless and Rechargables. Again. No other system had that as standard. The cell processor is so strong you can not even laugh. 7 cores x 3.2 = 22.4ghz. Thats super strong. Sony is always pushing forward and the Peregin guy is a big Fanboy. Apple brings out good products but they are over hyped. Why do i have to buy mic-enabled headphones for my ipod when it comes standard with my Sansa? Why do i have to wait 2 generations for video to show up on Nanos. Sansa did it in the 2nd gen ipod then apple replied a year later. Sony Walkmans are not bad products. They are cheap and quality assured. Now im sounding like a sony fanboy so i’ll lay back. Im also looking forward to the new Nokia N-Gage 2.0 enabled phones. Those will be good for gamers. Gamers go shoot out for those phones! Nokia and Sony Ericsson are the top phone manufacturers at the moment in my books. Both come out with revolutionary phones and amazing prices. Iphone is overpriced when you look at it.

    Can’t wait for Nokia 2.0 N-Gage Enable Phones
    Sony Xperia.

    Keep rockin on Nokia and Sony. You guys are super quality makers.
    Plus the Microsoft Mobile OS is looking SHARP nowadays. Makes me proud on purchasing these super phones. Apple should step its game up. Sony,Nokia,Samsung and LG are out to get Apple. And they’re gonna go down!!!

    Keep in mind i dont hate Apple.I just dont like overhyped stuff. Iphone=Great but too expensive with what your getting EVEN with the memory.

  46. Maddox says:

    I have an XPERIA X1 infront of me now, just been delivered. Its the best phone I have ever seen. I have played with the i phone and can safely say its knowhere near this thing.

  47. deepenigma says:

    This world is full of morons who don’t even know what they are talking about, I always see this same arguement about 65k or 256k colors against 16m, But all these wise guys don’t even know that on a mobile screen 65k or 256k or 16m does not make much difference. I have seen some phones by Se with 256k screen looking much much better than a nokia phone with 16m screen(K850, W890, W770…). This is the dumbest arguement in the mobile world and no matter how much explanation has been given there are always some dumbos that keep repeating it.
    I am sure that if any of those persons who are claiming Iphone screen is better because of 16m colors would see Xperia screen they will die by the sheer shame of their absurd statement, a human eye cannot differenciate between 65k or 256k or 16m colors on a mobile screen, all that matters is the pixels and in this field Xperia kicks Iphone in the you know where, its screen is mesmerizing, one of the best mobile screen out there and surely better than many so-called 16m screens.
    And to all the ignorants who keep blaiming SE, 65k is the limitation of Windows Mobile, its NOT a limitation of Xperia, ALL mobile running windows OS have 65k colors, I wish people should research a little before they open their mouth just to say bullsh*t.

  48. C M says:

    Nokia n95 are terrible . sony ericssons suck arse as well, the ultimate in mobile technology is the apple iphone nothing will beat it, dont care if your camera has an extra 1.2 mega pixels, the iphone looks better and works better, sony ericsson bring out a new phone everyweek with some new shit on they need to get a grip and stop trying to bring out a phone that will attempt to beat the iphone cause it will never happen.

  49. deepenigma says:

    Iphone is for dumbos who know nothing about mobiles and need an easy toy to operate a mobile…iphone should have been released for kids only.

  50. Simps says:

    Being an iPhone owner I love it to death I can’t imagine what Apple will come out with next but since it appears that Apple has been topped I can assure you they are already working on the next big “hype”. The iPod was innovative for it’s time and so was the iPhone for it’s time hell you can even go way back and talk about the first Apple PC was crazy at the time but after a while people just jump on the ban wagon and that’s when there products go from innovative to over hyped. If the X1 can work with Tmobile service I’m on it. I Which also reminds me about how i had to jailbreak the iPhone which was a pain but oh so worth it. Any word on the 3D Accelerator or the official carrier? My pops wants a new phone he’s with Verizon but doesn’t like the Storm


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