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Early April brought rumors of the Sony Xperia Z coming to T-Mobile. At the time the details seemed to be on the up and up. The were reportedly coming from a variety of sources and also included an in-the-wild style image of the handset. We haven’t heard much on the topic since, however as of today we now have that little bit of extra evidence.

This latest has arrived in the form of an FCC filing. The filing in question has the Xperia Z and it is showing support for T-Mobile LTE. Basically, combine those earlier reports with the details from this filing and it is beginning to look like all we need is an announcement from T-Mobile. The filing details support for pentaband HSPA+ as well as AWS LTE on band 4.

There was also a user manual, which is clearly aimed at the T-Mobile variant of the handset. The manual is carrier branded and showing as being for the C6606 Xperia Z. Aside from the T-Mobile branding on the front of the manual, the inside also has talk of carrier specific features such as Wi-Fi Calling.

Bottom line here, it is looking like the Sony Xperia Z will soon be available with the UNcarrier. Aside from a release date, the pricing would also be nice to see. And remember, with these new T-Mobile Simple Choice plans you will be paying an initial downpayment with another 24 monthly installments.

[via Engadget]

Sony has kicked off Xperia Tablet Z pre-orders for those in the US market. Sony has the tablet available in a 16GB and 32GB model and also an option to choose between black or white. There has yet to be a final shipping date revealed, however Sony has said these pre-orders are estimated to begin shipping on May 24, 2013. And coming as a bonus for those who order before that date, Sony will be including a freebie.

First things first, the 16GB Xperia Tablet Z is selling for $499.99 and the 32GB model is sitting $100 higher at $599.99. As far as those colors go, the 16GB model is available in black and the 32GB model is available in black or white. That freebie offer is for those who purchase the Xperia Tablet Z in white, which means the 32GB model for $599.99.

Those who pick up that model will get a free cradle if you place your pre-order before May 24, 2013. Otherwise, as Sony was pretty forthcoming in terms of specs and details when they first announced the Xperia Tablet Z, there wasn’t all that much in terms of a surprise today. The tablet is running Jelly Bean and sporting a 10.1-inch Full HD Reality Display with a thickness of just 0.27 inches.

The tablet weighs in at 1.09 pounds and also has a quad-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, 2GB of RAM, NFC, HDMI and is both dust and water resistant. In fact, Sony has said the tablet will be able to withstand complete submersion in up to 3 feet of water for up to 30 minutes at a time. All that being said, we also spent some hands-on time with the Xperia Tablet Z, which you can see in the video sitting above.

[via Sony]

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : Xperia Tablet Z

Manufactuer : Sony

Carrier : NA

Announced Date : January 21, 2013

Release Date : TBA

Also Known As :

Display

• Screen Size : 10.1 Inch
• Resolution : 1920×1200
• Screen Type : TFT

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 10.47 Inch
• Width : 6.77 Inch
• Depth : 0.27 Inch
• Weight : 495 Grams

Battery & Power

Battery Type:
• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 6000 mAh
• Talk Time : NA
• Stand By Time : NA

Software

Android OS:
• 4.1.x

Audio Playback:
• AAC
• AAC+
• AMR
• MID
• MP3
• WAV
• WMA

Video Playback:
• h.263
• h.264 / AVC
• 3GP
• MPEG-4 (MP4)
• WMV

Messaging:
• SMS
• MMS
• IM

Hardware

CPU : APQ8064

CPU Clock Speed : 1500 Mhz

Core : 4

Ram : 2000 MB

Internal Storage : 16 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution : 8 MP

External Storage:
• MicroSD
• MicroSDHC

Camera Features:
• Auto focus
• Flash
• 1080p Video Recording
• 720p Video Recording

Sensors:
• Accelerometer
• Ambient light

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

Network Technology:
• GSM

GSM Band:
• 850
• 900
• 1800
• 1900

Device Connectivity

Wi-Fi:
• 802.11a
• 802.11b
• 802.11g
• 802.11n

Bluetooth:
• A2DP
• Bluetooth 4.0

Location Features:
• GPS

FM Radio :

NFC :

Good news for all you Sony Xperia owners out there! Jelly Bean is coming to your device! Starting this week, the Sony Xperia P, Xperia Go, and Xperia E dual will receive an upgrade to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.

Aside from the normal Android excellence you’ll get with the update, a slew of “different and improved” Sony features have been added. Things like a battery save function are still there, and still pretty great. You’ll finally get Google Now, of which there is no going back from once you start using it. Of course, you’ll get Sony’s WALKMAN feature, meant to corral your music and videos into one easy-to-find locale. Oh WALKMAN, why don’t you ever die?

But what about the other Xperia phones? They’re not ready for this Jelly Bean? Not yet, but soon. Around the end of May, Sony will update the Xperia S, Xperia SL, Xperia Ion, and Xperia acro S. Sony also notes that for some, the update will only be accessible using PC Companion, or Bridge for Mac.

Have an Xperia device? Excited for Jelly Bean? Let us know!

We recently heard from Sony about Jelly Bean coming to a select group of Xperia branded handsets. Those details were posted on Twitter and really just amounted to Sony teasing about Jelly Bean for the Xperia P, Go, S, SL, acro S and ion smartphones. With that in mind, we now have a confirmed release (beginning this week) for the Xperia P, Xperia Go and Xperia E Dual.

According to details coming from Sony, the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update would begin “this week” for those three handsets. The update process will be done in batches and is said to be ramping up over this month and next. Simply put, just because the update process will begin this week — that does not necessarily mean it will arrive on your handset this week.

As we often see with Jelly Bean updates coming from Sony, they include Android specific features as well as some updates on Sony specific features and apps. The Xperia P, Go and E Dual update is not any different. Those updating will see the Jelly Bean perks such as Google Now and the enhanced notifications.

The update will also bring updates for the Sony Media apps which include the WALKMAN, Album and Movies apps. In this case, Sony has said they are going to be “newer and even more intuitive versions.” Additional items with this update include Battery STAMINA Mode, improvements in terms of organizing your app tray, a new search function for the app tray and the ability to add up to 7 homescreens, which comes as part of a updated homescreen experience.

[via Sony]

Sony has launched their latest Android Open Source Project. This one is for the Xperia Z, however a similar project was launched for the Xperia S back in August of 2012. In fact, the reason behind the Xperia Z AOSP project was due to what Sony is calling the “great interest” they saw for the Xperia S. Reasoning aside, this basically means the software from the Xperia Z will be open and available for developers to use.

On the flip side, Sony is also looking and hoping for contributions from those developers. The key key here, while this is open and available, this is not software that you will be running on a daily basis. Basically, that is to say that while the software has quite a bit of function, there are some key pieces missing. For example, Sony has said that while the modem and camera are functioning internally, they both require proprietary software that cannot be published.

Putting that aside, Sony has said they are using this project as a way to further show their commitment to the open Android community as well as as a tool to “facilitate and verify contributions to AOSP on the MSM8064 Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro platform.” If you are a developer and looking to get involved, you will be able to find the code on Sony’s GitHub page using this link.

Otherwise, while we already mentioned the issues surrounding the modem and the camera, Sony has said that they have “a lot of things working.” Sony further clarifies that statement by mentioning the handset is able to boot up with the SD card, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS and LED light working. In addition, the sensors are said to be partially working. Bottom line here, Sony has put this out there, now it is time for some developers to actually make things happen.

[via Sony]

It is looking like a select group of Sony Xperia handsets will soon be getting an update. Sony has yet to offer a specific timeframe as to when the updates will begin rolling out, however they have begun talking about updates being in the final stages of testing. The details are coming direct from Sony and include talk of the Xperia P, Go, S, SL, acro S and ion.

Sony recently posted the details on Twitter and noted the update will be arriving as Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. According to details in that message, Sony has said the work is in the final stages and they have promised that more details will be released soon. In fact, we are expecting Sony to offer additional details this week.

The one catch will be as to whether or not Sony will be announcing details for all of these handsets at once, or whether they will be doing it on a case by case basis. Either way though, Jelly Bean should be available for the Xperia P, Go, S, SL, acro S and ion smartphones relatively soon.

While we know many of the goodies, such as Google Now that come as a result of Jelly Bean, Sony generally includes some other items as well. Take the Jelly Bean update for the Xperia TX which arrived back at the end of March, this update also included updates for the Sony Walkman, Album and Movies apps along with a few other smaller changes and improvements.

[via phoneArena]

Since the debut of Socialife on the Xperia Tablet S in 2012 and the eventual axing of Xperia’s main social networking app Timescape in early 2013, Sony has been pushing Timescape’s successor Socialife on it’s new Xperia devices, the Z, ZL, SP and L. With all this hype surrounding Socialife, it’s inevitable that users of 2011 and 2012 Xperia devices would want to get their hands on a piece of the cake as well.

Thankfully, XDA Senior Member erorcun has made Sony’s Socialife work with the entire 2011 and 2012 Xperia lineup, supporting both Ice Cream Sandwich and Jelly Bean. Unlike previous attempts at porting Socialife that not only inconveniently required changes to build.prop but also resulted in numerous additional bugs for those who were lucky to get it working, this port works straight out of the box, only allowing users to install normally or pushing it to /system/app and setting the correct permissions.

Of course, the numerous frustrating bugs and flaws present on the Xperia Tablet S, Z and ZL are, not surprisingly, still present on 2011 and 2012 Xperias. Despite this, Sony’s new social networking app is clean and pleasant to the eye, more logical and personalized in design and concept—and smooth in operation when it works. So you may be asking, is Socialife a worthy successor to Timescape? Well with all things considered, many will currently say no. However, if you still would like to check it out, you can download it from the original thread.

Yes, we know you know that Xperia Small Apps have been ported to Xperia ROMs not based on stock roms, as well as to non-Xperia devices. However, what if the port just happens to not work with your device? Or maybe you’re one of them folks who likes to know what goes on behind the scenes? XDA Recognized Contributor sandy7 has written another top-notch guide to not only let users know how devs achieve these ports, but also to allow you to give it a go yourself.

With no fancy preamble, sandy7 goes straight into helping you help yourself with the porting process, which can be broken down into 5 steps aided with helpful visuals:

1. Decompile framework-res.apk and add given lines to res/values/strings.xml and AndroidManifest.xml and recompiling once done
2. Decompile android.policy.jar and add given lines to com\android\internal\policy\impl\PhoneWindowManager.smal and recompile once done
3. Decompile framework.jar and add files provided in a zip file into classout/com and recompile afterwards
4. Add given files into system/app. Files can be flashed via a flashable zip provided
5. Download and install Slauncher from Play store

So there you have it. Those are the 5 steps to achieving small apps porting success and glory. It’s all in your hands now. But fear not, as the process of porting small apps seem to be relatively simple and great for beginners to try out themselves. It’s also been tested on most Xperia devices and Samsung Galaxy SL, with support for CyanogenMod 9 and 10, Paranoid Android, Pacman, and possibly CM 10.1.

For more details and information, visit the original thread and guide.

Note: Screenshots shown taken from Galaxy SL Xperia-themed running CM10

We have seen various game controllers for Android handsets, one of which is the MOGA. Moving forward though, those rocking an Xperia branded device will not need to look towards third party controllers as Sony has announced DualShock 3 support. Basically, this means you will be able to play games on your Xperia device using your DualShock 3 controller.

Better yet, this includes navigating the menu as well as the actual game play. The one catch we can see is that you will need to purchase the USB on-the-go adapter in order to pair your controller with your smartphone. Or alternatively, we suppose you could also borrow one from a friend or family member and save a few bucks. After all, you will only need the adapter during that initial set-up process.

In terms of setting things up, it seems fairly easy. The video in this post does a walkthrough, however it really comes down to nothing more than navigating to the Xperia option in the settings and choosing the DualShock 3 wireless controller setup wizard. From here, just follow the prompts.

After the initial setup and pairing is done, you will then connect the controller over Bluetooth. A few other tidbits include turning the controller off from the notifications drop down and looking for compatible games by checking the game descriptions for references to game controller or game pad support. And for those with an HDMI out on their handset, this can turn your smartphone into a nice game system when plugged into your HDTV.

[via VentureBeat]

We had known that Sony was going to be launching the Xperia Tablet Z in Japan on March 22 and we recently saw the device make an appearance with the FCC ahead of a US release. As of today though, we have some details for those hoping to pick up the Xperia Tablet Z in the UK — a release is coming and pre-orders are already available.

Basically, it looks like a release date has been posted. The details are coming by way of UK retailer Clove who has recently updated their pre-order listing with a shipping date of May 20. This particular listing is for the LTE enabled model with a price point of £416.00 (or £499.20 with VAT being included).

Otherwise, aside from news of an availability date — the specs remain the same as we have seen and include Android 4.1 Jelly Bean along with a 10.1-inch (1920 x 1200) display, quad-core 1.5GHz Qualcomm S4 processor, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage. The tablet also has a microSD card slot, 6000 mAh battery, 2 megapixel front-facing camera and 8 megapixel rear-facing camera.

Network connectivity will come in the form of 4G LTE on 800, 850, 900, 1800, 2100 and 2600 MHz and 3G HSPA on 850, 900 and 2100 MHz. The Xperia Tablet Z also sports an IP57 rating which makes it both water and dust resistant. That all being said, we spent a bit of hands-on time with the Xperia Tablet Z a short while back and you can see that footage in the above video.

[via Clove Blog]

Device Specifications and Information

Device Info

Device Name : Xperia Tablet Z

Manufactuer : Sony

Carrier : NA

Announced Date : January 21, 2013

Release Date : TBA

Also Known As :

Display

• Screen Size : 10.1 Inch
• Resolution : 1920×1200
• Screen Type : TFT

Dimension & Weight

• Height : 10.47 Inch
• Width : 6.77 Inch
• Depth : 0.27 Inch
• Weight : 495 Grams

Battery & Power

Battery Type:
• Lithium Ion

• Battery Capacity : 6000 mAh
• Talk Time : NA
• Stand By Time : NA

Software

Android OS:
• 4.1.x

Audio Playback:
• AAC
• AAC+
• AMR
• MID
• MP3
• WAV
• WMA

Video Playback:
• h.263
• h.264 / AVC
• 3GP
• MPEG-4 (MP4)
• WMV

Messaging:
• SMS
• MMS
• IM

Hardware

CPU : APQ8064

CPU Clock Speed : 1500 Mhz

Core : 4

Ram : 2000 MB

Internal Storage : 16 GB

Front Facing Camera :

Camera Resolution : 8 MP

External Storage:
• MicroSD
• MicroSDHC

Camera Features:
• Auto focus
• Flash
• 1080p Video Recording
• 720p Video Recording

Sensors:
• Accelerometer
• Ambient light

QWERTY :

Cellular Network

Network Technology:
• GSM

GSM Band:
• 850
• 900
• 1800
• 1900

Device Connectivity

Wi-Fi:
• 802.11a
• 802.11b
• 802.11g
• 802.11n

Bluetooth:
• A2DP
• Bluetooth 4.0

Location Features:
• GPS

FM Radio :

NFC :