We have only seen Sony's Xperia 10 II (Mark 2) super mid-ranger launch in a few regions so far, but if you're one of those waiting for the handset, you might want to check out this disassembly video to appreciate how well made the device is.
Sony Mobile used to operate its own eShop that offered its full range of smartphones, tablets and accessories to customers in Europe. That store closed earlier in the year, when Sony started to fold all of its ‘Sony Mobile' assets back to the ‘Sony' parent company. Well, fast forward a few months, and Sony once again has an ecommerce presence in Europe, sort of.
Sony has a new feature in its ‘Game Enhancer' app called H.S. Power Control which will be a godsend to those who want to maximise the gaming performance on the Xperia 1 II (Mark 2). In a nutshell, this new feature prevents the battery in the phone from charging whilst a charger is plugged in.
Sony is rolling a new firmware update for the Xperia XA2 range (XA2, XA2 Plus and XA2 Ultra) – the first firmware update that the handsets have seen in over five months. The new update moves the build number from 50.2.A.3.22 to version 50.2.A.3.55, adding the 1 April 2020 Google Android security updates. This is a minor update, with no other tangible improvements reported.
Sony fans are eagerly awaiting the launch date for its latest flagship, the Xperia 1 II (Mark 2). Sony has been vague about the release date ever since it was announced – the official launch date is ‘late Spring'. We understand that a late May/early June has always been in the offing, which is why we were surprised when Japanese carrier NTT docomo flagged an April release date for Sony's flagship.
There is something eerie about driving concept cars. It's not that they're priceless one-offs, painstakingly created by a host of craftspeople. And it's not that they're champingly bridled, powered by a full battery array, yet only able to be driven at 5 mph for safety's sake. And it's not that it's illegal to drive them on public roads, especially in Japan, so you're forced to conduct yourself in an abandoned-looking bay-front industrial parking lot. It's creepy because moving around in a vehicle that is, at heart, nothing but a fantasy, lends credence to the underlying delusion, makes such a car seem possible, real. Driving a concept car backfills the uncanny valley.
This is especially true if the concept in question is a Mercedes-EQ sedan, an elegantly ovoid, full-size, battery-powered, ultra-luxury four-door. Mercedes has not made any secret of the fact that it plans to grow its all-electric EQ sub-brand to include an entire vehicle line. And one of them must necessarily be an S-Class-like sedan, a marque signature for decades. In fact, the brand has officially stated that it will sell an all-electric vehicle very much like the Vision EQS Concept, alongside a new gasoline- or hybrid-powered S-Class, starting in the early 2020s.
Sony Mobile had been using a consistent form of model numbering for its Xperia smartphones since 2013. This involved a series of five characters – one letter followed by 4 numbers. For example, the 2019 Xperia 1 had model numbers J8110, J8170, J9110, while the 2013 Xperia Z had model numbers including C6602, C6603, C6606.
Sony is rolling new firmware updates which add the 1 April 2020 Google Android security patches to a variety of devices. The Xperia 1 and Xperia 5 flagships get new build number 55.1.A.3.149, while the Xperia XZ2, XZ2 Compact, XZ2 Premium and XZ3 get build number 52.1.A.0.672.
It has already been four years since virtual reality hit the market. Back then, it was supposedly going to be the next big thing. Unfortunately, though, it looks as though a lot of early predictions about the technology were wrong. VR options like the Oculus Rift are still too pricey for a vast proportion of end users, and people are still to be convinced that the platform will be revolutionary. However, the introduction of 5G networks across Japan could help VR to break into the mainstream and start making waves. 
Japanese operator NTT docomo has announced that Sony's latest handsets, the Xperia 1 II (Mark 2) and Xperia 10 II (Mark 2) will both land on the network. The interesting news from a western perspective is that docomo has confirmed that the Xperia 1 II flagship will be launching in Japan in late April – this is earlier than expected, and would be great news if it had a similar launch window in Europe and North America.
Sony is updating its two current flagships with a new firmware update that adds the 1 March 2020 Android security patches. The Sony Xperia 1 moves from build number 55.1.A.3.49 to version 55.1.A.3.107.
Sony is rolling a new firmware update for the Xperia XZ2 family (XZ2, XZ2 Compact,XZ2 Premium) and Xperia XZ3 which adds the 1 February 2020 Android security patches. The build number moves from 52.1.A.0.532, which was the first Android 10 update, to version 52.1.A.0.618.
One of the things that many Fujifilm photographers probably wanted in the company’s cameras is probably in-body image stabilization. Fujifilm made this a reality with the launch of the Fujifilm X-H1, but oddly enough the cameras that followed did not adopt the feature, at least until now where Fujifilm has unveiled their latest flagship, the X-T4.
While externally the X-T4 looks very much like its predecessor, the biggest change probably has to be IBIS. For those wondering why this is a big deal, it is because prior to this, photographers who wanted image stabilization had to rely on lenses that came with the feature which limited their options.
If you’re a fan of instant print cameras, then you might be interested to learn that Fujifilm has announced their latest camera in the form of the Fujifilm Instax Mini 11. For those who are unfamiliar, these are cameras that have the ability to snap a photo and print them on the fly, making them ideal for parties and events where people get to take home a photo as a souvenir.
Now, clearly this isn’t Fujifilm’s first time releasing such a camera, but the company has made some improvements to it over the years. One of those improvements to find its way into the Instax Mini 11 comes in the form of Automatic Exposure. If you’ve ever used these types of cameras before, then you know that sometimes the photos don’t always look the best.