Sony Xperia SP: A Specifications Review

Sony has managed to fill every conceivable price segment with a different variant of its Xperia handset, which is good if you’re a Sony fan and have a specific budget in mind. However, after the launch of the Z and the ZL, the price of the Xperia Ion (last year’s flagship) has suddenly plummeted to under Rs 25,000, thereby leaving a massive gap between Sony's mid-range offering and the cheapest high-end smartphone. The newly launched Xperia SP is the first of many to fill this void. Priced at Rs 27,500, the SP looks nothing like the Xperia S, as one might imagine given the naming scheme. Instead, it shares the same design aesthetics as the Xperia ZL, but with slightly scaled down specifications to match the price. Let’s have a quick specifications tour of the SP and see how it fits in with the competition. OS – Android 4.1 Jelly BeanThe Xperia SP will ship with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and you can expect the familiar Sony skin as well. The UI won’t be that different as compared to what we’ve seen on the Z and ZL, and we’ll be getting the exclusive apps like Sony Music and Sony LIV bundled along too. In terms of software, there’s nothing that we haven’t already seen. Cellular – 4G ready, but probably not for India The SP is a quad-band GSM and 3G phone along with LTE support. However, it remains to be seen if Sony will keep the LTE radio chip or launch it without one. Looking at the recent launches, the LG Optimus G is one of the few phones with LTE capabilities in India. Click here for full story