Sony Xperia Z unboxed, in the flesh!

We got an early hands-on and unboxing of the upcoming Sony Xperia Z and despite the fact that we’ve already tried it several times in the past couple of months, we’re still excited to unbox and use it in the next couple of weeks.

The Xperia separates itself from the rest of the full HD pack by making the handset dust-proof and waterproof. Based from our previous coverage, the Xperia Z is among the most anticipated handset this quarter.

Sony’s simple and elegant design coupled with Qualcomm’s very powerful chipset and a weather-proof construction could out it ahead of ever other handset released in the local market.

It is also interesting that Sony employed a Asahi Dragontrail glass in the front and a Gorilla Glass panel at the back. Though not an original design signature (already done by the iPhone 4, Nexus 4 and Optimus G), the use of Asahi Dragontail is the first we’ve seen on a handset.

At 7.9mm, the Xperia Z is also the thinnest handset we’ve seen that was launched in the country this year. If you look at our demo video below, you will definitely notice the sheer thinness o this device:

The Xperia Z also boast of a impressive set of hardware configuration — a 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 chip, 2GB of RAM and full HD screen and support for LTE connectivity (we still don’t know if Globe or Smart will support it).

Sony Xperia Z specs:
5-inch full HD display (1920×1080), @ 441ppi
Sony Mobile Bravia Engine II
Qualcomm MDM9215M Snapdragon S4 Krait 1.5GHz quad-core
Adreno 320 Graphics
2GB RAM
16GB internal storage
up to 64GB via microSD card
DC-HSDPA 42Mbps, LTE 100Mbps
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, dual-band
Bluetooth 4.0
NFC
GPS w/ aGPS support, GLONASS
Li-Ion 2370mAh battery
Dustproof (IP5X) and Water resistant (IPX57)
Android 4.1.2 Jellybean
Dimension: 139 x 71 x 7.9mm
Weight: 146g

The SIM card slot is found on the right side of the handset along with a very prominent silver power button and the volume rocker. The micro-SD card slot is found on the left side along with the micro-USB port, both of which are sealed tight. The same goes with the 3.5mm audio jack at the top. The speaker grill is found on the bottom right side of the handset which is proned to be covered with the palm of the hands.