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Industrial design

As I alluded to in the introduction to this review, the Sony Xperia S is a seriously pulchritudinous phone. Featuring five flat sides and a curved back, it exudes simplicity, though not at the expense of distinctiveness. A transparent bar has been inserted just below the capacitive Android keys, serving the dual purpose of labeling them and simply looking otherworldly. If you look closely, you’ll also spot a fine diagonal grid inside it, which Sony tells us forms part of the Xperia S’ antenna system. Before seeing the handset in person, I was apprehensive about the see-through strip, expecting it to appear gimmicky, but it meshes well with the overall design and breaks up the monolithic aesthetic nicely. Additionally, it’s neat to see the transparent Xperia Pureness from 2009 recalled in a modern design.

The rear cover, sides, and bottom of the Xperia S all have a matte, soft-touch finish that makes them almost impervious to fingerprints. The same can’t be said of the glossy glass surface covering the front of the phone; it’s as reflective and friendly to smudges as any other current smartphone. Under that single sheet of glass, you’ll find a status LED light, a proximity sensor, a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera capable of 720p video, the 4.3-inch Reality Display, and the three capacitive Android keys, which are marked by single dots. What’s really impressive about the front of the Xperia S is how black the display looks when switched off. Not being able to differentiate where the display panel starts and ends plays a big role in making the phone feel cohesive and, in a way, natural. By subduing the evidence of its technological innards, Sony makes the Xperia S feel more organic — like a black slab artifact that also turns on.





The clean aesthetic exhibited on the front is carried over to the back, where the 12-megapixel camera, LED flash, loudspeaker, and secondary mic are lined up in a neat column, maintaining an uncluttered appearance. Sony really helps itself here by omitting any overzealous branding or megapixel labeling. There’s just the Sony logo above the earpiece, a couple of subtle Xperia engravings at the bottom of the phone, and, funnily enough, the old Liquid logo that used to represent Sony Ericsson on the back.

Minimalism is also the order of the day when it comes to physical keys and other design accoutrements: you get a volume rocker and a dedicated camera key on the right, a power / lock button and a 3.5mm headphone jack up top, and flap-covered Micro USB and Micro HDMI ports on either side. Cables for both connectivity types are bundled in the box along with a headset. Speaking of the box, you may want to be careful about how you open it as the one I received came preloaded with multicolored confetti and "sherbet-filled wafers with a fruit flavor." It’s almost surprising not to find a tiny bottle of champagne to go with that party-in-a-box setup.

Ergonomics

If we only awarded design points for looks, the Xperia S could easily walk away with full marks owing to its understated handsomeness and fine build quality. Unfortunately, a number of issues do emerge once you put it to good use. I had regular trouble getting the capacitive Android keys to react to my taps. Their position is awkward to start with — sitting too close to the display and making the distinction between pressing the Home button and opening the onscreen app drawer razor-thin — but they also seem to require more than the gentle tap that’ll satisfy capacitive buttons on most other phones. Moreover, the backlight illuminating the labels in the transparent area of the phone isn’t on permanently, habitually leaving you without any indication of which button is which. I suppose that’s the price you pay for streamlining a device’s appearance too far.





The ergonomics of the Xperia S fall short of the best we’ve seen. Though its rear is curved for a better fit in the hand, the squared-off sides and corners make it harder to handle than it perhaps needs to be. Additionally, there’s no easy way to reach the power button and start using the phone without readjusting your grip or using a second hand. Coming from a Nexus S, which makes that exact action a cinch, I find this a major pain point. The more you have to change your grip on a phone, the more chance there is of it slipping out.

A final note of disappointment on the hardware front must be raised with regard to the lack of microSD expandability or a user-replaceable battery — the fact you can remove the Xperia S’ back cover but gain access to neither feels like a cruel joke. Admittedly, 32GB of internal storage and a 1,750mAh cell should suffice for most people’s needs, but I’m at a loss as to why Sony felt compelled to limit users’ options thus. Thinness is usually the prime cause cited for dropping microSD card support and sealing in the battery, but the Xperia S isn’t the slimmest phone at 10.6mm and, looking under its cover, I’m inclined to think Sony could have done both if it were determined to do so. Also of note, the Xperia S takes the smaller Micro SIM card. Nokia and HTC are similarly moving to Micro SIMs with their latest high-end phones, which together with Apple’s support should make them the new standard before long.