9 / 10

There are two Xperia Z3s to choose from and this is the smaller, more pocket-friendly one, which claims to fit high-end specs including 4G into a smaller case. Can it be true?

Chassis & screen

The Sony Xperia Z3 Compact appears to have kept the premium appearance of its larger cousins, with protective Gorilla Glass panels on the back and front of the plastic body. The corners are nylon to help cope with any knocks and bumps and like other high-end Xperias, it's waterproof and dust tight (IP65 and IP68 ratings allow you to submerge it in 1.5m of fresh water for up to half an hour), making for a pretty robust package.

The blockiness of the corners isn't so much of an issue as it is with the bigger versions, and at a little under 9mm thick, the Z3 Compact slides easily into the pocket.


The 4.6-inch screen brings all Sony's proprietary display technology to bear, including TRILUMINOS and X-REALITY, and delivers an HD resolution of 1280x720 pixels (319ppi). That's not the very sharpest, and marks a drop from the Z3's Full HD but for a screen this size it's plenty -- just not quite as pin-sharp as we'd like. Colours are bright and contrast is clear; viewing angles are wide, web pages and movies look great and they sound pretty good too, thanks to Sony's surround sound processing.

Software & processor

Unusually, the quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor backed by 2GB RAM is the same as the one in the larger Z3. It's considerably more powerful than we saw in the Z2 earlier this year. Indeed, it's more powerful than just about any phone out there. In our AnTuTu benchmark test it delivered a blistering score of 44,321, which puts it ahead of anything we've yet seen, including the OnePlus One and the LG G3.

Read next Sony Xperia XZ Premium review: Clever slow motion video isn't enough Sony Xperia XZ Premium review: Clever slow motion video isn't enough

As a result, apps open in a trice and busy web pages load with ease. HD games play without stuttering or lag too, and it delivers as smooth a performance of

Real Racing 3 as we've yet seen.


Photography

Dave Oliver

Gallery: Sony Xperia Z3 Compact review Gallery Gallery: Sony Xperia Z3 Compact review + 4

+ 3

+ 2

Read next Sony's Xperia XZ Premium screen is so high-quality it's better than most people's TVs Sony's Xperia XZ Premium screen is so high-quality it's better than most people's TVs

The 20.7-megapixel camera comes with autofocus and an LED flash, plus all of Sony's usual photo suite. So you get a broad range of modes to play with, as well as Superior Auto mode, which optimises your images for point and shoot. It's a very fine camera indeed, with realistic colours and loads of detail where you need it. There's also a 2.2-megapixel camera on the front for video calls.

There's a reasonable 16GB of memory on board but you can add up to 128GB more via microSD if you feel the need.

Battery life is impressive, and it got us through very close to two full days of heavy use. If you need more, Sony has also incorporated three energy-saving options to help you cut down on the juice, including Ultra Stamina, which disables most functions except call and text.


Conclusion

Sony's Xperia series has distinguished itself with some fine specs but the large, blocky shape of the handsets hasn't been for everyone. The Z3 Compact combines pocket-friendly dimensions with a terrific screen, powerful processor and a very good camera, all in a waterproof case.

Our Sony Xperia Z3 Compact review unit was provided by Carphone Warehouse.