Monstrous minis: mini smartphones with full-sized specs

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  35
Kris Carlon
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Aug 19, 2013, 11:56:12 AM via Website

The upcoming Sony Honami i1 device is set to rock the flagship world with it's crazy specs list, but we've just seen the leak of a full-specced mini version of the Honami, codenamed Ray 3. This mini flagship will destroy the S4 mini and One mini, along with most flagship devices out right now. Could this be the start of a return to full-sized hardware specs on smaller screened devices? What do you think? Do you want to be able to get the full power of a flagship device on the mini version or do you think top-notch specs should only be found on the larger screen devices?

— modified on Aug 19, 2013, 11:56:33 AM

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  7
Marcel Jennings
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Aug 19, 2013, 4:51:18 PM via Website

I think it's good to have good hardware on a small phone. Just because you don't like a big screen doesn't mean you should get less power. Maybe they can make a mini lite version with less power for less money to keep everyone happy and the stronger mini for everyone else?

Daniel Jones

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  35
Kris Carlon
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Aug 19, 2013, 5:23:40 PM via Website

As our article said, Apple is really the only manufacturer putting full hardware into a smaller-screened phone (but then, they don't have a larger-screened version either!). Sony will be directly competing with them on device size and will be pretty unbeatable in terms of hardware, possibly even once the iPhone 5S comes out on September 10th. I think it's great that you will be able to get all the hardware specs on a phone that still fits in your pocket easily (I know some of you have bigger pockets and hands than me though!), so it will be interesting to see how it competes against the other minis and if Samsung and HTC put better specs in their next mini offerings.

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  10
Northernbaygirl
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Aug 19, 2013, 9:23:06 PM via Website

That is great news, just because I prefer a phone that is comfortable for me to hold with my small hands and is easy to slip in and out of my pocket doesn't mean I don't want a high powered/high spec'd phone. I'm weighing up between the S4, S4 mini, LG Nexus, Note 2 & Note 3 as being my next handset, can maybe throw the Sony Hanomi & LG Optimus G2 in for consideration when they hit the UK.

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  8
Daniel Jones
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Aug 20, 2013, 8:41:08 AM via Website

20.7 MP snapper is really impressive for a small screen phone, looking at the specification it will cost good.too.

I am Daniel Jones, Working with Kiwitech as app developer. I enjoy exploring apps on various mobile platforms.

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  7
Marcel Jennings
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Aug 21, 2013, 6:49:19 PM via Website

It will be cheaper than the Honami and more expensive than the S4 Mini or One Mini, right?

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  33
Loie Favre
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Aug 26, 2013, 10:18:15 AM via Website

I definitely agree that ''smaller'' smartphones also need to be packed with better technical specifications. When I had asked people on the streets of Berlin whether they prefered the Samusng Galaxy S4 or the S4 mini, 4 out of 5 people preferred the mini, just for its size. Plus most of them said that they actually didn't need all the bells and whistles that the S4 has....
There could be a real demand for small devices with a lot of power, so I think Sony is going in the right direction if everything that we are seeing is true.

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  35
Kris Carlon
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Oct 10, 2013, 11:56:24 AM via Website

The Sony Xperia Z1 f, or Honami Mini, has been officially announced for sale in Japan and it is everything we hoped it would be. It'll be hard to keep an international audience away from this beast so with any luck it will get an international release soon enough, hopefully with multiple storage options. If you convert the Japanese price it's around $730 US.

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  10
Rutger
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Oct 15, 2013, 3:52:29 PM via Website

I think this is the way to go! I really, really hope Sony will sell more and not dissapear like HTC (maybe?). They have a great design, great hardware and, in my opinion, the greatest GUI on top of Android.

They still have two issues though:
1. The camera doesn't perform that good. They have some problem with the jpg compression and taking Pictures in darker rooms.
2. Updates. They have to be faster on updates if they want to compete with HTC, Samsung etc.

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  35
Kris Carlon
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Oct 17, 2013, 9:25:30 AM via Website

Good points Rutger. I never would have pegged Sony to have camera issues, but there you go. And updates are beginning to be a major issue for consumers. Again, not something you would have thought a few years ago, but now, in the shop, you won't just be dazzled by the phone you're looking at, but actually thinking about the OEMs record for rolling out timely OS updates and how quickly they drop handsets from the update list.

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