Sony Xperia L, the 4.3-inch mid-range camera smartphone from Sony

Another Sony Xperia phone is coming to town for 2013. This time it’s the Xperia L, a mid-range model that provides class-leading camera technology that supports HDR for both photos and videos.

The Sony Xperia L inherits its good looks from its brothers but with sloped edges and a matte plastic removable back cover. Just like other Xperia phones, it also has a transparent bottom edge that illuminates when there are notifications.

It has a 4.3 inch FWVGA screen for an average 228 ppi pixel density. It doesn’t have that Sony Mobila BRAVIA Engine like its pricier brothers so don’t expect the same sharp and vivid display. That doesn’t exactly mean it’s all that bad though considering it’s a 4.3-inch screen.

As for power, the Xperia L uses a 1GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor with 1GB RAM and 8GB internal storage plus microSD support. It runs on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and has NFC to boot.

It’s value proposition would be its 8-megapixel camera with Sony’s unique “Exmor RS for mobile” sensor technology for vivid colours and stunning clarity. HDR (High Dynamic Range) ensures that both your photos and videos are captured clearly, even at night or against a strong backlight. And with the dedicated camera key that goes ‘from sleep to snap’ in just over a second even from a locked screen, this fast-capture camera phone will ensure that you’ll never miss another moment.

The Sony Xperia L should be available this month for Php14,990 and comes in black, red, and white.

Sony Xperia L Specs:
4.3-inch 480 x 854 FWVGA touchscreen display, 228 ppi
1GHz dual-core Qualcomm MSM8230 Snapdragon
Adreno 305 GPU
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
1GB RAM, 8GB internal storage, microSD up to 32GB
HSDPA, 21 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot
Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP, NFC
8-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and Exmor RS for mobile
VGA front camera
Li-Ion 1750 mAh battery
128.7 x 65 x 9.7 mm
137 g
Colors: Black, Red, White
SRP: Php14,990

Sony Xperia L, the 4.3-inch mid-range camera smartphone from Sony

The Samsung NX300, an ultra-fast interchangeable lens camera

On an end-of-summer evening at Bonifacio High Street, where speed is the theme, Samsung officially launched their NX300 mirrorless camera in the country and introduced the lifestyle ambassadors for the said product.

With the camera’s penchant for speed, it’s just suiting that Samsung tapped Iron Man 7.3 Philippine record holder Noy Jopson, national record holder in Olympic Distance Nikko Welgas, and 4-time Filipina Elite champion in Iron Man 7.3 Philippines Monica Torres, to represent the NX300’s fast shutter speed.

The Samsung NX300 sports an elegant retro look with a faux leather wrapping its body (especially the black and brown) and the aluminum dials that gives the impression that it’s a heavy camera when in fact it’s not, yet still solid on the hands.

It doesn’t have an optical viewfinder and flash although there are accessories you can get that you can attach to its hotshoe.

At the back are your typical buttons to navigate the menus on this camera. It also has a 3.3-inch AMOLED touch screen display that you can tilt up and down for easy low or high angle shots.

This interchangeable lens camera is equipped with a 20.3 megapixel sensor and has a very fast shutter speed of 1/6000th of a second. It can also do burst shots at a rate of 8.6 frames per second. Focusing with its advanced Hybrid Autofocus was fairly quick as well using the kit lens we tried it on on a late afternoon light. Compared to the NX200’s 9 focusing points, the NX300 has 105 of them.

Like past NX cameras from Samsung, the NX300 also has WiFi capability so you can upload your photos/videos directly to Facebook, Picasa, YouTube without having to remove the SD card. You can also automatically share photos to Samsung smartphones and tablet using a Samsung camera app you can get from Google Play. Or, you can simply use its NFC function for easy sharing if your device also supports it.

“We are very pleased to introduce Samsung’s breakthrough product in smart cameras,” says Eric Sulit, Samsung Philippines Business Unit Director for Mobile and Digital Imaging. “We are confident that the new Samsung NX300 will set the standards in digital photography in terms of speed, ease of use and, of course, mobile connectivity which is also a major consideration among today’s camera users who simply love to share their DSLR quality photos online.”

The Samsung NX300 is already available for Php36,990 and comes with an 18-55mm NX-mount iFunction kit lens and an external flash unit.

The Samsung NX300, an ultra-fast interchangeable lens camera