Develop Bugs

[Q] Xperia ARC vs Xperia PLAY

Hello!
Please tell me which games are there which I can't play on ARC while I can on PLAY?
Please name such games if you can.
I am about to buy any one of these tommorrow, and don't know which to prefer; here is a little comparison, please correct me if I am wrong and also mention something I might have missed;
ARC :
Great body design
Great body material
Great Camera
Poor sound
No gaming Pad
Larger Screen
Not so good Web experience
Not so good Touch Interface
Radio
PLAY :
Average body design
Poor body material
Average Camera
Great sound
Gaming Pad
Average Screen
Great Web Experience
Great Touch experience
No Radio
Also tell me is there any difference between them as far as the user experience is concerned, I mean any application or function or anything that ARC has and Play don't or vice versa?
How much do they differ as far as the browsing experience is concerned?
So far Arc is winning, I guess, but now it all depends upon the games. That's is why I am contacting you all. I mean I am interested in Star Battalion and Asphalt (which from what I know can be played on ARC), and not much interested in Crash Bandicot.
Please reply soon.
Thanks in advance.

Can you tell me why you think the play has better web experience then the arc I think the specs of the same are they not ?

Torres77an said:
Can you tell me why you think the play has better web experience then the arc I think the specs of the same are they not ?
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I've never had a problem with the web experience on the arc .

Torres77an said:
Can you tell me why you think the play has better web experience then the arc I think the specs of the same are they not ?
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Click to collapse
Hello!
I don't know really.
I guess I got the impression from the fact that SE's official site says that PLAY is a great web experience on top of great gaming experience. And also from a video which showcased some downsides of ARC's browser versus that of IPhone 4 but couldn't find any video doing the same for PLAY.

I have to Disagree on some of your Points there on Arc
Poor sound
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You must not say POOR in General because for a Single Loud Speaker Arc Speaker is One of the Best out there, Dont' compare Single to Stereo Speaker, but Yes Xperia Play's Speaker is The Best Speakers on Mobile Phone out there.
Not so good Web experience
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Of course Bigger screen means Better Web Experience IMHO, I don't see why Arc will not do better than Play?
Not so good Touch Interface
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All Xperia right now have The Same Excellent Touch Interface, but Most Xperia's out there are Applied with Shatter Proof Sheet on a Mineral Glass that protects the screen, that could slightly decreases Touch Performance
IMO Both Phones are Great except they are focused on Different markets
Arc as the Camera/Video Stylish Phone and Play as the Gaming Phone Equipped with Superb PS controls and LOUD Stereo Speakers
but overall Experience is Great
You can also visit my youtube channel to see Arc in Action for Games
Arc Youtube Video's

I think you forget to mention that play does not support Brave Engine and i think both device has pretty good sound too. Just get to the store and try it.

Hey lol im facing the exact same crisis! I've kinda decided on the arc. Some of your points are not true mate. The arc web browsing is better. What the play has that the arc doesn't are the dedicated gaming controls and stereo speakers. By no means are the arc speakers bad. Don't pay much attention to the SE website.. they promote their phones as much as they can. For the xperia x8 they say access to thousands of apps on the market. That doesn't mean the androids don't lol. Arc has a brilliant camera, based on personal usage better than the N8 I don't know how.. 12mp vs 8 and even the owner of the N8 reluctantly admitted the arc camera was better. Arc has the exmor sensor and BRAVIA engine while play has no sensor, but has a BRAVIA port. Doesn't Work that great imho. Very little difference. Also keep in mind though that in bright light, bravia might not be good. It overdoes things sometimes and you can't turn it off. I'd love some feedback to this thread from arc owners, IV already got some from play owners. I think I'm gonna go with the arc cos I'm not a hardcore gamer and the arc screen is big enough to support touch controls on normal android games. Fpse can be a problem but I doubt I'll ever use it. Also, I doubt the play can support ps2 and psp games.. so I'm reluctant to get one. There may or may not be any exclusive games being released for it.. would be a HUGE disappointment to play owners. When it comes to custom roms and kernels, it appears the play has a bit more support I assume.. this is just my 2 cents.. would value other opinions very much.
Edit- arc touch interface is awesome. It's bloody brilliant. And it can detect more that 2 fingers simultaneously. Only negative point I have about the arc- in SOME models, hairline cracks appear in the housing. Just google it. It's quite rare.. and you won't notice it in most cases. If this doesn't bother you, it's fine. It doesn't affect performance or anything at all. It wouldn't bother me.. I wouldn't even notice lol. Yea.. thats my 2 cents.

price is a constant too, the arc is cheaper

Pjay12 said:
Hey lol im facing the exact same crisis! I've kinda decided on the arc. Some of your points are not true mate. The arc web browsing is better. What the play has that the arc doesn't are the dedicated gaming controls and stereo speakers. By no means are the arc speakers bad. Don't pay much attention to the SE website.. they promote their phones as much as they can. For the xperia x8 they say access to thousands of apps on the market. That doesn't mean the androids don't lol. Arc has a brilliant camera, based on personal usage better than the N8 I don't know how.. 12mp vs 8 and even the owner of the N8 reluctantly admitted the arc camera was better. Arc has the exmor sensor and BRAVIA engine while play has no sensor, but has a BRAVIA port. Doesn't Work that great imho. Very little difference. Also keep in mind though that in bright light, bravia might not be good. It overdoes things sometimes and you can't turn it off. I'd love some feedback to this thread from arc owners, IV already got some from play owners. I think I'm gonna go with the arc cos I'm not a hardcore gamer and the arc screen is big enough to support touch controls on normal android games. Fpse can be a problem but I doubt I'll ever use it. Also, I doubt the play can support ps2 and psp games.. so I'm reluctant to get one. There may or may not be any exclusive games being released for it.. would be a HUGE disappointment to play owners. When it comes to custom roms and kernels, it appears the play has a bit more support I assume.. this is just my 2 cents.. would value other opinions very much.
Edit- arc touch interface is awesome. It's bloody brilliant. And it can detect more that 2 fingers simultaneously. Only negative point I have about the arc- in SOME models, hairline cracks appear in the housing. Just google it. It's quite rare.. and you won't notice it in most cases. If this doesn't bother you, it's fine. It doesn't affect performance or anything at all. It wouldn't bother me.. I wouldn't even notice lol. Yea.. thats my 2 cents.
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You can Turn Off Bravia Engine in the Display Settings

mhyke13ph said:
You can Turn Off Bravia Engine in the Display Settings
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Thanks! Did not know that
Hmmm.... are you satisfied with your arc? Any main advantages/disadvantages?
About price - the arc came out at a significantly increased price when compared to the play. However, prices around now are the same. (In my country at least)

Pjay12 said:
Thanks! Did not know that
Hmmm.... are you satisfied with your arc? Any main advantages/disadvantages?
About price - the arc came out at a significantly increased price when compared to the play. However, prices around now are the same. (In my country at least)
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Click to collapse
No problem. Actually I also had my dilema choosing Arc or Play these were the phones available at that time when i was going to replace my X8, I read a lot about these phones, and their price is almost the same $520 Arc and $525 Play, but i bought the Arc instead with lots of personal preferences, and yes I play a lot.
Yes I am very pleased with my Arc, not just by the looks of it, Performance is great and par on most dualcore phones out there.
Drawbacks? Cracks appearing and chrome peeling that will show around 2 to 3 months, cracks can be serious issue to most people, it hit hard on Midnight Blue version, and rare on Misty Silver, and I chose Misty Silver because of that.
IMO Chrome peeling is not new to us, i Also had some Chrome peeling in my Previous phone.
My Arc was up for 267Hrs before i encountered a random Reboot, I think that's Normal
Sent from my LT15i using XDA Premium App

mhyke13ph said:
No problem. Actually I also had my dilema choosing Arc or Play these were the phones available at that time when i was going to replace my X8, I read a lot about these phones, and their price is almost the same $520 Arc and $525 Play, but i bought the Arc instead with lots of personal preferences, and yes I play a lot.
Yes I am very pleased with my Arc, not just by the looks of it, Performance is great and par on most dualcore phones out there.
Drawbacks? Cracks appearing and chrome peeling that will show around 2 to 3 months, cracks can be serious issue to most people, it hit hard on Midnight Blue version, and rare on Misty Silver, and I chose Misty Silver because of that.
IMO Chrome peeling is not new to us, i Also had some Chrome peeling in my Previous phone.
My Arc was up for 267Hrs before i encountered a random Reboot, I think that's Normal
Sent from my LT15i using XDA Premium App
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OMG! Im also looking to replace my x8! HA
Hmmm... I want to buy the midnight blue.. Silver doesnt look that great but the cracks are a problem.... Guess ill decide that when I go to buy it..
Do you regret not buying the Play? Or would you choose the arc over the play again? Also, what games do you play? HD? And are they completely lagless?

Pjay12 said:
OMG! Im also looking to replace my x8! HA
Hmmm... I want to buy the midnight blue.. Silver doesnt look that great but the cracks are a problem.... Guess ill decide that when I go to buy it..
Do you regret not buying the Play? Or would you choose the arc over the play again? Also, what games do you play? HD? And are they completely lagless?
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Oh yea you should replace that X8, too bad X8 was a great contender last year for Mid Range phones, but they didn't supported it well and it's like a Dead on Arrival Phone
Here is my Personal Youtube Channel
It Includes Unboxing, Quick Review(No voice though, Im Shy ) and lots of GAMES! Please Rate and Share too
I only encounter Lags when playing Asphalt 6, maybe because this game is not for Arc, and because this game is for Xperia Play Optimised, but still playable and it rarely lags.
If i could own Both that would be nice

Hmm.. Have you overclocked? Or it lags a little on stock rom with 1Ghz default clock

Pjay12 said:
Hmm.. Have you overclocked? Or it lags a little on stock rom with 1Ghz default clock
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No, I stayed on Stock Rom 2.3.3 and No Root , Still waiting for a Rootable 2.3.3 or 2.3.4 when time comes
Xperia Play Handles Games and Task very well because it is the only phone out there that uses a dual channel DDR2 memory working at 300 Hertz, that Improves Performances a lot and can perform Heavy Task.
Thats why Playing games on Play is Optimised and stayed @ 60FPS Refresh Rate.
One Very Big Pro for Xplay

athris said:
I think you forget to mention that play does not support Brave Engine and i think both device has pretty good sound too. Just get to the store and try it.
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The play has bravia engine since doomlord ported it

IMO the Play and the Arc are both excellent devices. But they are aimed at two totally diffrent markets. The Play has been heavly optimised for playing games. (stereo speakers, dual channel ddr2 memory). But unless you intend to play alot of games on your phone, i see no reason to buy a play over an Arc. I love playing games on my play. And could never go back to touchscreen games now

If you want to game a lot --> Play is for you because of the controla
If you want to use it as a normal smartphone, texting, browsing, gaming sometimes Arc is the way to go imo.
I don't regret getting my Arc and it's fast @ 1GHz but of course it's even snappier @ 1.2GHz
Mine midnight blue Arc has the crack but it's not that visable (most of my friends don't see it, even if you say them there's a crack).
Arc rocks, but both devices are great.
Day to day performance should be exactly the same on Arc and Play due same specs and same using experience.
Sent from my LT15i using XDA Premium App

Actually I Play a lot but I did chose Arc over Play because of these Factors
>Size
>Weight
>Screen Size
>Screen Brightness
>Clear Black Panel
>Bravia Engine
>8MP Exmor R
>HD Recording
>HDMI Port(Bonus for Me)
>Style
Over
>PS Controls with Touch pads
>Stereo Speakers
>Exclusive Games and PS Suite
>Dual DDR2 Memory Channel
>Front Facing Camera
Put Those Arc Features in Play, I will choose Play Anytime
They could easily put some of those features and make Play as their Flagship phone?
Just Imagine All those Arc Features(not the Size and Weight) in Play

Those of you who have the play- (AndroHero I think)
Will the play be able to support PSP and PS2 games? Its my biggest concern about the Play. I saw a video on youtube - Modern warfare for xperia play. I know it was fake but the graphics :O:O:O:O:O:O Will the play ever actually be able to do that? Or will there most probably be a play 2 that will..?
My conclusion (so far) - The Play's gaming controls make it an ultimate portable gaming experience and you can thrash other players in online/multiplayer FPS games. The DDR2 RAM eliminates the lags that you very very rarely see on an xperia arc. And you get a tiny not-very-good front camera that Ill never use. The games can be played on both devices extremely well. Day to day performance is the same.
So...
Camera (really awesome cam) vs gaming controls.
Great.. Im exactly where I started out :/
Thanks all for the help More opinions always welcome. Im begging for them actually... It'll be my first high end android and I dont want to regret buying it or later thinking damn I should have bought the <insert name of what I didnt buy>
Edit- how is the support for the 2 devices when it comes to custom roms, kernels, etc?
Ive searched the forums for both, theres one note-worthy kernel (doom), one FXP rom each and the play has 2 or 3 others. Are roms for the arc in progress? Or is the stock rom brilliant as it is? Sorry for the *noob* questions. But Ive done the searching and researching and I want confirmation and stuffs I didnt know. New to the forums here etc etc

Xperia Play from Arc...worth the upgrade?

I recently acquired an Arc from a friend at a good price but also managed to order the Xperia Play from Chitter Chatter for £149.
I had a HTC HD2 and a PSP Go (loved both of them) but thought 'time for an upgrade' and to minimise the gear I carried ordered the Play from Expansys.
Long story cut short, the Play was delayed then cancelled and I bought the Arc to put me on until the Play arrived from CC.
Now, I can't play games properly without the game pad (and miss the PSP GO) but I am loving the quality of the Arc's screen and camera. It's nice and light too.
So, anyone with experience of them both can advise me if I should stick with the Arc? I am hearing a few bad things about the Play's build quality. I cannot see a reasonably priced (or stylish) bluetooth gamepad which would solve my dilemma.

I heard that the Arc will support any USB gamepad/controller via the LiveDock after the update to Android 2.3.4...
Sent from my LT15i using xda premium

Build quality on the play is great. There was issues with the back button. But that had been solved in latest update so it was software fault not hardware. Nothing wrong with the screen too. The arcs may be better, but the play screen is just as good as the one on my Desire HD. And with our dual channel ddr2 ram its faster than the arc. As for the camera. It takes pictures, 3mp/5mp/8mp whatever, either way all sonys camera's are solid
Sent from my R800i using Tapatalk

AndroHero said:
And with our dual channel ddr2 ram its faster than the arc.
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actually they both use dual channel 333mhz LPDDR2

pecholino said:
actually they both use dual channel 333mhz LPDDR2
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Source?
all i know or read it in xplay thread, that only xplay uses dual channel 333mhz, but all of MSM8255 is capable of dual channel ram but that depends on the manufacturer if it will include it, because it will have an effect to the price.

What Would You Like To See On The Xperia Play 2?

Hey guys iam just here to discuss what i would like to se on the Sony Xperia Play 2.
Screen: 4.3 inch super amoled plus screen 1280x720 pixel resolution.
Give us three buttons like on arc.
Front camera: 2MP with 720p recording
Ear speaker: louder and clearer
Headphone jack: let us use all headphones. Dont wanna break open my beats to get them to work WTF
Stereo speakers: No change already great
Back camera: 8mp full 1080p hd recording led flash
Internal memory: 1.5GB RAM 1GB ROM 16GB flash memory
External memory: up to 64gb sdxc
Battery: Heard about new technology called 'graphene or graphite' i think thats what its called. Takes 10 MINUTES TO CHARGE! and last longer than traditional li-ion and li-plo
Batterys.
Now down to the important stuff!
CPU: quad-core 1.5GHZ
GPU: whatever is the latest and greatest GPU at the time. I dont wanna see an outed brought back to life GPU. Its good but just not cutting the mustard anymore.
I dont mind paying out for a great phone and portable gaming device. What about you leave a reply.
I think sony should take the big step with the xperia play 2 and jump into the next area of phones. Not smartphone a superphone

My opinion as a realist: No, not with such specs.
My opinion as an optimist: YESYESYESYESYESYES!!
But seriously, with playstation certificate again, and such INCREDIBLE specs, this phone would probably cost 3x more than the first Xperia PLAY cost during its launch. You should note, that Xperia PLAY is already not so popular phone (in Poland its launch price was about 1800 pln (google this price to see comparision to your currency) which in Poland is very very high price, especially for a single-core phone), also playstation games on android market are only sold about more than 1000 times so for me this phone was some sort of "phone fail" for Sony Ericsson. But if the price was much lower during launch, the support was way better (I mean FULLY WORKING playstation store) and the phone was dual-core (there were already some phones with dual-core CPU, so it wouldn't be new and also expensive), I'm sure this device would be incredibly competitive for other phones.
Anyway, I'm really proud of my Xperia PLAY, gaming is awesome, idea for joining android with psp was superb and I won't switch it for another phone, until I break it or it will die. I just love it.
Sent from my beautiful Xperia PLAY using xda premium

4.2" Screen OLED Cappacitive
1.5 GHZ
1GB RAM
Thinner
R2/L2 added
More PS2/PSP games.
Roughly Cost £500-789 But I'D bUY IT¬1

I'd be happy if Play 2 had the hardware of Xperia S, maybe with a better GPU.
Xperia PLAY S? lol

VictoryStar said:
Xperia PLAY S? lol
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No, this isn't Apple, silly.

Joy
Better joysticks! Not one yoy pad like now, real Working touch joysticks!

The main thing I felt needed improvement with the Play is the horrid screen, which has poor viewing angle and very weak brightness. It has to be AMOLED. Also maybe better built quality.
I don't feel Sony wants to make another one due to the emulation and the recent failure of the PSP GO. I think if they create a device like this they want revenue stream from the softwares. They have to market it as a console and it needs to play all the PSP games, but right now this device seems more like a 'competition' to the PSP than anything (think about it). They can win consumers over if they provide good service through a strong market system and a large game library. And if the games are cheap, people will more likely to buy the games then to pirate.
PS. Quadcore don't mean anything to me except excuse for raising phone prices to $1000 and more bloatwares. I'll go with an Exynos 2ghz dual core myself. More cores doesn't tell the whole story when the Apple A5X beats the Tegra 3 on the graphic side. I still don't believe highest spec should be the main focus for a gaming device like this, as odd as that might sound, that is reserved for their flagship devices, to be paired with carriers like ATT and Verizon, and it simply can't be a gaming device. For a device like this it should be the ecosystem, which there isn't a strong one for the Play compared to PSP. I don't think Sony wants or need to spend money on this niche while their PSP handheld is going strong.

Bacondroid said:
No, this isn't Apple, silly.
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They alrady did it with Arc S.

Should I get the Play?

I have always wanted an Android gaming handheld. At first I was looking at the generic chinese handhelds to play on, but I decided against it (too many problems,poor quality).Then I remembered about the Xperia Play.
I want to play N64, GBA, SNES (for sure). And the occasional 3D android game eg. Frisbee Forever, Cut the Rope, Fruit Ninja, GTA III. The device I currently have is the Epic 4G Touch rooted and overclocked. But touchscreen emulators are terrible.
Is going from the Galaxy SII to the Xperia Play terrible? I will just be using the phone for the gaming functions, and as a internet device (wifi only). I am hoping although the Play is single core, it will be as smooth as my Galaxy. Thank you!!

It won't be as smooth as a dual core device, but you can run emulators up to ps1 (almost) flawlessly. For me, GTA III was a tiny bit laggy, but still playable.

As far as the u.i goes, you won't get GalaxySII smoothness or responsiveness, however you wont find a better emulation machine than the xperia play
Especially for very old systems like nes,snes, gameboy colour, sega, neogeo. There is an emulator for everything and they all run flawlessly on the play with the button (ps1 can be a bit flaky).

Thanks for your reply guys. PS1 emulation is something I'm not that interested in so that is not a worry. I have one more question though.
How do the analog sticks feel? I will be going to the store later today or in the week to try them out myself, but I just was wondering how you guys liked them?

If you want to play games, and have a cellphone in the same device, for sure, buy the Xperia Play. I came from a Optimus 2X, that isnt a Galaxy SII at all, but its a powerfull dual core too, and i dont regret. Xperia Play is a single core, but its the most powerfull one that I've have already seen, and runs smoothly the most of HD games. How its already saiyd in a above post, GTA III really get a bit of lag, but not much. Can be sure, the physical gamepad make a big diference. About the analogical touchpad, isnt so good to handle as a true analogical stick, but its better than nothing.
If you get an Xperia Play, I hardly recomend you to root and install DroidSail Super App2SD or a similar, because the 200mb of internal memory are ridiculous for a gaming device, and this app allows you to pass all the apps to sd card.

I wanted to play emulators too and i bought a chinese android console, and then i just read that the xperia play was better in emus and better quality and i sold the chinese console and bought an CDMA Xperia play to use as a console.
Then i loved it so much i sold my blackberry and my CDMA xperia play and bought a GSM xperia play and i now have all i want in my pocket. (phone, camera, divxplayer, console, mp3 player, tablet).
i think you wont regret it, if you only want it as a portable device, without cell phone recomend a r800a since its cheaper than the r800i
i use firmware 2.3.4 58, great batery life, last all day even if i msg a lot and play like 2 hours in the day. (on 2g, no wifi, no bluetooth or gps)

My answer may be biased since I don't like having to rub touch devices too long, but the analog touchpad is pretty frustrating at times. You basically tilt your thumbs in the direction you want them to go. Maybe you can adapt to it if you're used to using touchscreen analog in Android games, but for me they're frustrating.

No, you should not get the Play. The phone is obsolete already, there are no future updates expected from Sony, some of the best devs are leaving for other phones, official ICS was denied to us and the community is quickly dwindling.
If you want a great gaming device, get a handheld designed for that purpose. If you want an awesome phone, better take a look at what is being released in the near future, and stay away from Sony. By all means, don't waste your money on a phone that is already a year and a half old.

netizenmt said:
No, you should not get the Play. The phone is obsolete already, there are no future updates expected from Sony, some of the best devs are leaving for other phones, official ICS was denied to us and the community is quickly dwindling.
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Click to collapse
You have a point there, even though Sony promised some more GB updates.
I heard the PSP 3000 has the ability to run emulators too, so you might want to look into that.

Well, I went to the Verizon store. I installed N64oid on the Play. And quite frankly, I hated it. The analogs sticks are just not for me.
I have decided to just buy the Yinlips YDPG18. looks like a PS Vita, but runs Android. Thanks for all your help!

Compared to my old phone, a Motorola Atrix 4G (nvidia tegra dual core), the sony xperia play feels faster, smoother, and higher quality phone. I can't explain it, and the fact that you have a real joystick to play real games is an added icing.
Having said that, you should not pay more than $100 US for a nice used one. I am looking at you Amazon sellers, trying to sell an R 800i for $300, what ripoffs!
Sent from my R800i using xda premium

Do you like your Xperia Play?

As I read around the Internet, I see mixed reviews of the Xperia Play. However, if there is one thing i've learned through forum dwelling, it's that the unhappy are 10 times more likely to speak than the content.
If you don't want to answer any of those questions down below this, at least answer the poll <3
How well does it act as a phone? Are its texting/calling abilities acceptable?
How are the games? Are there emulators that take advantage of the control pad? Are there a reasonable amount of games that use the control pad? How often do you play games on it using the control pad? (I care so much about the control pad because it is the reason i'm considering buying it )
Is it exceptionally far behind recent phones? (Obviously it is behind as it isn't exactly a new phone, but will it still be useable 2-3 years from now?)
How well does Android run on it? Does it run more smoothly on the port of ICS or on its default Gingerbread? Do either of those OS's have a noticeable impact (good or bad) on gaming (compatibility, framerate, etc...)?
Would you buy your Xperia Play again?
Any other comments and experiences you have had are very welcome as well. Thank you for your time! I'm sure this thread will help at least one more person in the future.

Redjericho said:
How well does it act as a phone? Are its texting/calling abilities acceptable?
How are the games? Are there emulators that take advantage of the control pad? Are there a reasonable amount of games that use the control pad? How often do you play games on it using the control pad? (I care so much about the control pad because it is the reason i'm considering buying it )
Is it exceptionally far behind recent phones? (Obviously it is behind as it isn't exactly a new phone, but will it still be useable 2-3 years from now?)
How well does Android run on it? Does it run more smoothly on the port of ICS or on its default Gingerbread? Do either of those OS's have a noticeable impact (good or bad) on gaming (compatibility, framerate, etc...)?
Would you buy your Xperia Play again?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1) The thing I like the best about Xperia Play is that it's not just good at being a game device. While I'm struggling to have any use for my PlayStation Vita, my Xperia Play's able to be an 'everything'.
2) The games are nice! Which is a very big deal for me. What I feared the most is that this would just be another OpenPandora, GP32, Dingoo A320, iControlPad or Gametel Controller; coming with all kinds of high tech, next-level hardware that people are wasting for all these old-ass games. I don't want to buy new technology for old software. I like seeing games that are actually able to take advantage of Xperia Play's full resolution and all it's methods of this-generation controls. What makes Xperia Play a winner to me is that it has all that. It's an excellent emulator, but you can get a good emulator anywhere... don't mean to be blunt, but that's nothing special. What makes Xperia Play special is that it's actually able to play the upper crust of this-generation smartphone games with dual analogs, high-res graphics and conventions of this generation. I'm playing games on it all the time... and shockingly enough, my shiny new PlayStation Vita isn't compromising that.
3) On paper, it seems like it would be far behind current phones because it's a single core. In practice though, it's running software (game and non-game) just as smoothly as the latest and greatest. Adreno 205 isn't very high-ranking on GPU acceleration, but practice always matters more than concept, and in practice I seldom see dips in framerate or hiccups in everyday use... and since it's got game controls, it's got a merit that those powerhouse phones don't. By all means, it should already be obsolete, yet everytime the next big 'benchmark' game comes out, Xperia Play has it's hands all over it. Then again, the same group of oblivious spec-counters talk **** about how every iPhone released is behind the curve at launch... yet single cores still hold their ground.
4) Android runs pretty silky smooth for me. What I will say is that you may not get the smoothest performance with that crappy standard launcher Sony puts on it's phones. With LauncherPro or ssLauncher, you see the Xperia Play being ridiculously smooth (those two launchers in particular also are a huge battery life savers).
5) I'd definitely buy it again. When I initially got this, it was a toss up between this and the Motorola Atrix. Now I see people with GS2's, Atrix, G2x, Atrix 2, GNotes that all fall in love with this single core phone I have (a few have even offered to trade their stronger phone for my weaker one that has game controls). I'll be able to upgrade again soon, and I'll likely just be using that for eBay fodder. As long as my Xperia Play continues being silky smooth and keeps providing a gaming experience that nothing else parallels, I don't see myself caring how strong phones get.

Do you like your Xperia Play?
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Well, the things that I don't like about it are cpu, gpu and ram because they are not appropriate for a gaming device.
but will it still be useable 2-3 years from now?)
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As a gaming device, I think it will not be usuable for games because games in the future will require Android 4.1 + more than good hardware like (1GB RAM - Snapdragon S4 CPU ... etc)
Would you buy your Xperia Play again?
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da

TLRtheory said:
1) The thing I like the best about Xperia Play is that it's not just good at being a game device. While I'm struggling to have any use for my PlayStation Vita, my Xperia Play's able to be an 'everything'.
2) The games are nice! Which is a very big deal for me. What I feared the most is that this would just be another OpenPandora, GP32, Dingoo A320, iControlPad or Gametel Controller; coming with all kinds of high tech, next-level hardware that people are wasting for all these old-ass games. I don't want to buy new technology for old software. I like seeing games that are actually able to take advantage of Xperia Play's full resolution and all it's methods of this-generation controls. What makes Xperia Play a winner to me is that it has all that. It's an excellent emulator, but you can get a good emulator anywhere... don't mean to be blunt, but that's nothing special. What makes Xperia Play special is that it's actually able to play the upper crust of this-generation smartphone games with dual analogs, high-res graphics and conventions of this generation. I'm playing games on it all the time... and shockingly enough, my shiny new PlayStation Vita isn't compromising that.
3) On paper, it seems like it would be far behind current phones because it's a single core. In practice though, it's running software (game and non-game) just as smoothly as the latest and greatest. Adreno 205 isn't very high-ranking on GPU acceleration, but practice always matters more than concept, and in practice I seldom see dips in framerate or hiccups in everyday use... and since it's got game controls, it's got a merit that those powerhouse phones don't.
4) Android runs pretty silky smooth for me. What I will say is that you may not get the smoothest performance with that crappy standard launcher Sony puts on it's phones. With LauncherPro or ssLauncher, you see the Xperia Play being ridiculously smooth (those two launchers in particular also are a huge battery life savers).
5) I'd definitely buy it again. When I initially got this, it was a toss up between this and the Motorola Atrix. Now I see people with GS2's, Atrix, G2x, Atrix 2, GNotes that all fall in love with this single core phone I have (a few have even offered to trade their stronger phone for my weaker one that has game controls). I'll be able to upgrade again soon, and I'll likely just be using that for eBay fodder. As long as my Xperia Play continues being silky smooth and keeps providing a gaming experience that nothing else parallels, I don't see myself caring how strong phones get.
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Thank you so much for your review! You basically covered everything that I have been searching far-and-wide to find. It's good to hear that it can also handle current generation games (for the most part) because it's always nice to have one or two pick-up-and-play mindless games, and the current mobile market excels at that.
I too believe that a device's specs don't mean much unless they are real world, so it's nice to hear from an actual user that it performs well. The main complaints I have read are lag of android and battery life, so to learn that I can improve it (at least a bit) is a very big plus.
Thanks for taking the time to help me out! Where there is one satisfied customer there is bound to be more, but I will stick around to see what others have to say as well.
Xperia-Play said:
Well, the things that I don't like about it are cpu, gpu and ram because they are not appropriate for a gaming device.
As a gaming device, I think it will not be usuable for games because games in the future will require Android 4.1 + more than good hardware like (1GB RAM - Snapdragon S4 CPU ... etc)
da
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I don't really see it as a replacement for a true gaming device. If I wanted to play polygon-packed, particle effect oozing games, I would spring for a Ps Vita (which I probably will get some day). As long as it can run a reasonable selection of game pad optimized games/emulators, i don't mind the lack of specs.

I don't really see it as a replacement for a true gaming device. If I wanted to play polygon-packed, particle effect oozing games, I would spring for a Ps Vita (which I probably will get some day). As long as it can run a reasonable selection of game pad optimized games/emulators, i don't mind the lack of specs.
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I think you are right

I've
Sent from my R800i using xda premium

How well does it act as a phone? Are its texting/calling abilities acceptable?
Excellent. 100% a good PHONE.
How are the games? Are there emulators that take advantage of the control pad? Are there a reasonable amount of games that use the control pad? How often do you play games on it using the control pad? (I care so much about the control pad because it is the reason i'm considering buying it )
Games for Android are great. SO many games are Xperia PLAY optimized. Emulator games, imo, are where it's at. Most emulated games just downright play better with physical controls. I <3 <3 <3 playing my PS1 roms on it.
Is it exceptionally far behind recent phones? (Obviously it is behind as it isn't exactly a new phone, but will it still be useable 2-3 years from now?)
I think so. Yeah it will lag a bit, especially as newer Android versions will require newer hardware, but imo we're safe for another year and a half or two. Possibly more.
How well does Android run on it? Does it run more smoothly on the port of ICS or on its default Gingerbread? Do either of those OS's have a noticeable impact (good or bad) on gaming (compatibility, framerate, etc...)?
For me using a custom rom (TrueAncestor) it's *butter*y smooth. Plays my games excellently.
Would you buy your Xperia Play again?
I most certainly would. Actually, I just did, and I am NOT regretting that desicion AT ALL. I had bought a beat up used one first and it died, but I liked it so much I bought it again.

i'll buy it ,
if one day , xperia play 2 comes , i'll buy that too , for any price
game pad is really really special H/W on phone , all i need is game and game support

I brought my play specifically for gaming as I'm sure so did everyone who has got this phone, I think it is a really good phone for gaming although it does struggle with some larger games like nova 3 but all in all the games seem to run lag less and have yet to have any issues with gaming myself, the phone itself excluding gaming is great it runs smooth, looks nice and its awesome when u show it to ur mates then flip out the controller lol, I wasn't sure about buying this phone at 1st as it does have some bad reviews and with it only having a 1ghz single core processor it didn't seem that revealing, anyway I went ahead and brought it and im yet to see any faults with it in fact after seeing mine my bro sold his iphone4 to buy one and my mate sold his sensation xe to buy one aswel which on paper is a huge downgrade, like I said some large games like nova 3 for example do lag but personally I think thats not because the phone can't hack it but that the game itself is just made crappy but a little lag on some games is worth bearing for the fact that u have a controller. This is the phone for anyone who likes gaming and if u install a custom rom and kernel its even better, I love this phone and won't ever change it unless an Xperia play 2 comes out
Sent from my R800i using xda premium

Hi, for me it's the best phone out there not only for gaming cause it can everything what a modern android phone should can. I use it every day as a normal phone and everything is fine and if you are a gamer and retrogame fan like me then there isn't something better.
Of course there a lot of more powerfull phones but as said they're just phones, and yeah i tried to play on others but with touch it's impossible to play a good game!!