Over the past few years, dual-SIM smartphones have gained particular popularity in the mobile device market . This is logical, because one device can serve immediately with two SIM cards, which makes its use very convenient and practical. Let's say you do not need to carry a second device with you or constantly ask friends to call another operator’s number. Yes, and you do not need to overpay for Internet connection services, because one phone embodies the functionality of two devices at once.
You will not be able to guess which model will be considered in our article today, since there are a large number of such devices. Therefore, we give the answer: this is a Sony Xperia Tipo mobile phone that embodies multitasking, performance, design and an affordable price. Read more about it in this article.
general information
So, the device was launched for sale back in 2012. It was then that it immediately became an object of general attention - the new Sony Xperia Tipo was repeatedly described in various reviews that carefully advertised the device, focusing users on the mass of benefits available to them.
Then there were not so many devices with two SIM cards, so the popularity came to the Tipo model quite quickly. The advantage of the device was its relatively low price and a set of advantages such as high-quality assembly or well-selected materials. And one should not forget about the company that supplies the best camera arrays on the market; it is necessary to study her proposals and take a closer look at them. What we did in the process of writing the article.
Thus, we will start with the appearance of the smartphone - we will describe the case, design and appearance of the device, i.e. the way it is seen for the first time.
Case and appearance
The Sony Xperia Tipo phone itself has relatively small, one might even say compact dimensions - it fits completely in the palm of your hand. Such a convenient little “dialer”.
As for the case materials, it seems from the outside: this is metal (the device looks solidly). However, a closer examination reveals that we have just painted plastic. As soon as the gadget falls into hands - it becomes obvious. Also in the first place you notice another feature of the device - its thickness. As stated in the technical specifications, it is about 13 millimeters! Imagine how inconvenient the Sony Xperia Tipo is in the pocket of tight trousers or jeans!
Regarding how the smartphone lies in your hand, you can also have a lot of debate. In the reviews, some users are outraged that the device tries to slip out of the hand during a conversation because of its rectangular shape with smooth corners. Another version is that working with a smartphone, on the contrary, is very convenient due to its weight and massiveness. It is useless to argue about this, since for each user how convenient the design of the device is, the thing is purely individual. We recommend that if you suddenly want to purchase this outdated (today) model, first hold it in your hands.
Due to the compact size of the case in Sony Xperia Tipo access to the memory card and SIM cards is a little difficult. As the owners of the device testify in reviews, it is necessary to remove the battery, only after which access to the “inner world” of the smartphone will open. Sim cards are located in two tiers, so they can also cause problems with their removal - you won’t be able to do this on the go.
Navigation
Following what our Tipo looks like, I would also like to describe its navigation aids, in particular, the number of physical keys located below the screen. They are present today on many smartphones, as there is a convenient enough place to find them. We are talking about the buttons "Home", "Back" and "Properties". Users complain that the backlight of this series only works for a short time during pressing - it’s not possible to configure them to glow continuously.
In addition to these, there are also keys for adjusting the sound, switching SIM cards, as well as unlocking the screen. The latter is on the upper left side of the device, and the two previous ones are on the right edge. If everything is clear with the unlock button and the “rocker” sound, then it’s worth noting that the switch button is a key that allows you to choose between cards (which one will be active for an outgoing call). Implemented, however, quite conveniently.
Screen
From the case and buttons, we smoothly proceed to the main control element of the smartphone - its display. The Sony Xperia Tipo has a 3.2-inch screen. Its parameters, of course, leave much to be desired - this is a resolution of 320 by 480 pixels (as in the good old keyboard smartphones), TFT technology and a large thick frame around the glass. Although multitouch is already supported here, so the buyer already has advanced capabilities for managing the device.
With such characteristics, of course, you should not expect the clearest and most colorful picture - even in 2012, mid-class devices had better screens than the smartphone we described. One word - a budget device ...
Despite this, the technical parameters indicate the presence of a protective coating on the display. If you believe this information, then using it the smartphone screen is protected from scratches and chips.
CPU
By analogy with the screen, it is not worth waiting for the processor installed on the Sony Xperia Tipo smartphone to show performance wonders. This is a relatively modest Qualcomm MSM7225A, whose clock frequency (according to official technical data) is 800 MHz. The device runs on a single core and loading it, as you know, is not difficult. The Adreno 200 accelerator copes with the graphics - the "filling" to match the class of the phone.
Yes, this device will “pull” the Android operating system, but there’s no need to talk about simultaneously launching several games of an average level of visualization - here you can play something simpler. Yes, and 512 megabytes of RAM indicates this.
Battery
Hardy device, based on the capacity of its battery, is also difficult to call. A battery with a capacity of 1,500 mAh was installed on the phone. For a more sophisticated device, of course, this would be enough for a day of work. But, given that our phone has the simplest screen and the minimum processor performance, as the reviews show, it can easily last up to two days on a single charge.
Basic actions such as turning off the mobile Internet, lowering the screen brightness, sound volume and the like can help. Again, this confirms the orientation of the phone to calls, and not to the multimedia component. Although with a hardy battery, you can watch movies and listen to music on the go for a long time.
Communication
Despite the fact that we are talking about a budget device, the characteristics describing the Sony Xperia Tipo indicate the presence of Bluetooth connectivity, Wi-Fi connection, as well as the ability to work with 3G mobile Internet. There is even GPS here, which indicates the versatility of the device, its wide work profile.
All these services can be turned off if unnecessary and, thus, increase the phone’s operating time (as we wrote above).
Camera
The device has only one camera (rear). True, you cannot rely on it - it has a resolution of 3.2 megapixels (a clearly technologically backward solution) without a flash and autofocus. It is easy to guess that it is even difficult to parse printed text on the images received using the telephone. We are not talking about color balance, long-range clarity, and so on.
The developers of Sony Xperia Tipo (the characteristics confirm this) made it clear that this device will not work for photo lovers. The maximum that such a camera is suitable for is to take pictures “on the go”, to photograph some of the simplest objects in maximum light. Well, it’s clear that the phone with two SIM cards is for calls!
Memory
With the amount of internal memory on this device, everything is "very bad." Initially, the phone provides 2.9 GB of shared memory, of which the user can use only 2.2 GB, since the rest is designed for system files.
As already mentioned, under the back cover of the device is a slot for a memory card. Due to it, the user can expand it up to 32 GB. A useful feature for fans of TV shows, for example.
Still, given the support for 3D games on this smartphone, you can download several entertainment applications to it and, thus, turn it into a gaming center. There are a lot of variations - and with 32 GB of memory they can all become a reality.
Other options
Honestly, the Sony Xperia Tipo (reviews confirm this) does not even have any additional features that should be discussed. The phone has a solid appearance that does not match its real "stuffing." Therefore, there is no need to talk about any additions.
At the software level, there is a good base here - voice search, a multimedia player, a standard browser, Gmail, Google maps and a number of other programs necessary for work. Plus, you can download those that interest you in the Google Play application directory. This allows you to make a real office smartphone, designed for work, from a budget phone for 2 SIM cards.
Reviews
You must admit that when you read about what Sony Xperia Tipo technical specifications are, you probably thought: this is a weak “braking” phone that is difficult to interact with and simply impossible to perform even the most basic actions. But the paradox is that reviews of this model indicate a completely different!
Yes, the Sony Xperia Tipo settings may not be flexible enough compared to other flagship models; perhaps the phone has a smaller margin of operating power, but it is a “smart” and hardy smartphone that allows you to simultaneously be in two mobile networks. For many people who paid 6 thousand rubles for it (this is the price that was set at the time the device entered the market), this was quite enough. So why should he not suit them?
Perhaps Sony Xperia Tipo will not be able to take high-quality photos and videos - but it is ideal for other tasks. And the one who buys the phone at such a low cost, and does not expect that he will be able to play the most advanced games with maximum graphics settings on it. Therefore, especially considering the class of the phone, it clearly justifies its price, and this is the most important thing.
findings
Yes, as you can observe for yourself by reading our review, the phone has a lot of shortcomings. It is weak in terms of the characteristics of the camera, processor, graphics engine. Even the Tipo case device may seem inconvenient and illogical to someone.
On the other hand, he has a lot of advantages. The first is a long working life on a single charge, which is rarely seen on budget Android phones (the Sony Xperia Tipo instruction tells us about 2 days of active work). The second is its compact size (despite the thickness of the case, in general, the device takes up little space - due to this it is convenient to always keep it at hand in any situation). Thirdly, the presence of 2 SIM cards, which makes the smartphone an indispensable communication assistant. Plus, you can talk about such features as the universal Android platform, which can become the basis for installing any other software; the ability to expand the memory card (then the phone can be used as a portable multimedia station). If we weigh, in this way, the pros and cons, our "shy" Xperia Tipo begins to seem not so weak device. On the contrary, it is possible that the manufacturer specifically developed this model in order to occupy a certain niche of budget and low-performance gadgets in the hope of conquering this segment of the market.
Whether they succeeded or not is difficult to say. The model is not as popular as some flagships; most likely, many users have not heard of this modification at all. However, judging by the reviews, there is a demand for the device - which means that the Xperia Tipo also has its own audience happy with the work of the gadget. And therefore, the works of developers from Sony were not in vain.