Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet

What is the Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet?

The Xperia Z4 is Sony’s latest flagship Android tablet, following in the footsteps of the disappointing Xperia Z2 Tablet. The new model shows off upgrades in nearly every department, but has Sony achieved the right mix?
We think it has, and the Z4 Tablet could be the best Android tablet on the market. However, at £499 with the keyboard dock, it doesn’t come cheap.
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Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet – Design

The Xperia Z4 Tablet is immediately recognisable as a Sony product. Simple, slim and sharp – it looks great, and will instantly appeal to your inner shopaholic.
For looks we’d put it up there with the iPad Air 2, although it falls slightly short with the numerous seams around its edges. The smooth, uninterrupted lines of the Air just give it the upper hand.
Sony has encased the Z4 Tablet in soft-touch plastic, with the only hint of metal provided by the power button. While the plastic finish doesn’t feel anywhere near as good as metal, it has one huge upside: it keeps the tablet incredibly light.
And that’s no exaggeration. The Xperia weighs an astonishing 393g (the Wi-Fi-only model is 4g lighter), making it one of the most manageable 10-inch tablets on the market. The 437g iPad Air 2 seems almost overweight by comparison.
The Z4 is also only 6.1mm thick, matching Apple’s finest, and the curved edges sit nicely in your hands. You can comfortably hold the Xperia one-handed for extended periods. Fancy watching a movie while lying flat-out on the settee? No problem. Kids will be able to handle it with ease, too.
We’re not totally convinced about build quality, though. The volume rocker rattles around quite loosely in its cutout, and is far too easy to push accidentally since it sits just where you’d position your left hand.
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However, the metal power button offers just enough resistance to stop you hitting it when you don’t mean to, but not so much that it’s tough to push. Perfect.
The Xperia Z4 survived over a week in our packed bag without suffering so much as a scratch. However, we’d still recommend treating it carefully, as it’s relatively easy to flex with your hands.
The Z4 is available in either black or white, but we think the dark colour scheme looks far slicker. Fingerprints do show up clearly on the black rear, but they can be wiped away easily.
As most of us have now come to expect from top-end Sony products, the Z4 Tablet is both waterproof and dust-resistant. However, rather confusingly, it has both the IP65 and IP68 rating. Thankfully, Sony provides a list of guidelines to ensure you don’t accidentally drown it.
Before even thinking about dunking it into your kitchen sink, you have to make sure you close the port covers properly. It’s a slight annoyance, and you’ll initially find yourself opening and resealing them just in case you didn’t get it right the first time. However, it’s well worth taking those extra few seconds.
It’ll survive being held underwater to depths of 1.5m for up to 30 minutes, though this only counts if the water’s fresh. Salt water is strictly forbidden, but you’ll be able to get away with using it in your local swimming pool as long as you rinse it in clean water afterwards.
The Micro USB port, unlike the microSD slot, is unprotected by any flaps or caps, so you need to be certain it’s completely dry before plugging in any cables.
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Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet – Screen and Sound

The Xperia Z4’s 10.1-inch screen is a beauty. It’s a 2,560 x 1,600 (2K) IPS display equipped with Sony’s “Triluminos” technology, and it’s simply stunning.
With a pixel density of 299ppi, it’s better than both the iPad Air 2 (264ppi) and Z2 Tablet (224ppi), and even beats off the excellent Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 (288ppi). Text and images are razor-sharp and incredibly detailed, even when you press your face unhealthily close to the screen.
Brightness is particularly impressive. The Z4 Tablet remains easy to use in even harsh, direct sunlight, with Sony claiming that its screen is 40 per cent brighter than that of its predecessor.
It’s coated in scratch-resistant glass and an anti-fingerprint coating, the latter of which is genuinely useful. It does a great job of keeping the screen clear even when your digits smear grease all over it, though it doesn't stop fingerprints from being easily visible on the black bezel.
Thanks to the IPS panel, viewing angles are terrific, with barely a drop in accuracy from even the widest viewing positions. This makes it ideal for watching movies and TV shows in a group.
Colours appear vibrant yet realistic, with skin tones in particular looking true-to-life, uncontaminated by the oversaturated, peachy shades that can ruin a shot. The screen also does a great job of displaying even the most subtle of differences in the brightest areas of images, making pictures and videos look spectacular.
Unfortunately, black levels aren’t quite as deep as they should be, appearing dark grey instead of inky. As a result shadowy scenes look a little murky, but it’s hardly a crippling issue.
Still, this is us being picky. All in all, it’s an outstanding display that’s ideal for watching high-quality movies and playing complex games.
Related: Sony Xperia Z5 vs Z4 vs Z3: What can you expect if you upgrade?

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We’re pleased to report that the Xperia Z4 includes a pair of front-facing speakers, so there’s no hint of that frustrating muffled effect when you place the tablet on a bed, for example. They’re pleasantly loud too, but lack structure when you pump them up, sounding cluttered at top volume.
While they’re fine for a tablet so thin, we’d still recommend investing in a decent speaker or pair of headphones for an optimal aural experience.

Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet – Software

Not surprisingly, the Xperia Z4 Tablet runs the latest version of Google’s mobile operating system, Android 5.0.2 Lollipop. This means you’re treated to the new Material design and all of the layout tweaks that come with it.
Thankfully, Sony has refrained from messing around with the software too much, simply bundling its own themes and wallpapers, as well as a handful of Xperia-branded apps.
Xperia Lounge offers special promotions directly to customers. Xperia Link, meanwhile, lets you quickly connect to the internet via a connection to your smartphone – as long as it’s also an Xperia model – and Xperia Care acts as a support hub.
Something that will appeal to PS4 owners is Remote Play, which allows you to use the Z4 Tablet as a second screen for your games console. It’s particularly handy if you live in a busy household where the TV is in constant demand, and should ensure at least one less scrap over the TV each evening. What’s more, you can use the PlayStation DualShock 4 controller with the Z4 Tablet straight out of the box.
Sony also offers some apps, which are handy if you’re a keen multi-tasker. You can open as many as 10 applications in separate windows on one screen, although we found that any more than three can look messy.
You can use Chrome, Gmail, the calendar, calculator and native music player in this view, and move and resize each window to suit your needs.

Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet – Performance

Screen quality and features mean little if performance isn’t up to scratch, but we’re pleased to report that Sony has got things right in this department.
Admittedly, alarm bells began to ring when we discovered that the Z4 Tablet is powered by the much-maligned Snapdragon 810 processor. But we didn’t experience any of the overheating issues that have been reported in the HTC One M9 and LG G Flex 2.
That said, the Xperia’s rear warms up even during light use, such as browsing the web. Still, it never became worryingly hot during testing, even while gaming.
The 64-bit octa-core processor clocked at 2GHz and 3GB of RAM combine to excellent effect, making the Xperia Z4 Tablet very powerful indeed. This is reflected by our benchmark results.
It scored 4,500 in the Geekbench 3 multi-core speed test, placing it and the iPad Air 2 (4,509) on an even keel. It’s streets ahead of Android rivals, leaving the Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 (2,669) in the dust.
The Xperia performs even better in the graphics department, scoring a sublime 24,283 in the 3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited test. That’s a terrific result. Even the iPad Air 2 (21,797) can’t keep up, with the Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 (13,500) again way behind.
However, benchmarks aren’t everything. Fortunately, the Xperia’s performance is generally excellent. It blitzes through 3D games, including Real Racing 3, Asphalt 8 and Dead Trigger 2, delivering a flawless experience. Similarly, movies and videos play smoothly, without a hint of lag.
On occasion, we did find that sound and videos sometimes stuttered when rotating the screen, and we’re not sure why. However, it seems to happen on an irregular basis, and is so fleeting that few users will actually be bothered by it.

Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet – Connectivity

The micro-USB port sits in the centre of the right-hand edge, while the rest of the connections sit on the top edge. From left to right, there’s the headphone jack, the nanoSIM tray and the microSD card slot, which you can use to boost storage by up to 128GB. The SIM and microSD slots are covered by a long, rectangular flap to keep water out.
The Xperia Z4 Tablet also comes with NFC, Bluetooth 4.1, 802.11ac standard Wi-Fi with support for MIMO and Cat 6 LTE.

Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet – Battery Life

In order to make the Xperia so thin, Sony would have undoubtedly have had to make compromises. Unfortunately, one is in an area that has major consequences. The Z4 Tablet runs on the same 6,000mAh battery as the Z2 Tablet. For comparison, the Air 2 squeezes in a 7,340mAh battery, and the Galaxy Tab S 10.5 uses a 7,900mAh number.
As expected, stamina is a low point. Not even the super-efficient Snapdragon 810 can make up for the fact that 6,000mAh just isn’t enough juice for such a high-quality, power-hungry display.
In Airplane mode, with screen brightness and volume at the midway mark, we played a standard-definition video on loop and the Z4 Tablet lasted an unremarkable 5 hrs and 30 mins. That’s nowhere near the claimed 17 hours video playback.
Battery drain is particularly bad when using the camera. Our sample lost an astonishing eight per cent during just 10 minutes of use.
With mixed use it fared better, lasting over eight hours. This is more than good enough to keep you entertained while travelling to and from work, but you’ll have to charge it daily if you watch a lot of video content.
Fortunately, Sony offers several battery-saving options to keep the Xperia going for longer. Extended Standby mode automatically switches off apps when the screen is powered down, while Extended Usage mode tones down performance to ease up on power consumption. Ultra Stamina mode, meanwhile, is handy in emergency situations, limiting the Xperia to basic functionality.
The Z4 Tablet is a slow charger too, with a 30-minute blast taking it from flat to 13 per cent, which would theoretically provide just over 40 minutes of video joy. It took a sluggish four hours to get to 100 per cent.
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Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet – Camera

Sony has put a lot of effort into its photography suite. An 8.1-megapixel camera adorns the back of the Xperia, and a 5.1-megapixel snapper sits on the front.
The front-facing camera is better than you’d normally find on a tablet, and as such it’s perfect for Skype video calls. We’d still recommend using your smartphone for selfies, as the images captured by the Xperia look soft and lack detail.
The rear sensor comes equipped with HDR mode, which is designed to capture more detail in the darkest and brightest areas of shots. Unfortunately, it isn’t particularly effective or consistent, leaking through plenty of excess light without improving shadow detail.
As with the selfie camera, the main sensor captures hazy images that lack detail. It does a decent job in low light conditions, thanks to the image stabiliser, but we definitely wouldn’t use the Z4 Tablet as our main camera.
Sony has also included a range of unusual AR apps, which flit between fun and plain bizarre. You can throw a T-Rex into shots, or superimpose a terrifying virtual cat head over your own face.
There’s also a panorama mode and the option to plant your own face in pictures, which the Xperia does by simultaneously firing up the front and rear cameras. It’s quite fun trying to turn yourself into a sort of homemade version of the sun from Teletubbies.
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Anything else to consider?

It appears that Sony is making consumers buy the Xperia Z4 Tablet alongside a non-optional £150 keyboard dock, which transforms it into a sort of tablet/Chromebook hybrid, and ramps up the price of the Wi-Fi-only model to an intimidating £499. The LTE version of the tablet (with dock) comes in at a frightening £579. US customers will have to part with $759 for the Wi-Fi-only model with the keyboard.
Unfortunately, the Bluetooth keyboard itself is nothing special. Made from the same matte black plastic as the tablet, it looks OK, but that’s about as good as it gets. It almost doubles the Xperia’s thickness and weight, coming in at a surprisingly hefty 365g.
You have to slot the tablet into a ridge that protrudes from the head of the keyboard. It’s a simple mechanism, which lacks any of the slickness associated with magnetic hinges. You have to ram the Xperia in, and extracting it is equally unceremonious, requiring several firm tugs.
Crucially, the keys are simply too small to provide a comfortable typing experience. We made typo after typo, routinely hitting the wrong buttons purely because the layout is so cramped. The keys are also shallow, failing to offer a satisfying amount of travel.
The trackpad is tiny, too, and therefore unpleasant to use. It also takes a couple of seconds to wake up after it’s not been in use for a while, which is irritating.
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Should I buy the Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet?

If you can afford to shell out £500 on a tablet, then yes. The Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet is an excellent piece of kit: it’s quick, powerful, effortlessly good-looking and incredibly light.
What’s more, the screen is exceptional, and not just in terms of clarity. It’s also bright, accurate and large enough to be used as your primary entertainment device. If you’re a gamer, the PS4-friendly Remote Play feature adds to the appeal.
The only downside is battery life. However, if you’re sensible and make use of the multiple power-saving modes, you’ll easily be able to get a full day out of the Xperia Z4.

Verdict

The Sony Xperia Z4 Tablet has all the style, power and stunning screen quality necessary to make it a true iPad Air 2 rival.

Scores In Detail

• Battery Life 7
• Build Quality 8
• Design 10
• Features 9
• Heat & Noise 8
• Performance 9
• Screen Quality 10
• Software & Apps 9
• Sound Quality 8
• Value 8