Clove Technology's Blog
Whilst stocks last, we have reduced the price of the Sony Xperia T to just £215+VAT (£258 including VAT).
The Xperia T may have been superseded by the Xperia Z, it still has a lot to offer:
Grab yourself a great deal today!
The chances are that if you’ve come to this post, you’re already aware that your device has MHL (video out capability), so I won’t explain what an MHL cable is used for (there are good definitions within the linked products below) and we also have this post, which explains what MHL does and shows off some of its coolest features.
However, while MHL is an industry standard (meaning that in theory the same cable should be compatible with all MHL-enabled devices), that is not the case – some use a 9 pin arrangement, others use a 5 pin arrangement. The point of this post therefore is to tell you which MHL cable is compatible with your device.
We have created a video to show the description below in action, which you can view here
The Samsung Galaxy S3 and Samsung Galaxy S4 MHL adaptors are interchangeable with both handsets. That’s to say, the S4 MHL adaptor will work with the S3, and the S3 MHL adaptor will work with the S4. However, there are still some differences.
The Samsung Galaxy S4 uses MHL 2.0. This means that there is no power connection needed for the MHL adaptor to work – the S4 can power the connection itself. That being said, it is advisable to power the connection if possible (using your handset’s microUSB charger) in order to prevent battery drain. Both the S3 and S4 adaptors work with the S4 without the need to power the connection.
The situation with the Samsung Galaxy S3 handset is the opposite. Both the S3 and S4 MHL adaptors will need to be powered if you are using them with the S3. This isn’t a huge problem as the microUSB charger supplied with you handset is fine for this purpose, it just makes the setup slightly more inconvenient.
The other difference between the two adaptors is that the S4 adaptor has a 60MHz refresh rate, whereas the S3 has a 24GHz refresh rate. This means that the S4 adaptor will provide a better image on screen, whether you are using it with the S3 or the S4.
Samsung Galaxy S4 MHL Cable (demo video)(also compatible with the Samsung Galaxy S3)
Samsung Galaxy S3 MHL Cable (demo video) (also compatible with the Samsung Galaxy S4)
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 MHL Cable (demo video)
Sony Xperia Z (see a demo video for this here)
HTC One (see a demo video for this here)
Samsung Galaxy Note 2 Smart Dock – due early April. It’s possible that this will also be compatible with the Samsung Galaxy S3, but we will confirm this once we have received stock.
There was a similar product for Sony handsets called the LiveDock, but this has now been discontinued.
MHL is a relatively new standard when it comes to its inclusion with smartphones, so you could be forgiven for expecting it to be included with newly released handsets. however, some new handsets do not include it, but use other standards such as SlimPort, which we explain here. Here are a list of those that we are aware of that do not use MHL and the equivalent standard that they do use.
LG Nexus 4 – SlimPort
The Sony Xperia T or James Bond Phone as it is known has to date has only been available in Black to date, but as of next week we will have it available in White as well, if you prefer this colour.
For more information or to order in white now for delivery next week, CLICK HERE.
Sony has just announced that the Android Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0.4 update is now rolling out for the Xperia T and Xperia TX in European and Asian markets.
The most noticeable part of the update is Miracast compatibility. This was recently announced as part of the specification of the new Nexus range and enables the sharing of your device’s screen with other Miracast devices, such as Miracast enabled TVs. However, as SlashGear has recently pointed out, there are at the moment only a handful on Miracast compliant devices at the moment.
Another impressive part of the Xperia T update is improvement of battery standby time by up to four times. When the device has been asleep for a few minutes, Wi-Fi and data traffic will be automatically turned off and most apps will become inactive. This will not however affect the handsets ability to receive calls and text messages when in standby mode.
There’s also an update to Sony’s media apps included with the 4.0.4 update.
Sony has confirmed via its product blog that the majority of its 2012 Xperia line-up will be updated to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. The first updates will begin rolling out in Q1 2013.
The first to get the upgrade will be the Xperia T, Xperia TX and Xperia V, with Sony approximating a rollout beginning ‘mid Q1 2013’.
The other handsets that will be upgraded to Jelly Bean are: Xperia S, Xperia acro S, Xperia ion, Xperia go and Xperia J. A timeframe has not yet been provided, but given the updates for the T and other devices is scheduled for mid-Q1, a reasonable expectation for the other devices would be early to mid Q2.
Sony has also confirmed that its 2011 range will not be updated to Jelly Bean:
We were glad to provide the Android 4.0.4 upgrade for our 2011 Xperia portfolio across most markets and the majority of models but, after thorough evaluation, we have concluded they will not be upgraded beyond Ice Cream Sandwich.
Beyond Ice Cream Sandwich we would not able to guarantee owners of these smartphones the user experience you expect and we demand. We will however, continue to support all these products with firmware maintenance releases.
We’ll let you know as soon as any of the Jelly Bean updates are rolling out.
Via Eurodroid
Sony yesterday posted on its product blog to raise awareness of the fact that the Xperia T is HD Voice certified.
HD Voice technology lessens background noise while improving the sound quality of the human voice. There’s a sound clip here that demonstrates the difference between a handset with and without it.
To take advantage of HD Voice technology, you will need to use a network operator that supports it. In the UK that is Three, Orange and T-Mobile.
We’ve got more stock of the SIM-free Sony Xperia T due to arrive at Clove next week.
Via Android Central
So you might have obtained a Sony Xperia T and have heard you can connect it to a HD display, but are wondering how you do it.
Simply put you need the following adapter: http://www.clove.co.uk/samsung-official-mhl-adaptor-eia1uhunbecstd
At the time of writing Sony have not released their own adapter and this one from Samsung will allow you to connect your Xperia T to a HD screen.
Connect the adapter to a power supply, connect a HDMI cable from the HD display to the adapter and then connect the microUSB connection on the adapter to the Sony Xperia T.
Be aware that you need the adapter that works with the Samsung Galaxy S II an Samsung Galaxy Note. The adapter for the Galaxy S III and Note II does not work with the Xperia T.
UPDATE 12/10: Stock delayed until 29th October.
We posted earlier this week to say that we will be receiving more SIM-free stock of the Sony Xperia T. The good news is that this still stands, the bad news is that it will arrive slightly later than expected. We had expected stock to arrive next Monday (15th October), but this has been delayed by a week and is now due on Monday 22nd October Monday 29th .
Being the official smartphone for the new James Bond movie, Skyfall, it is quite fitting that the Xperia T has been somewhat elusive so far. We’ll let you know as soon as we’ve got it in stock and ready for sale.
See how the Sony Xperia T compares in size to some of the other leading smartphones on the market.