What is it?
The Sony Xperia M4 Aqua is the latest mid-range smartphone from Sony. The M series has always featured phones that offer great design and feature-set. With a few compromises here and there from the company's flagship devices, making them true mid-range devices Sony concentrates on a segment that has been shaken by the recent onslaught by Chinese brands.
Who is it for?
Any mid-range smartphone, and not just the Xperia M4 Aqua, is for anyone who prefers a superior smartphone experience without spending a bomb. Of course, there are a few corners cut from the flagship Z series, but the Xperia M4 Aqua is a pretty good phone for the most, especially those who prefer a premium design and have faith in the Sony brand.
Design
The Xperia M4 Aqua carries the design identity of the Xperia series of smartphones - the omni-balance design as the company prefers to call. While a tempered glass display protects the 5-inch panel, the phone features a metallic frame with matte silver colour. It not only makes the phone elegant, but the M4 Aqua exudes style. Also, the side panel makes the phone very easy to grip. The glass finish on the front and back panels, and the aluminum power button on the right edge make it stand out to say 'It's a Sony'.
The Xperia M4 Aqua is the first Sony smartphone outside the flagship Z series to be IP65 water-proof (hence the 'Aqua' in the name) and IP68 dust proof - a terrific addition to a mid-range smartphone. It's even more commendable since the M4 Aqua features a cap-less microUSB port (the audio port too does not have a flap) and you wouldn't need to open and close the flap each time you plug your phone to a charger or a cable to transfer files to/from a computer.
There's also a dedicated camera button on the right edge that takes care of one my usual cribs about most Android smartphones. What's also impressive is that Sony manages to pack in all that design elements and functional additions in a 7.3mm thick device that weighs just 136 grams.
Display
The Sony Xperia M4 Aqua sports a 5-inch HD (1280 x 720) IPS display. There's no Corning Gorilla Glass protection, but of course there's the tempered glass. The display offers great colours and is quite vibrant. While the viewing angles are pretty good, the screen is a little reflective. Unfortunately, the display is a fingerprint-magnet. It's not really a problem, but the smudges are very apparent when the display is turned off and gives me a sad face.
Hardware
The Xperia M4 Aqua is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 1.5GHz octa-core processor with 2GB of RAM. There's 16GB of internal memory, expandable up to 32GB via a microSD card. In terms of performance, the M4 Aqua is quite impressive for a mid-range smartphone.
The UI response, launching the camera, and switching between the apps is pretty smooth, and there's no apparent lag in everyday usage, even while playing graphic-intensive games - although the launch and resume in the latter is noticeable but far from annoying.
The M4 Aqua is a dual SIM device, and one of the SIM slots supports 4G LTE. The device packs in 2,400 mAh non-removable battery, but the battery life exceeds the expectations from the rating. On most days with regular use, I could carry the phone through the day, and ended the day with appreciable battery juice still left. Using the Stamina mode extends it even further.
Software
The Xperia M4 Aqua runs Android 5.0 Lollipop with the latest Xperia UI. Sony's customizations have always added vibrancy and ease to the stock Android user interface without overwhelming an average user. There are some handy customizations like the option to arrange the apps in different order.
There's the usual Sony apps like What's New which curates videos, games, and songs from different online sources in a neat UI and TV SideView, the remote and TV guide app.
Camera
One of the highlights of the Xperia M4 Aqua is its camera. There's a 13MP rear camera with Sony ExmorRS sensor and a 5MP front-facing camera. The camera app packs in several features from the more expensive Sony devices like the AR Effects, Style Portraits, et al. There's a Sound Photo mode that allows one to add sound to a photo while the Face Touch mode adds neat touches to the selfies.
While the outdoor images in daylight are crisp and the colour reproduction is brilliant, the low light shots are a little blurry. Sometimes, when I clicked some objects indoors, the captured shots were slightly off-colour. Sony claims that the M4 Aqua excels in low-light photography. The real world performance justifies the claim, although, I would've liked sharper photos.
The front-facing shooter on M4 Aqua packs in an 88-degrees wide-angle lens so that you can accommodate more people in your selfies. Again, pictures taken indoors with the front camera weren't too great, but outdoors, they were pretty good.
The rear camera allows 1080p full HD video recording, while the front-facing camera allows 720p video recording. The recorded videos are decent, and at par with most phones in this segment.
The Best Part
* Premium design
* Water-proof and dust-proof
* 4G support
The Tragic Flaw
* Expensive than other phones in the segment
* Camera performance could have been better
Summary
The Sony Xperia M4 Aqua has a lot going for it. There's decent specifications with 4G support, a pretty good camera, nice display, and a very premium design. For an outdoors person, the waterproofing and dustproofing certifications are handy additions.
However, at ₹24,990, while it matches up with competition from Samsung and HTC, the likes of Xiaomi have spoiled the customers with better priced options on the table. Available in white, black, and an interesting coral colour, the M4 Aqua id a great phone - a mid-range smartphone beefed up with flagship features - which I would love to recommend but you need to find in-store discounts or promotional offers to make it a better value.
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