Video quality

[Hobashira]

Very disappointed with the quality of the video on the Xperia Z as compared to my GS3.

It is the same 1920 x 1080 30-frame-per-second mp4 on both devices but on my GS3, every blade of grass, every pine needle has a sharp and crisp rendering while on the Xperia Z, there is a very slight annoying blur everywhere you would expect sharp lines.

 

[matt190191]

Very disappointed with the quality of the video on the Xperia Z as compared to my GS3.

It is the same 1920 x 1080 30-frame-per-second mp4 on both devices but on my GS3, every blade of grass, every pine needle has a sharp and crisp rendering while on the Xperia Z, there is a very slight annoying blur everywhere you would expect sharp lines.

Well I've just come from an S3 then to a Note 2 and I can say watching HD 1080p videos on my Xperia Z with the MXplayer app looks much more crisp/sharp than ANY amoled display I've even seen. The PPI on the Xperia Z really puts amoled displays to shame. I'm not having the same problem As you with video playback. Try MXplayer from the playstore.

 

[Hobashira]

My apologies as my post was not very clear on one important respect: I am not talking of watching videos on the device as indeed its display quality is flawless.

I was talking of the quality of videos taken with the Xperia Z and played on a computer.

 

[skyguy7567]

I have and xperia Z, but when playing videos from the phone in the computer is not an issue for me. Perhaps your computer's video card is too old, or maybe the software doesnt support the resolution. Try playing it in a newer computer or install some third party computer apps like Realplayer or something like that. The videos shouldn't have any blur. Its obviously a computer problem because there's no blur on the phone.

 

[Hobashira]

I have and xperia Z, but when playing videos from the phone in the computer is not an issue for me. Perhaps your computer's video card is too old, or maybe the software doesnt support the resolution. Try playing it in a newer computer or install some third party computer apps like Realplayer or something like that. The videos shouldn't have any blur. Its obviously a computer problem because there's no blur on the phone.

I am glad to hear that you are happy with the video quality.
Try a Galaxy S3 or S4!
You will see the difference.

 

[Slug]

Its obviously a computer problem because there's no blur on the phone.

I take it you haven't seen this topic below, then? There's also a camera comparison review at PhoneArena which makes interesting reading.

I've no doubt that the Exmor RS sensor is capable of capturing very good images, but unfortunately Sony appear to have hamstrung it with over-aggressive compression and poor post-processing. Fortunately this may be addressed in the firmware update just released (see here for info).

 

[Hobashira]

There is indeed a slight improvement in the photo quality with the new firmware though it is still inferior to that of the Galaxy S3.

However, as far as the video quality is concerned, there is no change. It is still over compressed.

 

[skyguy7567]

I take it you haven't seen this topic below, then? There's also a camera comparison review at PhoneArena which makes interesting reading.

I've no doubt that the Exmor RS sensor is capable of capturing very good images, but unfortunately Sony appear to have hamstrung it with over-aggressive compression and poor post-processing. Fortunately this may be addressed in the firmware update just released (see here for info).

I most certainly HAVE read the articles in phonearena. You have a great point, but there's no concern of the camera and video quality. It is great. Of coruse, I'm not saying that I haven't noticed the problems, but only when I zoom, crop, zoom and crop. Who views their photos like that? I've also noticed that when playing full HD videos in a computer with a bad video card causes the video quality to go down and FPS to drop. That's what my 'computer problem' ment.
GS4, by the way, has green shades in their photos, but no firmware...

 

[Hobashira]

I most certainly HAVE read the articles in phonearena. You have a great point, but there's no concern of the camera and video quality. It is great. Of coruse, I'm not saying that I haven't noticed the problems, but only when I zoom, crop, zoom and crop. Who views their photos like that? ...

I do.
My GS3 does not have a compression problem.

 

[Slug]

You have a great point, but there's no concern of the camera and video quality. It is great.

I'm confused. You say I have a great point, but then contradict it by again insisting that the camera quality is great. You then admit that you've noticed the problem yourself.

I'm not saying that I haven't noticed the problems, but only when I zoom, crop, zoom and crop. Who views their photos like that?

I'm talking about simply viewing it full-res, as when viewing it on a computer monitor e.g open image in Albums, double-tap to expand to full size. The compression damage is painfully obvious.

 

[Hobashira]

...
I'm talking about simply viewing it full-res, as when viewing it on a computer monitor e.g open image in Albums, double-tap to expand to full size. The compression damage is painfully obvious.

That is correct, I am afraid.

 

[skyguy7567]

I've done a bit of a research, and found that a slow SD card could have caused those problems. There's no problem playing the video on the phone, since it has such a small screen and the phone is the writer of the data. But if played in a computer, the speed of the SD card loading the video becomes slow due to a lower class/data transfer and play speed. High class (class 8-10)SD cards can record information in a much higher definition than class 1/2 SD cards. If it's not in this case, your SD card might be faulty. Or maybe, just a computer problem since the Xperia Z and S3 can possibly record data using different formats. For example, some 64GB SD cards can have difficulty 'pairing' with the Xperia Z due to the format the Xperia records information. Your computer might have difficulty reading that recording format. My computer displays very clear videos from my phone. Hope this helps!

 

[Slug]

I've done a bit of a research

I'd love to know your sources.

There's no problem playing the video on the phone, since it has such a small screen and the phone is the writer of the data. But if played in a computer, the speed of the SD card loading the video becomes slow due to a lower class/data transfer and play speed.

It's still a 1080p HD recording no matter what the playback device. The 'class' (theoretical max xfer rate) of the card is immaterial, since the USB 2.0 max rate of 480MB/s far exceeds any microSD card. If the file is copied to hard disk before playback then you're talking about PCI-e transfer rates which are even faster.

the Xperia Z and S3 can possibly record data using different formats.

The OP stated that the file is an MP4, which is a standard format supported by all Android devices.

For example, some 64GB SD cards can have difficulty 'pairing' with the Xperia Z due to the format the Xperia records information.

The Xperia Z does not record information in a different format. More likely the cards were pre-formatted incorrectly; it's good practice to format a new card in the device it's being used with anyway.

Your computer might have difficulty reading that recording format.

Again, it's an MP4 recorded on an Android device - a standard file format.

My computer displays very clear videos from my phone.

Congratulations. That does not, however, rule out an issue with the OP's handset.