Sony Xperia Z series refers to the flagship Android smartphones and tablets in the Sony Xperia series manufactured by Sony Mobile.
On February 25, 2016, Sony Xperia Z series was discontinued in favor of Sony Xperia X series.
At the CES 2013 in Las Vegas, Sony announced the original Xperia Z. It is a smartphone with a 5-inch FHD screen size, 2GB of RAM, Quad Core processor and water and dust resistance, because of the last, many companies started to make phones with water and dust resistance including Samsung with the Samsung Galaxy S4 Active and their later model - the Samsung Galaxy S5. The Xperia Z won the ‘Best Smartphone' and ‘Best of Show' awards At CES 2013. According to a Sony executive, Mcdougall, early Xperia Z sales have been strong. He states, "It (the Xperia smartphone) sold over 150,000 units in its first week in Japan, taking a 24 percent market share straight away." "It may be a bit too early to say but the first signs are very positive."
First announced at CES 2013, the Xperia ZR is a mid range smartphone with a 4.55 inch screen, 2GB of RAM, Quad core processor. The smartphone also has Ingress Protection Ratings of IP55 and IP58, making it dust protected, low pressure water jet protected, and waterproof. It was released on 17 May 2013 in Japan where it is marketed as the 'Xperia A'.
Essentially the same hardware as the original Xperia Z, but the ZL loses the water and dust resistance, and has a slightly larger battery capacity.
First announced at IFA 2013 in Berlin, the Sony Xperia Z1 is a high-end Android smartphone produced by Sony Mobile Communications AB. The Xperia Z1 is a dust resistance and waterproof phone with a rating of IP55 and 58. The main feature of the device is the 20.7 megapixels camera, paired with Sony's in-house G lens and its image processing algorithm called, BIONZ. Similar to its predecessor, the Sony Xperia Z, the phone features tempered glass covered by shatterproof film on front and back which is held together by a one piece aluminium frame. With Qualcomm's latest quad-core Snapdragon S800 processor clocked at 2.2Ghz and 2GB of RAM, it also contains a 5.0 inch Sony's Triluminos and its X-Reality Engine for better image and video viewing. Sony announced the Sony Xperia Z1s at CES 2014, a modified version of the Sony Xperia Z1 exclusive to T-Mobile US, was released in the United States.