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Apple iPhone 3GS vs Sony Ericsson Xperia PLAY

Compare recorded specifications, size and practical differences.

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    Key differences

    Calculated from recorded specifications using minimum difference thresholds. These are differences, not an overall ranking. For three phones, numeric highlights compare the two extremes.

    • Weight

      iPhone 3GS: 40 g lighter

      iPhone 3GS:
      135 g
      Xperia PLAY:
      175 g

    • Screen diagonal

      iPhone 3GS: 0.5 in smaller diagonal

      iPhone 3GS:
      3.5 in
      Xperia PLAY:
      4 in

    • Depth

      iPhone 3GS: 3.7 mm thinner

      iPhone 3GS:
      12.3 mm
      Xperia PLAY:
      16 mm

    • Height

      iPhone 3GS: 3.5 mm shorter

      iPhone 3GS:
      115.5 mm
      Xperia PLAY:
      119 mm

    • Release year

      iPhone 3GS:
      2009
      Xperia PLAY:
      2011

    Physical size

    Relative size, not calibrated actual size. Front and side outlines share one scale and a bottom baseline. Generic outlines use recorded body dimensions, excluding camera bumps.

    1. 1. iPhone 3GS

      Height:
      115.5 mm
      Width:
      62.1 mm
      Depth:
      12.3 mm

    2. 2. Xperia PLAY

      Height:
      119 mm +3.5 mm versus iPhone 3GS
      Width:
      62 mm
      Depth:
      16 mm +3.7 mm versus iPhone 3GS

    Weight

    Bars start at zero and share a scale within this chart.

    1. 1. iPhone 3GS

      135 g

    2. 2. Xperia PLAY

      175 g

      +40 g versus iPhone 3GS

    Screen size

    Approximate rectangular screens calculated from recorded diagonal and aspect ratio at one relative scale. Rounded corners and cutouts are not subtracted. These are not phone outlines or calibrated actual sizes.

    1. 1. iPhone 3GS

      Screen diagonal:
      3.5 in
      Aspect ratio (height:width):
      3:2
      Approximate rectangular screen area:
      36.5 cm²

    2. 2. Xperia PLAY

      Screen diagonal:
      4 in
      Aspect ratio (height:width):
      16:9
      Approximate rectangular screen area:
      44.1 cm²

    Xperia PLAY has approximately 20.9% more rectangular screen area than iPhone 3GS.

    Memory variants

    Each row compares the same storage capacity. Cells show recorded RAM alternatives, not combined maxima. Not recorded does not mean unavailable in every market.

    No unambiguous storage/RAM pairings are recorded. See the original specifications below.

    iPhone 3GS: Original memory entry

    8/16/32 GB · 256 MB RAM

    Xperia PLAY: Original memory entry

    400 MB · 512 MB RAM

    Practical features

    Explicit Yes and No values are shown directly. Qualified or regional records retain their details. Unknown means the record is missing.

    1. iPhone 3GS

    NFC:
    Unknown
    Headphone jack:
    Yes
    Memory card support:
    No

    2. Xperia PLAY

    NFC:
    Unknown
    Headphone jack:
    Yes
    Memory card support:
    See details microSD · up to 32 GB (dedicated slot) · 8 GB included

    Battery capacity

    Capacity is not battery life. No endurance test is implied.

    At least two unambiguous positive capacity values are needed for a chart. Original entries remain in the specifications.

    Specifications

    Open a section for more detail. On narrow screens, swipe sideways or use Left/Right arrow keys while the table is focused. Unknown means missing data, not No. Recorded zero values are shown as recorded.

    1. iPhone 3GS2. Xperia PLAY

    Everyday essentials
    Everyday essentials — specifications for iPhone 3GS, Xperia PLAY.
    SpecificationiPhone 3GSXperia PLAY
    Dimensions (HxWxD)
    • 115.5 Х 62.1 Х 12.3 mm
    • 119 Х 62 Х 16 mm
    Weight
    • 135 g
    • 175 g
    Technology
    • TFT
    • LED-backlit LCD
    Screen size
    • 3.5" inch
    • 4" inch
    Screen resolution
    • 320 x 480 px
    • 480 x 854 px
    Internal memory Recorded storage / RAM variants. Entries are alternatives, not a combined maximum. Ambiguous formats stay as recorded.
    • 8/16/32 GB
    • 256 MB RAM
    • 400 MB
    • 512 MB RAM
    Memory card support
    • No
    • microSD
    • up to 32 GB (dedicated slot)
    • 8 GB included
    Battery Capacity is not battery life. No endurance test is implied.
    • 0 mAh,
    • 1500 mAh
    • Removable Li-Ion
    Operating system OS
    • iOS 3
    • upgradable to iOS 6.1.6
    • Android 2.3.4 (Gingerbread)
    Chipset Unknown
    • Qualcomm MSM8255 Snapdragon S2
    Headphone jack
    • Yes
    • Yes
    Display
    Display — specifications for iPhone 3GS, Xperia PLAY.
    SpecificationiPhone 3GSXperia PLAY
    Touchscreen
    • capacitive touchscreen
    • capacitive touchscreen
    Display colors
    • 16M
    • 16M
    Screen area
    • 36.5 cm2
    • 44.1 cm2
    Screen format
    • 3:2 (height:width)
    • 16:9 (height:width)
    Screen to body ratio
    • 50.9%
    • 59.8%
    PPI /points per inch/
    • 165 PPI
    • 245 PPI
    Screen protection
    • Corning Gorilla Glass
    • oleophobic coating
    		 Unknown
    Camera and Video
    Camera and Video — specifications for iPhone 3GS, Xperia PLAY.
    SpecificationiPhone 3GSXperia PLAY
    Rear camera, main
    • 3.15 MP
    • Single
    • 5 MP
    • Single
    Camera specs
    • 3.15 MP
    • AF
    • f/2.8
    • 5 MP
    • AF
    Functions Unknown
    • LED flash
    Video
    • 480p@30fps
    • 720p
    Front camera, selfie
    • 0 MP,
    • 0.3 MP
    • Single
    Specifications Unknown
    • VGA
    Performance

    Scores marked * are historical catalogue entries. Test conditions are unspecified; no new testing is implied.

    Performance — specifications for iPhone 3GS, Xperia PLAY.
    SpecificationiPhone 3GSXperia PLAY
    Processor CPU
    • 600 MHz Cortex-A8
    • 1.0 GHz Scorpion
    Graphics processor GPU
    • PowerVR SGX535
    • Adreno 205
    Antutu 7 score *
    • 6832
    • 4823
    General specs
    General specs — specifications for iPhone 3GS, Xperia PLAY.
    SpecificationiPhone 3GSXperia PLAY
    Release date
    • 2009
    • June
    • 2011
    • February
    Colors
    • Black
    • White
    • Black
    • White
    • Stealth Blue (for Play 4G)
    • Orange
    Historical recorded price Legacy catalogue value; date unknown. Not a current offer.
    • 110 EUR
    • 140 EUR
    Battery life
    • Stand by time- Up to 300 h Talking time- Up to 12 h (2G) / Up to 5 h (3G) Music play - Up to 30 h
    • Stand by time- Up to 425 h (2G) / Up to 413 h (3G) Talking time- Up to 8 h 25 min (2G) / Up to 6 h 25 min (3G) Music play - Up to 31 h
    Communication and Connectivity
    Communication and Connectivity — specifications for iPhone 3GS, Xperia PLAY.
    SpecificationiPhone 3GSXperia PLAY
    SIM card
    • Mini-SIM
    • Mini-SIM
    Network
    • Show all network frequencies: -2G - GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
    • Show all network frequencies: -2G - GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
    Speed
    • HSPA 7.2/0.384 Mbps
    • HSPA 7.2/5.76 Mbps
    GPRS
    • Yes
    • Up to 80 kbps
    Edge
    • Yes
    • Up to 237 kbps
    Wi-Fi
    • Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
    • Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n
    • DLNA
    • hotspot
    GPS
    • Yes
    • with A-GPS
    • Yes
    • with A-GPS
    • GLONASS
    USB
    • 2.0
    • microUSB 2.0
    • USB Host
    Bluetooth
    • 2.1
    • A2DP (headset support only)
    • 2.1
    • A2DP
    • EDR
    Harmful irradiation
    • SAR - 0.26 W/kg (head) 0.79 W/kg (body) SAR EU - 0.45 W/kg (head) 0.40 W/kg (body)
    • SAR EU - 0.36 W/kg (head)
    Music and Audio
    Music and Audio — specifications for iPhone 3GS, Xperia PLAY.
    SpecificationiPhone 3GSXperia PLAY
    Radio
    • No
    • No
    Others Unknown
    • Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic
    Other features
    Other features — specifications for iPhone 3GS, Xperia PLAY.
    SpecificationiPhone 3GSXperia PLAY
    Dop
    • Sensors Accelerometer
    • proximity
    • compass - iCloud cloud service -Maps -Organizer -TV-out -Audio/video player/editor -Photo viewer/editor -Voice command/dial -Predictive text input
    • Sensors Accelerometer
    • proximity
    • compass - Dedicated game store -MP4/H.264/WMV player -MP3/eAAC+/WMA/WAV player -Organizer -Document viewer/editor -Voice memo/dial/commands -Predictive text input (Swype) - Available on AT&T as Sony Ericsson Xperia Play 4G Also known as R800a
    • R800at
    • R88i

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