HTC Sensation vs Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S
A spec-by-spec comparison of the HTC Sensation and the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S, taken from their full specification sheets. Green marks the better value in each measured row.
Head to head
| HTC Sensation | Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S |
|---|
| Price | $29 | $38 |
| Our rating | 6/10 | 6/10 |
| Battery | 1,520 mAh | 1,500 mAh |
| Storage (max) | 32 GB | 32 GB |
| Screen size | 4.3 in | 4.2 in |
| Main camera | 8 MP | 8.1 MP |
| Weight (lower is lighter) | 148 g | 117 g |
| Released | May 2011 | Sep 2011 |
Summary: HTC Sensation is ahead on battery, screen size. Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S is ahead on main camera, weight (lower is lighter).
★ Which should you buy? Specs are close to an even split here, so HTC Sensation is the better buy — the extra cost of the other one isn't matched by a clear spec advantage.
Reviewed by the infozme.com Editorial Team — see how we research & rate phones.
Display
| HTC Sensation | Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S |
|---|
| Type | S-LCD capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors | LED-backlit LCD, capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors |
| Size | 4.3 inches | 4.2 inches, 480 x 854 pixels |
| Resolution | 540 x 960 pixels (qHD), ~256 ppi density | 480 x 854 pixels, 16:9 ratio (~233 ppi density) |
| Protection | Corning Gorilla Glass | Scratch-resistant glass |
| Features | — | Sony Mobile BRAVIA Engine |
Platform
| HTC Sensation | Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S |
|---|
| OS | Android 2.3.4 (Gingerbread), upgradable to 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich); Sense UI 3.0 | Android 2.3.4 (Gingerbread), upgradable to 4.0.4 (Ice Cream Sandwich) |
| Chipset | Qualcomm MSM8260 Snapdragon S3 | Qualcomm MSM8255T Snapdragon S2 |
| CPU | Dual-core 1.2 GHz | 1.4 GHz Scorpion |
| GPU | Adreno 220 | Adreno 205 |
Memory
| HTC Sensation | Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S |
|---|
| Internal | 1GB storage, 768MB RAM | 1GB (320MB user available), 512MB RAM |
| Card slot | microSDHC, up to 32GB (8GB card often included) | microSDHC, up to 32 GB (dedicated slot), 8GB card included |
Main Camera
| HTC Sensation | Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S |
|---|
| Single | 8 MP, autofocus, dual-LED flash | 8.1 MP, f/2.4, 24mm (wide), 1/3.2", AF |
| Features | Geo-tagging, touch focus, face detection | LED flash, Geo-tagging, touch focus, face/smile detection, 3D sweep panorama |
| Video | 1080p@30fps | 720p@30fps |
Selfie Camera
| HTC Sensation | Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S |
|---|
| Single | VGA | No |
| Video | No specific resolution mentioned | — |
Battery
| HTC Sensation | Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S |
|---|
| Type | Removable Li-Ion | Removable Li-Po 1500 mAh battery |
| Capacity | 1520 mAh | — |
| Talk time | — | Up to 7 h 35 min (2G) / 7 h 25 min (3G) |
| Music play | — | Up to 37 h |
Body
| HTC Sensation | Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S |
|---|
| Dimensions | 126.1 x 65.4 x 11.3 mm (4.96 x 2.57 x 0.44 in) | 125 x 63 x 8.7 mm (4.92 x 2.48 x 0.34 in) |
| Weight | 148 g (5.22 oz) | 117 g (4.13 oz) |
| Build | Glass front (Gorilla Glass), aluminum unibody design | — |
| SIM | Mini-SIM | Mini-SIM |
Comms
| HTC Sensation | Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S |
|---|
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, DLNA, hotspot | Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot |
| Bluetooth | 3.0, A2DP | 2.1, A2DP, EDR |
| GPS | Yes, with A-GPS | Yes, with A-GPS |
| Radio | Stereo FM radio with RDS | Stereo FM radio with RDS |
| USB | microUSB 2.0 (MHL for HDMI out) | microUSB 2.0, USB On-The-Go |
| NFC | — | No |
| HDMI | — | microHDMI port |
Launch
| HTC Sensation | Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S |
|---|
| Announced | April 2011 | 2011, August |
| Released | May 2011 (Europe), June 2011 (US as Sensation 4G) | — |
| Status | — | Discontinued |
Frequently asked questions
Which has the better battery, HTC Sensation or Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S?
HTC Sensation — 1,520 mAh for the HTC Sensation versus 1,500 mAh for the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S.
Which is lighter, HTC Sensation or Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S?
Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S — 148 g for the HTC Sensation versus 117 g for the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S.
Which is newer, HTC Sensation or Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S?
Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S — May 2011 for the HTC Sensation versus Sep 2011 for the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S.
Is the HTC Sensation or the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S rated higher?
We rate the HTC Sensation 6/10 and the Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S 6/10.
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