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Sony Xperia Z tipped to ditch longstanding Timescape app

Sony's swooping social app is reported to bite the bullet, replaced by a similar -- but hopefully better -- piece of Sony software.

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Luke Westaway Senior editor
Luke Westaway is a senior editor at CNET and writer/ presenter of Adventures in Tech, a thrilling gadget show produced in our London office. Luke's focus is on keeping you in the loop with a mix of video, features, expert opinion and analysis.
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Luke Westaway
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Sony is reportedly knocking its Timescape social app on the head, starting with its upcoming 5-inch waterproof monster, the recently revealed Xperia Z.

The Timescape app is a mainstay of Sony's Android mobiles, offering glassy blue transitions and a supposedly attractive way of keeping an eye on your contacts and various social networks.

The app can usually be found filling up an Android homescreen, but Xperia Blog reports that Timescape is on the way out, destined to be replaced by Sony's Socialife app, which is available on Google Play and is present on big-screen Sony devices such as the Xperia Tablet S.

If Sony does give its Timescape app the Vulcan nerve pinch, I can't see many smart phone fans mourning its rapid slide into unconsciousness. The app has a reputation for being sluggish, with our own review of the recent Xperia T mentioning that the app could "thankfully" be removed and replaced with alternatives from the Google Play shop.

Socialife will hopefully do a better job, though the app has an average rating of just 2.8 stars on Google Play, with some reviewers complaining of sign-in woes and problems refreshing the app.

Sony has fallen behind rivals Samsung and Apple in recent years, failing to reveal a smart phone that sets our hearts on fire like the Galaxy S3, the iPhone 5 or Google's Nexus 4.

The Xperia Z is a stab at clawing back the top spot, and features a super high-res 1080p display, a 13-megapixel camera that records HDR video and a waterproof frame, for when you drop it in your pint.

What does Sony need to get back on top? Would streamlining its Android customisations be a decent start? Socialise down in the comments, or on our Facebook wall.