This was posted 6 years 6 months 24 days ago, and might be an out-dated deal.

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Vodafone 5" Sony Xperia XA 2GB/16GB-SD 8MP/13MP NFC 6.0 (Upgradable to 7.0) - $149 (Save $50) @ Big W

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Vodafone 5" Sony Xperia XA 2GB/16GB-SD 8MP/13MP NFC 6.0 (Upgradable to 7.0) - $149 (Save $50) @ Big WAffiliate
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Cheaparoo on 25/09/2017 - 15:03 bigw.com.au (560 clicks)
Last edited 25/09/2017 - 18:32 by 1 other user
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One of the lowest prices it's ever been. Includes a bonus $30 starter kit. Only issue might be sorting out an unlock code.
Looks to be an online advertised special as isn't in either of their current catalogs.

Sony Xperia XA

Network Technology
GSM / HSPA / LTE
2G bands GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G bands HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100
4G bands LTE band 1(2100), 3(1800), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 28(700), 38(2600), 39(1900), 40(2300), 41(2500)
Speed HSPA 42.2/5.76 Mbps, LTE Cat4 150/50 Mbps
GPRS Up to 85.6 kbps
EDGE Up to 236.8 kbps
Launch Announced 2016, February
Status Available. Released 2016, June
Body Dimensions 143.6 x 66.8 x 7.9 mm (5.65 x 2.63 x 0.31 in)
Weight 137.4 g (4.83 oz)
SIM Nano-SIM
Display Type IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
Size 5.0 inches (~71.8% screen-to-body ratio)
Resolution 720 x 1280 pixels (~294 ppi pixel density)
Multitouch Yes, up to 4 fingers
Protection Scratch-resistant glass
Platform OS Android 6.0.1 (Marshmallow), upgradable to 7.0 (Nougat)
Chipset Mediatek MT6755 Helio P10
CPU Octa-core (4x2.0 GHz Cortex-A53 & 4x1.0 GHz Cortex-A53)
GPU Mali-T860MP2
Memory Card slot microSD, up to 256 GB (dedicated slot)
Internal 16 GB, 2 GB RAM
Camera Primary 13 MP, f/2.0, phase detection autofocus, LED flash, check quality
Features 1/3" sensor size, 1.12 µm pixel size, geo-tagging, touch focus, face detection, HDR, panorama
Video 1080p@30fps, check quality
Secondary 8 MP, f/2.0, 1/4" sensor size, autofocus, 1080p, HDR
Sound Alert types Vibration; MP3, WAV ringtones
Loudspeaker Yes
3.5mm jack Yes
- Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic
Comms WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, hotspot
Bluetooth 4.1, A2DP, LE, aptX
GPS Yes, with A-GPS, GLONASS
NFC Yes
Radio FM radio, RDS
USB microUSB 2.0, USB Host
Features Sensors Accelerometer, proximity, compass
Messaging SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, IM, Push Email
Browser HTML5
Java No
- Fast battery charging (Pump Express+ 2.0)
- Xvid/MP4/H.264 player
- MP3/eAAC+/WAV/Flac player
- Document viewer
- Photo/video editor
Battery Non-removable Li-Ion 2300 mAh battery
Stand-by Up to 560 h (2G) / Up to 603 h (3G)
Talk time Up to 11 h 20 min (2G) / Up to 10 h (3G)
Music play Up to 55 h
Misc Colors White, Graphite Black, Lime Gold, Rose Gold
SAR 0.57 W/kg (head) 1.23 W/kg (body)
SAR EU 0.47 W/kg (head) 0.47 W/kg (body)
Price About 200 EUR
Tests Performance Basemark OS II 2.0: 1013 / Basemark X: 6420
Display Contrast ratio: 1376 (nominal), 2.609 (sunlight)
Camera Photo / Video
Loudspeaker Voice 61dB / Noise 66dB / Ring 68dB
Audio quality Noise -93.6dB / Crosstalk -91.7dB
Battery life
Endurance rating 54h

Mobile Mobile Phone Sony Android

Related Stores

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closed Comments

  • GnarlyKnuckles on 25/09/2017 - 15:05
    +2

    I'm sure the famous 'Bagman' will be able to supply you with a code, for the standard (very low) fee…
    I have one of these, and it's not a bad phone. Takes a long time to turn on, but apart from that I've had no issues with it. At the time that I bought it (about 6 months ago or so), it was the cheapest phone I could find with the little chip in in that enables you to use it like a credit card (I forget the acronym; is it 'NFC'?).

    • terrys on 25/09/2017 - 15:18
      +4

      Not a Flaming Clue mate. We need a mnemonic.

      • elektron on 25/09/2017 - 15:28
        +1

        Well played, sir!

        • terrys on 25/09/2017 - 16:22
          +1

          My one for kilometers to miles isn't safe for work tho.

    • John K on 25/09/2017 - 15:21
      +1

      Android Pay?

    • ozhunter68 on 04/10/2017 - 17:43

      Hows your signal strength on the Sony in weaker areas? Mine is really weak, think I got a lemon!

  • ironpaw on 25/09/2017 - 15:29
    +1

    This or Redmi Note4X?

    • Cheaparoo on 25/09/2017 - 15:32
      +3

      Note4x will will have faster Snapdragon SOC, bigger battery, dual-sim, fingerprint sensor. But no NFC, no B28, no local warranty and no near-stock Android (they run MIUI).

      • PainToad on 25/09/2017 - 16:15
        +2

        no near-stock Android

        cough LOS cough

        • BadGiraffe on 25/09/2017 - 16:39
          +2

          True. But not everyone is capable of rooting and flashing. I've about had it waiting for Nougat on my Redmi Note 3, but I'm not going to root and flash just yet. I haven't done it in years after being on 2 Nexus devices, and then I got my Redmi and was pretty happy with it.

          Have you done a root and flash on a Xiaomi device before? Is it easy enough? Because HTC was incredibly painful, and the reason I stopped doing it.

        • PainToad on 25/09/2017 - 19:33

          @flaminglemon:

          Yes I've done it. Easy enough. Much better then must OEMs.

        • BadGiraffe on 27/09/2017 - 10:40

          @PainToad: Some questions for you. Some technical, some personal opinions.

          1. Have you done OTA updates?
          2. Have you unrooted your phone after flashing?
          3. How worried are you about rouge apps doing bad things? Thus the question about unrooting.
          4. Cyanogen went belly-up. I was a firm believer in them. Do you think Lineage has what it takes to keep going?

          Doing some googling, OTA updates and unrooting are possible. Just wanted to hear first-hand experience. I think I've seen you post other Lineage comments, so it sounds like you know your way around it.

          EDIT: Redmi Note 3 has a build for Nougat (finally). I'm considering waiting for that, but I do want to try my hand at rooting and flashing again. Maybe even use this phone as a backup or travel phone if I get the Mi A1.

        • GnarlyKnuckles on 02/10/2017 - 22:09

          @flaminglemon:

          I managed to resist posting a smily face until you said this:

          '… but I do want to try my hand at rooting and flashing again.'

          :) That's hilarious, you handy rooting flasher :)

          (soz peeps, tried to resist posting a comment but could not)

        • BadGiraffe on 03/10/2017 - 10:02

          @GnarlyKnuckles: I'm a retired rooting flasher.

      • elektron on 25/09/2017 - 17:59

        Wouldn't it also have an older Android version?

    • [Deactivated] on 25/09/2017 - 15:32
      +2

      i get the note 4x as its full hd and has fingerprint scanner

  • WatchNerd on 25/09/2017 - 15:30
    +1

    Does this have a notification led?

  • elektron on 25/09/2017 - 15:30
    +2

    A really good phone for the price. The well-documented battery issue is fixed in the 7.0 upgrade.

    I bought it as a gift and had to pay $50 to Vodafone to unlock it, as I don't know Bagman.

    • GnarlyKnuckles on 25/09/2017 - 18:49
      +3

      For future reference Karma/in case it is useful for you, the Bagman is easy to find online via the usual search avenues (it is not some sort of 'clandestine'/secret service), and both times I have asked him for an unlock code he has supplied it in less than an hour, for $5 (or perhaps even less, I can't recall the exact amount). On the first one of those occasions, he also provided me with information on how to apply the code on the specific phone that I had, at my request (for no additional charge). Despite possibly being completely 'unauthorised'/he is extremely professional/a 'smooth operator'. I have never done it, but I bet that if you asked him if he could unlock a certain type of phone before you bought it he would give you a reliable answer, and in the off chance that the code he supplied did not actually work, he would refund you the $5 (but obviously he would not refund you for the phone).

      I was extremely impressed with the Bagman both times I utilised his (VERY competitively priced) service. He can provide codes for most phones BTW, this comment is not specific for the phone in this post (which some are suggesting can be unlocked for free… can we have a link to that page please!?), or Vodaphone-locked phones, etc… the second phone I acquired a code for from the Bagman was locked to Telstra.

      • elektron on 25/09/2017 - 20:03
        +1

        Thank you very much for that. Found him - you were right, didn't have to go on 'deep internet' to find him :-) Too bad I don't plan on unlocking another phone for a while…

        • GnarlyKnuckles on 02/10/2017 - 21:53
          +1

          Chuckle, you never know when a friend might ask you about it though… now you know what to tell them :)

          And where I come from we call it the 'dark web', not the 'deep internet'… mmmmWAH-hahahahahah

  • [Deactivated] on 25/09/2017 - 15:31
    +1

    Not so confident on the Chipset Mediatek MT6755 Helio P10.

    • [Deactivated] on 25/09/2017 - 15:34
      +1

      nm, benchmarks show that this performs similar to snapdragon 625

    • elektron on 25/09/2017 - 15:35
      +2

      It's perfectly fine in regular use. I bought a Xaiomi Mi 4 from last weeks deal - should have held out for this.

  • Selenium on 25/09/2017 - 16:30
    +1

    I've unlocked the last three I've bought for free. You can do it on Vodafone's website somewhere.

    Good deal. Almost worth getting a 4th, particularly when you factor in Rewards and egift cards.

    • cristobaljames on 25/09/2017 - 16:44

      Do these versions have the vodaphone logo etc on the load screen?

      • Selenium on 25/09/2017 - 17:40
        +1

        Not that I can recall.

        I manually updated the firmware soon after getting them though, so I can't be sure.

        • cristobaljames on 25/09/2017 - 18:00
          +1

          OK sounds like they are locked but don't include any network specific bloatware including the Voda load screen.

        • Selenium on 25/09/2017 - 18:47
          +1

          @cristobaljames: Surprisingly yeah.

        • ozhunter68 on 04/10/2017 - 17:52

          @cristobaljames:

          Just lot's of Sony bloat apps you can't uninstall. Still great value for $129 this week from Coles.

      • GnarlyKnuckles on 25/09/2017 - 19:07

        Do these versions have the vodaphone logo etc on the load screen?

        You know it's pretty easy to change all of that stuff yourself, right?

    • elektron on 25/09/2017 - 20:16

      People, be careful - as previously stated, the Vodaphone unlock website charged me $50 for the one I bought at Big W a couple of months ago.

      • WatchNerd on 25/09/2017 - 20:59
        +4

        Please hand in your Ozbargain membership if you paid that.

        • elektron on 25/09/2017 - 21:17
          +2

          Guilty as charged. My excuse is that I was overseas and in a bit of a hurry.

    • [Deactivated] on 25/09/2017 - 22:54

      How did you unlock it?

      • Selenium on 25/09/2017 - 23:00

        Going back a'ways now, but I believe I used this all three times. https://unlock.vodafone.com.au/voila/handsetunlock/self-serv…

        • ozhunter68 on 27/09/2017 - 16:19
          +1

          You were lucky to get phones that unlocked easily. Reading previous threads on here for same phone, many others could not unlock on Vodafone Unlock site. Some like myself failed the first time, then two months later was able to unlock free on the exact same Vodafone site.

        • Selenium on 27/09/2017 - 16:26
          +3

          @ozhunter68: very strange. No problems with my three, bought from three different places at three different dates.

          And I usually have the worst luck!

        • ozhunter68 on 27/09/2017 - 16:47

          @Selenium:

          Haha, luckily you don't always get bad luck. How's your reception in lower strength signal areas?

          Mine is that bad I have to consider selling it to someone who uses it in better signal strength areas.

          Don't like taking my chances with Sony support as it seems like a known design flaw they prefer to avoid.

        • Selenium on 27/09/2017 - 17:35
          +1

          @ozhunter68: From my testing it's no worse than my Xperia Z3, honestly. But I live somewhere with a strong signal, so it's hard to say. Only bought them as spares and gifts, so I haven't thoroughly tested them yet. Waiting for my Z3 to truly kick the bucket.

        • ozhunter68 on 27/09/2017 - 17:51

          @Selenium:
          Thanks for reply. I live in a weak signal area but as long as I have phone with all 3G/4G bands for the carrier I'm using ( the XA has all bands for all 3 telco's ) I'm fine for most times.

          My old Nexus 4 3G only get's better reception even, as well as many other super cheap phones I've tried.

          Maybe that's one more where You're Not Unlucky lol.

        • Selenium on 27/09/2017 - 17:57
          +1

          @ozhunter68: Very strange. Maybe now I've used up all my good luck. There go my lottery dreams. :(

          Well, a shame anyway. Guess I won't recommend this phone as highly as I have been previously. Ah well. :p gotta be something decent to get for my mum later this year.

          Also, hopefully my mum's friend's one I got her hangs in there. Her only access to the internet out where she is. Last I heard from her, no complaints though.

        • elektron on 27/09/2017 - 18:20
          +1

          @ozhunter68: I also didn't have any issues unlocking it via Voda. It did cost me $50 though.

        • ozhunter68 on 28/09/2017 - 21:10

          @Selenium:

          Maybe mine is a bit worse than it should be even for where I use it, could even be faulty.

          If all yours work well, then great as the phone is nice for the price, especially on Android Nougat now.

        • Selenium on 28/09/2017 - 21:15

          @ozhunter68: Nougat would get rid of Sony's Stamina mode though, I believe. So I wouldn't be upgrading it. MM is decent enough.

        • ozhunter68 on 28/09/2017 - 21:26

          @Selenium:

          Oh, did not realise that. From what I read, Nougat was going to offer better battery life before you even need to activate the stamina mode, so that suits me better. Of course, as mine is straining to get signal, that also then sucks heaps more power than it should :-(

          I mainly upgraded hoping they would fix signal issue, but no luck for mine.

        • Selenium on 30/09/2017 - 22:11
          +2

          @ozhunter68: One of my XA's just automatically upgraded to Nougat. Stamina mode is still in, so that's good. Figured I'd mention that here.

        • ozhunter68 on 02/10/2017 - 21:15
          +2

          @Selenium:

          On sale @ Coles this week for $129, lowest ever.

        • Selenium on 02/10/2017 - 21:25
          +1

          @ozhunter68: For that, I may just get another one. Z3 is dying more by the day and all my other XAs are spoken for now.

        • GnarlyKnuckles on 02/10/2017 - 22:04
          +1

          @ozhunter68:
          Do you happen to know anyone else who has exactly the same type of phone? If so, you could conclusively determine whether yours has some sort of 'reception fault' by getting together somewhere/at your place/somewhere with 'somewhat limited' reception (the test would not work in an area with totally awesome reception), and seeing if there was a difference. Take a 10-second video of the two phones side-by-side showing the difference in reception, and that should be 'proof enough' to get a refund on the phone you bought. Or at the very least a replacement. As I've said above (or below?) I've had this phone for months now, and no reception issues… even while out and about… methinks yours may be dodgy.

        • ozhunter68 on 02/10/2017 - 22:12

          @GnarlyKnuckles:

          Thanks for advice. I have many various phones to test here, not the exact same model, but all have much better reception in same spot with same sim. Thinking you might be right about a faulty unit as not many others complaining. Had it for three to four months now, so have to take it up with Sony Warranty then somehow I suppose ( bought at Target ).

        • GnarlyKnuckles on 02/10/2017 - 22:24
          +2

          @ozhunter68:
          I tell ya, the absolute besty best best proof you could ever get that your phone has some sort of fault in this regard would be a 10-second vid of two phones side-by-side, with yours showing substantially less reception. If you could generate that, you would be almost GUARANTEED to save yourself a whole lot of pissing around; the joint that sold you the phone would be highly likely to realise that you 'had them over a barrel', and that they were legally obliged to give you your money back or replace the phone, whichever YOU preferred (the choice between those two options is yours, not theirs, legally if the item is faulty… I would go for the 'money back' option BTW, because these phones are cheaper now ;)

          I note that you bought the phone at Target. I once needed to return a dead 'Pendo pad' to them, and at first they tried to 'fob me off' by saying 'Oh, for Pendo stuff you'll need to take it up with the manufacturer for a refund'. Completely illegal practice, and utterly erroneous advice, which I could not believe they 'tried on' (this was only a couple of years ago, not in the 1980s or something). A couple of curtly delivered sentences about the law and my astonishment of their apparent lack of understanding of it secured the desired result (all my cash back) in about 10 seconds, which led me to believe that perhaps they made an incorrect judgement based on my appearance, and decided that perhaps they could 'get away' with flouting the law on this occasion. Soz for the 'long whimsical tale', I didn't mean for it to get that long, what I meant to say was that if you have reasonable proof that the phone is faulty re reception (such as the vid I have described above), and they agree that it seems that it is faulty, do not let them convince you that you will need to revert to the manufacturer for a refund or replacement. They were the 'point of sale', so in Australia/under Australian law, they are obliged to issue you with all of your cash back (or a replacement unit… but as I said above, it would be wiser to get the cash back in this case).

          So yeah, surely you can find SOMEONE who has this same phone in your area/do this little test/make the mini-vid …

          Another thing that just occurred to me was that if you can find any shop selling these phones that has one charged-up/on display, perhaps you could compare the reception that one is getting with the reception yours is getting, while they are sitting side-by-side? Although I suppose perhaps those 'display phones' don't actually have SIM cards in them/are not capable of displaying 'reception'…

          One final idea I had was going to an actual outlet of whomever the SIM card is with (I'm hoping it's Vodaphone, Optus or Telstra). They may well have the phone for sale there (you could ring in advance to check), and if they do you could quite reasonably ask them to do the 'side-by-side' reception test I have described above. In a very real way they are an 'integral part' of the problem you are having with using your products, so it is entirely reasonable to ask them to help you solve a problem you are having with your products … (what I'm saying is that even though the SIM card is clearly NOT the source of the problem, it was 'bundled' with the product you purchased, and you cannot use it properly due to a fault in the product, so they need to help you resolve that problem in any way they can). The SIM provider should of course not be expected to PAY anything/issue a refund for the phone etc., but 'by association', I believe that in a case such as this they owe you a duty of care to help you to determine what the problem is re USING THEIR SIM card.

        • ozhunter68 on 04/10/2017 - 18:26

          @GnarlyKnuckles:

          Thanks so much for your effort to advice me in a wise way. Working on it with Vodafone shop after some questioning, see what happens.

        • GnarlyKnuckles on 05/10/2017 - 00:32

          @ozhunter68:

          My pleasure, keep us posted re what happened in case your experience is useful for other 'OzBers'…

        • ozhunter68 on 06/10/2017 - 00:54

          @GnarlyKnuckles:

          Took it to the Vodafone shop I talked to that said bring it in ( even when I told them I purchased from Target ). Different staff today, said because I no longer had original sim card details, the receipt only does not count as proof of purchase ( bought in January and used up sim, then as usual ported out, so binned it lol ), even the manager backed up staff.

          Off to Target where I had to convince the staff of my issue with low reception as not many people believe me that I tested multiple times with Vada/Optus/Telstra sims in different areas at different times comparing to other phones with same band support. She wrote down some details, and told me that because it was beyond the 28 day purchase period it had to be sent off to Sony for diagnosis/repair.

          Don't like my chances of the service people for Sony to do much after reading bad experiences on here over time, some not so bad. After reading about the $99 Woolies deal yesterday, found last one in my area and grabbed it to test and see if it is better/normal. Seems to get bit better reception so far, but still not that good. Y6 Elite/Lumia 640/moto G5 plus/LG K10 and even a Alcatel pixi 3 4.5" all better. See what happens now.

        • WatchNerd on 06/10/2017 - 10:10
          +1

          @ozhunter68: Did you say that it's not fit for purpose?
          Once you start quoting directly from the ACCC laws they usually just give you a refund at Target.
          A major issue with the product means you are entitled to a refund.

          A purchased item has a major problem when it:

          • has a problem that would have stopped someone from buying the item if they had known about it
        • ozhunter68 on 08/10/2017 - 20:29
          +1

          @WatchNerd:

          Just read your comment now. Thanks for advice, I do not always stand up for all my rights at times, having

          correct information certainly helps.

  • ozhunter68 on 25/09/2017 - 16:36

    Nice thin slim phone. Thought I got a good Vodafone ( easily unlocked for free on website ) prepaid local Bargain phone here earlier this year for $169 and really wanted to like using this phone. Just be aware if you need to get mobile signal in weaker signal strength areas as many complaints on this known issue.

    Although it has all bands for all 3 telco's 3G/4G incl B28, does not help if the radios/design/software is faulty. So bad for me in my area I am forced to not use it and sell it to someone who uses it closer to the mobile towers. See discussion below:

    https://talk.sonymobile.com/t5/Xperia-XA1/Xperia-xa1-bad-sig…

    • splats on 25/09/2017 - 18:44
      +1

      yep same here. noticed it's especially bad in certain parts of the house i.e. kitchen. was gonna return to sony to repair but after reading the thread yo posted it may be a waste of time. Old nexus 5 works miles better

      • ozhunter68 on 04/10/2017 - 18:26

        See the above comments, we might have faulty units.

  • cristobaljames on 25/09/2017 - 16:41

    Great cheap phone though don't count on using it in sunlight, brightness at max is barely visible.

  • jackau on 25/09/2017 - 17:14

    the design of the phone is rather appealing, but the specs really is not very good given what is packaged in there. if it is the XA1 at this price, then it be a lot more appealing :)
    2GB ram is not much in this time and age, 3GB is a minimum for 8.0

  • GnarlyKnuckles on 25/09/2017 - 19:30

    I just tried to buy one of these via this deal/link, but could not seem to find a 'click-and-collect' option on the Big W website. Forgive my ignorance (there is no Big W anywhere near me so I am not down with their systems), but does Big W simply 'not do' click-and-collect? At all? Even for a purchase of over 100 clams?

    Seems odd in this day and age, and I can't help but think I'm missing something here …

    • Selenium on 25/09/2017 - 20:56

      Their website is trash. Broken at worst, lacking in functions at best.

      Better off going to a local store, they all have had stock whenever I've checked and buying in-store means you can pay with egift cards and such too.

      • [Deactivated] on 26/09/2017 - 00:00
        +1

        lol bigw site is offline as i type this

    • ozhunter68 on 02/10/2017 - 21:13
      +1

      Just letting you know it's on sale for $129 @ Coles this week starting Wednesday ( Vodafone prepaid with $30 starter kit ).

      • GnarlyKnuckles on 05/10/2017 - 00:37

        Awesome OH, cheers, got one. I am 'time poor' in a sense so I defo' would not have known about this/bought one (for an OS acquaintance) without your post. I really appreciate it. I will pass the actual phone on to my friend, and keep the $30 VP SIM here to reapply here at some stage/on a different phone…

        So 'in an abstract way' this brings the cost of the phone down to 99 clams…

    • ozhunter68 on 04/10/2017 - 18:28
      -1

      Dupe.

      • GnarlyKnuckles on 05/10/2017 - 00:36
        +1

        I don't think it was not a 'DUPE' at the time it was posted… sort of a grey area! lol

  • ozhunter68 on 27/09/2017 - 16:22

    Has anyone else on here had bad reception issues like I have compared to other phones and same sim?

    • GnarlyKnuckles on 02/10/2017 - 21:28
      +1

      I have not had any reception issues with it at all, but reception is generally pretty good in my area (even on shitty phones), so this may not be a reliable indicator/useful information for you.

      • ozhunter68 on 02/10/2017 - 21:49

        Thanks for reply. Need to test in weaker signal strength area, then compare to other phone(s) over some time to be sure. Going for low $129 @ Coles later this week.

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