Sony is releasing a new Xperia phone this month. The Xperia 1 VI, with its awful naming convention, looks like a slim upgrade, but it does have a few changes that might make it worth updating if you’re an Xperia customer.
MSPowerUser has leaked most of the details about Sony’s upcoming flagship. Surprisingly, Sony hasn’t revealed much, considering the phone is set to launch in two weeks on May 17. But then again, Sony isn’t known for its phones.
Camera
The camera and the editing capabilities are where the Sony Xperia 1 V shined. However, based on the limited specs we’ve seen for the camera on the Sony Xperia 1 VI, we can’t see much difference yet. We’ll need more details when Sony announces everything officially.
The 1 VI is reported to feature a 16mm ultra-wide lens capable of 12MP. The telephoto looks like it’s getting a slight boost, going from 85-125mm to 85-170mm. The zoom on the telephoto is improving from 5.2x to 7x.
The primary camera appears to have a 24mm lens with an optical zoom of up to 48mm, but we need more details to compare this version adequately to the new one.
According to the leak, the phone is supposed to feature an Exmor T for mobile CMOS sensor, which it says will rival any Sony DSLR camera. Macro photography is supposed to be supported with this setup.
One significant change that is coming to the phone is the editing apps. Sony is apparently going to get rid of Photography Pro, Videography Pro and Cinema Pro. Instead, everything is being consolidated into a single app inspired by Sony’s Alpha cameras. We say that, but the phone should also have a separate video creator app designed to simplify the production of existing images and videos.
The phone is also getting another inspiration from the Alpha cameras: human pose estimation, allowing focus on subjects even when their faces are obscured. It seems reasonable for action shots like sports.
Audio
The current Sony phone uses Snapdragon sound to deliver audio, but the Xperia X VI is supposed to get a new chip and circuit improvements. No word yet on what that chip is.
Its features are supposed to deliver Hi-Res Audio, Hi-Res Audio Wireless, 360 Reality Audio, LDAC and DSEE Ultimate. On a personal level, we’re excited to see a 3.5mm jack included on the phone. The wireless options are nice, but for us wired fans, it’s a nice feature.
Design
The leaked images show that the Xperia 1 VI doesn’t appear to be making any design changes from the previous generation. It will come in black and platinum silver, the same colors offered on the 1 V. The Xperia 1 V did come in khaki green as well.
Display
The leak hints at an upgraded OLED display, but the Xperia 1 V already features an OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and utilizes Gorilla Glass Victus 2. The claims are that the 1 VI will be 1.5x brighter and feature variable refresh rates up to 120Hz.
Performance and Battery
Finally, we are at a stage with a big upgrade. The Xperia 1 VI will be getting Qualcomm’s newish Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, a bump up from the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 in the 1 V. The Gen 3 processor promises to be more powerful with improved energy efficiency.
The battery appears to be the same, as Sony is sticking with a 5000mAh set, the same as in the 1 V. Sony is claiming 48 hours of use with the 1 VI. For the 1 V, Sony claimed battery health extending up to 3 years; for the 1 VI, they’ve updated it to four years. Quite the claim.
Gaming
Compared to many phones, Sony’s Xperia line has a slight focus on gaming. It features a 240Hz touch scanning rate, adjustable white balance, a low gamma raiser and an FPS optimizer for high frame rate gaming. You can also connect a Dual Shock 4 controller and PS Remote Play.