Sony is announcing two new phones today, the Xperia 1 III and the Xperia 5 III. Both are the latest in Sony’s drive to redefine the Xperia brand as a kind of sibling for its well thought out alpha digital cameras. As such, the camera system is once again the main focus, and Sony in particular is “the world’s first smartphone with a dual PD sensor with a variable telephoto lens” and improvements to its already fast and accurate autofocus system.
Pricing was not announced, but they should both be available in the US “over the summer”.
Each phone has the basic specs you’d expect on a top-flight Android phone: three cameras on the rear, a Snapdragon 888 processor, and support for 5G. Actually, 5G support is worth noting as these Xperia phones will be able to work on 5G networks in the US, something the previous model lacks in a strange way. However, they would only operate on regular sub-6 networks on Verizon and T-Mobile, without the support of AT & T’s 5G network. As is quite common for Sony, these will be sold directly instead of carriers.
The phone also has the language of Xperia Design. Sony launched the Xperia with the original 1. They are long and narrow, with lots of shiny black and short curves at all angles, making them the most monolithic form of smartphone today. I think they look great, but I also know that when they get the money to announce Sony’s price, they have to spend a lot of money.
To establish the Xperia brand, Sony is also emphasizing on a number of good specs that are relatively hard to come by on other Android phones. The Xperia 1 III has a 4K OLED screen that now supports a faster (though locked) 120Hz refresh rate. It has dual speakers that are 40 percent loud and will work with Sony’s 360 reality audio format.
Sony is also enabling a special mode for the USB-C port that allows you to use a special cable to take HD-resolution video signals from the SLR camera so that you can use it as a monitor – There are many things you can do with Xperia Pro. Hdmi. This may also make them an interesting alternative to live streaming.
Both of them will come in dual-sim and sim + microSD variants. And there is also a good ol headphone jack and a shutter button.
There is also more standard fare like wireless charging and a 4,500mAh battery. When plugged in and gaming phones can redirect power from the battery to reduce heat. Both phones will ship with Android 11, but as of now there is no clear commitment for future software updates.
If you go down from Xperia 1 III to Xperia 5 III, you will get a very similar set with few exceptions. It will definitely be small. Larger phones have a 6.5-inch 21: 9 display while the 5 has a 6.1-inch 21: 9 display – at 1080p resolution instead of 4K. But it still has support for periscope-style variable lenses.
But again, there is a big push on cameras and Sony has done a lot to improve the hardware here. Sony is using three 12-megapixel sensors at the back, and both main and telephoto lenses support OIS. (The Xperia 1 III also offers a time-of-flight sensor.)
Sony says that it has lenses equivalent to 16mm (f / 2.2 ultrawide), 24mm (f / 1.7 wide) and 70mm (f / 2.3 telephoto), but the telephoto can also be equivalent to f / 2.8mm mm. This additional telephoto zoom thanks to a folded periscope lens design, and the Xperia is physically moving the lens elements to achieve different focal lengths.
The idea is that photographers will mostly stick to those focal lengths, but whether they want to zoom further or using the zoom level between Xperia phones will use digital zoom.
Beyond fancy hardware, Sony has iterated on its software. Unlike Google, Apple and even Samsung, Sony is placing its emphasis on technical features rather than computational photography. It is claiming somewhat better low light performance in certain situations, but in fact the main emphasis is on features such as autofocus and shooting speed.
These phones can take photos up to 20fps with focus / exposure reading at 60fps. They also support 120FPS 4K in HDR. There is still eye-tracking autofocus, but this year there is real-time tracking for that autofocus. In one demo, Sony showed a subject rotating and when their eye reappeared, the camera adjusted.
Sony is finally integrating its Pro Camera app with the main camera app. Like any smartphone, there is a “basic” mode, but it is now faster to get into Pro mode. Sony’s Pro mode is really annoyed by those who use Sony’s cameras, too: the interface is very similar.
On paper, it all sounds great. We will need to review them to see if these specs can turn into great experiences. Previous Sony Xperia phones also have great camera hardware specs, but they often miss the mark for taking quick shots. Treating a smartphone camera as a pro SLR-style camera may limit their appeal.
Sony’s deal with the Xperia line is to pack them with specs and features that will appeal to photographers and even videographers (this includes an excellent workflow-based video app). In reality, however, Sony has struggled strongly to achieve any mediocre market in the US. Prices have come down much higher than the standard for flagship Android phones, but some of it also comes down to availability. Without career involvement or mass marketing budgets, these Xperia phones are more likely to appeal to camera enthusiasts than mainstream Android buyers.
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