Sony has added a couple of new smartphones to its portfolio – one at the flagship level with the Xperia 1 VI and the other at the mid-range level in the Xperia 10 VI.
The Xperia VI is the one you’ll probably want to take note of, with its 7.1x optical zoom lens bettering both the Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max and the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra on the spec sheet. But the mid-range model, which sits in the same field as the Google Pixel 8a and Nothing Phone 2a has some tricks up its sleeve too.
Sony Xperia 1 VI goes for hardware over software
Let’s talk about the Xperia 1 VI first. As you might guess from its name, it succeeds the Xperia 1 V that launched in May 2023 – like Apple, Samsung and Google, Sony is pretty consistent with its phone launch cycle. The design remains very Xperia with a flat rectangular build, slightly rounded corners and a pill-shaped camera housing on the rear.
And that camera housing is where you’ll want to focus your attention. Sony often talks about its camera capabilities and while its full frame cameras are superb, and its sensors are used in some of the best camera phones on the market, Sony’s own smartphone isn’t usually the one wearing that best smartphone camera crown. It might have the hardware, but Google, Samsung and Apple have all been better when it comes to the software.
IMAGE CREDIT: THE DISCONNEKT/SONY
The thing to note is the Sony has often aimed its devices at photographers rather than your average person. Dive into the advanced settings and use the pro mode and you’ll find yourself with a decent shot, but simply point and shoot and Sony phones don’t offer the same experience or results you’ll get from iPhone, Pixel or the Galaxy S.
That could be about to change. The Xperia 1 VI features a telephoto optical zoom lens that is said to offer a “user friendly” focal length from 85mm to 170mm, delivering 7.1x optical zoom. For context, the iPhone 15 Pro Max has 5x optical zoom, the Pixel 8 Pro is also 5x optical and the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is 3x optical. The camera app has been redesigned too, said to make it easier to navigate without dropping some of the more advanced tools, and AI is also on board to recognise the human skeleton and offer autofocus (AF) tracking of people as they move in order to get a better shot.
IMAGE CREDIT: THE DISCONNEKT/SONY
Elsewhere, there’s a 1.5x brighter display than the Xperia 1 V, along with a different resolution and aspect ratio. I mention those last two because the Xperia 1, Xperia 5 and Xperia 10 ranges have offered a 21:9 aspect ratio since they first launched. It’s been their USP for a long time, said to be great for watching movies and content as they were intended by film producers. The aspect ratio is now 19.5:9 and it drops the resolution from 4K to Full HD, which might disappoint some.
The slightly geekier specs of this device include the flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, support for Wi-Fi 7, an improved speaker, a Premium Audio Circuit for 3.5mm wired headphones and a 5,000mAh battery. And if you’re interested, there’s reasonably fast charging with 50 per cent in 30 minutes.
What about the mid-range Xperia 10 VI then?
Spare a little thought for the mid-ranger now, will you? The Xperia 10 VI’s main focus seems to be on a lightweight build and a decent battery. Sony phones might not be best known for their computational photography skills – there’s definitely no Magic Editor on board here unless you use Google Photos. But what they lack in those native Magic Eraser skills, they make up for in battery life. Xperia phones have always delivered when it comes to the battery life and the Xperia 10 VI looks like it will continue this trend with its 5,000mAh capacity.
IMAGE CREDIT: THE DISCONNEKT
The camera isn’t as capable as the flagship, as you might expect, with two lenses over three, but there’s still a focal length ranging from 16mm to 52mm and the equivalent of 2x optical zoom. The redesigned camera app has been carried through to this model too, and there’s a dedicated video creator app for short videos. There’s also AI-driven scene detection, with the camera adjusting the settings based on what you’re taking a photo of.
In other news, the Xperia 10 VI runs on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 platform, has a brighter screen than its predecessor, offers a 164g weight and there’s a matte finish on the back.
Xperia 1 VI and Xperia 10 VI price and availability
The Xperia 1 VI is available to pre-order from 15 May and will be available early June. It will cost around £1,299 and it comes in Black, Platinum Silver, and Khaki Green.
The Xperia 10 VI is also available to pre-order from 15 May and will be available mid June. It will cost £349 and it comes in Black, Blue and White.
