Sony has unveiled its latest flagship handset at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the XZ Premium, alongside other new models, the XZs, XA1 Ultra and XA1, and concepts.
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The 195g Xperia XZ Premium holds a number of world firsts, but the clear highlight is that this is the first handset to have a 4K HDR display. Indeed, the 5.5in screen will likely be the first mobile display to be of a significantly higher quality than the vast majority of televisions people have at home. And to ensure you'll be able to enjoy footage that shows off the capabilities of the screen, Sony has partnered with Amazon Prime to allow streaming of 4K HDR content.
The Premium’s camera also sets new standards. Sony is aiming to please both high-end Alpha users and casual CyberShot faithfuls with a new generation system called Motion Eye. This uses an innovative “memory stacked” sensor in the phone, where memory is embedded with the sensor chip. The result is supposedly a five times faster scan speed.
Another benefit is that this allows the Premium to perform its party trick: super slow motion video. This is not your usual slow-mo found on other phones, where the norm is approximately 240fps – the Premium manages an extremely impressive 960fps, three times as many frames per second.
This ability, coupled with the fact you can turn the slow-mo capture on and off while recording video (which neatly allows you to cut out boring preamble while waiting for the interesting part, such as a balloon exploding) means the result is more user-friendly.
The Premium’s 13MP front camera with a 22mm wide-angle lens can handle low light photos up to ISO 6400, while the 19MP 1/2.3in Exmor RS sensor within the main camera has pixels said to be 19 per cent larger than its predecessor. It additionally uses Motion Eye to allow “Predictive Capture”. This feature detects motion and captures up to four photos a second before you even click the shutter button. This system is dependent on the sensor seeing movement, however, so if you're taking stills of food or flowers, for example, Predictive Capture will not engage.
The Xperia XZ and X Performance launched with Android 7.0 and will be among the first phones to get Android 7.1.1. The update includes app shortcuts and new emoji.
All this performance is handled by Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 835 processor, allowing 150Mbps upload speed and 1Gbps download speed. The 3230mAh battery is guaranteed by Sony for all-day use for the product’s lifespan (althougb the firm did not qualify what this lifespan is) and has Quick Charge 3.0 as well as a Smart Stamina mode to allow fast charging and prolong usage life.
Design-wise, the phone comes in three colours; Luminous Chrome (which is something of a fingerprint magnet) and Deepsea Blue (which appears black but reveals subtle shades of blue under light) and Bronze Pink, which will be available in the UK from the end of June 2017. Despite the extra performance, it is slimmer (156 x 77 x 7.9mm) than the previous flagship handset yet continues the glass loop surface execution aiming to unify both the front and rear faces.
Elsewhere, the nano-SIM Premium has a fingerprint sensor, 4GB RAM, 64GB storage, IP65/68 water resistance, hi-res audio playback, 4K video recording, Gorilla Glass 5, USB Type C connectivity and – in a move that laudably sees Sony not follow in Apple’s footsteps – a headphone jack.
Ahead of this year's MWC 2017, the brand also announced a smaller 146 x 72 x 8.1mm, 161g version of the flagship, the Xperia XZs, with Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 64-bit processor, fingerprint sensor, Motion Eye, 19MP 1/ 2.3in Exmor RS image sensor, 4K video recording and slow motion 960fps video capture. This alternative model has a 5.2in Full 1080p HD screen, 4GB RAM, USB Type C and 2900mAh battery.
Two more handsets are additionally being added to Sony’s line-up: the Xperia XA1 with a 5in, 720p HD display and XA1 Ultra with a 6in Full HD display. Neither have slow motion 960fps video, Motion Eye tech or fingerprint sensors.
Price details and release dates for these devices have not yet been confirmed.
In development news for Sony, following up on its Xperia Projector concept from last year’s MWC, the company is bringing the final version to market this Spring, called the Xperia Touch. The projector with a 23in, 720 HD screen is certified as an Android device and offers multi-touch control via an IR array. The price, though, for early adopters is a hefty €1,499.
Sony’s new Xperia Ear Open-Style concept, caught WIRED's eye as well. This open-style ear piece developed by the brand's Future Labs division should allow the wearer to hear other people and ambient noise while listening to music and getting notifications. The prototype on display was a very early model with a hollow design concept, but it will be interesting to see how this wearable device develops.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
