Sony on Monday officially revealed its new 21:9 aspect ratio smartphone assault team, targeting the mid-range and flagship sectors.
First up was the Sony Xperia 1, a device we’ve head plenty of in the past few weeks. And it seems that the leaks that burst forth last week were indeed accurate.
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The phone’s unique selling point is its screen. There’s a 6.5 inch OLED screen with 3840×1644 resolution. Yep, that’s a 4K OLED panel on a smartphone.
Being it a 21:9 aspect ratio though, the Xperia 1 is notably tall. It’s almost 20mm taller than the standard Samsung Galaxy S10, and around 10mm taller than the Huawei Mate 20 Pro.
It’s this screen though that forms the pivot of Sony’s argument for this device: people love consuming and producing content.
The screen also supports HDR, so Netflix content should appear darker and brighter in their respective areas. Additionally, the phone also features three rear cameras.
All three at the rear use 12MP snappers — not Sony’s 48MP snapper used on other mid-range devices. There’s one strapped to a 16mm lens, another to a 24mm and another to a 56mm. It’s not quite the 10x zoom we’re hearing from Oppo, but it’s still an impressive range.
Internally, Sony’s employing the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset, with 6GB of RAM and a choice between 64GB and 128GB internal storage. It also supports a microSD card reader in its second SIM slot.
For those who love audio content though, you may be left disappointed. There’s no headphone jack, but Sony’s device does support Dolby Atmos and a 24-bit DAC.
Finally, Sony’s fitted a rear fingerprint sensor, coated the phone in Gorilla Glass 6, and ensured its IP68 water and dust resistant. It also sports a 3330mAh battery.
Overall, it’s an interesting prospect, but it will fetch a lot more than the likes of the Xiaomi Mi 9 and Nokia 9 PureView — both devices that laud their own camera systems.
You’re looking at $899, just slightly less than Samsung’s Galaxy S10 starting price.
There’s no word on if or when the phone will make its way to South Africa.
Sony also debuted the Xperia 10 and 10 Plus, with 21:9 screens.
Feature image: Sony
