TechPhonesAndroid Phones3 ways the Xperia 1 V bests Samsung and Apple – so why aren’t Sony phones more popular?Sony’s Xperia 1 V is a powerful creator’s tool and a mighty phone – so why are Sony phones missing out to the likes of Apple and Samsung?When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
TechPhonesAndroid Phones3 ways the Xperia 1 V bests Samsung and Apple – so why aren’t Sony phones more popular?Sony’s Xperia 1 V is a powerful creator’s tool and a mighty phone – so why are Sony phones missing out to the likes of Apple and Samsung?When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Sony’s Xperia 1 V is a powerful creator’s tool and a mighty phone – so why are Sony phones missing out to the likes of Apple and Samsung?
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Sony)
(Image credit: Sony)
The newSony Xperia 1 Vis official, bringing back theXperia 1 IV’s ingenious camera zoom tech, its strikingly cinematic screen and classical styling.
For 2023,Sonyhas also upgraded its flagship Xperia’s main camera sensor, and integrated some of its excellent Sony Alpha mirrorless camera features into its mobile line.
In fact, Sony is innovating harder with camera tech than the top dogs in the smartphone world –AppleandSamsung. The Xperia 1 series is still the only line to feature a moving optical zoom lens or a 4K HDR OLED screen, and the way Sony’s smartphones integrate with cameras is a creator’s dream.
So why isn’t Sony topping the smartphone charts and topplingthe best phonescompetition, as we’ve seen the iconic Japanese firm do in recent years across gaming, cameras, audio and TVs?
To answer that question, we’ll talk about some of the things Sony’s Xperia phones are getting very right. And why some of the best Xperia highlights are actually working against the line…
(Image credit: Sony)
(Image credit: Sony)
CINEMATIC SCREENS
Sony’s 21:9 screens on Xperia phones are things of beauty, and their ultimate evolution comes in the form of the Xperia 1 V’s 4K 120Hz HDR OLED panel. That’s quite a mouthful isn’t it? That’s super-high in resolution and refresh rate, extra bright for high dynamic range, and all presented on a delightful panel technology.
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The Xperia 1 V has the sharpest screen around (along with its predecessor), cramming a mind-boggling 643 pixels in every square inch (PPI). TheiPhone 14 Pro Max’spixel density is 460 PPI for context – which also looks great.
The fact a screen of this resolution also keeps up with the 120Hz refresh rate of its main competition means that, on paper, it doesn’t appear to drop the ball in any regard. But, actually, is 4K on such a small screen just overkill to battery life’s detriment?
(Image credit: Sony)
(Image credit: Sony)
PRO-GRADE CAMERA TOOLS
More impressive than the Xperia 1 V’s screen specification is its Pandora’s box of photo and video tricks.
Firstly, there’s the camera on the phone itself. The Xperia line is the only phone of its kind to feature a physically moving optical zoom lens in a slimline body. Introduced on theXperia 1 III, and refined for the Mark IVand now V, the latest module can travel between 85-125mm, which equates to ranges ideal for portraits and far-away objects.
The Xperia 1 V’s main camera sensor has also been upgraded, and is 1.7 times the size of that of last year’s Xperia 1 IV, at 1/1.35-inch. The sensor structure has also been overhauled to improve lowlight capture, and Sony’s added a dose of AI magic to level up subject and depth detection for better focus, exposure and colour accuracy.
Enthusiast photo and video fans with a passion for Sony have been spiritedly backing their favourite brand online for years, and that has a lot to do with the Photography and Video Pro apps.
While theiPhonedoesn’t offer manual controls out of the box, Sony overloads you with options, packing its flagship with no less than three camera apps for granular control over every aspect of capture. Which, for some users and critics, is as much a problem as it is a benefit to fans.
(Image credit: Sony)
(Image credit: Sony)
If you have a Sony Alpha camera, you can even use the Xperia 1 V as an upgraded monitor for a super-premium preview of your shot, and record the camera footage onto the phone’s internal storage. To say Sony phones are built for creators is an understatement.
These are just a handful of things that Sony is doing that Apple and Samsung aren’t:
CLASSIC STYLING
Speaking of understatements, Sony’s understated, classical styling is also something it’s committed to deliver. For the fourth year in a row, Sony customers get a familiar flat back, front and sides, while retaining that 3.5mm headphone jack – even though all the top-end competition’s dropped it – and including a physical camera button on its Xperia 1 series.
(Image credit: Sony)
(Image credit: Sony)
WHAT’S HOLDING SONY BACK?
Despite serious highlights, though, Sony’s phones haven’t been able to keep up with the best from Apple and Samsung when it comes to reviews and sales. So…why?
Personally, I think some of the best features of Sony phones are just too geeky and niche for most people to care about.
Take the ultra-wide cinematic screen: it works great as a movie player, but for standard smartphone use – typing, swiping and scrolling – the tall screen is a serious stretch to use. When you don’t turn it sideways, it also squishes content horizontally given how narrow it is. So while it’s a wide-screen dream, it doesn’t find the middle ground between scenarios that theGalaxy S23 Ultraand iPhone 14 Pro offer.
Next, the camera: I think Sony has too much faith in a typical smartphone user. Without a doubt, its ‘pro camera’ tools are industry-leading across photos and videos. But historically its automatic mode has trailed behind do-it-all computational photography champs like theGoogle Pixel 7 Pro.
Sony phone cameras have also overheated for a few years now, possibly owing to how much Sony does to eke out the best from them. This has single-handedly resulted in some middling reviews, which will also, no doubt hurt the line’s appeal.
(Image credit: Basil Kronfli / T3)
(Image credit: Basil Kronfli / T3)
Finally, there’s the price. The Xperia 1 V is launching at £1,299 in the UK. If you’re a creator who wants to integrate the phone into your workflow, that isn’t bad value.
But most people looking to pick up a premium phone right now aren’t doing so because of its neat-yet-niche pro-grade tools. They are only really happy to pay big bucks for an iPhone or aSamsung Galaxybecause they’re the ubiquitous Apple andAndroidphones everyone knows about, or they want to save a bit of cash, and look to alternatives like aOnePlusor Honor phone. While Sony’s overall brand is fire – that brand-cred hasn’t carried over to the smartphone market enough to warrant such punchy positioning.
So, yes, the Sony Xperia 1 V looks like an absolute belter with its fantastically specced camera ecosystem for creators, an industry-leading screen resolution and a suite of carefully considered components that show up the competition. But it might actually be Sony’s focus on these very features, matched with a high price, that is actually holding Sony back in today’s smartphone showdown.
Today’s best Sony Xperia 1 V and Sony Xperia 1 IV dealsSony Xperia 1 V$949.99$895ViewSee all pricesSony Xperia 1 IV$1,598ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Today’s best Sony Xperia 1 V and Sony Xperia 1 IV dealsSony Xperia 1 V$949.99$895ViewSee all pricesSony Xperia 1 IV$1,598ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Today’s best Sony Xperia 1 V and Sony Xperia 1 IV dealsSony Xperia 1 V$949.99$895ViewSee all pricesSony Xperia 1 IV$1,598ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Today’s best Sony Xperia 1 V and Sony Xperia 1 IV deals
Sony Xperia 1 V$949.99$895ViewSee all pricesSony Xperia 1 IV$1,598ViewSee all prices
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