Last year, Sony surprised a lot: the company released, in fact, two flagships in one year. First, as part of the new series, the Japanese showed the Xperia X Performance - it was the most powerful of the new smartphones, so it seemed that this was the flagship. However, a little later, the company made the Xperia XZ - a device with a similar filling, but a larger screen and a new design concept, which suddenly became the new leader of the family. Perhaps the company was unhappy with the sales, or maybe this was a cunning marketing move, the essence of which none of the townsfolk understood. Anyway, this year Sony is acting differently, updating the entire series at once.
The Xperia XZ Premium becomes the leader of the lineup, which is conceptually similar to the Xperia X5 Premium, and the successor to the previous flagship, the Xperia XZs, is becoming a more compact and affordable alternative. The Xperia XA1 and XA1 Ultra are in the first league this season. It seems that Sony is trying to build a single lineup from different models of the past and think more about quality than quantity. Well, let's see how good the new Xperia flagship is and what it can put up with the market leader.
⇡ Specifications
| Sony Xperia XZ Premium | Sony Xperia Z5 Premium | Huawei P10 Plus | Samsung Galaxy S8 | HTC U Ultra | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Screen | 5.46 inches, IPS, 3840 × 2160 pixels, 807 ppi, capacitive multitouch | 5.5 inches, IPS, 2160 × 3840 pixels, 806 ppi, capacitive multitouch | 5.5 inches, IPS, 2560 × 1440 pixels, 540 ppi, capacitive multitouch | 5.8 inches, Super AMOLED, 1440 × 2960 pixels, 570 ppi, capacitive multitouch | 5.7 inches, IPS, 2560 × 1440 pixels, 513 ppi, capacitive multitouch + second display, 2.05 inches, 1040 × 160 |
| Protective glass | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 | There is no data | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 |
| CPU | Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 (MSM8998): eight cores (4 × 2.45 GHz + 4 × 1.9 GHz) | Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 (MSM8994): eight cores (4x1.5GHz + 2x2.0GHz Cortex-A57) | HiSilicon Kirin 960: eight cores (4 × 2.4 GHz ARM Cortex-A73 + 4 × 1.8 GHz ARM Cortex-A53) | Samsung Exynos 8895: eight cores (4 × M1, 2.5 GHz + 4 × Cortex-A53, 1.69 GHz) | Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 MSM8996 (two Kryo cores @ 2.35 GHz + two Kryo cores @ 1.36 GHz) |
| Graphics controller | Adreno 540, 710 MHz | Adreno 520, 600 MHz | ARM Mali-G71 MP8, 900 MHz | Mali-G71 MP20, 850 MHz | Adreno 530, 624 MHz |
| RAM | 4 GB | 3 GB | 4/6 GB | 4 GB | 4 GB |
| Flash memory | 64 GB | 32 GB | 64/128 GB | 64 GB | 64/128 GB |
| Connectors | 1 × USB Type-C | 1 × microUSB | 1 × USB Type-C | 1 × USB Type-C | 1 × USB Type-C |
| 1 × 3.5mm headset jack | 1 × 3.5mm headset jack | 1 × 3.5mm headset jack | |||
| 1 × nano-SIM; | 1 × nano-SIM; 1 × microSD |
1 × nano-SIM; 1 × microSD |
2 × nano-SIM | 1 × nano-SIM; 1 × microSD |
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| 1 × microSD / 1 × nanoSIM / microSD | 1 × microSD | ||||
| Cellular 2G | GSM / GPRS / Edge 850/900/1800/1900 | GSM / GPRS / EDGE 850/900/1800/1900 MHz | GSM / GPRS / EDGE 850/900/1800/1900 MHz | GSM / GPRS / EDGE 850/900/1800/1900 MHz | |
| Cellular 3G | HSDPA 800/850/900 / 1700/1900/2100 |
HSDPA 800/850/900 / 1700/1900/2100 |
DC-HSPA 850/900 / 1900/2100 MHz |
1700/1900/2100 |
UMTS / HSPA + / DC-HSDPA 800/850/900 / 1700/1900/2100 |
| Cellular 4G | LTE Cat.16 (1024 Mbps, 150 Mbps), ranges 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 19, 20, 26, 28, 29, 32, 38 , 39, 40, 41 | LTE Cat. 4 (150 Mbps, 50 Mbps), ranges 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 19, 20, 26, 28, 29, 32, 38, 39, 40, 41 | LTE Cat. 4 (150 Mbps, 50 Mbps), ranges 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 18, 19, 26, 28, 38, 40, 41 | LTE Cat.16 (1024 Mbps, 150 Mbps), ranges 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 17, 20, 28 | LTE Cat.11 (up to 600 Mbps): bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 17, 20, 28, 38, 39, 40, 41 |
| Wi-Fi | 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac 2.4 / 5 GHz | 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac 2.4 / 5 GHz | 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac 2.4 / 5 GHz | 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac 2.4 / 5 GHz | 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac 2.4 / 5 GHz |
| Bluetooth | 5.0 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 4.2 |
| NFC | There is | There is | There is | There is | There is |
| Navigation | GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, Galileo | GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS | GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS | GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo | GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou |
| Sensors | Illumination, approximation, accelerometer / gyroscope, magnetometer (digital compass) |
Illumination, proximity, accelerometer / gyroscope, magnetometer (digital compass) | Illumination, proximity, accelerometer / gyroscope, magnetometer (digital compass), Hall sensor | Illumination, proximity, accelerometer / gyroscope, magnetometer (digital compass), Sensor Hub | |
| The fingerprint scanner | There is | There is | There is | There is | There is |
| Main camera | 19 MP, ƒ / 2.0, laser + phase contrast autofocus, LED flash, 4K video recording, HD video recording at 960 fps | 23 MP, ƒ / 2.0, laser + phase contrast autofocus, LED flash, 4K video recording |
2 × 12 MP, ƒ / 1.8, laser autofocus, LED flash, 4K video recording | 12 MP, ƒ / 1.7, phase detection autofocus, optical stabilization, LED flash | 12 MP, ƒ / 1.8, hybrid autofocus (contrast with laser backlight + phase), optical stabilization, LED flash, 4K video recording |
| Front-camera | 13 MP, ƒ / 2.0, contrast autofocus, video recording in Full HD | 5.1 MP, ƒ / 2.4, contrast autofocus, Full HD video recording |
8 MP, contrast autofocus, no flash | 8 MP, ƒ / 1.7, autofocus, no separate flash | 16 MP, fixed autofocus |
| Nutrition | Removable battery: 12.2 Wh (3230 mAh, 3.8 V) | Removable battery: 13 Wh (3430 mAh, 3.8 V) | Removable battery: 14.25 Wh (3750 mAh, 3.8 V) | Removable battery: 11.4 Wh (3000 mAh, 3.8 V) | |
| The size | 156 x 77 x 7.9 mm | 154.1 x 75.8 x 7.8 mm | 153.5 x 74.2 x 7 mm | 148.9 x 68.1 x 8 mm | 162.4 x 79.8 x 8mm |
| Weight | 191 g | 180 g | 165 g | 155 g | 170 g |
| Water and dust resistant | Yes, IP68 standard | Yes, IP68 standard | Not | Yes, IP68 standard | Not |
| Operating system | Android 7.1 Nougat | Android 5.0 Lollipop (Android 7.0 Nougat supported) | Android 7.0 Nougat, shell EMUI 5.1 | Android 7.0 Nougat, Grace UX framework | Android 7.0 Nougat, HTC Sense's own skin |
| Actual price | 54,990 rubles | 45,990 rubles | 44,990 rubles | 59,990 rubles | 49,000 rubles |
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⇡ Design, ergonomics and software
At first glance, nothing special for Sony and nothing new. The current flagship is made in the usual Sony style and is similar to the Xperia XZ, increased in size - the same sharp edges, the same large space at the top and bottom. The ratio of the screen area to the total front surface is not at all impressive - only 68: 100. Compare this with the Samsung Galaxy S8 and its 83: 100. However, it should not be noted that the side frames remain quite thin, and the protective glass slightly extends to the side edges. which affects the visual perception of the smartphone.
As befits a flagship in 2017, the Xperia XZ Premium is made of glass and metal. The front and back panels are completely covered with Gorilla Glass 5. It is curious that in the silver version of the smartphone the back panel is mirrored, you can look into it, and the girls really like it. Apart from the silver variant, the Xperia XZ Premium is available in black and pink. True, the latter option has not yet begun to be sold in Russia.
The side edges are very smooth, rounded, the smartphone is comfortable to hold in the hand, despite its impressive size - I had about the same sensations when working with the iPhone 7 Plus. Straight lines at the top and bottom, on the other hand, can cause discomfort for those who are used to carrying a smartphone in the front pocket of jeans. Here Sony is repeating the mistakes made by the rectangular Lumia designers on Windows Phone.
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The location of the main elements on the body has not changed. Above is a 3.5 mm audio jack. It's nice that Sony isn't following the dubious trend that Apple and HTC have picked up, and isn't forcing you to switch to wireless headphones or USB-C models.
At the bottom is the USB Type-C that has become the new standard, and on the right edge are the volume keys, the power button (with a built-in fingerprint scanner) and start the camera. On the left side there is a compartment for SIM-cards and a microSD flash drive. The traditional "trouble" of Sony smartphones is that every time you remove this tray, the device automatically goes into reboot, while there are no technical restrictions for hot swapping a SIM card and microSD drive for a long time.
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In terms of dimensions, the Xperia XZ Premium cannot surprise: the thickness of 7.9 millimeters has not been impressive for a long time, and the width of 77 mm allows you to somehow work with the smartphone with one hand - you can enter text without problems, but it’s not easy to reach the top edge. And of course, I must say that the smartphone is too heavy - it weighs 191 grams. It's even slightly heavier than the iPhone 7 Plus, which seems overweight today. In addition, I have big concerns about reliability - a heavy smartphone is easier to break. The owners of the Xperia Z5 Premium actively complained about the fragility, because even a fall from a height of 60-70 centimeters led to cracks on the back or on the screen. In general, I did not test the strength of the XZ Premium, but I advise you to use it very carefully.
But the good news is that the dust and moisture protection is still there. Sony Xperia XZ Premium meets the IP68 standard and can withstand half an hour underwater at a depth of one and a half meters. And the presence of a dedicated key for shooting makes it suitable for underwater photography. True, the manufacturer emphasizes that this is just an ordinary protected smartphone, and not a full-fledged underwater device.
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Returning to the dedicated button for the camera, it should be noted that there is a quick launch option: you can point your smartphone with the screen off and press the camera key - the picture will be taken. In some situations, the second saved can play a decisive role, so the function will definitely be useful.
