Sony Xperia XZ Premium review: a mirror of the Major League

In this Sony Xperia XZ Premium review, we will find out why a smartphone needs a 4K HDR screen, and whether such a display, as well as super slow motion video from a unique camera and an expensive "mirror" design (glass, glass all around!) Justifies the price of the device in 50 - 55,000 rubles ( for this money you can buy a Sony Xperia XZ Premium with a manufacturer's warranty in large retail chains).

The wide-angle Sony G Lens with an equivalent focal length (EFR) of 25 mm has an aperture of f / 2.0. The photo module also features an LED flash and 5-axis digital image stabilization (SteadyShot). So they still decided to do without optical stabilization.

Hybrid AF, combining phase, contrast and laser techniques, provides fast focusing in a variety of lighting conditions. The Tracking Focus function helps when shooting, for example, fidgets such as small children and dogs.

The maximum image resolution for the classic (4: 3) and widescreen (16: 9) aspect ratios is 5056x3792 pixels (19 MP) and 5504x3096 pixels (17 MP, by default), respectively. Algorithms (accelerated image processing, motion detection in the frame) BIONZ for mobile migrated to the smartphone from Sony professional cameras.

In turn, the front camera of the Xperia XZ Premium has a 13-megapixel Exmor RS sensor (optical size 1 / 3.06 inches). At the same time, the 22mm wide-angle lens boasts an f / 2.0 aperture. The maximum image resolution for the classic (4: 3) and widescreen (16: 9) aspect ratios here is 4160x3120 pixels (13 MP) and 4192x2358 pixels (10 MP), respectively. Lovers of "cross-shooters" can use the "cosmetic" option to smooth the skin in the picture.

Both cameras can shoot videos in Full HD quality, while the main photo module provides a frame rate of not only 30 fps, but also 60 fps. In addition, the additional application "Video 4K" allows you to record video with a resolution (3820x2160 pixels) @ 30 fps.

At the top of the viewfinder screen, there are icons for changing the camera (main - front), going to the screen of additional applications, as well as in the "Video", "Manual" (M) or "Super auto" modes (by default). The flash, in addition to automatic, has a fill mode, red-eye removal and flashlight. It is possible to forcibly enable the HDR option only in manual mode, where it is suggested that you decide on the focus yourself, as well as the shutter speed, ISO, exposure compensation steps and white balance presets. By the way, thanks to the infrared RGB-color correction sensor, generally speaking, there is no need to take care of the correct white balance, although such an opportunity is provided. Among the additional applications, along with "4K Video" are also offered

various filters ("Artistic")

and augmented reality effects ("AR-effect").

The volume rocker can be easily adjusted to zoom in or start shooting. Long-term holding of the dedicated button to control the camera activates the function of quick launch of the application of the same name (with the possibility of subsequent shooting of a photo or video). Examples of photos from the main camera can be viewed.

In the "Video" mode, there is an icon next to the record button, which is used for super slow (960 fps) shooting with HD quality (1280x720 pixels). The recording of one such fragment lasts less than 0.2 seconds, which during normal playback (30 fps) stretch for 6 seconds. The next fragment of slow-motion recording can be done only after a couple of seconds, since it takes time to free the filled buffer, from where the data is sent to the main memory of the smartphone. Note that no other flagship on the market has the capability of super slow (960 fps) shooting.

This is what a slow motion video looks like:

spinner spin

and boiling water in a kettle.

Sony Xperia XZ Premium review: sound

With the sound of the new flagship Sony, as usual, everything is up to par. Hi-Res Audio technology provides support for lossless formats, and DSEE HX is useful for recovering cut-off frequencies from low-bitrate MP3 files. The ClearAudio + option in manual mode is replaced by a 5-band equalizer with presets. In turn, the dynamic normalizer equalizes the volume of different audio tracks or video recordings. S Force Front Surround is designed to support surround sound through the speakers. By the way, in general, there are no special complaints about the built-in emitters that support the stereo mode. They sound pretty good, although they could have been louder.

Since the 3.5-mm connector on this smartphone (unlike some "more advanced" brothers) has not gone anywhere, wired headphones will also come in handy, the sound of which, if the corresponding option is activated, is offered to be automatically optimized. By the way, the 3.5mm connector can accept a five-pin mini-jack - TRRRS. Compared to conventional TRRS (microphone, common, left and right channels), the auxiliary contact can be used for a second microphone or for external power supply.

Sony Xperia XZ Premium review: filling, performance

In general, questions about the performance of the Xperia XZ Premium do not arise, because under its hood is hidden, made taking into account the design standards of 10 nm.

Eight computing cores are divided into two clusters of Kryo 280 cores, while the first quartet is clocked at up to 2.45 GHz, and the second - up to 1.9 GHz. Graphics accelerator Adreno 540 supports DirectX 12, OpenGL ES 3.2, OpenCL 2.0. The built-in LTE modem X16 with carrier aggregation allows you to receive data at speeds up to 1 Gbit / s (Cat. 16). In addition, the new chip includes Bluetooth 5.0 and Wi-Fi modules (including 802.11ad and 802.11ac Wave-2). The base configuration of the Sony flagship is complemented by 4 GB of RAM.

The results of the tests carried out leave no doubt about the highest performance of the smartphone. The most demanding games can be launched.

The Xperia XZ Premium comes with 64GB of fast flash storage (UFS 2.1). As already noted, there is space in the combo slot to expand this storage with a microSD / HC / XC memory card up to 256 GB. In addition, USB-OTG technology allows you to connect USB flash drives to the device.

In 4G networks, the new smartphone supports a fair amount of frequency bands, but, most importantly, the LTE-FDD trio - b3 (1800 MHz), b7 (2600 MHz) and b20 (800 MHz). In addition, the set of wireless communications includes Wi-Fi 802.11 ac / b / g / n / (2.4 and 5 GHz), Miracast, Google Cast, DLNA, Bluetooth 5.0 and NFC.

With the NFC interface on the smartphone, the possibilities of the Android Pay service open up. In addition, together with the application "Transport Cards of Moscow" it is possible to read the balance of "Troika".

For positioning and navigation satellite systems GPS, GLONASS and Galileo can be used. Coordination mode via Wi-Fi and cellular networks (A-GPS) is also available.

The capacity of the non-removable lithium-polymer battery in the Xperia XZ Premium, in comparison with, has slightly decreased - from 3,430 mAh to 3,230 mAh. The flagship still uses Qnovo's Adaptive Charging technology to conserve battery life while recharging, which almost doubles battery life. Although the smartphone supports Quick Charge 3.0, it does not come with a fast charger (such as the UCH12). Strange savings (1.5-2 thousand rubles) for a flagship. By the way, the USB 3.1 cable (with dedicated fast receive-transfer lines) was also not included in the standard package.

The AnTuTu Tester program evaluated the result achieved on the battery test at 6,978 points. The test set of videos in MP4 format (hardware decoding) and Full HD-quality at full brightness spun continuously for about 5 hours.

The proprietary energy saving modes Stamina and Ultra Stamina are used to extend autonomy.

Sony Xperia XZ Premium review: software features

The Xperia XZ Premium smartphone runs on Android 7.1.1 (Nougat) operating system with a proprietary Xperia shell. Much has been preserved in the design of its interface from the stock OS, including the quick settings panel, which also has not undergone significant changes. By the way, the screen with the applications recommended for installation can be opened by swiping down from the center of the screen.

A fingerprint scanner built into the power / lock key is designed to provide additional protection for the smartphone, which can be used together, for example, with a PIN after a reboot.

Along with the standard set of programs from Google, the smartphone is preinstalled with branded applications from Sony, including Album, Video, Music, a slideshow maker from a photo Movie Creator, an entertainment content aggregator Xperia Lounge, etc.

Sony Xperia XZ Premium review: purchase, conclusions

The new flagship Sony Xperia XZ Premium seems to have incorporated the best technologies the company has mastered at the time of its creation. Immediately striking is the proprietary "mirror" appearance of this device, for the case of which protection from water and dust is provided. Among the hardware and software "chips", including a powerful processor, fast LTE modem and sound processing, the most significant are the innovative 4K HDR display and the ability to super slow motion.

Not deprived Xperia XZ Premium and shortcomings, among which the soiled glass case and wide frames on the sides of the display may seem not too significant. It was not possible to avoid in the new smartphone the obligatory choice between the second SIM-card and memory expansion. Along with the lack of a fast charging adapter in the kit, the low autonomy when watching a video also disappointed .

In the top league of smartphones, the Xperia XZ Premium will surely have to compete with flagship phones from other manufacturers. However, the main contender with which it will most often be compared is, of course, the Samsung Galaxy S8. In addition, at the time of testing, in large retail chains, both of these devices were assessed the same - at 54,990 rubles. However, the choice between them will most likely come down to taste preferences, taking into account a particular brand. So, for example, someone will find the appearance of a curved frameless WQHD + display more interesting, and for whom it is more important - 4K resolution for HDR content. Although the main camera of the Samsung Galaxy S8 is still, subjectively, better, it does not have a super slow motion function, etc.

The results of the review of the smartphone Sony Xperia XZ Premium:

Pros: