With so much fierce competition in the phone world, Sony needed to step up and do something special this MWC. Instead, it launched the Xperia 1, which has a vibrant screen, but little else to get excited about.
It's not that it's a bad phone, it's just that it's entirely forgettable. That's a serious problem when Sony's rivals are experimenting with folding phones and 5G.
The Xperia 1 has a 6.5-inch display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor, three rear cameras and 6GB of RAM. Pricing and availability is yet to be confirmed.
2
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
The display is a 4K, HDR OLED affair which looks vibrant and sharp.
3
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
From the back, it's not exactly exciting to look at.
4
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
It's slim and sleek all round.
5
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
The triple camera array features a standard zoom lens, a telephoto zoom and a super wide-angle mode. It's a setup we've seen already on phones such as the Huawei Mate 20 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus.
6
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
There's a single 8-megapixel camera on the front for selfies.
7
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
A skinny body.
8
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
The fingerprint scanner remains on the side -- there's no fancy in-screen scanning offered here.
9
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
The Xperia 1 is joined by a midrange cousin in the form of the Xperia 10. It has a 6-inch display.
10
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
The Xperia 10 also has a dual-camera setup.
11
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
It uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 630 processor and has a 2,870-mAh battery.
12
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
Again, the fingerprint scanner is found on the side.
13
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
Its bigger sibling, the Xperia 10 Plus has a 6.5-inch display.
14
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
You'll find a dual-camera setup on the back.
15
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
The screen stretches right to the bottom but there's still a bezel at the top as Sony evidently is not a fan of the "notch."
16
of
16
Sarah Tew/CNET
The design is reminiscent of many recent Xperia phones.
Close
Discuss: Sony's Xperia 1 packs a big screen but little else
Be respectful, keep it civil and stay on topic. We delete comments that violate our policy, which we encourage you to read. Discussion threads can be closed at any time at our discretion.
Discuss: Sony's Xperia 1 packs a big screen but little else
Be respectful, keep it civil and stay on topic. We delete comments that violate our policy, which we encourage you to read. Discussion threads can be closed at any time at our discretion.