Sony Xperia 1

At a glance

• 6.5 Inch HDR OLED Screen
• Android 9.0 (upgradeable to Android 10)
• Triple 12MP Camera, with wide angle, 4k video and 2x optical zoom
• 4000mAh battery, fast charging up to 50% and wireless charge capabilities
• £1099, £38.99 pcm (Carphone Warehouse)

Highlights

• Widescreen 21:9, 167x72cm screen, perfect for viewing movies at the resolution they were intended to be viewed.
• 4k video shooting and a dedicated movie creator app allows budding cinematographers to experiment with content creation.
• High powered Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processing means high quality video playback and an exceptional mobile gaming experience.

Design and appearance

The Sony Xperia 1 is designed around its cinema-style 167x72cm screen. This screen size means the phone feels an unusual shape, especially for those used to other smartphones, and some independent reviews have said the extra length makes the phone feel slightly flimsy. Despite this, the Xperia 1 is stylish and at 180g, is fairly light in the high-end smartphone market.

Camera

The camera hardware in the Xperia 1 is 3 x 12MP cameras, with a wide-angle lens, telephoto zoom up to 2x and a portrait mode that features real-time eye autofocus tracking for humans and animals. It may be an industry leader for taking photos of your pets!

The inbuilt cinema app, Cinema Pro, offers 4k video shooting and the ample processing power allows you to shoot over extended periods. Along with colour pre-correction and up to 60fps shooting speeds, video recordings on the Xperia 1 are of excellent quality, which makes this phone ideal for content creators.

Display

The Xperia 1's screen is specifically designed to give you an at home cinema experience. The display is crisp and clear 4k, and the 21:9 aspect ratio means films from apps such as Netflix and Amazon prime are presented beautifully, without black bands above and below the screen.

Software and features

The Xperia 1 comes with Android 9.0 as standard, and therefore has a streamlined and clean app layout. The extra screen length also means that there's plenty of space and the appearance doesn't ever feel cluttered. The powerful processor means you're unlikely to experience performance slowdowns, even when running multiple applications. The Xperia 1 has a side mounted fingerprint sensor which is a point of difference from most of its competitors which have touchscreen sensors.

Performance

The Xperia 1's processor is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855, which is one of the industry leaders for processing power and mobile gaming. It features Elite Gaming Technology which means games run smoothly, quickly and with crisp visuals. The Xperia 1 is also compatible with PS4 wireless controllers for an added layer of gaming immersion.