Sony’s new Xperia phone has received a long-awaited redesign

Sony’s flagship Xperia 1 phones looked fairly similar Since 2020but that’s finally changing with the Xperia 1 VIII, which moves to a chunky, square camera island. The phone also features what should be a significantly improved telephoto camera, along with an AI camera assistant that looks like an improved version of Google Camera Coach.

While every previous Xperia 1 has had three vertical cameras, and the last six have placed them in the same top-left corner, the 1 VIII mixes things up. The three lenses are now housed in a square block, along with the flash and the Sony logo, which is raised from the phone but slopes towards its edge. It’s a bit of an iPhone, but it’s very similar in design to some devices The latest Motorola Edge phonesdespite the angle that seems characteristic of Sony. It’s the major part of the long-awaited design refresh, breathing fresh air into Sony’s cool, but now slightly outdated, aesthetic. It’s a surprise too, not least because it’s not at all identical to the Xperia 10 VII also Got a whole new look recentlybut adopted a horizontal camera strip instead.

The Xperia 1 VIII is available in four colours: black, silver, red and gold exclusively for the Sony online store. There’s micro-texture to the camera island, frosted back glass, and aluminum edges, as well as a knurled finish on the dedicated camera shutter button. Like previous Sony phones, there’s also a 3.5mm headphone jack, as well as a microSD slot and a built-in IP65/68 resistance rating (this used to be the best although it has since been beaten by a number of IP68/69 phones).

The redesign may be aesthetically overdue, but it probably serves a practical purpose as well, allowing Sony to fit a much larger sensor to the phone’s telephoto lens. The 1/1.56-inch type sensor is approximately four times larger than the 1/2″ type sensor Xperia 1 VIImuch larger than the best Apple or Samsung devices, and close in size to those found in Vivo X300 Ultra and Xiaomi 17 Ultra. With a relatively fast f/2.8 aperture and 48MP resolution, this 70mm-equivalent lens could be one of the best telephotos out there, as long as Sony gets the processing right. The only downside is that in order to accommodate the larger sensor, Sony has ditched the continuous optical zoom found on its last four flagships — just as Xiaomi copied the feature on its 17 Ultra.

The telephoto camera is joined by the main and ultra-wide cameras, with a resolution of 48 megapixels and is essentially unchanged from the previous phone. The camera system as a whole has been improved with a new multi-frame RAW processing pipeline, better bokeh effect, and updated macro photography which has been integrated into the default camera mode and now supports autofocus as well.

The other big upgrade to the camera is the AI ​​camera assistant. When you’re getting ready to take a photo, it will suggest different options for the filters, frames and lenses to use, as well as more subtle adjustments such as brightening the subject of the photo, but not its background. Suggestions appear before you take the photo, although Sony says you can turn the feature off entirely if you prefer. It seems much stronger than somewhat basic AI Camera Coach functionality on Google’s Pixel 10 phonesalthough I suspect many will prefer the fact that Google mode has to be activated manually, while Sony mode appears to be on by default.

Sony has packed in a few other upgrades as well. There are new full-stage stereo speakers, which appear to be tuned with Sony Pictures and Sony Music, and they’re clearer and louder than before. The 5,000 mAh battery and 30W charging are unchanged, although Sony says the phone will last an hour longer than before thanks to some improvements under the hood. It is now operated by Latest Snapdragon 8 Elite Generation 5and comes with up to 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage (although it’s only in gold online). One big downside is that it will only receive four years of operating system updates and six security patches, which is fewer than almost any other major similar software.

The Xperia 1 VIII starts at £1,399/€1,499 (about $1,765) for the standard model with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. The 16GB/1TB model is priced at £1,849/€1,999 ($2,355). The phone is available to order now in Europe and Asia, but Sony has no plans to launch it in North America.