Sony’s withdrawal from the smartphone business has been discussed several times, but in the end the Japanese cult manufacturer has not withdrawn completely, but only partially. For years, the focus has therefore been on a few models for the middle class, but also for the upper class.
A representative of the latter category is the new Sony Xperia 1 IV, which like its predecessor Xperia 1 III (test report) wants to score with an angular design without a notch, great software and a real zoom camera again. Unfortunately, with all the quality that the top-of-the-range smartphone undoubtedly brings, there are still a few unanswered questions that caused us to frown.
design
Sony stays true to its angular design and thus definitely has a unique selling point on the smartphone market. Because this goes hand in hand with the omission of a notch, i.e. a bulge or a hole on the edge of the display, which allows a front camera to look outside. Instead, Sony also uses “chin and forehead” for the Xperia 1 IV, i.e. a wider edge above and below the large screen. According to Sony, the reason is still the desire not to have to give up a single pixel from the display and not to disturb media enjoyment. And the fact that the Sony flagship is designed for “really big cinema” is already shown by the form factor of the OLED display, because it is not at 16:9, but as with the predecessors at 21:9 – cinema format.
This has the disadvantage that a smartphone without a notch, but with comparatively wide edges at the top and bottom of the display, looks a bit antiquated and unnecessarily large. In fact, Sony could save part of the 165 millimeters in length if the manufacturer built its smartphone just as bezel-free as the upper-class competition. In return, you have to give Sony and the Xperia 1 IV credit for not wasting the space pointlessly. Front-facing stereo speakers are embedded at the top and bottom, and there is also a notification LED and the front camera at the top. So the space is mostly used sensibly. Either way, the elongated design is not a disadvantage, but even has an advantage: the top-of-the-line smartphone looks almost handy despite its size. The reason for this is the small width of the device, which means that the cell phone fits surprisingly well in the hand despite all its angularity. Because the length doesn’t bother you, thanks to the narrow width, the model can also be comfortably wrapped around with normal-sized hands – this is much more difficult with the competition.
Of course, the excellent build quality of the Xperia 1 IV also contributes to the good feeling in the hand. The matt aluminum frame offers a chic and practical cut edge on the edges. As a result, the glass on the front of the display and the matte glass on the back (Gorilla Glass Victus) smoothly blend into the metal and there are no sharp edges. The few antenna gaps are perfectly embedded in the aluminum and the hardware keys have an optimal pressure point and short key drop. This applies to the volume rocker protruding from the frame as well as to the embedded power button with an integrated fingerprint sensor and the dedicated camera button. It is not only ribbed and thus differs haptically from the other control elements, but is also designed in two stages: Half depress – focus. Press all the way down – take a photo. Just like a real camera. No other manufacturer offers that anymore. The same applies to the 3.5 millimeter connection of the Xperia 1 IV in the upper class.
All pictures of the Sony Xperia 1 IV in the test
In terms of design, there is also nothing to complain about, as long as you like the monolithic design language. It definitely looks high-quality, especially the back with the matte glass looks very classy. It also doesn’t attract fingerprints, which means it stays stylish longer than many of its competitors. The optical highlight is the camera. It looks much more filigree than the competitors, who like to present their picture banners in a particularly impressive way. With Sony, you only see a narrow, slightly protruding glass strip with several lenses and sensors. Only at second glance does a rather unusual lens in an almost rectangular shape like its predecessor catch the eye in the glass strip – the zoom camera. A bit unfortunate: In our test device, the lens is not inserted quite straight – that doesn’t match the otherwise flawless workmanship of the device. All in all, the IP68-certified housing, which is therefore protected against dust and water, is designed to be more reserved than extroverted and should therefore appeal to the majority of prospective buyers.
screen
As already mentioned, the form factor is exceptional with its 21:9 ratio and the resolution is also not exactly commonplace. While the competition – including the high-flyer Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (test report) – stop at 1440p, Sony gives its 6.5-inch OLED panel a full 3840 x 1644 pixels and thus an outstanding image sharpness of 643 pixels per inch (ppi) – this is great. Combined with a playback frequency of 120 Hz, the screen of the Xperia 1 IV not only looks sharp, but also appears absolutely smooth – not least because of the sheer power of the built-in processor.
We really liked the natural color reproduction (especially in Creator mode) and strong contrasts, where Sony manages not to oversaturate the drawing. The white balance does a good job too. We were a bit worried about the brightness, which was already the case with the predecessor Xperia 1 III (test report) .was under criticism. With a measured 570 cd/m² in manual mode and 840 candela in automatic mode, the values are okay, but the premium class competition is sometimes significantly stronger here. Nevertheless, we are not dissatisfied with the screen of the Sony smartphone, even if it could be better given the high price of the device. After all, the screen can still be read properly in direct sunlight and there is also a real always-on display. So there is definitely reason to complain, but the complaining is on a high level.
camera
Let’s get to the highlight of the Sony Xperia 1 IV, the camera. Unfortunately, you always have to be a bit careful with Sony. Because although Sony builds and uses high-quality camera sensors and has decades of experience with its own cameras, the manufacturer has always managed in the past to get the competition with the same Sony sensors to get better results from its cameras. This is sometimes deceptive, but let’s first take a look at the technical specifications of the camera.
Sony Xperia 1 IV
In contrast to the competition, which sometimes boasts extremely high pixel numbers of up to 108 megapixels, Sony does without pixel binning for better image quality and relies on lenses with only 12 megapixels. The manufacturer uses 12 megapixels for all three lenses of the camera, which basically simplifies the generation of the same look for all three lenses in terms of dynamics and color reproduction. The main camera also comes with a light-sensitive aperture of f/1.7, optical image stabilizer (OIS) and color spectrum sensor for natural colors. The wide-angle, also with 12 megapixels, offers a 124-degree viewing angle and f/2.2, but the telephoto lens is more exciting. In contrast to the competition, which sometimes uses several fixed focal lengths, this allows optical zooming between 85 and 125 millimeters. All three cameras are equipped with high-quality Zeiss lenses. A depth sensor is used as the fourth camera, and users can photograph themselves at the front with 12 megapixels and f/2.0.
In everyday use, the Sony Xperia 1 IV takes good pictures as a point-and-shoot camera. Those who deal with the extremely comprehensive camera software can even take really good pictures with the smartphone. This is both an advantage and a disadvantage of the Sony smartphone, because if you just want to align the smartphone and pull the trigger, you will simply get the better pictures from top competitors such as the iPhone 13 Pro Max or Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (test report) . This is due on the one hand to the stronger colors and stronger contrasts there, and on the other hand to the even better image sharpness. This is largely made possible by image post-processing, i.e. software. Instead, Sony relies on a more natural look, which also makes manual post-processing easier.
All original recordings with the camera of the Sony Xperia 1 IV in the test
This can be seen, for example, when using the extremely extensive Photo Pro app – anyone who has previously used a Sony Alpha camera will feel right at home here. Not everyone else, they are overwhelmed by the variety of features. Only then, however – assuming the necessary photo know-how – do good pictures become very good. Overall, they convince with a high dynamic range and a generally natural look, but in automatic/basic mode, visible image noise quickly creeps in in low light. In general, fully automatic shots are sometimes a bit inconsistent: sometimes they look great, sometimes below average. With manual intervention, this can be greatly minimized and, on average, a better result can be teased out.
In general, the autofocus is very reliable and fast and remains fixed on an object in the viewfinder once it has been selected – even if it is moved afterwards. This makes the Sony Xperia 1 IV the ideal companion for photo professionals or anyone who likes to deal with photography in general. The penchant for natural shots is also evident in low-light shots. There is no real night mode, instead night shots are quite dark compared to the competition. This may bother the average user, but in fact the Sony snaps reproduce a much more realistic image without too much artificial brightening. When using the wide angle, night shots become even darker, but otherwise it takes decent pictures without too much distortion at the edges of the picture.
The highlight is undoubtedly the optical zoom of the telephoto lens. Sony promises no visible loss of quality in the range of 3.5 to 5.2x magnification and we would largely agree with that. Otherwise, digital zoom is used, which, as always, gnaws at the image quality with increasing zoom factor. Overall, the zoom needs a lot of light to conjure up sharp and noise-free shots – like the competition. The biggest problem here is that, unlike most competing products, you cannot use the zoom to bring particularly small objects up close, similar to a macro lens. The recordings are always blurred. Only distant objects are brought in nicely, with the zoom simply giving the user more flexibility than multiple prime lenses. But the difference is not huge especially since the competition simply counters this with a hybrid zoom. If you don’t zoom too much, you won’t see any loss of quality here either and you will usually get even sharper pictures. This also applies to the digital zoom at even greater distances.
Videos also look great, they are well protected against unwanted movement in 4K/60 and then deliver sharp images and good sound. But the same applies here: Samsung is even better without manual intervention, but with Sony the user can delve much deeper into the matter thanks to two camera apps and can achieve even better results. The front camera takes sufficiently sharp pictures and is better than the predecessor. What remains are sometimes still somewhat pale-looking faces. All in all, the Sony Xperia 1 IV offers a really good camera, which, however, unfolds its full potential especially in knowing hands. For the typical smartphone photographer, alternatives from Apple or Samsung are the better choice.
Furnishing
Sony also offers high-end on the inside of its top model. This goes from the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 with up to 3 GHz clock frequency and 12/256 GB of memory for the obvious data to USB-C 3.2, Wifi-6e, Bluetooth 5.2 with aptX Adaptive and LE Audio to the built-in DAC, the the sound via the 3.5 millimeter connection of the device is in some cases worlds better than the competition. In addition to the 3.5 millimeter socket that no other manufacturer builds into its top models, Sony also offers something unusual in another area: expandable memory. Because although the manufacturer does not use 128, but 256 GB of internal memory, it can even be expanded by up to 1 TB with a memory card – great! Otherwise, everything is included that is technically feasible in the upper class,
And how does the Xperia 1 IV fare in everyday life? Simply very good. The chipset, together with the 120 Hz playback, helps the smartphone to operate quickly and directly in all situations – nothing jerks or twitches here. In fact, the Sony smartphone feels like one of the fastest models on the market – a rating that used to be given to the Oneplus models. In fact, the Sony model is on par with the competition in benchmarks and thus underlines the subjective impression. The device scored 14,350 points in PCmark’s Work 3.0, and 2100 points in 3Dmark’s Wild Life Extreme. Wait, wildlife extremes? Yes, because the Sony smartphone was simply too fast for the normal wildlife benchmark. Accordingly, the performance in games is excellent – as with all smartphones with a top chipset. The biggest problem here: The device gets warm quickly, in benchmarks and when charging, especially at the beginning, it even gets hot. Basically, nobody has to worry here, but Sony seems to have the heat development of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 under control less than some competitors. However, there are no noticeable performance losses in everyday use – the sheer power of the chipset is simply too great for that.
The DAC (digital audio converter) of the Xperia phone has already been mentioned, and the phone also cuts a good figure when it comes to sound from the stereo speakers. The sound emitted is surprisingly loud and full, and the depth in particular is better than that of its predecessor. We were also impressed by the fingerprint sensor in the side power button. Even if critics might dismiss this as “too cheap” for a top-of-the-range smartphone, since the competition hides the sensor in the display: It does its job in Sony’s device and is fast and reliable. At least as a right-hander, nobody should complain here.
There is also nothing to complain about in terms of software. Android 12 is installed on our test device ex works and there is little real bloatware – unless you want to include the various Sony services. However, they should be of interest to many users, especially since the streaming service Bravia Core allows free film enjoyment in 4K/60 at least in the first year. Overall, XperiaUI is strongly based on vanilla Android, which should please many users. Sony only touches on comparatively few areas, such as a multi-window mode, the side sense function (quick access) or the gaming mode.
The installed security patch is sufficiently up-to-date with June 2022. It’s a shame: Sony only promises its customers two major updates and three years of security patches – that’s not enough considering the high price and the competition, which has now reached four and five years. That also seems a bit too stingy in view of the narrow portfolio of Sony smartphones.
battery pack
The battery has grown by 10 percent compared to its predecessor and now offers 5000 mAh. This is generally commendable and worth mentioning, especially in view of the cell phone’s relatively small dimensions. It’s just a shame that the endurance of the top smartphone is only better on paper. In the battery test from PCmark, the Xperia 1 IV only managed just under 8 hours at 120 Hz on the display at a brightness of 200 cd/m² from 80 to 20 percent – that’s weak. It was almost two hours longer at 60 Hz – but who would want to do without a feature like smooth 120 Hz playback on a top smartphone?
In addition, the device charges with a maximum of 30 watts – if you have a charger and cable, because that’s missing in the flat delivery box. Here, too, the manufacturer protects the environment, but we think that’s a smartphone for just under 1400 euros Excuse and a bad joke! Anyway: Even if you bought the Sony charger for around 30 euros, it takes more than 1.5 hours until the smartphone is completely full again. It’s really lame these days. After all, the device also takes power wirelessly and gives it back to other Qi devices – but that takes even longer.
Price
1399 euros is the RRP of the Sony Xperia 1 VI – that’s steep. But there is always 12/256 GB of memory. Black, white and violet are available as colors.
Conclusion
1400 euros is an extremely high price for a smartphone, but you would expect the “perfect” device to be worth it. But the Sony Xperia 1 IV is not. Sure: We think the display is really good, and so is the camera in general. In addition, the workmanship is top notch and the design is chic, the performance is beyond reproach and there is plenty of software and storage. It’s also great that there are sometimes details on board that the competition has long since eliminated: 3.5 millimeter connection with high-quality DAC, memory expansion option, optical zoom.
Unfortunately, the devil lies in other details. The display is bright enough, but not as bright as the competition. The camera only unfolds its full potential in professional hands and the battery is simply too weak. If you then add the high temperature development, only two years of Android updates and the lack of a charger and cable at such a price, a purchase recommendation becomes difficult. The Xperia 1 VI is aimed at a very specific target group, which is only of limited use for normal users. Is that the right strategy to continue participating in the smartphone market in the future, Sony?
For the reasons mentioned above, we recommend most users to use other high-end models – for example the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (test report) for (at the time of the test) around 950 euros, the Xiaomi 12 Pro (test report) for just under 810 euros or the Oneplus 10 Pro (test report) for only 780 euros. All of these devices are surpassed by the Sony model in individual points, but offer a more rounded overall package.
