The Best Sony Xperia phones - PhoneArena's handpicked models

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The Best Sony Xperia phones

Why should you trust this buying guide


The author
Mariyan Slavov has been an avid Sony fan since his childhood. During his time at PhoneArena, he has paid close attention to Sony's mobile efforts, with a strong focus on the Xperia line of devices. Mariyan has reviewed nearly every model since the Xperia 1 launch and has made connections all the way to Tokyo, giving him technology insights into everything Xperia. 

The publisher
PhoneArena is one of the leading mobile technology publishers, with an audience of over 5 million monthly US readers. We started exploring the mobile technology world more than 20 years ago and have been building our expertise daily. 

The approach
We have a standard review process that we use for all phones, including Xperia ones. We take a close look at every Xperia that comes our way, no matter the class, or features, and subject it to thorough and rigorous testing procedures.

Intro


Since its inception in 2001, Sony's mobile division has experienced multiple transformations. While Sony had produced phones prior to this period, its collaboration with Ericsson marked the serious venture into mobile devices globally. But it wasn't meant to be.

In 2011, Sony acquired Ericsson's shares, internalizing the smartphone business and giving rise to the Xperia line. Despite a diminishing market share, Sony managed to turn the tide and post profits in early 2021, attributed to the introduction of innovative concepts and ideas to the smartphone market. 

Cutting edge technologies such as true vario zoom optics, dual-layer transistor-pixel sensors, as well as other software innovations taken straight from Sony's Alpha camera department, put Xperia phones on the forefront of smartphone innovation.

As of 2024, Sony appears to be on a positive trajectory. In this article, we will delve into the latest Xperia models, providing insights into the best Sony phones for enthusiasts. Let's explore the options available!

Best Sony phones at a glance:

Sony Xperia PRO-I

The best "camera" phone
Sony Xperia PRO-I
8.0

Sony Xperia PRO-I


The Good

  • Sharp and accurate 4K 120Hz OLED display
  • Distinctive industrial design
  • Remarkable camera versatility
  • Superb video-recording capabilities
  • Natural, not overly processed photos and videos
  • Loud and clear stereo speakers
  • Plenty of storage plus microSD card support
  • Outstanding flagship-grade performance
  • User-friendly hardware features

The Bad

  • High price
  • Shutter button is too sensitive
  • Only 30W fast charging
  • Mushy haptic feedback
  • No biometric alternative to the fingerprint scanner
  • White balance discrepancies between the different cameras
  • Camera interface doesn't rotate
We're kicking off with a very special phone - not the best Xperia out there but probably the most professional one. The Xperia Pro-I is a phone that Sony internally calls "The Camera", and for a good reason. This device features the same 1-inch sensor that's present in the award-winning compact camera Sony RX100 Mark VII.

This 12MP main camera has also two aperture settings - F/2.0 and F/4.0, alongside huge 2.4µm pixels. Everything about this phone is tailored toward the photography enthusiasts. There's a new Videography Pro app, and also the familiar Photo Pro and Cinema Pro.

As a phone, the Xperia Pro-I has borrowed almost all the internals from the Xperia 1 III, and that's not a bad thing. You've got the Snapdragon 888, paired with 12GB of RAM. There's a microSD card on board (pretty rare nowadays), and also a 3.5mm audio jack. The phone is also IP65/68 water and dust resistant. The Xperia Pro-I is a bit pricey at $1,799 but for your hard-earned money you're getting the best camera phone out there, right?


Sony Xperia PRO

The quirky one
Sony Xperia PRO

Sony Xperia PRO


View full specs
Sony has this strange habit of designing amazing technological masterpieces, which no one would ever buy. That's a bit harsh but the Xperia Pro is a very, very niche device. It's meant for video creators, professional photographers, and videographers, streamers. The main idea is that you can connect the phone to your professional camera and use it as an external display with 5G capabilities.

This might not sound as much but let's say you work in the movie industry. You need to take hundreds of set pictures, costume pictures, actor casting photos, and all of those need to go to the casting director, costume director, etc. With the Xperia Pro attached to your camera, this can happen instantaneously.

You can record video and send it directly to the editing room, no need to physically go there, deal with flash drives, SSDs, lightning cables, and stuff. Needless to say, every streamer and YouTuber out there can benefit from this device, especially if they’re making content on the go, such as a traveling blog, tourist guide series, etc.

The only downside of this phone is its price. Its MSRP is $2,499.99, and for a dedicated external monitor that’s a bit too much. When you add the phone capabilities, the amazing 4K screen, powerful software onboard, and all the bells and whistles, the Sony Xperia Pro might not seem like such a bad idea after all.

Sony Xperia 1 V

Sony's best phone hands down
Sony Xperia 1 V
5.9

Sony Xperia 1 V


The Good

  • Stylish, classy, and light — great design
  • Plethora of manual camera modes for fine-tuning video and photos
  • Eye tracking autofocus is super-fast and responsive
  • MicroSD slot and headphone jack
  • Stereo speakers sound pretty good (though a bit boxy)

The Bad

  • Price is well above any other premium phone (sans foldables)
  • For all its focus on camera, its image quality is not ahead of the competition
  • Two years of Android updates?

Don't let the naysayers get to you, the Xperia 1 V is the best Sony phone money can buy, and there are plenty of reasons to buy one. For starters, this phone has a 4K 120Hz OLED display (world's first with these specs) and it also sports Sony's cinematic 21:9 aspect ratio without any notches, cutouts and other eyesores. Sony phones of late kinda stand out from the rest of the smartphone crowd, thanks to this tall 21:9 formfactor and some other quirky features we're getting to in a minute.

The Xperia 1 V retains the innovative periscope zoom camera of its predecessors. While the Xperia 1 III featured the first zoom lens with a moving optical elements, capable of switching between 70 and 105mm, the Xperia IV upgraded the system so it could offer continuous zoom between 85mm and 125mm. The Xperia 1 V sports all that and then some. There's a newly developed dual layer transistor-pixel main sensor that Sony calls Exmor T. By putting the transistor and the photodiode on different layers, Sony has achieved lower noise levels in low-light scenes and better light capturing.

This phone is also super-fast with the latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset and 12GB of RAM. And guess what? You can expand the internal storage (256GB) with our dear old friend - the microSD card slot. There's also a 3.5mm audio jack present, defying modern smartphone trends and the Xperia 1 V also features a stereo speakers setup (front facing), and quite good at that - not your average unbalanced speakerphone/loudspeaker combo.

All in all, the Xperia 1 V is the best Sony phone at the moment, and a worthy successor of the previous ultra-premium Sony flagship. There's one drawback, however - the price. Sony
kinda fixed the $1,600 "misunderstanding" with the previous model and slapped a $1,399 price tag to this technology masterpiece, which is still a bit out there but for avid Sony enthusiasts this is the best they can get at the moment. 


Sony Xperia 5 V

The best compact Sony flagship
Sony Xperia 5 V
8.0

Sony Xperia 5 V


The Good

  • Premium design with great build quality
  • Compact size
  • Fast and snappy
  • 48MP Exmor T main camera sensor
  • Bright 6.1-inch OLED display with great color accuracy
  • MicroSD card (up to 1TB)
  • 3.5mm audio jack
  • Loud stereo speakers
  • Solid battery life
  • Sony’s creative suite (Photo Pro, Cinema Pro, Video Pro, Music Pro, Video Creator)

The Bad

  • Gets hot under load
  • No variable refresh rate
  • Slow fingerprint scanner
  • Expensive
  • Barebone retail box
  • Heavier and thicker than its predecessor
  • Notification LED is gone

The Xperia 5 V perfects the "compact flagship" idea and continues to go against the mainstream with its 21:9 design, lack of notches and cutouts, 3.5 mm audio jack, and microSD card slot. This model features the new and hot Exmor T camera sensor, first introduced in the Xperia 1 V, earlier this year.

The beating heart of the Xperia 5 V is the latest and greatest Qualcomm silicon, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor. Sony made some updates to the cooling of the Xperia 5 series, and the phone now runs less hot than its predecessor.

The phone is a typical Xperia, with a ton of creator-focused pro-grade software onboard, and its 5,000 mAh battery lasts almost two full days. There's good news and bad news, though. The good news is that Sony lowered the price of the Xperia 5 V a tad; the phone starts at 999 euros (compared to 1,049 for the Xperia 5 IV), but the bad news is that the phone is not coming to the US, at least for now.


Sony Xperia 5 III

A compact flagship with a friendlier price tag
Sony Xperia 5 III
7.5

Sony Xperia 5 III


The Good

  • Stylish design and premium build quality
  • 6.1-inch 120Hz FHD+ OLED screen, free of eyesores
  • Snappy performance, clean Android
  • Awesome camera system with powerful software underneath
  • MicroSD card slot, 3.5mm audio jack, notification LED, stereo speakers
  • IP65/68 protection
  • Amazing battery life
  • Lightweight and comfortable

The Bad

  • Expensive
  • Gets hot under pressure
  • Fast charging is not that fast
  • No wireless charging
  • Fingerprint reader is a mess
  • Annoying issues across the board
If the Xperia 5 IV is too expensive and gimmicky to you, the Xperia 5 III can be a great substitute. This phone takes everything good from its bigger sibling and shrinks it down a notch. All this without sacrificing cool features such as the 120Hz display refresh rate and 240Hz touch sampling rate.

The Xperia 5 III is a gorgeous little phone with a gorgeous display - a 6.1-inch FHD+ HDR OLED that also features X1 Bravia mobile HDR technology and Creator mode powered by CineAlta. You get 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage on this phone but you can expand it with up to 1TB via the microSD card slot. The beating heart of the Xperia 5 III comes from Qualcomm - the Snapdragon 888. It's a year-old chipset but still performing quite admirably even in 2022.

What's even more surprising is that the Xperia 5 III manages to fit the variable zoom system from its bigger sibling - switching between 70mm and 105mm focal lengths at will. This practically gives you four cameras in the space of only three. And you get the amazing double-action physical shutter button as well. 

The battery inside this phone is a hefty 4,500mAh cell, which might not sound much but consider the fact that the Xperia 5 battery size was just 3,140mAh, and the 5 II sported a 4,000mAh cell, we're talking a substantial upgrade here. We mentioned a friendlier price tag earlier on. Well, the phone's not cheap by any standard but you can get it for around $900. 


Sony Xperia 10 V

The battery champion, fullstop
Sony Xperia 10 V
5.2

Sony Xperia 10 V


The Good

  • One of the brightest OLED displays in this class
  • Front-firing stereo speakers
  • Outstanding battery life
  • MicroSD card slot
  • 3.5mm audio jack, LDAC support
  • Flexible camera system
  • Compact and lightweight
  • IP65/68 water and dust resistance

The Bad

  • 60Hz display refresh rate
  • No 4K recording
  • Slow fingerprint scanner
  • Outdated chipset
Sony did a great job with the Xperia 10 III and the stakes were high for its successor. The budget line seems to be selling well, and there's a good reason for that - the package is just great for the money. Then the Xperia 10 IV came along offering an amazing battery life and topping our charts. What could the Xperia 10 V bring to the table?

The Xperia 10 V brings some needed upgrades to the table, and refines the 10 series further. You get the same 6-inch notchless OLED panel - a real treat in a phone that's so affordable. The build quality and materials are slightly better, and there's more RAM compared to the previous generations. Small improvements here and there but overall the spirit of this budget offering remains the same. The main camera has a bigger sensor now, the display is 50% brighter, and there's stereo front-facing speaker setup! A treat on such a budget phone.

There's one area where Sony has done an excellent job - battery life. Cramming a 5,000mAh battery in the same body is not a small feat (actually the Xperia 10 V is a millimeter smaller than its predecessor), and coupled with the 60Hz OLED display, and the modest chipset, this results in a record-setting battery life. Seriously, this phone is our new battery life champion. 

There are some minor inconveniences, such as the aforementioned 60Hz refresh rate, and the lack of 4K recording (courtesy of the Snapdragon 695 chipset) but if you want a classy-looking phone that will last for days, the Xperia 10 V is one of your best bets.


Sony Xperia 1 IV

Flagship on a budget
Sony Xperia 1 IV
8.0

Sony Xperia 1 IV


The Good

  • Light and comfortable
  • Camera records very good video
  • Headphone jack, notification LED
  • Stereo speakers sound great
  • Runs buttery smooth

The Bad

  • Exorbitant price
  • Camera photos are not as great
  • Three different camera apps, none of them feels fully fleshed out
  • No charger, no cable, no earbuds in box

One of the best ways to get a Sony flagship at a bargain price is to opt for the previous generation - the Xperia 1 Mark IV. You can get an unlocked device on a deal at Amazon for around $800 which is an amazing price for a device which launched at $1,599. It's a great phone, no question about it. It's the first device to feature the true variable zoom optics, and you can switch between 85mm and 125mm, plus it features all the software bells and whistles you'd expect from a Sony phone.

The hardware department is also strong with this one - you're getting one of the best screens in the industry - a 4K, 120Hz display with Bravia engine and no notches or cutouts. There's plenty of RAM and storage, and if you want even more, there's a microSD card slot (thanks for keeping this alive, Sony). To top it all off, there's IP68 water and dust resistance, a headphone jack, and almost clean Android OS. What's not to like?


How to choose the best Xperia phone?


Xperia fans are normally pretty knowledgeable, so chances are you already know what's best for you. But anyway, let's quickly add some key points that can help you determine which Xperia model will suit your needs.

Display size - Things are pretty straightforward here; if you want the biggest screen possible, you should opt for the 1 series; if you prefer compact phones, then the 5 series is the one for you. All Xperia phones sport gorgeous OLED displays with a 21:9 aspect ratio and no holes or cutouts. They are just perfect for consuming media, watching YouTube clips, or watching Netflix series.

Processor - the latest Xperia will be the fastest one, no doubt about it. But if you're not a heavy user and you don't play a lot of games, maybe you'll be just fine with a generation-old phone.

Camera - this one is one of the most important topics, as Xperia phones are rather different when it comes to their camera systems. The Xperia 5 Mark V, for example, doesn't come with a variable zoom lens, and you should go back a few generations to the Mark III if you want that in a compact form factor. That being said, the newest generation sports the Exmor T sensor, a powerful upgrade, and an innovation in how the different elements of the pixel are stacked together.

Storage - All Xperia phones feature expandable storage, so you don't need to wonder which storage option to buy. You can always expand the storage later via the microSD card slot with 1TB or even more.

Price - Xperia phones are pricy, no doubt about that, but our advice is to wait a couple of months post-official release, as prices seem to fall quite drastically. Of course, if you want the budget option, the Xperia 10-series is your best bet.

Conclusion


So there you have it - the best Sony phones you can get in 2024. This list is, of course, work-in-progress, the Sony Xperia 1 V launch in summer last year, and unsurprisingly moved to the top of our recommendations, as the best Sony phone you can buy at the moment. There are some rumors about a second iteration of the Sony Xperia Pro-I but it's still early days, so fingers crossed! 

The next big reveal will probably happen around June 2024, we expect the Xperia 1 VI to make an appearance, accompanied by the Xperia 10 VI. The rumor mill says that Sony is gearing up to shake the naming scheme and maybe toss the Xperia moniker, but we'll have to wait and see.

Hopefully, Sony can maintain its momentum and climb out of the market share slump, as Xperia phones offer a unique perspective that benefits the market. It goes without saying that for devoted Sony fans, every new model is the ultimate Sony phone, so the loyal fanbase could help Sony Mobile get back up where it belongs. 

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