Sony takes its Android 13 rollout to the mid-range segment
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In addition to selling some of the best high-end phones... that almost no one seems to be buying nowadays, Sony also makes pretty decent Android mid-rangers... that also tend to fly decidedly under the radar of most bargain hunters out there.
To its credit, the company generally takes good care of its mobile customers from a software support standpoint, recently delivering a flurry of relatively timely Android 13 updates. Following in the footsteps of the high-end Xperia 1 IV, 5 IV, 1 III, 5 III, and Pro-I, the mid-end Xperia 10 IV is reportedly leaving Android 12 behind as we speak, at least in one specific region.
This latest over-the-air Android 13 rollout should of course quickly expand from Southeast Asia to all markets where the 2022-released Sony Xperia 10 IV is available, which unfortunately does not include the US.
If you're willing to take a chance on an "international" GSM-only 5G version lacking a valid US warranty, Amazon can hook you up with just that (through a third-party seller) at a fairly reasonable price, and you can expect Android 13 to arrive on said device in the very near future with December 2022 security patches bundled in.
Given its young age, this Snapdragon 695-powered 6-inch mid-ranger with an extra-tall OLED display and stellar battery life is naturally all but guaranteed to receive at least one more major OS upgrade after commercially debuting on Android 12.
Unless Sony takes us all by surprise and brings Android 13 goodies to the 2020-released Xperia 10 II, it's probably safe to assume that the Xperia 10 IV will not jump all the way up to Android 15 in a couple of years.
But Android 13 should spread to 2021's Xperia 10 III at some point in the next few weeks, solidifying Sony's status as a... software support middleweight. We're talking one or two levels below Samsung but at least one class above the likes of Motorola.
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