The smartphone focuses on important features, like design, performance, camera, and battery life. Aside from this, Xperia XZ is covered in a trademarked material called ALKALEIDO, which is basically smudge-resistant aluminum. Specs-wise the Xperia XZ is flagship-bred by the book. In addition to a shared design, both phones run Android 6.0 and feature the same super sharp 23-megapixel rear cam with predictive autofocus, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of storage, microSD slot and pretty potent dual front-facing speakers.
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One of the highlights of the new Xperia XZ is its main 23MP camera with f/2.0 lens.
“With Xperia XZ and Xperia X Compact you can capture every moment as you see it, with blur-free images day or night, and with true to life colours thanks to our new triple image sensing technology”, said Hideyuki Furumi, executive VP for global sales and marketing at Sony Mobile Communications. Not only does it stabilize the X and Y axes, yaw, and pitch, but also roll. It can correct not only the angle and roll but also the shift shakes with the rear camera. It also comes with 4K video shooting capabilities.
The X Compact packs a 4.6-inch 720p display, has a 2,700mAh battery tucked away inside. It is capable of Quick Charge 3.0 but it’s not clear whether the quick charger will be supplied. Sony does say however that it features the same Qnovo adaptive charging seen in the XZ. In theory this should double the service longevity of the battery. The X Compact is the replacement for the Z5 Compact but resembles the Xperia X that launched earlier this year more than the XZ. It is positioned above the Xperia X Performance meaning it’s the best Sony has to offer.
Sony is also pushing the new handsets’ efficiency.
The Sony Xperia XZ sports a metal back panel along with plastic side curved bezels.
The X Compact has a midrange Qualcomm Snapdragon 650 processor, a far cry from the top-tier Snapdragon 820 that powers the XZ.
When I got a chance to check out the XZ and X compact for myself, I found a pair of solid phones with good specs and some impressive tech. Of course this has its benefits – the phone is lightweight and there is no need for an antenna strip at the back. On the other hand, for whose love a smaller display, Sony launched Xperia X Compact with 4.6-inch HD (1280 x 720 pixels) IPS display.
As for weight, the Xperia XZ comes in at 161g, which isn’t noticeably heavy or light for a phone of its size.
A standout feature is the device’s 23MP Exmore RS sensor, which supports laser autofocus and can shoot 4K video.
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The Xperia XZ gives shutter speed controls and manual focus or exposure adjustments to all the able and willing creative shutterbug out there. While Sony’s smartphone shooters already have image stabilization, the XZ’s 23-megapixel camera has X and Y shift shake to create a five-axis image stabilization.
