Sony launched their latest range of Xperia devices at Taste of Dublin last Thursday. The flagship device in the range is the Xperia X, a 5-inch screen device that is feature heavy and has a long lasting battery.
Out of the box, the X looks classically Sony. While it’s slightly bulkier than previous flagship devices from the company, it sits beautifully in the hand and the extra bulk adds to the sense of sturdiness.
Internally there’s a Qualcomm Snapdragon 650 64 bit processor and 3GB of RAM meaning this device packs a meaty punch. It’s also got a microSD slot, which allows users to add to the 32 or 64GB storage that’s on board.
Heavy users will be pleased to hear that this device is enabled with Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0, this means users can get 5.5 hours of usage from just a 10 minute charge.
Sony’s devices have always stood out from the crowd when it comes to the camera and the Xperia X is no different. The device has a 23MP camera on the rear of the device that would rival any of the top devices currently on the market. Sony have a host of camera features on the device to allow users to perfect the image they are capturing, but the bog-standard ‘point and shoot’ setting on the phone produces beautiful images and works well in low light.
The front camera has an incredibly impressive 13MP camera, which uses Sony’s low-light sensors.
Commenting at the launch of the device at Taste of Dublin last Thursday, Ciaran Cleary of Sony Mobile Communications said
“Smartphone users are demanding more from their smartphone cameras, faster speeds, less blur and better pictures in low-light are all areas in their requirement for improved technology. Every detail of how we use smartphone cameras has been researched and refined to ensure that each stage of its use is executed in the fastest and most accurate way.”
Having used the phone for a number of days now a number of things are clear. Firstly, Sony have scaled back on some of the clutter that appeared on some of their previous devices. This is noticeable from the initial set up of the device. Why does this matter? Well, it means there’s less junk for users to navigate through and there’s more memory for photos, music and apps.
Secondly, this device is certainly worth looking at if you’re take a lot of photos. The only other phone-camera that has impressed me more than the Xperia X is the Huawei P9. The Xperia X is smaller than the P9, however, meaning it’s easy to carry around and is very comfortable to use whilst taking photos.
The X reminded me of the Sony Xperia Z5 Compact, which in my opinion, is one of the best devices Sony has made in the last 5 years.
That being said, it's a costly device. While it is a powerful phone, the camera is on the only real, stand-out feature. It's difficult to justify the €599 price tag when compared to the Huawei P9, which has a larger screen, larger battery and a more impressive camera for the same amount of money.
The Sony Xperia X is available across all Irish operators, starting from €69 on bill pay. Those on pre-pay can get their hands on the X for €599. The brand will also launch two more devices later this summer, Xperia XA and Xperia E5.
