As IFA 2017 is nearing, Sony is gearing up for its annual release and it's going to be exciting. After Samsung, LG, OnePlus and others made their impressions in the flagship space, Sony is yet to jump onboard. At a pre-IFA 2017 launch event on August 31, the maker of Xperia smartphones will unveil three new models.
As expected, there isn't anything from Sony directly, but that doesn't mean we have nothing at all. Rumours are rife about the three smartphone models to be launched at the upcoming event, two of which are premium and one is targeted towards the mid-range segment.
Sony Xperia XZ1 and Xperia XZ1 Compact will continue the company's ailing line of smartphones. If you cannot wait for the official unveiling, here's an early peek at one of the most important phones, thanks to a leak on benchmarking site GFXBench.
Based on the listing, the Xperia XZ1 is set to come with a 5.1-inch Full HD display, a 19MP rear-facing camera and a 13MP front snapper. It will also pack the premium Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, paired with 4GB RAM, Adreno 540 GPU and 64GB storage. The new smartphone will run Google's latest Android 8.0 aka Android O out-of-the-box with Sony's custom UI on top.
The GFX listing for the Xperia XZ1 shows the phone scored 1909 in a single-core test and 6459 in multi-core test. The smartphone will come with standard connectivity options such as Bluetooth, GPS, NFC and Wi-Fi, along with accelerometer, gyroscope, light and proximity sensors.
Other details such as battery and specifics of the camera are yet to be known.
But it is clear that Xperia XZ1 won't be alone. The Xperia XZ1 Compact will accompany the flagship smartphone, continuing the tradition of a mini smartphone. The Xperia XZ1 Compact will have similar features and specifications as its elder sibling, except that it will be packed in a compact shell featuring a 4.6-inch HD display and a smaller 2,800mAh battery, Tech2 reported.
As for the third model, Sony will target mid-range shoppers with its Xperia X1, which is said to include a 5-inch Full HD display, Snapdragon 660 chipset, 4GB RAM and a 2,800mAh battery.
Despite these leaks, there is a thick cloud obstructing the view of the real phones. Recent reports have suggested that Sony will eliminate the bezels that have long defined the Xperia phones in order to catch up with the bezel-less trend. It will be interesting to see Sony achieve that, especially now that its rivals such as Samsung and LG have efficiently trimmed the bezels to accommodate large displays.
