In about few hours from now, Sony is said to unveil the new fifth generation Xperia Z series smartphone at a Pre-IFA (Internationale Funkausstellung Berlin) 2015 event on Wednesday (2 September) 16:45 pm CET (9:15 pm IST).
In May 2015, the mobile arm of the Japanese consumer electronics giant got panned for Xperia Z3+ (aka Z4), as it was a moderate upgrade over its predecessor and the camera specification has been same in last three Xperia Z iterations. It has now come to light that the company's new Xperia Z5 will be true premium smartphone boasting state-of-the-art camera technology for enhanced photography experience.
Design and display:
As per the recent Xperia Z5 photo leak, Sony might launch three Xperia Z5 models with varying screen sizes. The original model will feature 5.2-inch full HD (1920x1080) display, a smaller variant with 4.6-inch HD (1280x720p) screen--dubbed as Xperia Z5 Compact--and an ultra high-end model--tipped as Xperia Z5 Premium--with 5.5-inch 4K (3840 X 2160) display, having a staggering pixel density close to 808 ppi (pixels per inch).
Read more: Sony Xperia Z5: Details of 3 Variants Surface Online; Tipped to Make Debut at IFA 2015
In the pictures, we saw one gold-hued smartphone in hand, believed to be the top-end Xperia Z5 Premium and two other handsets, one emerald green and black colour, understood to be Xperia Z5 and Z5 Compact.
In terms of design, Xperia Z5 is said to flaunt curved corners, pretty different to its predecessor Z3+ (aka Z4), which came with boring rectangular brick shape.
Leaked pictures of the yellow-metal model also show the presence of elongated silver hued finger-print sensor at the centre of metal frame (right-side). The dedicated camera button and the volume rockers have been relegated to the bottom.
But Sony's recent teaser (link above) says otherwise. It has shown that only one model will be unveiled on Wednesday. So we reserve our judgement on the validity of speculations surrounding the existence of Xperia Z5 Compact and Xperia Z5 Premium until the official announcement.
Processor, storage and RAM capacity:
Just a few weeks back, Qualcomm announced the new Snapdragon 820 series processor, which many believed would come in Xperia Z5, but sadly the chipset will be seen smartphones only in 2016.
It has been learnt that Xperia Z5 series will house the advanced v2.1 Snapdragon 810 series, not the first generation 810 series seen in Xperia Z3+ (aka Z4), which apparently caused huge dent to Sony's image.
[Note: Over-heating issue which was found in Snapdragon 810 v1.0 has apparently been resolved in the second variant]
Xperia Z5 will also be shipping with 3GB RAM and 32GB inbuilt memory with option of expansion up to 200GB.
Camera:
Sony is undoubtedly a pioneer in camera revolution in the smartphone industry. Its popularity is such that Samsung, Apple and Xiaomi and other high-profile brands buy cameras from Sony for their smartphones.
Sadly though, Sony has not been so kind to its own Xperia Z series brand. The company has kept 20.7MP camera unchanged, since the launch of Xperia Z1 in late 2013. Even the latest Z4 series featured the same camera and got panned by critics and fans alike.
But things are about to change this week. Some recent reports and company's teaser have hinted a top-notch camera in the upcoming device.
Rumour has it that Sony has incorporated advanced 23mp camera with f1/2.3-inch Exmor RS sensor, hybrid auto-focus, 6 physical lens and G-Lens technology, which will enable the phone to capture images on par with photos taken via DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) professional cameras.
And on the front, Sony is expected to equip Xperia Z5 with wide-angle lens based 8mp camera, which is certain to appeal selfie aficionados.
Mobile Operating System:
Since the new Android Marshmallow update is expected to officially released in late September/early-October, Xperia Z5 is most likely to ship with Android 5.1.1 Lollipop OS out-of-the-box.
VALUE ADDED FEATURES
Finger-print sensor:
Recently leaked images of Sony Xperia Z5 have shown elongated silver hued button at the centrE of metal frame, which many believe it to be the finger-print sensor.
If this turns out to be true, Xperia Z5 will be first of the Xperia Z series to boast this kind of biometric technology for secured unlocking of the phone.
Even the soon-to-be-released Android 6.0 Marshmallow comes with native support for finger-print sensor. It is expected to BE rolled out to Xperia Z5 later in the year
Water-proof certifications:
Sony Xperia Z3+ (aka Z4) comes with the IP (Ingress Protection) rating – IP65/68. This is a standard that measures a device's resistance levels to dust (IP65) and water (IP68 – both for splashes and submersion). It is currently the highest IP rated smartphone in the market.
So, we expect the new Xperia Z5 to have same IP certifications.
Price:
As per The inquirer, Xperia Z5 is expected to cost around £550 ($845/€752/₹56,200) or may be more.
