Sony Xperia 1 VI vs. Xperia 1 V

The Sony Xperia 1 VI is out now, however lots of you might be in all probability questioning if the hefty price ticket (€1,399) is de facto value it or if final yr’s Xperia 1 V would do exactly wonderful—particularly contemplating the cheaper price tag of round €850. That is practically twice as low cost.

If it had been that straightforward, we would not have performed an in depth comparability between the 2. The newer Xperia 1 VI does issues just a little in a different way, and we imagine that a lot of the adjustments are for the higher. Nonetheless, it is onerous to justify the large worth hole, so we dive deeper into the totally different facets like show, battery life, efficiency, digital camera, and many others. Nothing trumps real-world expertise.

So how significantly better is the Sony Xperia 1 VI to deserve its worth premium? Let’s look into it.

Desk of Contents:

For starters, you’ll be able to evaluate the whole specs sheets or immediately proceed with our editor’s evaluation within the following textual content.

Dimension comparability

Regardless of the Xperia 1 VI and Xperia 1 V sharing the identical display screen diagonal, dimensions are fairly totally different, and maybe everybody may have an opinion on which one feels nicer to carry.

Since Sony modified the show’s facet ratio, the newer 1 VI turned out to be wider and shorter. That is consistent with the present design requirements and steers away from the “distant management” really feel of its predecessor. The latter is sensibly slimmer and taller, making it simple to carry, however reaching the highest a part of the show together with your thumb is a problem.

No vital change in thickness and weight, although. A minimum of not a noticeable one.

Show comparability

That is maybe the largest change on this yr’s Xperia 1 VI. Some could say it is a downgrade, nevertheless it’s for the higher.

The brand new Xperia 1 VI affords a 6.5-inch OLED show like final yr, however dials down on decision. It is now 1080 x 2340px with a extra in style 19.5:9 facet ratio. The older Xperia has a 21:9 facet ratio and a 1664 x 3840px decision – a standout configuration within the smartphone world as an entire.

Nevertheless, the 4K decision was hardly ever utilized. In actual fact, there are solely a few eventualities (video playback included) that triggered the complete 4K decision. The remainder of the time, the system prefers 1080p. So, on the finish of the day, you are not lacking out on pixels.

Furthermore, the latest Xperia employs a extra energy-efficient LTPO OLED panel with a variable refresh price and achieves significantly increased brightness in auto mode – 1,310 nits vs. 936 nits, in accordance with our checks.

Battery life

The 2 Xperia’s have reliable battery lives, however the clear winner is the newer 1 VI. It is not solely higher by way of total endurance (17:27h vs. 12:24h Energetic Use Rating), nevertheless it additionally beats its predecessor in most eventualities.

The Xperia 1 VI’s net searching and video playback runtimes present an enormous enchancment over the past era in addition to a measurable one within the gaming check. Our greatest guess is that the extra environment friendly FHD+ LTPO show is the one accountable. Curiously sufficient, the final yr’s 1 V scored higher within the 4G speak state of affairs.

Charging velocity

Each handsets aren’t significantly aggressive on this regard, so it is secure to say that the Xperia 1 VI and Xperia 1 V are equally sluggish to the end line. The 2 telephones are each rated at 30W of max charging energy, however in our testing, the newer Xperia is a tad sooner to cost to 100%. The distinction is simply 7 minutes, although.

Upon additional testing, we came upon that the Xperia 1 VI performs nicely with faster-charging adapters, so it is possible for you to to squeeze out a few proportion factors in case you use a higher-rated USB Energy Supply charger.

Speaker check

Though Sony did not emphasize a lot on the improved sound system on the Xperia 1 VI, we seen just a few issues.

Firstly, the 1 VI is notably louder than its predecessor, and secondly, it has good tuning total. In actual fact, it is in all probability secure to say that the Xperia 1 VI has the most effective audio system we have heard shortly. The sound is hotter, fuller and extra vigorous in comparison with the Xperia 1 V., which sounds boring and flat in comparison with the 1 VI.

Efficiency

Naturally, the newer Xperia 1 VI is quicker than the older 1 V because it employs a newer chipset. Now we have the most recent Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 vs final yr’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2-powered Xperia 1 V. Each the CPU and GPU promise a noticeable bump in uncooked efficiency.

No change within the reminiscence configurations, although. Each units ship with 12GB/256GB. Storage continues to be expandable – a rarity amongst flagship smartphones. Sadly, the 512GB variant is obtainable solely in Japan in the intervening time.

Benchmark efficiency

There is a measurable distinction between the 2 telephones, with the Xperia 1 VI providing about 25% sooner CPU and greater than twice the GPU efficiency; our 1 VI unit did not appear to make the most of the SD8 Gen 3’s full potential because it posted decrease benchmark scores than different flagships. Nonetheless, our CPU and GPU throttling checks confirmed favored the Xperia 1 VI over the 1 V.

Digital camera comparability

The 2 Xperias share the identical digital camera {hardware}, however there are a few adjustments to the telephoto digital camera on this yr’s 1 VI that add worth to the general consumer expertise. The brand new telephoto is able to 7.1x optical zoom and 4cm focusing distance at 120mm, which suggests some strong macro capabilities.

The primary digital camera makes use of a 48MP, 1/1.35″, 1.12µm sensor coupled with f/1.9 aperture. The telephoto is 12MP f/2.3-3.5, 1/3.5″ with variable optical zoom 85-170mm, which roughly interprets to three.5x-7.1x. The older Xperia makes use of the identical setup however with as much as 5.2x zoom.

The third digital camera is 12MP f/2.2, 1/2.5″ ultrawide and likewise stays unchanged between the 2 generations. The identical goes for the 12MP f/2.0 selfie unit.

A notable distinction between the 2 telephones lies in software program. Sony has streamlined the digital camera expertise this yr and is placing all of the Professional-oriented options within the default digital camera app. No want for apps like Cinema Professional, Video Professional, and many others. All options and settings can be found within the newly designed digital camera app. A number of the Professional video capturing choices obtainable on the Mark V will solely be added to the brand new digital camera app on Mark VI this Fall.

Nevertheless, the Xperia 1 VI will get a brand new full-res 48MP mode on the first digital camera. The ultrawide digital camera has additionally gotten an computerized Closeup mode. And total, the brand new digital camera app feels quite a bit snappier than earlier than.

Picture high quality

Relating to high quality, the principle and ultrawide cameras output nearly an identical stills. It is onerous to note any distinction in any respect, however we did see a distinct tonal curve on the Xperia 1 VI, resulting in brighter and crisper highlights.

Xperia 1 VI: 0.7x • 1x • 2x • 3.5x • 5.2x • 7.1x

The Xperia 1 VI pulls forward on this comparability with significantly sharper and extra detailed 2x crop zoom stills from the principle cam. The standard enchancment is definitely seen.

Xperia 1 V: 0.7x • 1x • 2x • 3.5x • 5.2x • 7.1x

Curiously sufficient, the Xperia 1 V appears to supply nicer 3.5x zoom images. The samples are cleaner and extra detailed. The 5.2x comparability between the 2 is a fairly shut name, however the Mark V’s 5.2x photos once more look a tad higher. And in good gentle, the 7.1x optical zoom supplied by the 1 VI is marginally higher in comparison with the digital zoom from the Xperia 1 V on the identical zoom stage.

Xperia 1 VI: 0.7x • 1x • 3.5x • 5.2x

Nighttime pictures appears to be comparatively the identical this yr, with little to no distinction in the principle and ultrawide cameras’ processing. The newer Xperia has a slight benefit over its predecessor within the telephoto division with nicer noise discount and a tad higher sharpness and element within the 3.5x zoom mode. Nevertheless, the 5.2x lowlight zoom images come out unsatisfactory from each telephones.

Xperia 1 V: 0.7x • 1x • 3.5x • 5.2x

Sony deserves reward for the brand new telemacro mode supplied by the Xperia 1 VI. It’s in all probability the primary cellphone in the marketplace to supply telemacro pictures with such a excessive magnification. Nevertheless, getting good photographs out of it requires a tripod and good lighting.

Xperia 1 VI telemacro mode

Video high quality

The 2 cameraphones document identical-looking movies with their important and ultrawide cameras, however there is a noticeable distinction within the telephoto’s output. Neither zoom digital camera delivers standout video high quality, however for some purpose, the older Xperia has a tad clearer and extra detailed movies throughout all zoom lengths – 3.5x, 5.2x, and 7.1x included.

Xperia 1 VI: 0.7x • 1x • 3.5x • 5.2x • 7.1x

Xperia 1 V: 0.7x • 1x • 3.5x • 5.2x • 7.1x

Verdict

The Xperia 1 VI is definitely Sony’s greatest Xperia but. It arrives with loads of upgrades – the higher show total (we do not miss the hardly ever used 4K decision), the longer battery life (among the many greatest there may be), the extra simplifсed and versatile digital camera expertise (with telemacro mode and as much as 7.1x stepless optical zoom) and the most effective audio system we have skilled.

The Xperia 1 V, nonetheless, affords largely the identical consumer expertise as its successor, so the query stays whether or not these upgrades are well worth the €550 worth premium. If the worth hole between the 2 wasn’t as broad, we might have simply really helpful the newer Xperia, however in the intervening time, that is not the case.