Sony’s first 5G flagship has a 6.5” 4K HDR OLED screen, ZEISS optics

The phone promises to deliver an unrivaled camera experience.

What you need to know

• Sony unveiled its latest flagship smartphone at an online-only global launch event today.
• The new Xperia 1 II is the brand's first 5G-enabled smartphone.
• It comes with a 6.5-inch 4K HDR OLED display, triple rear cameras with ZEISS optics, and a Snapdragon 865 chipset.

Sony today expanded its Xperia smartphone lineup with the introduction of its latest flagship, dubbed the Xperia 1 II. The phone offers next-gen 5G connectivity and incorporates Sony's Alpha AF technology to deliver unrivaled high-speed shooting performance.

The new Xperia 1 II is powered by a Snapdragon 865 processor, paired with 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 256GB storage. Sony's latest flagship phone has a similar 6.5-inch 21:9 4K HDR OLED display as last year's Xperia 1, but now offers Motion Blur reduction. According to the company, this provides an "equivalent benefit" to 90Hz refresh rate displays.

In the camera department, Xperia 1 II has a 12MP triple-camera array at the back with ZEISS optics and technologies borrowed from Sony's Alpha cameras. The phone boasts real-time eye-tracking autofocus and up to 20fps AF/AE tracking burst. It can also calculate AF/AE at up to 60 times per second. For selfies, the Xperia 1 II has an 8MP camera on the front, just like its predecessor.

Keeping the lights on is a 4,000mAh battery with 18W fast wired as well as Qi fast wireless charging support. Unlike most other flagship phones that have been announced so far this year, the Xperia 1 includes a 3.5mm jack for wired headphones.

Sony says the Xperia1 II will begin shipping in select markets from late spring in Black and Purple. Unsurprisingly, the phone will ship with Android 10 out of the box. Since the phone lacks mmWave support, the phone will be 4G only in the United States. However, Sony teased an upcoming device called the Xperia Pro at its event today, supporting both sub-6GHz and mmWave 5G. Aimed at professional photographers, the Xperia Pro will also include 512GB of storage. The rest of its tech specs will be identical to the Xperia 1 II.

Sony Xperia 1

$851 at Amazon

With its 6.5-inch 4K HDR OLED 21:9 Cinema Wide display, Sony's Xperia 1 is a great choice for consumers looking for a phone that offers an unmatched multimedia experience. It also has a versatile triple-lens camera system at the back.