The fourth generation of Sony’s high-end Xperia 1 line-up has returned. The Xperia 1 IV mostly adheres to the same tried-and-true formula of the Xperia 1 III and its forerunners. The phone’s main selling points are a strong camera, lightweight hardware, and multimedia-focused capabilities. While the Xperia 1 IV boasts a new variable focal length periscope zoom camera, live streaming support for gaming and video, and a host of Sony Alpha camera supporting features stolen from the ultra-premium, super-niche Xperia Pro-I, it is taking a more robust approach this time to draw in content creators.
The primary innovation here is that the telephoto lens can be adjusted between 3.5x and 5.2x without the use of digital zoom. Also, noteworthy enhancements include the addition of 4K and 120fps video recording on the three rear and one front-facing cameras, an audio recording app that allows you to layer, clean, and mix sound, features for mobile game streaming, and a larger battery than before.
One word would have to be used to sum up the design of the Xperia 1 IV: sleek. Its design is straightforward, and its corners are strong and squared off for easy handling. Even after prolonged use, the rear’s smooth, glossy texture prevents fingerprints and provides the impression that the phone is brand new. The metal rails and frosted glass back of the Xperia give it an elegant, sturdy, and cosy feel in the palm. The Xperia screen rarely reaches 4K resolution. When playing games or watching videos with a higher resolution, however, the high resolution kicks in, resulting in a superior viewing experience.
Selfies captured with the built-in IMX663 sensor and 12 MP front-facing camera are typically grainy but still good. The exposure is poor, especially in portrait mode, and bright areas of the picture are overexposed. In addition, the motif strongly mimics “filtered” (i.e., “prettier”) classic works of art. The 16 mm ultra-wide angle camera on the Xperia 1 IV offers excellent dynamics and a high level of clarity. It should not come as a surprise that the Xperia 1 IV can easily tackle every performance-related obstacle presented by the Play Store. The built-in Game Enhancer allows you to disable navigation gestures, block notifications, and clear memory, although we haven’t seen a reason to do so. The games run well on this beast, although we could feel the heat generated by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1’s thin shell.
The 5,000 mAh battery inside the Xperia 1 IV is extremely impressive considering its size. This kind of battery should theoretically provide you enough power to get by. Although the Xperia 1 IV’s battery life is generally dependable, it is not quite long enough to last two days. In fact, we were confident that as long as we only took the phone out of the charger in the morning and back in the evening, it would power me through the entire day.