Every year Sony introduces an absurdly feature-rich and accordingly pricey upgrade to its top-tier Xperia 1 series, and every year it follows it up with a more affordable and more compact Xperia 5 alternative.
The Xperia 5 IV, which arrives in 2022 a few months after the multimedia powerhouse Xperia 1 IV (£1,299), fulfills that need. Although it costs more than ever before, Sony's most recent step-down model is closer than ever to the perfect tiny phone bundle.
Sony Xperia 5 IV review: What you should know
Sony doesn't believe in completely reinventing the smartphone industry. It keeps steadfastly to its own distinctively media-focused screenplay and marches to the beat of its drum.
To put it another way, the Xperia 5 IV looks and feels largely the same as its forerunners. The only notable difference with its 6.1in 120Hz OLED display from the previous Xperia 5 III (£899) is that it becomes brighter. Otherwise, its small, squared-off shape is virtually identical.
It has the same Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 CPU as the Xperia 1 IV rather than some of its competitors slightly faster Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1.
On paper, the phone's triple 12-megapixel camera array seems quite similar to that of the Xperia 5 III, but it comes with a less complex telephoto system and general enhancements to tracking and autofocus. The selfie camera from Sony has also been upgraded.
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| Sony Xperia 5 IV |
The 5,000mAh battery and the delayed addition of wireless charging functionality are perhaps the biggest improvements to the Xperia 5 IV's endurance.
Sony Xperia 5 IV review: Cost and opposition
The Sony Xperia 5 IV now costs £50 more than the Xperia 5 III (£899) from the previous year. Perhaps we should be grateful as the Xperia 1 IV (£1,299) had an even greater price increase earlier in the year.
Pricing is still undoubtedly the Sony Xperia 5 line's biggest problem. With the recent release of the Asus Zenfone 9, another unusually small but amazingly capable phone that is $250 less expensive than the Xperia 5 IV, this has come into sharper focus. The Zenfone 9 is more powerful, smaller, and has a more unique design than the Xperia 5 IV, despite the latter's lack of several of the latter's flagship features, like wireless charging and a dedicated telephoto camera.
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| Sony Xperia 5 IV |
Regarding tiny (kind of) flagship (sort of) phones, the iPhone 14 (£849) costs £100 less than the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4, which has a fancy folding screen and costs 999 pounds ($999).
Sony Xperia 5 IV review: Design and essential components
Sony hasn't made any significant advancements in smartphone design in a good number of years. Its insistence on maintaining the same squared-off form and focus on the inside workings of its phones rather than changing them gives it an almost Porsche-like purity.
It's undeniable that the Xperia 5 IV resembles the Xperia 5 III nearly perfectly, particularly when it is the well-known black of my test model. It will be more distinct if you choose Green and Ecru White.
Sony has moved to the more expensive Gorilla Glass Victus for the front and back of the phone, an improvement over the Xperia 1 III's Gorilla Glass 6. This is true even though the phone still has the same aluminum frame. The phone still has a thorough IP65/IP68 classification for water and dust resistance, but it is now more scratch resistant.
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| Sony Xperia 5 IV |
There are a few reasons for Sony's recognizable tall and thin phone design. Most significantly, it uses a 21:9 screen aspect ratio, which we'll talk about later. The Xperia 5 IV hides its selfie camera in an enlarged forehead bezel, which is balanced out by a proportionally big chin. Second, the business continues to resist the idea of notches for its flagship lines, therefore this feature is not available on the device.
This results in an unrestricted image and the addition of real front-firing stereo speakers. You won't find yourself attempting to block them with your hands since they sound appropriately clean and clear. A 3.5mm headphone connector is another feature that is conducive to audio.
Sony Xperia 5 IV review: Display
Sony's most recent phone features a 6.1-inch OLED screen, which is on the smaller side of the Android range. It is particularly thin and has a 21:9 aspect ratio, making it simple to control with the thumb of your holding hand. You may play ultra-wide movie material without any black borders as well.
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| Sony Xperia 5 IV |
The Xperia 5 IV's display closely resembles that of the Xperia 5 III's before it, with a refresh rate of 120Hz and a resolution of 2,520 x 1,080 rounding out the package. The current screen, according to Sony, is 50% brighter than the previous model, which is a big change. With auto brightness off, the screen reaches 648cd/m², in my experience. Compared to the 339cd/m² of the Xperia 5 III, that is extremely favorable.
The color accuracy on this monitor is nice. I obtained a good average Delta E of 1.23 with a gamut coverage of 98.3% and a gamut volume of 101.2% using the recommended Creator color profile, which is calibrated to the BT.2020 color gamut.
But doing what you want to do feels harder than everything else. For instance, Instagram Stories only occupy half of the screen because of the wide bars that span the top and bottom of the screen. The same can be said for YouTube videos and game streaming. Since most phones aren't this tall, any application created to maximize the width of the display will have similar problems.
What about the rest of it? For better or worse, the Sony Xperia 5 IV has a design that feels like the best Android hardware of 2017. Perhaps the only smartphone manufacturer, Sony, has resisted adding display cutouts for its selfie cameras. Instead, you'll find the top and bottom bezels, which add to the height of this phone. Although the screen corners are slightly rounded in comparison to other devices, you probably won't notice this.
The metal frame is strong enough to prevent flexing, and the matte glass on the back supports wireless charging without accumulating many fingerprints (smudges are still a possibility). Nevertheless, the phone is so light that it almost seems more affordable than it is. Naturally, we've gotten used to flagships weighing well over 200 grams, so whenever something this light appears, you have to remind yourself that it's not a low-cost device.
Sony's design philosophy is ultimately a bit too utilitarian in a market where products from Samsung, Google, and even Apple continue to stand out. However, the green model, a Sony exclusive, gives this phone a much-needed pop of color, so if the Xperia 5 IV appeals to you, I'd suggest getting that model.
Sony Xperia 5 IV review: Battery life and performance
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip powering the Sony Xperia 5 IV is the same one used by its larger sibling, the Sony Xperia 1 IV. This marks a generational upgrade over the Snapdragon 888 in the Xperia 5 III.
The average Geekbench 5 single-core and multicore scores here are 1,230 and 3,546, respectively, closely matching those of the Xperia 5 III from the previous year, indicating that there isn't a significant improvement in CPU performance here. However, GPU performance has increased significantly. Manhattan 3.0 benchmark ratings of 119 frames per second onscreen and 203 frames per second off-screen destroy the Xperia 5 III, which scored 60 and 150 frames per second, respectively.
However, the Xperia 5 IV's much later release date than the Xperia 1 IV works against it in this case. The phone's closest contemporary, at least in terms of form factor, is the Asus Zenfone 9, which launched around the same time as the phone and had a more powerful Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 processor. It performs better on every test, both in terms of CPU and GPU.
In a practical sense, you wouldn't notice it. The overall navigation and app switching on the Sony Xperia 5 IV are faultless, games play nicely at high settings, and everything is generally buttery-smooth. Although it will undoubtedly get a bit warm when charging its battery, I did not observe any extreme instances of thermal difficulties, as was observed with the Xperia 5 III.
Speaking of batteries, despite the Xperia 5 IV's slim design, Sony has managed to double its 5,000mAh capacity. I have exceptional stamina as a consequence; after a 15-hour day with about four hours spent in front of a computer, I still have about 60% of the day remaining.
Sony has now added the capability for wireless charging, which is further excellent news. I'm delighted to see it here because it always seemed like a significant absence considering the high cost of the Xperia 5 line.
Sony Xperia 5 IV review: Cameras performance
The Sony Xperia 5 IV has the same 12MP primary camera as its predecessor, supported by Sony's lightning-quick Dual Pixel PDAF and OIS. However, compared to their Xperia 5 III predecessors, the 12MP ultra-wide and 12MP telephoto cameras are slightly different.
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| Sony Xperia 5 IV |
The telephoto camera's attention-grabbing changeable lens has most conspicuously disappeared. It now has a 2.5x optical zoom and a single fixed 60mm focal length. This time, all three cameras include Sony's Real-time Eye AF and Real-time Tracking, which results in a shooting experience that is more reliably locked on. In actuality, Sony's premium smartphone cameras have been identified by their eerily achieved quick-fire lock-on for a lot of years.
Along with manual controls. With a set of Pro controls that closely resemble those found on Sony's Alpha cameras, this camera system once more encourages you to go hands-on. There is no other (non-Sony) smartphone camera like it if you have the time to experiment with ISO, exposure, white balance, and other settings. This is especially true given that the device has a two-stage physical shutter button on the right side.
The Xperia 5 IV doesn't compare favorably to iPhones and Pixels in terms of point-and-shoot performance. Due to Sony's low-intervention picture processing, less-than-ideal photos maintain more of its organic shadow and murk, and since its HDR implementation is significantly less aggressive than competitors', it produces less clarity and more overexposure in challenging lighting conditions. Food photos also lack the Instagram-worthy pop that Sony's competitors all manage to accomplish.
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| Sony Xperia 5 IV |
Sony is still lacking a distinct Night mode. Low-light images retain a lot more of the natural blackness than other flagship phones, however, the default Basic mode will compensate by utilizing repeated longer shutter time shots and OIS support. Although this is generally desirable, you won't receive the same level of sharp clarity as with other phones.
This time around, Sony has upgraded the front camera to a 12MP sensor (from an 8MP one), which produces clearer selfies and supports 4K filming.
Sony Xperia 5 IV review: Verdict
The Sony Xperia 5 IV is a similarly attractive, powerful phone that fits into the pocket better than most of its bulkier competitors. However, Sony is no longer the only player in the premium small market after the release of the eye-catching (and substantially less expensive) Asus Zenfone 9.
The camera system from Sony is still exceptionally fast and precise, with a strong enthusiast focus that includes a physical shutter button and a variety of manual options. Additionally, Sony has finally added wireless charging to the mix while also lengthening the phone's battery life.
The Xperia 5 IV is still a highly pricey piece of equipment, and not everyone will like its large display aspect ratio even after considering this. When it comes to point-and-shoot automatic assistance, Sony's camera with a pro-oriented lens still falls short.
Despite coming tantalizingly close to being the ideal tiny flagship that we know Sony is capable of, the Xperia 5 IV is still a great phone and an obvious choice for anybody wishing to downsize without sacrificing quality.
