Smartphones & Tablets | November 26, 2023
The smartphone industry has been focused on a form factor for almost two decades that, although it has evolved minimally, has stagnated. Phones are always rectangles with a glass front and a back that tries to stand out in a sea of options. Foldables seem to want to change that, but they are still not an option for most.
There are brands that, without leaving the market, know they will have small sales and prefer that to succumbing to trends that would make them lose their brand essence. One of them is Sony, which with the Sony Xperia 1 V already showed that it knew how to do things differently, even if it meant going against the current.
Now it’s time to test the second phone it has announced this year, the little brother of the 1 V, the Sony Xperia 5 V (999 euros), a high-end device with a form factor that takes us back to what phones were like in the first decade of this century: small and comfortable.
This Xperia is a phone that stands out, first of all, for its dimensions, 154 x 68 x 8.6 mm. It may not mean anything to you, but its screen is 6.1 inches, and its ratio is 20:9. In summary, it’s a small, compact, and very elongated phone, making it one of the few small high-end phones on the market, along with the ASUS Zenfone 10.
However, Sony’s aesthetics remain the same, with a frame surrounding the central piece where the screen is, and the back, creating a protrusion that feels strange and a bit sharp in the hand. It’s the opposite of what brands like Apple or Samsung present, with increasingly ergonomic shapes. But it does share water and dust resistance with them, rated at IP68.
Among the peculiarities of this model is also the presence of a side fingerprint sensor, instead of one under the screen like all other phones in this price segment except foldables, the headphone jack for using high-quality sound models, or the SIM tray that also supports memory cards, something that practically no other brand allows in their flagship devices. As if that weren’t enough, the design with front-facing speakers and the dedicated camera button is retained, which greatly aids in shooting, especially in moments when we want to get the most out of the cameras.
Despite not having the specifications of its bigger brother, this Sony Xperia 5 V comes with the best processor on the market, at least until the announcement, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. A few days ago, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 was introduced, which we assume will be the chip for the successor to this model. The issue comes with the memories. This device has 8 GB of RAM and 128 GB of internal memory, figures that are entirely insufficient for a phone that costs 1000 euros. It’s true that it’s not the only one with these memories, but its rivals made the jump to, at least, 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage a long time ago. Even the memory technology is not the highest seen, with the ROM staying at UFS 3.2 and the RAM at LPDDR5.
It seems that Sony wants to artificially distance its models this way, reserving higher memories for the Xperia 1 V. However, in terms of smoothness, we don’t have many complaints, with outstanding performance and top-level connectivity. It has WiFi 6e, dual-band GPS, NFC, Bluetooth 5.3…
Where we have no complaints is in the battery. The 5000 mAh of this phone, along with an efficient screen, push autonomy beyond a day, even approaching two days if the camera or games are not used intensively. The 30W fast charging is accompanied by wireless charging, although there are no chargers or cables in the sales box.
The interface is very similar to pure Android, in its version 13, as this model was introduced before the arrival of Android 14. There are modifications on top of the pure system interface, such as multiple applications for using the camera, extra functions in the power button and fingerprint sensor, etc.
Sony follows the path of brands like Motorola, which focus on offering a pure experience but improve it with some features that Google’s devices don’t have. However, some parts of the interface, such as the initial setup, still seem based on designs from almost a decade ago when HoneyComb was launched.
The biggest difference of the Sony Xperia 1 V compared to its competitors was the display. A 4K panel with a pixel density that embarrassed many rivals. This Xperia 5 V does not have that resolution, settling for an FHD+ panel of 6.1 inches, with OLED technology.
It does integrate a variable refresh rate of up to 120 Hz, and a 21:9 ratio that gives it that elongated look so characteristic of Sony phones. We will have support for HDR10, but not for Dolby Vision. In addition, Sony has done particularly well in the settings, and the calibration of this display can be much more accurate than that of other brands.
To this, we must add the immersive experience provided by its two front-facing speakers. These kinds of decisions are what sets Sony apart from the competition, in the right direction.
Sony has opted to use only two cameras on this device. It loses the telephoto compared to the Xperia 1 V. It’s the same thing that brands like Apple or Google do, but with Samsung having so many models in this price range or lower with optical zoom, Sony loses out here. The brand says that with the main sensor, we can take 2x photos without loss, but we know that the quality of these types of crops is not the same as with a dedicated zoom.
The quality of the rear cameras is good, and a special mention must be made of the camera app’s preview, which is one of the best we’ve seen. The main sensor, 48 MP with optical stabilization and PDAF focus, gives us very decent photos, both day and night, with a very good dynamic range and just enough contrast to make the photos stand out without being unrealistic. There is also a 12 MP ultra-wide, with slightly lower quality.
There is a small flaw that prevents the interface from rotating freely when taking photos, which prevents taking a photo with the left hand in landscape format. It has probably been done on purpose to encourage the use of the dedicated button, but preventing the interface from rotating, something done by software, does not seem correct.
As for the video, the quality is better than expected, although the dynamic range is not as good as in photos. However, stabilization is one of the best we’ve seen in recent years.
Sony only has two phones for sale, at least two aimed at the general public, if we forget about the PRO models. This Sony Xperia 5 V is a more affordable version of the Sony Xperia 1 V, with a lower resolution screen, no zoom camera, and no 4K screen. In return, apart from saving 400 euros, we have an exceptionally compact phone that does not see its autonomy diminished, something that used to be the flaw of small phones.
Regarding rivals, we have models like the ASUS Zenfone 10, but not many more. If size is a critical factor and price is not an obstacle, the experience with this device can be very positive. But if the economic factor comes into play, there are many models that can be interesting, such as the Samsung Galaxy S23.
