Sony Xperia M4 Aqua arrives with a splash: the new mid-ranger
Introduction
The Sony Xperia M4 Aqua has just made its official debut at MWC 2015. The water-proof Sony handset represent the new and modern, 2015 mid-ranger by one of the best accepted brands globally.
The focus in the Xperia M4 Aqua falls on its water-proof capabilities, as the handset features the beautiful omni-balance design language at a more affordable price point than the current Xperia Z3 flagship and features protection when immersed in water up to 5 feet (1.5-meter) for as long as 30 minutes.
There's more to the M4 Aqua than just its protection from the elements, so let's with the technical details.
Specs at a quick glance:
Platform: Android 5.0 Lollipop
System chip: Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 octa-core 64-bit chip
Camera: 13-megapixel rear with f/2 lens, 5MP selfie cam
Colors: White, Black, Coral, and Silver
Battery life: Two-day
Protection: IP65/8 rated
Design and display
The omnibalance design from the Xperia Z3 makes a trip to the lower price tiers, where the Xperia M4 Aqua holds a comfortable position, but rather than using metal and glass it seems that we have plastic all-around. The M4 Aqua is sleek and lightweight, tipping the scaled at just 4.8 oz (136g).
All of this is complemented with water protection certified with IP65/8 rating. What does that mean? When you make sure all protective flaps are closed you can easily take the M4 Aqua underwater at the swimming pool and take pictures as long as it's not immersed deeper than 5 feet for longer than 30 minutes.
Performance and processor
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 hums quietly under the hood of thte Xperia M4 Aqua. This remarkable piece of hardware is just a step down from the flagship-grade Snapdragon 810 system chip, but it's also an octa-core design and provides full 64-bit support. The CPU cores are stock ARM ones, and we expect benchmarks to put this handset not too far away from yesteryear's top devices in terms of performance.
With the improvements in Android 5.0 Lollipop, we expect to finally see 64-bit chips like the Snapdragon 615 truly shine.
Camera
Sony has equipped the M4 Aqua with a 13-megapixel camera with Superior Auto Mode that we've seen on the Xperia Z series. Superior Auto does exactly what it says - allows you to take great pictures without having to deal with any manual controls: just point and shoot. With the fast, f/2.0 lens combined with maximum ISO sensitivity boosted to 3200, the M4 Aqua also has powers to do very well in low-lit conditions.
The handset also features a 5-megapixel front cam for better, higher-res selfies.
Price and release date
The Sony Xperia M4 Aqua will arrive on store shelves this Spring in more than 80 countries (no word on U.S. availability, though) and 100 carriers with an official price tag of around $335 (299 euro) off contract.
Sony sets the new mid-range standard with Xperia™ M4 Aqua
Capture more - just point and shoot, with a powerful 13MP camera, F2.0 aperture and Sony’s intelligent Superior Auto mode
Enjoy more - signature Sony OmniBalance design, ready for life - a waterproof smartphone with cap-less microUSB charging; Xperia M4 Aqua available in White, Black, Coral and Silver editions
Achieve more - Sony’s first octa-core 64-bit smartphone featuring the Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 615 processor with integrated 4G LTE, running Android 5.0 Lollipop - and up to two-day battery life
Launching in 80 countries worldwide, across more than 100 carrier partners – for around 299 EUR3, from Spring 2015 Barcelona, Mobile World Congress, 2nd March 2015 – Sony Mobile Communications (“Sony Mobile”) today refocused its mid-range device strategy with the introduction of Xperia™ M4 Aqua - a smartphone bringing Sony’s leadership in camera, design, battery and performance to an accessible price point.
“Xperia M4 Aqua represents our renewed mid-range focus - with no compromises” said Dennis van Schie, Senior Vice President, Head of Sales and Marketing at Sony Mobile Communications. “Offering the most popular standout features made famous by our Xperia Z Series; camera capability, two-day battery life and waterproofing - Xperia M4 Aqua brings a proposition and price, products in this section of the market simply cannot match.”
Just point and shoot – great pictures without the effort Xperia M4 Aqua’s impressive 13MP rear camera is powered by Sony’s Exmor RS™ mobile sensor with a large F2.0 aperture, and ISO 3200 sensitivity. It’s powerful digital compact camera technology – and intelligent Superior Auto Mode simplifies your interactions, automatically sensing up to 52 different scenarios, for vivid shots in low-light or strong backlight every time.
Just as with the rear, the 5MP selfie camera has a super wide-angle lens with an 88° field of view, so no-one’s left out of shot – and Portrait Retouch allows you to add fun finishing refinements. The popular selfie editing feature sits alongside Sony’s full suite of preloaded Xperia Camera apps, including other favourites; Sound Photo for adding a short clips to your pictures and Movie Creator, which automatically converts your pictures and videos into snappy thirty second vignette clips - which makes collecting memories or sharing on social media, super quick and easy.
Designed for the way you live - subtlety in hardware and interface design, with Android 5.0 Lollipop Crafted from the ground up, Xperia M4 Aqua has understated premium looks – a tempered glass display, with the svelte 136g waterproof (IP65/8 rated) body reengineered for cap-less microUSB charging, offering flexible usage wherever you are.
Xperia M4 Aqua will be available in classic White and Black, but also fresh Coral and Silver. Sony’s adopted the same subtle principles in its take on Android 5.0 Lollipop’s material design, in keeping with that distinctive minimalist approach to user interface, interactions and native apps. Xperia M4 Aqua will come with the new look Xperia Lounge Silver, bringing apps, software updates, entertainment, bespoke offers and tips delivered throughout the product lifecycle. As part of this, you’ll be able to enjoy bonus film clips and television episodes4 through Sony Pictures Home
Entertainment’s Privilege Plus Movies app.
Do and accomplish more, for longer - Sony’s first octa-core 64-bit smartphone, featuring the Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 615 processor with integrated 4G LTE connectivity and up to two-day battery life
Whilst some might need to use their smartphone for short bursts on long days, you don’t have to, with Xperia M4 Aqua’s two-day battery life, eliminating the need for regular charging. If that isn’t enough, activate Battery STAMINA Mode to optimize how your battery is used and Ultra STAMINA Mode to keep your phone running on its core functions for a week.
Supporting this optimal balance of performance and power is a Qualcomm® SnapdragonTM 615 processor6 featuring octa-core 64-bit CPUs, advanced multimedia processing and an integrated 4G LTE modem. Thanks to the Snapdragon 615 processor, you can enjoy seamless access to your Xperia Lounge content and experience the fastest news and information download, find your way using maps, check and send email, send pictures to friends and family in seconds and make the most of lag-free online music and video streaming on the go.
Xperia M4 Aqua will launch in 80 countries worldwide, across more than 100 carrier partners for around 299 EUR, from Spring 2015.
Capture more - just point and shoot, with a powerful 13MP camera, F2.0 aperture and Sony’s intelligent Superior Auto mode
Enjoy more - signature Sony OmniBalance design, ready for life - a waterproof smartphone with cap-less microUSB charging; Xperia M4 Aqua available in White, Black, Coral and Silver editions
Achieve more - Sony’s first octa-core 64-bit smartphone featuring the Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 615 processor with integrated 4G LTE, running Android 5.0 Lollipop - and up to two-day battery life
Launching in 80 countries worldwide, across more than 100 carrier partners – for around 299 EUR3, from Spring 2015 Barcelona, Mobile World Congress, 2nd March 2015 – Sony Mobile Communications (“Sony Mobile”) today refocused its mid-range device strategy with the introduction of Xperia™ M4 Aqua - a smartphone bringing Sony’s leadership in camera, design, battery and performance to an accessible price point.
“Xperia M4 Aqua represents our renewed mid-range focus - with no compromises” said Dennis van Schie, Senior Vice President, Head of Sales and Marketing at Sony Mobile Communications. “Offering the most popular standout features made famous by our Xperia Z Series; camera capability, two-day battery life and waterproofing - Xperia M4 Aqua brings a proposition and price, products in this section of the market simply cannot match.”
Just point and shoot – great pictures without the effort Xperia M4 Aqua’s impressive 13MP rear camera is powered by Sony’s Exmor RS™ mobile sensor with a large F2.0 aperture, and ISO 3200 sensitivity. It’s powerful digital compact camera technology – and intelligent Superior Auto Mode simplifies your interactions, automatically sensing up to 52 different scenarios, for vivid shots in low-light or strong backlight every time.
Just as with the rear, the 5MP selfie camera has a super wide-angle lens with an 88° field of view, so no-one’s left out of shot – and Portrait Retouch allows you to add fun finishing refinements. The popular selfie editing feature sits alongside Sony’s full suite of preloaded Xperia Camera apps, including other favourites; Sound Photo for adding a short clips to your pictures and Movie Creator, which automatically converts your pictures and videos into snappy thirty second vignette clips - which makes collecting memories or sharing on social media, super quick and easy.
Designed for the way you live - subtlety in hardware and interface design, with Android 5.0 Lollipop Crafted from the ground up, Xperia M4 Aqua has understated premium looks – a tempered glass display, with the svelte 136g waterproof (IP65/8 rated) body reengineered for cap-less microUSB charging, offering flexible usage wherever you are.
Xperia M4 Aqua will be available in classic White and Black, but also fresh Coral and Silver. Sony’s adopted the same subtle principles in its take on Android 5.0 Lollipop’s material design, in keeping with that distinctive minimalist approach to user interface, interactions and native apps. Xperia M4 Aqua will come with the new look Xperia Lounge Silver, bringing apps, software updates, entertainment, bespoke offers and tips delivered throughout the product lifecycle. As part of this, you’ll be able to enjoy bonus film clips and television episodes4 through Sony Pictures Home
Entertainment’s Privilege Plus Movies app.
Do and accomplish more, for longer - Sony’s first octa-core 64-bit smartphone, featuring the Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 615 processor with integrated 4G LTE connectivity and up to two-day battery life
Whilst some might need to use their smartphone for short bursts on long days, you don’t have to, with Xperia M4 Aqua’s two-day battery life, eliminating the need for regular charging. If that isn’t enough, activate Battery STAMINA Mode to optimize how your battery is used and Ultra STAMINA Mode to keep your phone running on its core functions for a week.
Supporting this optimal balance of performance and power is a Qualcomm® SnapdragonTM 615 processor6 featuring octa-core 64-bit CPUs, advanced multimedia processing and an integrated 4G LTE modem. Thanks to the Snapdragon 615 processor, you can enjoy seamless access to your Xperia Lounge content and experience the fastest news and information download, find your way using maps, check and send email, send pictures to friends and family in seconds and make the most of lag-free online music and video streaming on the go.
Xperia M4 Aqua will launch in 80 countries worldwide, across more than 100 carrier partners for around 299 EUR, from Spring 2015.
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