Sony Xperia 1 VI release date, price and features
Believe it or not, Sony still makes phones, and the Xperia lineup has been growing in numbers in the past couple of years. We're at the Mark VI threshold now, and this time around Sony had decided to introduce some changes to the old formula.
The Xperia 1 VI went official on May 15, and we have all the necessary information to summarize and present to you. There are surprises concerning the display and some interesting developments on the software front, so read on to find everything about the latest and greatest Sony flagship, the Xperia 1 VI.
Summary: Sony Xperia 1 VI at a glance
If we want to summarize things, the biggest change lies in the dimensions of the Xperia 1 VI. Sony decided to ditch the 21:9 aspect ratio and transform the phone into a wider and shorter device. Much like the Galaxy S24 Ultra and other 19.5:9 phones. The other big change concerns the display, the resolution has gone from 4K to FHD+, which some hardcore Xperia fans might perceive as a downgrade. It's worth noting that this leads to much better battery life, and the new FHD+ panel is also much brighter and supports dynamic refresh rates between 1 and 120Hz.
Here is a summary of the 5 biggest new Xperia 1 VI features:
- FHD+ screen with 2340 x 1080 pixels, 19.5:9 ratio, 396 PPI
- 50% bump in brightness compared to the last model
- New Camera app with Pro mode that replaces Photo Pro, Video Pro and Cinema Pro
- 1-120Hz dynamic refresh rate
- Higher magnification for the telephoto camera - 7.1x
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- Sony Xperia 1 VI vs Xperia 1 V: The Times They Are a-Changin'
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Sony Xperia 1 VI release date
- Announced: 15 May, 2024
- Released: 6 June, 2024
Sony announced the Xperia 1 VI on May 15, alongside the budget 10-series offering. Pre-orders went live on the same day and the phone hit the stores on June 6.
| Device family | Announcement | Market release |
|---|---|---|
| Sony Xperia 1 | February 25, 2019 | May 30, 2019 |
| Sony Xperia 1 II | February 24, 2020 | May 22, 2020 |
| Sony Xperia 1 III | April 14, 2021 | August 25, 2021 |
| Sony Xperia 1 IV | May 11, 2022 | June 11, 2022 |
| Sony Xperia 1 V | May 11, 2023 | July 28, 2023 |
| Sony Xperia 1 VI | May 15, 2024 | June 6, 2024 |
Sony Xperia 1 VI price
- $1,399
Sony decided to keep the price tag intact, even though there are some interesting changes with the Xperia 1 VI. The phone still starts at $1,399 for the base 256GB version and if you want the 512GB model, you need to pay a little extra.
| Phone model | 128GB of storage | 256GB of storage | 512GB of storage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xperia 1 | $949 | - | - |
| Xperia 1 II | - | $1,199 | - |
| Xperia 1 III | - | $1,299 | $1,399 |
| Xperia 1 IV | - | $1,599 | $1,699 |
| Xperia 1 V | - | $1,399 | $1,599 |
| Xperia 1 VI | - | $1,399 | $1,599 |
Sony Xperia 1 VI camera
The Xperia 1 VI comes with a very similar camera system to its predecessor. The main camera sensor and optics are identical but there's clever Sony AI working in the background to improve things such as exposure, white balance, and autofocus. The ultrawide camera has been carried over too, and there's a slight improvement to the periscope telephoto. It can now do 7.1x zoom or 170mm focal length equivalent, and also macro shots.
Sony Xperia 1 VI camera system:
Sony Xperia 1 VI camera system:
- Main: 48MP Exmor T, 1/1.35" (1/1.43" in 4:3)
- Ultrawide: 12MP Exmor RS, 1/2.5", 16mm
- Periscope zoom: 12MP Exmor RS, 85-170mm (3.5x-7.1x zoom range)
Sony Xperia 1 VI storage
There are no surprises when it comes to RAM and storage, the new Xperia 1 V comes with the same memory configurations as its predecessor. The phone sports 12GB of RAM and two storage options. The microSD card slot is still onboard, so you can expand the available storage with up to 1TB via a microSD card.
Sony Xperia 1 VI storage capacity:
Sony Xperia 1 VI storage capacity:
- 256 GB
- 512 GB
Sony Xperia 1 VI design
The Xperia 1 VI features a 19.5:9 aspect ratio, a clear departure from the 21:9 used by all Xperia models up to this point. That being said, there are no drastic changes to the design and build materials. The new phone is 3mm shorter and 3mm wider compared to its predecessor but uses the same textured Gorilla Glass Victus on the back, and the same ridged aluminum frame.
The button and port placement is also the same, we have a dedicated camera shutter button with a nice grippy texture to it, a side mounted capacitive fingerprint reader, a flappy SIM/SD card slot (toolless), and a 3.5mm audio jack. The colors have been carried over from the previous model as well.
Sony Xperia 1 VI available colors:
- Khaki Green
- Platinum White
- Black
Sony Xperia 1 VI display
- 6.5", FHD+, 1-120Hz LTPO, OLED
The biggest change Sony has made lies in the display department. The Xperia 1 VI comes equipped with a 6.5-inch OLED panel, but this time around it's FHD+ rather than 4K. The exact resolution is 1080x2340 pixels which translates to around 394 PPI pixel density. The aspect ratio of is 19.5:9, the same as other popular flagships such as the Galaxy S24 Ultra.
The good news is that this panel is 50% brighter than the one in the previous model, and that it's a LTPO screen, meaning it can dynamically go between 1 and 120Hz.
Sony Xperia 1 VI battery
- 5,000mAh
The same 5,000 mAh battery from the previous model resides in Xperia 1 VI's body but Sony markets this phone as a "two-day smartphone" thanks to the lower display resolution. The phone has to push significantly fewer pixels now, around 2.5 million compared to the 6.3 in the 4K display of the previous generation.
The charging situation remains unchanged, the Xperia 1 VI supports 30W wired charging speeds, and also has wireless charging onboard.
Sony Xperia 1 VI features and software
The Xperia 1 VI comes with Android 14 out of the box, and it's mostly clean Android with the exception of a couple of features and apps. The big change is the new Camera app, which houses and aggregates the pro-grade software from the previous generations. No more Photo Pro, Cinema Pro, and Video Pro apps, their features can be found in the Camera app now.
The software support cycle has been tweaked as well. The Xperia 1 VI will receive three major OS updates with four total years of security patches. It's not the super-long seven years that Pixel phones offer, but it's an improvement for sure.
Sony Xperia 1 VI hardware and specs
The Xperia 1 VI uses the latest and greatest Qualcomm silicon, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset. The new thing that Sony has added to the mix is a vapor chamber cooling. This will for sure help with heat dissipation, especially under continuous load.
Among the important specs we can highlight the microSD card slot which supports cards with up to 1TB capacity, the dedicated hardware camera shutter button (it's a two-stage button just like a real camera), and the 3.5 mm audio jack. The phone comes with a front-facing stereo speakers and there's a capacitive fingerprint scanner on the multifunctional power button.
Reviews and comparisons
Our Sony Xperia 1 VI review is already live, along with some interesting comparisons. Check them all out below:
- Sony Xperia 1 VI Review: Xperia goes mainstream? - this is our detailed review of the Xperia 1 VI. You'll find all the geeky stuff inside, such as benchmarks, display tests, battery life performance, camera samples and more.
- Sony Xperia 1 VI vs Xperia 1 V: The Times They Are a-Changin' - how does the new model stack against its predecessor? Learn about all the changes and differences in this comparison.
- Sony Xperia 1 VI vs iPhone 15 Pro Max: Can a mainstream Xperia challenge the iPhone? - well, is the new Xperia 1 VI good enough to take on the iPhone 15 Pro Max? Read on to find out!
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