Sony Xperia 5 IV Full Review

Have you heard about the new Sony Xperia 5 IV? It’s a compact phone that’s been getting a lot of attention lately. In this review, we’ll take a closer look at what this phone has to offer and whether it’s worth considering as your next flagship device.

Design and Build Quality

The Xperia 5 IV is the latest addition to Sony’s Xperia 5 series. It’s an upgrade from the previous model, with improvements in screen size, performance, camera, and battery capacity. Despite these upgrades, it’s still a compact phone that fits comfortably in your hand.

Design-wise, Sony has kept it simple and sleek, similar to the previous model. The back is made of Gorilla Glass Victus and has a frosted matte finish to hide fingerprints. The aluminum frame is flat, and you even get a two-step hardware shutter key for the cameras. Plus, it’s dust-resistant and waterproof, so you don’t have to worry about accidental spills or drops.

Display Quality

The Xperia 5 IV features a 6.1-inch OLED display with a 1080p resolution. It has a tall 21:9 aspect ratio and a fast 120Hz refresh rate, which means smoother scrolling and better gaming experiences. The display is bright, sharp, and offers great contrast thanks to the OLED technology. It also supports 10-bit color and HDR10, making your content look vibrant and lifelike.

Speaker Quality

When it comes to audio, Sony has included a traditional headphone jack, which is great for a compact device. There are also front-facing stereo speakers that provide well-balanced sound. The sound quality is excellent, with clear vocals, crisp highs, and improved bass compared to last year’s model.

Biometrics and Storage

The Xperia 5 IV has a side-mounted fingerprint reader, which is fast and reliable for unlocking your phone. It also comes with 128GB of storage, which can be expanded using a microSD card. So, you’ll have plenty of space for all your apps, photos, and videos.

Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Chipset

Powering all these features is a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset. While it’s not the latest version, it’s still a flagship-grade processor that delivers excellent performance. The Xperia 5  IV can handle any task you throw at it, whether it’s gaming, multitasking, or running demanding apps.

Android 12 and Sony’s Features

The Xperia 5 IV runs on Android 12 with Sony’s own skin and a few additional features. You’ll find the Side Sense menu, which allows you to access shortcuts to apps or features with ease. There’s also a Game Enhancer that lets you create custom profiles for different games. And if you’re into music, Sony’s Music Pro app offers professional-quality recording and processing options.

Sony’s Camera Apps

Sony is known for its impressive camera technology, and the Xperia 5 IV is no exception. It comes with a suite of camera apps, including Photo Pro, Cinema Pro, and Video Pro. These apps offer a range of manual controls and shooting options, allowing you to capture stunning photos and videos with ease.

Sony Xperia 5 IV Low light Image Quality

When taking photos in low light, the main camera on the Sony Xperia 5  IV does a really good job. The photos have a reasonable level of detail, low noise, excellent contrast, and a realistic look. The colors might be a bit too vibrant, but overall, they look great thanks to HDR. The camera handles light sources well, but the dark shadows could have been improved with a night mode processing feature. The zoom camera also performs well at night, capturing photos with enough detail, sharpness, accurate colors, and better dynamic range than expected. However, the ultra-wide camera struggles in low light, resulting in large areas of overly dark shadows and less competitive photos.

Selfie Camera Image Quality

The 12-megapixel front-facing camera on the Sony Xperia 5 IV is a nice upgrade from last year. Selfies taken with this camera are outstanding. They are some of the most detailed selfies we’ve seen in a while, with a good balance of sharpness, realistic colors, and lovely dynamic range.

Video Quality, Rear Cameras

When it comes to video recording, the Sony Xperia 5 IV performs similarly to this year’s Xperia 1. You can record videos in up to 4K at 120 fps with all rear cameras, and the audio quality is superb. The 4K footage from the main camera is excellent, featuring a natural-looking rendition similar to the still photos. The detail level is good, with nice contrast, dynamic range, and low noise. There’s also a new mode called wide dynamic range, which combines multiple frames to provide a boost in contrast and reduce clipped highlights. However, shadows may appear darker with this mode. The 4K videos shot with the telephoto camera are detailed, balanced, and have low noise. The videos from the ultra-wide camera are impressive, with excellent detail, contrast, and natural processing. Finally, the low-light videos from the main camera are okay, with enough detail, tolerable noise, and realistic colors and exposure.

Battery Life and Charging Speed

The Xperia 5 IV comes with a larger 5,000mAh battery compared to last year’s model. This means you’ll get significantly better battery life, lasting you throughout the day. The phone supports 30W fast charging, but keep in mind that you’ll need to purchase the adapter and cable separately.

So, middle schoolers, the Sony Xperia 5 IV is a compact flagship phone that offers a great display, impressive camera capabilities, and solid performance. It’s definitely worth considering if you’re in the market for a new phone. Just make sure to budget for the additional accessories you might need. Happy phone shopping!

Conclusion:

So, that’s the Sony Xperia 5 IV. Sony has done a great job providing some nice improvements over the previous model, including a brighter screen, better battery life, an upgraded chipset, and an even more compact form factor. The camera performance on this phone is also one of the best around. Our only real complaints are that there’s no charger included and the thermal management could be better. However, unless you’re a heavy gamer, you probably won’t notice it. Overall, if you’re looking for a flagship phone with a pocketable design and excellent cameras, the Sony Xperia 5 IV earns our full recommendation.

Thanks for reading, guys, and see you in the next one!