Sony Xperia XZ and Xperia X Compact release: New, small phones pack in camera and battery tech

Special tools actually stop the battery charging to full – which will help it last much longer

Sony Mobile revealed its latest flagship phone today at the IFA trade show in Berlin, called the Xperia XZ. The company releases its leading phones each autumn and this time around there was also a second handset, the Xperia X Compact.

The Compact reflects the fact that while every phone maker is going for big screens, Sony recognises that many customers want something a little more hand-comfy. And unlike most manufacturers, the Sony small phone is almost as premium as the big one.

The Xperia XZ has a 5.2-inch display, the Compact a 4.6-inch screen. And both continue the shift in the company’s naming process, signalling the end to the Xperia Z series which has held sway for the last few years.

The design of the X series is chic and classy with a metal back (the Z series had a glass back). It feels smooth in the hand thanks to an almost imperceptible join. The metal is treated to give a sense of texture.

Sony will release the XZ in three colours: mineral black, platinum and forest blue, a particularly fetching colour, even if the colour that leaps to mind when you think of a forest ain’t blue.

The top and bottom edges are flat on this phone: it’ll even stand upright if you want.

Sony says it’s focusing on essential features and innovations to make everyday life effortless and spontaneous. Which is nice.

One of the main places Sony’s focused on is the camera. The XZ has a 23-megapixel sensor which has something called triple image sensing, essentially taking the image sensor and adding distance sensing and colour sensing. This is the first Xperia phone with laser autofocus, for quicker, sharper focus in low light.

A program called Predictive Hybrid Autofocus uses an algorithm to guess where a moving object will be by the time your shutter trips. It’s a clever idea that makes sense, though is presumably better at predicting an oncoming train than an errant puppy. The camera on the Compact has the same features.

For filming video, the camera includes five-axis image stabilisation so you need never shoot blurred movies. And the front camera has a 13-megapixel sensor, more than many phones’ main cameras. It has a wide-angle lens for group selfies.

Sony has introduced a new way of charging designed to increase the long-term life of the battery. Instead of charging to full, it pauses at 90 per cent and tops it up to 100 per cent at the last minute, recognising patterns in behaviour (like the way you always get up at 7am, say) so that it tops up the charge just before then. The company claims this will double the battery’s lifespan.

Both phones are on sale soon, the Compact this month and the XZ in October. Making a mobile phone stand out can be difficult. Sony’s strengths in recent years have been slick design, outstanding cameras, useful waterproofing and strong performance. The Xperia XZ, especially in its forest blue colour, looks and feels tremendous. If its features live up to the billing, it will be a winner for Sony. The smaller Xperia X Compact also looks great and the inclusion of almost every feature of the bigger handset addresses a part of the market most other companies are beginning to ignore.