Sony Xperia 1 II gets release date and absurdly high price

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Source: Sony

Sony Xperia 1 II price and release date

While nothing is surprising about the release window for the phone, the thing that made us do a double-take is the price. Sony announced that the phone would retail for $1,199.99. That’s a $200 jump from the original Sony Xperia 1, which launched with a $999 price tag.

Perhaps in an attempt to justify the price, Sony is offering anyone who preorders the phone by June 28 a pair of Sony WF-1000XM3 headphones. Those are one of the best pairs of headphones on the market, rivaling the Bose QC 35 II. However, with Sony gearing up to launch the Sony WF-1000XM4 headphones, it appears to be more of an effort to get rid of an older model.

The latest announcement from the company confirmed the Sony Xperia 1 II specs we already knew. It’ll come equipped with 5G support thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 chipset, 8GB RAM, and 256GB of internal storage. It’ll feature a 4,000mAh battery, which is 700mAh more than the previous version of the device. Overall, the phone is right where we’d expect it to be for a modern flagship, but they don’t do enough to justify the Sony Xperia 1 II’s $1,199.99 price tag.

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Source: Sony

The big thing that makes the Sony Xperia 1 II stand out from the crowd (other than the high price) is its camera. It’s not the best on the market, but it comes with some new features that make it a worthy contender. Specifically, Sony highlighted is the inclusion of 20fps continuous shooting capability, which is a feature no other smartphone has offered previously. This could be a big deal for anyone looking to capture photos of moving subjects, as it makes it easier to get multiple photos in a short timespan.

 Sony Xperia 1 II
Display6.5-inch HDR OLED
3,840 x 1,644 resolution (4K)
643ppi
Motion blur reduction (90Hz equivalent)
21:9 aspect ratio
Corning Gorilla Glass 6
SoCQualcomm Snapdragon 865
7nm+ process
Octa-core (1x2.84 GHz Kryo 585 & 3x2.42 GHz Kryo 585 & 4x1.8 GHz Kryo 585)
GPUAdreno 650
RAM8GB
Storage256GB
CamerasRear cameras
- Ultra-wide: 12MP sensor, 16mm, f/2.2 aperture, Dual PDAF
- Wide: 12MP sensor, 24mm, f/1.7 aperture, Dual PDAF, OIS
- Telephoto: 12MP sensor, 70mm, f/2.4 aperture, PDAF, OIS
- Depth sensor: 3D iTOF

Front camera: 8MP sensor
AudioHeadphone jack
Dual stereo front speakers
360 Reality Audio
DSEE upscaling
Battery4,000mAh
21W USB-PD wired charging
15W wireless charging
IP ratingIP65/68
Connectivity5G, sub-6GHz
SoftwareAndroid 10
Dimensions and weight166 x 72 x 7.9mm
181g
ColorsBlack, Purple

It’ll be interesting to see how buyers react to Sony’s price choice. The Sony Xperia 1 II is shaping up to be a really solid phone, but with such a high price tag, it’s entering the market in a valley that it will need to work hard to climb out of.