Sony today officially released the new generation flagship mobile phone Xperia 1 VIII. While continuing a series of traditional selling points such as the 3.5mm headphone jack, microSD storage expansion, and independent two-stage shutter button, it also significantly upgraded the telephoto imaging system and core chip. The new machine replaces the telephoto camera sensor with a 1/1.56-inch 48-megapixel CMOS, which has four times the area and number of pixels of the previous generation model. It adopts a new camera module layout and is upgraded to Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 platform, which significantly improves performance and energy efficiency.
In terms of imaging, Sony has made major adjustments to the continuous optical zoom solution that the Xperia 1 series has used for many generations. The "card-like" continuous optical zoom design that continued from the Xperia 1 III to the 1 VII has been cancelled. The telephoto lens of the Xperia 1 VIII is fixed at an equivalent focal length of 70mm (approximately 2.9 times the 24mm main camera), achieving higher zoom through cropping of the 48-megapixel high-resolution sensor. This telephoto lens has an aperture of f/2.8, and Sony says it will perform better in low-light environments than the previous generation model. For comparison, the Xperia 1 VII has a maximum aperture of f/2.3 at 3.5x zoom, which shrinks to f/3.5 when zoomed up to about 7.1x.
Except for the telephoto, the rest of the camera parameters of the Xperia 1 VIII basically follow the configuration of the previous generation, including a 1/1.35-inch 48-megapixel main camera (equivalent to 24mm, f/1.9, supports OIS anti-shake) and a 1/1.56-inch 48-megapixel ultra-wide-angle lens (equivalent to 16mm, f/2.0). The front camera is 12 million pixels, equipped with 1/2.9-inch sensor with 24mm f/2.0 equivalent lens. Sony said that all cameras in the fuselage support RAW multi-frame synthesis processing, which can expand the dynamic range and reduce low-light noise by superimposing multi-frame data, thereby trying to avoid problems such as highlight overflow and loss of shadow details.
In terms of performance platform, Xperia 1 VIII uses Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. Compared with the previous generation Elite chip, the CPU performance is improved by about 20%, the GPU performance is improved by about 23%, and the power consumption can be reduced by up to 20%. In terms of storage specifications, the base version is equipped with 12GB of memory and 256GB of flash memory, and users can also choose up to 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. Against the background that the current flagship camp generally cancels expanded storage, Sony still retains the microSD card slot, a feature that is relatively rare in mid-range machines.
The new machine also introduces an "AI Camera Assistant" function based on the chip's AI acceleration unit, powered by what Sony calls Xperia Intelligence. This function will analyze the subject, weather and other environmental information in the shooting scene, and give parameter suggestions including color style and lens effects. Users can adopt them with one click or manually adjust them on this basis.
In terms of audio, Sony continues its acoustic tradition from the Walkman era and continues to equip the Xperia 1 VIII with a 3.5mm headphone jack to provide a lossless, low-latency output experience for wired headphones while avoiding battery anxiety for Bluetooth headphones. In addition, the fuselage has built-in symmetrical left and right stereo speakers. Officials say they have been re-adjusted to make the low frequencies deeper, the high frequencies more transparent, and have a wider sound field performance.
The screen and battery life have not changed much. The Xperia 1 VIII still uses a 6.5-inch LTPO panel with a maximum refresh rate of 120Hz. It maintains a flat screen design and accommodates the front camera through the upper border, avoiding punch holes or bangs. This has certain appeal to users who prefer a complete screen look. However, the screen resolution is 1080p+, which is a bit conservative for the Xperia 1 series, which was once known for its 4K displays. The battery capacity is still 5000mAh, and the charging specifications maintain the 30W wired and 15W wireless charging solutions. It is a slightly outdated configuration in 2025, and is more conservative under the 2026 flagship standards.
In terms of appearance color matching, Sony has brought four colors to the Xperia 1 VIII, inspired by natural materials, namely Graphite Black, Iolite Silver, Garnet Red and Native Gold. The official also launched a protective case with a stand design. The stand can support both vertical and horizontal screen placement. The body is translucent and has anti-yellowing properties.
In terms of listing information, Xperia 1 VIII is now available for pre-order on Sony’s official and some online channels. The basic version of 12GB+256GB is priced at 1,500 euros / 1,400 pounds. During the pre-order period, a pair of Sony WH-1000XM6 headset noise-canceling headphones will be included. The highest-spec 1TB storage version is only available exclusively through Sony’s official channels, in Native Gold, priced at €2,000 / £1,850, and is expected to start shipping in June.