Sony Xperia 1 II

In-depth controls for photos and video ; 20fps burst shooting is fantastic ; Excellent performance ; Mostly clean software based on Android 10 ; Handsome 4K screen

Oddball design won't work for everyone ; Lousy selfie camera ; This phone slides around constantly ; Some productivity features feel flaky

Fast focussing;A lovely screen;Great manual camera apps

Very expensive, especially compared to what else is on the market;Other phones take better pictures in auto mode

Technical, no-nonsense design, the flat frame is great for handling too.

Display not as bright as key competitors, the 4K resolution has little practical benefit.

What we're saying is that the Xperia 1 II isn't great value at its projected retail price, and that prevents it from getting an all-out recommendation. What it is, on the other hand, is a great phone for Sony fans or for anyone else with a...

Class-leading sound quality ; Class-leading video quality ; 3.5mm headphone jack

Shape may not be for everyone ; No face ID

The Sony Xperia 1 II delivers superb music and picture performance, plus an all-round performance to match, and that makes it a winner in our book

Minimalist aesthetics ; Manual camera experience ; Minimal Android customizations

Too expensive ; Missing key flagship features like 5G (in the US), high refresh rate screen ; Slippery, awkward body

Sony’s 2020 flagship smartphone, the Xperia 1 II, features a new camera system with a huge main sensor. It’s designed to work more like Sony’s mirrorless Alpha cameras, but taking all of your photos in full manual can be exhausting.

Great display ; Solid design and build ; Lots of power

Disjointed camera experience ; Messy camera app ; Average battery life ; Bad Wi-Fi ; Software bugs

Sony's flagship Xperia is the phone of two halves: the front half is pretty good with that great display and wonderful speakers, the rear half is pretty weak with a disjointed and messy camera experience.

Photos and videos are wonderful ; Autofocus is brilliant ; Cinema Pro app is a delight to use ; 4K display looks incredible indoors

The price is too damn high ; Poor battery life ; 4K display hard to see outdoors ; Selfie camera is average ; Multiple custom Sony apps are buggy or poorly organized

Outstanding, colour-accurate screen ; Great cameras for video ; Reliable performance

Expensive ; Plain design ; Battery life isn’t the best

It’s impossible not to discuss the merits or otherwise of the Xperia 1 II without mention of the price. In my view, considering the calibre of phones on offer at half the price these days, the Xperia 1 II is simply too expensive. There’s absolutely no...

4K HDR that fits in your pocket ; Pro-level stills and video recording apps ; 5G and CPU grunt to match the best phones

Size can be hard to handle, even with software help ; Photos more muted than rivals when shooting in Auto ; Pricey

Combines a cinephile-grade display with camera smarts taken straight from Sony’s Alpha division to great effect. Outright image quality might not be the best, but this feature-packed flagship is still one of the most photographer-friendly handsets around