Sony’s next premium phone, the Xperia 1 IV, is expected to rock a significantly upgraded camera system and a new Snapdragon chip, and this could lead to a price hike, per a couple of new rumors.
The Sony Xperia 1 III comes with a quad-camera array with a 12MP main camera, a 12MP telephoto sensor, a 12MP ultrawide unit, and a 0.3MP depth module. Its successor is rumored to offer a 48MP main camera, a 48MP (or possibly 50MP) ultra-wide-angle camera, a 48MP telephoto unit, and a periscope telephoto camera.
It’s also being said that the handset could feature the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Plus, which will seemingly be manufactured using TSMC’s 4nm process. The chip is rumored to be more expensive than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. It will apparently be paired with up to 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage.
Other rumored specs include a 6.5-inches 120Hz display, a 5,000mAh battery with support for 45W fast charging, a physical fingerprint reader, a dedicated shutter button, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
The Xperia 1 III starts at $1,299.99, which explains why it’s nowhere close in popularity to flagship phones from Apple, Samsung, and Google. Sony unfortunately seems determined to not learn anything from the past. The Xperia 1 IV is rumored to cost 6 to 20 percent more than its predecessor. Apparently, the phone will cost more to make because of the camera system and presumably the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Plus, and it looks like Sony will be passing on the cost increase to consumers.
The Xperia 1 IV is expected to start at at least 8,999 yuan (~$1,415) in China, which would make it 500 yuan (~$79) more expensive than the Xperia 1 III. The Japanese company is expected to reveal the phone in May but it will likely be released a few months after that.
