The new Sony Xperia 1 VIII has a new 1/1.56” sensor inside its telephoto camera – it’s four times larger than the sensor inside the Mark 7 model and it has four times the resolution too. The new model also redesigns the camera island, jumps to the latest Qualcomm chipset all while still maintaining trademark Xperia features like the expandable storage, the 3.5mm headphone jack and the two-stage shutter key.
Let’s go back to the cameras – Sony changed course in a major way. The Mark 7, 6, 5 and 4 had continuous optical zoom like on a point-and-shoot camera. Even the Mark 3 could switch between two focal lengths.
Sony Xperia 1 VIII’s new camera
The latest Xperia 1 VIII locks its telephoto camera to 70mm (2.9x magnification from the 24mm main lens). It then uses the higher resolution 48MP sensor for higher zoom levels. This module has an f/2.8 aperture and should perform better in the dark. However, the Mark 7 camera had a wider f/2.3 aperture at 3.5x zoom, which closed down to f/3.5 at the maximum extent of 7.1x.
The other camera modules are the same as before – a 48MP 1/1.35” main (24mm f/1.9 lens with OIS) and a 48MP 1/1.56” ultra-wide (16mm f/2.0 lens), plus a 12MP selfie camera (1/2.9” sensor, 24mm f/2.0 lens).
Sony says that RAW multi-frame processing is applied to all cameras, which helps to both extend the dynamic range and to reduce noise in low-light scenes. This also avoids issues like clipped highlights and crushed shadows.
Sony Xperia 1 VIII
Besides the tele lens, the other major upgrade this generation is the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, up from last year’s 8 Elite chip. This promises a 20% boost in CPU performance, a 23% faster GPU and up to 20% power usage reduction.
The phone has a 12/256GB base configuration with different options pushing RAM up to 16GB and storage up to 1TB. Again, we will point out to the microSD slot – a rarity these days even on mid-rangers, let alone on flagships.
The Snapdragon chip’s AI accelerator is tapped for the AI Camera Assistant feature (powered by Xperia Intelligence, Sony notes for branding purposes). This feature examines a scene (looking at subject, weather conditions and more) to recommend what settings to change, e.g. color tones, lens effects, etc. With a single tap you can accept the AI’s recommendation or you could play with the dials yourself to see if you can do better.
Sony Xperia 1 VIII
Sony’s Walkman pedigree is expressed via the 3.5mm headphone jack – you get lossless, latency-free audio and you don’t even need to worry about charging headphone batteries. What’s not to like?
Additionally, there are symmetrical left and right speakers for stereo audio without headphones. Sony optimized the speakers to produce deeper bass and higher highs than before and they create a wider soundstage to boot.
Some things that remain unchanged – for better or for worse – are the screen (a 6.5″ LTPO panel with up to 120Hz refresh rate) and the 5,000mAh battery. The screen is flat and has no cutouts (the camera is in the upper bezel), which many will love, but the 1080p+ resolution is on the low side (especially for a series once known for its 4K displays).
The battery has the same charging support as before – 30W wired and 15W wireless. Neither its capacity, nor the charging were great by 2025 standards, they feel even more outdated now.
Sony Xperia 1 VIII colors
Sony created four colorways for the Xperia VIII that are inspired by natural materials: Graphite Black, Iolite Silver, Garnet Red and Native Gold. The company also sells an official case with a built-in stand (that works in both portrait and landscape orientation) and is made of a translucent material that is resistant to yellowing.
The Sony Xperia 1 VIII is available for pre-order starting today – you can find it from Sony directly or on select online retailers. The base 12/256GB model starts at €1,500 / £1,400 and, during the pre-order period, will come with a free pair of Sony WH-1000XM6 headphones. The 1TB Native Gold model is exclusively available from Sony itself and will set you back €2,000 / £1,850. Shipping will begin in June.
