vs Pixel 8, Xiaomi 14 & Samsung Galaxy 24

The Sony Xperia 5 V was launched in September 2023 and is without doubt one of the few high-spec Android telephones in the marketplace.

With a 6.1-inch 21:9 OLED show, Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, versatile triple digicam system, and huge 5000mAh battery, the Xperia 5 V goals to ship a premium Android expertise for many who desire smaller handsets.

It’s not a telephone that you simply hear about usually and it faces stiff competitors from newer telephones such because the Pixel 8, Samsung Galaxy S24 and the Xiaomi 14. So, does it nonetheless stand out as a sensible choice in 2024?

Associated Evaluations

Specification

• Show: 6.1 inches, OLED, 120Hz, 1080 x 2520 pixels, 21:9 ratio
• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (4 nm)
• RAM: 8GB
• Storage: 128GB + microSDXC slot
• Rear Digital camera:
  • 48 MP, f/1.9, 24mm (vast), 1/1.35″, 1.12µm, twin pixel PDAF, OIS
  • 12 MP, f/2.2, 16mm (ultrawide), 1/2.5″, twin pixel PDAF
• Entrance Digital camera: 12 MP, f/2.0, 24mm (vast), 1/2.9″, 1.25µm
• Audio: 3.5mm headphone jack, 24-bit/192kHz Hello-Res audio
• Battery: 5000 mAh
• Charging: 30W wired PD3.0 + wi-fi
• Dimensions: 154 x 68 x 8.6 mm
• Weight: 182 g

Design

For higher or worse, Sony has chosen to disregard all of the traits in telephones in recent times. This isn’t to my private style, as I desire bigger telephones, however I can recognize how Sony’s decisions will attraction to many individuals who dislike the trendy types of telephones, that are more and more giant, many with curved shows, tiny bezels, and punch holes for the selfie digicam.

The Xperia 5 V maintains Sony’s distinctive design language from its earlier telephones with its tall 21:9 side ratio and angular edges.

The telephone measures 156 x 67 x 8.2 mm and weighs 168g, making it some of the compact Android flagships in the marketplace.

Gorilla Glass Victus defend the back and front, whereas the body is fabricated from aluminium. The telephone has an IP65/IP68 ranking for mud and water resistance.

The proper aspect homes the amount rocker, an influence button with an built-in fingerprint sensor and a devoted shutter button for the digicam.

MicroSD & 3.5mm

One of many standout options of the Xperia 5 V is the inclusion of a microSD card slot and a 3.5mm headphone jack, each of which have turn out to be more and more uncommon in flagship smartphones. The microSD slot helps playing cards as much as 1TB, permitting customers to considerably broaden the telephone’s storage capability.

Within the UK, it appears that evidently Sony solely sells the 128GB mannequin, so you might discover that the microSD is a necessity. I personally assume 128GB is simply too small for a telephone at this worth level, however out of the small telephones in the marketplace, solely the Xiaomi 14 provides 512GB storage as commonplace. Pixel and Samsung additionally begin at 128GB.

The headphone jack permits the usage of wired headphones with out a USB-C adapter, which is a welcome addition for audiophiles and people who desire the comfort and compatibility of wired audio gadgets.

Show

• 6.1 inches
• 1080 x 2520 pixels
• 21:9 ratio
• 83.0% screen-to-body ratio

The Xperia 5 V incorporates a 6.1-inch OLED show with a decision of 1080 x 2520 pixels, leading to a pixel density of 449 ppi.

There is no such thing as a punch gap selfie, you as an alternative get a thicker bezel on the prime.

The telephone’s 21:9 side ratio makes it tall and slim, and it feels smaller than it’s. Nonetheless, I can think about it’s good for folks with small fingers, as it’s best to have the ability to maintain it comfortably and use it with one hand with out an excessive amount of situation.

For me, it took fairly some time to get used to typing on the telephone as a result of the onscreen keyboard was so small.

The show helps HDR10 and has a 120Hz refresh fee for clean scrolling and animations. It additionally incorporates a 240Hz contact sampling fee for responsive gaming. The show is calibrated to ship correct colors and vast viewing angles.

Biometrics

• Facet-mounted fingerprint scanner
• No facial unlock

The Xperia 5 V opts for a side-mounted fingerprint scanner built-in into the facility button, which is quick and dependable. Nonetheless, the telephone lacks facial recognition, which can disappoint some customers preferring the comfort of face unlock.

Digital camera

• 48 MP, f/1.9 1/1.35″ Exmor T for cellular sensor
• 12 MP, f/2.2 1/2.5″ Exmor RS for cellular sensor#
• Images Professional, ZEISS optics calibrated particularly for Xperia 5 V, ZEISS T Coating
• 120 fps read-out velocity
• As much as 30 fps AF/AE burst
• As much as 60 instances per second steady AF/AE calculation
• Actual-time Eye AF(Human, Animal)
• Actual-time Monitoring
• OIS picture, Photograph flash, Photograph mild, Hybrid zoom 6.0x (primarily based on Large digicam 24 mm), AI Tremendous Decision Zoom, HDR (Excessive Dynamic Vary) picture, Evening capturing perform, Inventive look

The Xperia 5 V boasts a powerful digicam system developed in collaboration with ZEISS. The principle digicam makes use of a 48MP 1/1.35″ Exmor T sensor with an f/1.9 aperture and OIS. It’s accompanied by a 12MP ultra-wide digicam and a 12MP telephoto digicam with 3x optical zoom.

The digicam system options superior applied sciences corresponding to real-time eye AF for people and animals, real-time monitoring, and as much as 60 instances per second steady AF/AE calculation.

Very like the remainder of the telephone, the digicam expertise may be very completely different in comparison with different manufacturers. Sony has designed the app to work extra like a correct digicam. The controls are very completely different than different telephones, the place you usually keep throughout the auto mode and solely change the zoom.

The telephone has a primary mode, which is like your regular mode on telephones, however when you change to auto , the UI switches to one thing much like a digital digicam. You then even have to make use of the devoted shoot button on the aspect of the telephone.

That is nice for knowledgeable photographers who need far more management over the digicam than many competing manufacturers, however it’s a little intimidating for folks like me who principally depend on the all the automated processing options of telephones.

As you’d count on, the picture high quality is superb, with good element, dynamic vary, and color accuracy that’s far more pure than competing choices that are inclined to exaggerate colors.  

Low-light efficiency can be sturdy due to the massive sensor and OIS. The telephoto digicam delivers sharp pictures with minimal loss in high quality in comparison with the principle digicam.

Efficiency and Benchmarks

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (4 nm)
• 8GB GB RAM
• 128GB Storage
• microSD assist

The Xperia 5 V delivers glorious efficiency due to its Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset and 8GB of RAM, however, after all, that is not the flagship chipset. The Xiaomi 14 has the superior Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, and the Samsung Galaxy S24 has the Exynos 2400, which ought to, in principle, be higher. From my expertise, though the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is older than the Google Tensor G3 on the Pixel 8, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is a a lot better chipset.

The telephone handles demanding duties corresponding to gaming, video enhancing, and multitasking with ease. Apps launch shortly, and the person interface stays clean and responsive even beneath heavy load.

The 128GB of UFS 4.0 storage ensures quick learn and write speeds, whereas the microSD card slot permits for straightforward enlargement if wanted.

Benchmarks Outcomes

In benchmarks, the Xperia 5 V achieves comparable outcomes as different Snapdragon 8 Gen 2-powered gadgets with scores a contact increased than most.

It achieves single-core and multi-core scores of 2026 and 5393, respectively, in Geekbench 6

In AnTuTu V10, it achieved 1493668, placing it forward of the 1367374 I achieved with the Honor Magic5 Professional, however 23% behind the 1945797 that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 was able to on the Honor Magic6 Professional.

Within the 3Dmark Wildlife Stress Check, it achieved a excessive rating of 13216 and a low rating of 10248, giving it a stability of 77.5%.

The battery depleted 11percentpts, which works out at round 750mAh, which is on the upper finish of the spectrum, but it surely explains the marginally increased outcomes than different telephones with the identical chip.t

Battery

• 5000 mAh
• 30W wired PD3.0 charging
• 50% in 30 min
• Wi-fi

The Xperia 5 V packs a big 5000mAh battery, which is spectacular given the telephone’s compact measurement. This interprets to glorious battery life, with the telephone simply lasting a full day of heavy use and infrequently stretching right into a second day with extra reasonable utilization.

The telephone helps 30W wired charging by way of USB Energy Supply 3.0, which might cost the battery to 50% in simply half-hour. Wi-fi charging can be supported, though at a slower fee in comparison with wired charging.

Sony’s Adaptive Charging and Battery Care options assist extend the battery’s lifespan by intelligently controlling charging speeds and stopping overcharging.

Android 13

• Android 14 isn’t obtainable on my system but
• Reddit customers have reported points upgrading to Android 14

That is the place Sony has dropped the ball a bit. They begin off extremely nicely, Sony has minimalist customisations on prime of Android, and in the course of the set-up course of, you’re requested if you wish to set up further software program. This implies the telephone has no bloatware in any respect, which is, sadly, one thing I can’t say about many competing telephones. Xiaomi is especially dangerous for bloatware, however Honor has some, and Samsung OneUI has been closely modified with lots of Samsung apps added.

The Xperia 5 V runs Android 13 out of the field, which was anticipated because it launched one month earlier than the Pixel 8.

They’ve rolled out Android 14, however for some purpose, my telephone doesn’t give me the choice to improve.

Wanting on-line, it appears to be like like many individuals skilled issues with the preliminary replace stating issues with battery and freezing animations, although subsequent updates appear to have resolved this.

Sony has solely dedicated to replace this to Android 15 with three years of safety updates. So, two main updates, however they launched the telephone simply earlier than Android 14 was launched, so you aren’t actually getting two generations of updates.

I believe this can be a massive weak spot of the Xperia 5 V. It’s clearly geared toward lovers who will probably be extra demanding of normal updates and long-term assist. Samsung and Pixel are providing seven years’ price of updates, and the Xiaomi 14 will get 4 years of updates with 5 years of safety patches.

Worth and Different Choices

The Sony Xperia 5 V has an RRP of £749. This telephone can be obtainable on contract, and you will get it for £793 complete price by way of Three with limitless 5G information or £731 with 300GB of knowledge

At this worth level, the Xperia 5 V faces stiff competitors from different compact flagships.

The Google Pixel 8 Professional is £849, and the Pixel 8 is £600.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 is £799.

The Honor Magic6 Professional isn’t a small telephone,, however it’s lots of telephone for the cash. Its RRP is £1100, however you possibly can nonetheless get it for £850 utilizing the HiHonor voucher.

General

I just like the Sony Xperia 5 V, and Sony deserves credit score for doing one thing a bit completely different slightly than following the gang.

I believe the comparatively excessive worth and general design and specs make this fairly a distinct segment system, but it surely looks as if it is going to be very interesting to these with particular wants for a tool, and there’s not a lot by way of competitors.

Primarily, this is without doubt one of the solely gadgets with near flagship specs that has a 3.5mm headphone jack and microSD enlargement.

I used to be additionally very impressed with the dearth of bloatware and basic Android expertise, although that is considerably tarnished by nonetheless being on Android 13.

The digicam is a giant promoting level. Whereas its options are much less user-friendly than these of competing manufacturers, it’s higher for images lovers who need to tweak the settings and never depend on heavy synthetic processing.

Lastly, you’ve got a small 6.1-inch telephone however a big 5000mAh battery.

All this provides as much as a telephone that appeals to a really discerning person.

That stated, telephones just like the Pixel 8 or Pixel 8 Professional will probably be extra interesting for most individuals due to their higher software program assist, glorious user-friendly digicam, cheaper price level (for the Pixel 8), or higher digicam specs on the 8 Professional.

General, the Sony Xperia 5 V is a distinct segment system that caters to particular wants and preferences. It is probably not the only option for everybody, however it’s a compelling possibility that deserves consideration for many who worth a compact design, expandable storage, wired audio, and a succesful digicam system.

I’m James, a UK-based tech fanatic and the Editor and Proprietor of Mighty Gadget, which I’ve proudly run since 2007. Keen about all issues expertise, my experience spans from computer systems and networking to cellular, wearables, and sensible residence gadgets.

As a health fanatic who loves working and biking, I even have a eager curiosity in fitness-related expertise, and I take each alternative to cowl this area of interest on my weblog. My numerous pursuits enable me to deliver a singular perspective to tech running a blog, merging life-style, health, and the most recent tech traits.

In my tutorial pursuits, I earned a BSc in Info Methods Design from UCLAN, earlier than advancing my studying with a Grasp’s Diploma in Computing. This superior examine additionally included Cisco CCNA accreditation, additional demonstrating my dedication to understanding and staying forward of the expertise curve.

I’m proud to share that Vuelio has constantly ranked Mighty Gadget as one of many prime expertise blogs within the UK. With my dedication to expertise and drive to share my insights, I purpose to proceed offering my readers with participating and informative content material.