Sony Xperia 5 III review: The ‘weird Sony’ compact flagship

Our Verdict

The Sony Xperia v Three is an impressive compact alternative to the standard flagship phones — packing bang-up cameras and a beautiful display in a unique, compact design. It's a shame this formula is allow downwards by poor thermals and confusing camera software.

For

Powerful Snapdragon 888 bit
Solid battery life
Gorgeous 21:9 display
Strong cameras...

Against

...only pro camera apps are not easy to utilise
Gets very hot, very fast
No wireless charging
Not much improvement over the Xperia 5 II

Laptop Mag Verdict

The Sony Xperia v Iii is an impressive compact alternative to the standard flagship phones — packing great cameras and a beautiful display in a unique, compact pattern. It's a shame this formula is let down by poor thermals and confusing camera software.

Pros

+
Powerful Snapdragon 888 chip
+
Solid bombardment life
+
Gorgeous 21:ix display
+
Stiff cameras...

Cons

-
...but pro camera apps are not easy to use
-
Gets very hot, very fast
-
No wireless charging
-
Not much improvement over the Xperia v Ii

Sony'southward Xperia smartphones have a reputation of existence compact-even so-tall, and the Xperia 5 3 is no unlike.

Similar to the previous Xperia 5 II, this latest model is tall-withal-compact cheers to the 21:9 CinemaWide display, and comes with a like triple camera system from the engineers behind Sony'south Blastoff a9 full-frame mirrorless cameras.

In fact, the but real differences between the Xperia five III and its predecessor are a bigger bombardment, a slightly different camera assortment and an upgrade to a Snapdragon 888 processor. Does this beefed up power and continued focus on pro-level photographic camera command make for a worthwhile upgrade? Let's find out.

Sony Xperia 5 Three: Price and configurations

Sorry, The states readers. There doesn't seem to exist plans to make the phone available in America.

However, the Xperia v Iii is upwards for sale in the UK for £899. This pricing puts it in the same range as the likes of the OnePlus 9 Pro, Pixel six Pro and iPhone 13 Pro.

Sony Xperia 5 III: Pattern

If you've held one Sony Xperia telephone over the past couple of years, you lot've held them all. That'southward not necessarily a bad thing given the use of premium materials and a restrained all-black aesthetic.

Sony Xperia 5 III review — (Image credit: Laptop Mag)

This classic glass-and-metallic sandwich comes with a dual-SIM tray on the left that you lot can remove without a pin, and various buttons on the right edge including a dedicated camera shutter button. As for ports, yous have two: a USB-C and a warmly welcomed 3.5mm headphone jack.

At 6.2 x 2.7 ten 0.3 inches, the extended length and towering brandish make this phone taller than the iPhone 13 Pro (5.8 10 2.viii ten 0.3 inches), merely smaller in width and ever so slightly thinner, also. Plus, at 5.9 ounces, this is significantly lighter than Apple's vii.ii-ounce pro telephone. There is hardly any point in comparing this to the OnePlus nine Pro, which is massive (half-dozen.iv x 2.9 x 0.34 inches, 7 ounces).

All of this translates into a compact phone that seems weirdly tall at kickoff glance, but is comfortable to hold thanks to its lightweight, skinny footprint. In a sea of standard slabs, this Sony stands out.

Sony Xperia 5 III: Display

Continuing in lock-step with the Sony Xperia lineage, the 5 III's six.1-inch OLED display sports a 21:ix attribute ratio, 1080 x 2520-pixel resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate.

Sure, this may not be the 4K dazzler of a console that you detect on the Xperia 1 Three. Neither is it a QHD resolution, only allow's be honest, FHD+ resolution is more than enough for most of the states. Plus, while I can't specifically exam Sony'south merits of a 100% DCI-P3 colour gamut, I can say the visitor absolutely nailed the screen's color temperature and contrast ratio.

Everything you look at is brimming with vivid colors and the buttery smooth motion is great for ultra-wide gaming and watching a range of videos. The classic light-green code pops off the screen with a brilliant polish during The Matrix Resurrections trailer, and the darker scenes were in precipitous detail.

Living up to its "CinemaWide" branding, this is i of the best smartphones for viewing content — beaten just by its bigger 4K sibling.

Sony Xperia v III: Audio

Of grade, a skillful viewing feel needs powerful sound, which this phone delivers handily thanks to three cardinal features.

The big headlines here are support for Hi-Res wireless sound, thanks to the LDAC codec on-lath and 360-degree spatial sound. That means you lot can make the virtually of Sony'south ain WF-1000XM4 earbuds, or the likes of Soundcore's Liberty 3 Pro or Edifier Neobuds Pro. If you haven't heard the difference betwixt standard AAC audio and LDAC for yourself, it is night and day.

Another big win is the standing support for wired headphones thank you to the 3.5mm audio jack. My archetype Sennheiser cans are getting a workout and it speaks to the versatility of the Xperia five Three.

Without headphones though, the dual stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos evangelize crisp sonics without distortion. Sure, they're tinny at high volumes, every bit you'd expect with whatsoever smartphone, merely Four Yr Strong's cover of "Bloodshot Symphony" sounded not bad. The subtle details shone, while the thrashing loud chorus was all kept under control.

I'd be remiss non to mention that Sony added a feature called Dynamic Vibration, which essentially uses the on-board haptics to deliver a physical accent to what you're watching. Information technology'due south a gimmick and 99% of the time, information technology doesn't make sense, as you spotter your telephone vibrate off the table while watching YouTube videos.

But that 1% when you're watching movies and Television receiver shows with fantastically ranged soundscapes (Invasion on Apple Television set, for example) it actually adds to the feel. The subtle vibrations deliver a tactile awareness, activating some other sense as you sentry content. Information technology's a feature that needs some work, but Sony's onto something here.

Sony Xperia 5 Three: Performance

Under the hood, y'all'll observe a Snapdragon 888 chipset alongside 8GB RAM and 128GB of on-board storage, which is expandable thanks to the microSD card slot. In our own Geekbench five testing, the Xperia 5 III striking a multi-core score of three,689. Unsurprisingly, the iPhone 13 Pro thumps information technology with a 4,718 multi-cadre score, and with an identical processor, Sony matches the OnePlus ix Pro (3,685 multi-core).

On the graphical side, in the Wild Life Unlimited 3D Mark test, the phone once again matches OnePlus with an average frame rate of 35 frames per second, which doesn't come close to the stratospheric iPhone thirteen Pro (77 fps).

In real-world apply, this all translates into a fluid Android user feel. It'due south certainly not the fastest I've seen (take a look at the gaming-axial Redmagic 6S Pro for that), but information technology can tackle all of your day-to-twenty-four hour period tasks and even prosumer use cases, such as recording 4K HDR video at 120 fps. Fifty-fifty with just 8GB of RAM compared to the OnePlus 9 Pro's 12GB, multitasking is swift.

Yous will fifty-fifty find a dedicated gaming mode that intelligently clears the RAM it needs and pumps upwards the performance to the detriment of battery life. 1 issue across the board, which isn't limited to merely this high power mode, is the temperature of the phone.

I don't take a temperature gun on hand to clock this phone, but it felt hot during my testing. In fact, opening the Movie house Pro app gives you a alert well-nigh the device temperature potentially resulting "in burns."

All-in-all, it's a fast telephone but Sony needs to improve the thermal management for the Xperia 5 IIII.

Sony Xperia v III: Bombardment life & charging

The Sony Xperia 5 3 packs a iv,500 mAh battery and 30W charging. Battery life is ever a moving target because information technology depends on your daily usage — and even more then with the Xperia v III since it features prosumer-level apps and tools.

I made it through a standard day (a few hours of web browsing, calls, messaging, listening to podcasts and Spotify all day, social media use, plenty of check-ups on my crypto portfolio, and wrapping upward with some gaming in the evening) with about 5-10% remaining. With the included charger, I juiced this device up to 50% in simply over 30 minutes. That's not the fastest — that trophy belongs to the Xiaomi 11T Pro — just it's a skillful result nonetheless.

Meanwhile, given the power and capabilities of the pro camera apps, they can kill the battery quickly. All-in-all, the stamina is a mixed purse, which makes the lack of wireless charging more impactful from a convenience standpoint.

Sony Xperia 5 Iii: Cameras

The Sony Xperia 5 III copies the Xperia 1 III's homework with the same 12MP triple camera system, minus the Time of Flight (ToF) sensor used to decide the depth of a shot.

In more particular, your main shooter is a 12MP sensor with a 24mm lens and f/1.seven aperture, which works aslope a 12MP ultra-wide 16mm snapper with f/2.2 and a 12MP telephoto that tin switch between an f/two.3 70mm or f/2.8 108mm lens for an impressively versatile shooting setup.

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Prototype ii of 2

Inheriting Sony's pro camera DNA, these cameras can exist controlled by 1 of 2 apps: Photo Pro and Movie theatre Pro. If you've ever used an Alpha camera, you'll feel right at home. You take an auto manner that does produce decent shots with true-to-life colors, which may seem flat to any who'southward taken a photo on a Samsung phone, merely I similar the more realistic tones on the leaves hither.

The ultra-wide lens is a welcome change of pace likewise, from the 8MP afterthoughts on other phones to the detailed, expressive shots that focus quick and provide 12MP of detail. And of form, that variable telephoto lens gives yous a squeamish optical zoom pick, which does fall victim to some noise around the edges thanks to the narrower aperture.

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However, the existent party trick is the astonishing level of customization. The capabilities awarded through manual settings, such as altering the shutter speed and white balance, means y'all can permit your creative heed run wild — provided you know what you're doing, as these options can get quite convoluted.

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The formula does fall down slightly in depression light. There isn't a dedicated dark manner here, which when set to motorcar, means yous tin can't customize shutter speed and exposure. That leads to dull and noisy shots. Side by side time, Sony, simply give united states of america a dark manner and be done with it.

Plus, the 8MP selfie camera delivers a squeamish, detailed shot with the help of centre detection for sharp focus and mitt gesture recognition to take pictures past waving, which reduces the photographic camera shake of pushing the button.

When applied to video, the 4K capture via the rear cameras is a solid step above what you tin expect from many Android phones nowadays, so long as you can make the most of the Picture palace Pro app. In Car style, the video is pretty standard, only with the do good of all the custom settings, you can get some great cinematic content.

Overall, the cameras are a real strength for Sony'due south Xperia five III, just the pro-level software puts their true potential out of reach for most. Simplicity is needed in the moments where yous just need a point-and-shoot, because nobody has the time to tweak the settings and brand a masterpiece every time.

Sony Xperia 5 III: Software

The Sony Xperia v Three runs Android xi with no bloatware except for a link to a costless 3-month Tidal subscription for lossless audio streaming. The UI overlays added to help you overcome the taller display are useful, with easy access to split-screen multitasking and the Side Sense bar for additional control.

Sony does stumble with software update back up, though. While in that location is no official policy on how long the company will support the Xperia v, history suggests yous'll get ii years of updates. This is disappointing, as you're able to become better software support from cheaper phones.

Bottom line

In many ways, the Sony Xperia five Iii is the compact flagship I've always wanted. Information technology is a smaller device that doesn't compromise on performance, cameras or display, adding upwardly to an unmistakably premium experience.

But Sony shoots itself in the human foot in three areas: camera software that you lot need to take a photography course to employ across the auto mode, an overheating trouble, and very minor upgrades over the Xperia 5 2 (which costs significantly less).

This is a niche smartphone. If you tin make the most of it, you'll love every second and forgive these issues. If not, I recommend looking elsewhere similar the Google Pixel vi Pro or OnePlus 9 Pro.

Jason brings a decade of tech and gaming journalism experience to his function as a writer at Laptop Mag. He specializes in finding the all-time deals to make sure you lot never pay more than you lot should for gadgets! Jason takes a item involvement in writing and creating videos about laptops, headphones and games. He has previously written for Kotaku, Stuff and BBC Science Focus. In his spare time, you'll find Jason looking for good dogs to pet or thinking about eating pizza if he isn't already.