Xperia 5 III

[kyweng]

Sorry go off topic a bit here: any Sony Xperia users switched from Samsung? Any major issues when exporting the apps to the new phone?

I am using Samsung S10 now and looking for an upgrade, and this Xperia 5 III seems to tick all the right boxes for me, and so I am seriously considering switching.

I have been using Samsung S Galaxy series phones for many years and have not used a Sony phone before (actually, I used a Sony-Ericsson phone before many years ago, but just because i needed a non-camera phone due to my job requirements).

 

[maumu]

Sony already gave their reason for not going up the megapixels because its a gadget to shoot and upload. You do not need super high resolution and size for media. Thats for high end cameras ~ so 12mp is really more than enough. Last time compact cameras only 3mp 5mp 7mp... 8mp

yup, but they can perhaps upgrade the sensor size or aperture..? just puzzled why they didn't even attempt to upgrade either the main or ultrawide lens... didn't they know their ratings as compared to other flagships are already lower? a bigger sensor might be, say, able to bump their photo score higher. just look at how the current 1 mark II fare at the dxomark rankings...

 

[darkmatt]

yup, but they can perhaps upgrade the sensor size or aperture..? just puzzled why they didn't even attempt to upgrade either the main or ultrawide lens... didn't they know their ratings as compared to other flagships are already lower? a bigger sensor might be, say, able to bump their photo score higher. just look at how the current 1 mark II fare at the dxomark rankings...

but they did upgrade the aperture..

f/2.0 to f/1.8. How much more u want?

Also, idk how good you want your camera to be... I have a DSLR and I use that frequently.. Sometimes I shoot the exact same scene with my phone.. side by side, I really cannot see much diff.. Even when I send to my friend, he cant tell which is which.

Like I do edit and send pictures around to people too and we all find it OK...

Don't get misled by advertising.

As someone once told me before, "unless you are printing on a football field, spend more money on a camera with more features, than a camera with higher MP count."

and fyi, my DSLR camera is also 12.2 MP..


From what I see, those who complain the camera suck, dont even know what they are talking about lol.

https://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/14/technology/15pogue-email.html

 

[Toader]

yup, but they can perhaps upgrade the sensor size or aperture..? just puzzled why they didn't even attempt to upgrade either the main or ultrawide lens... didn't they know their ratings as compared to other flagships are already lower? a bigger sensor might be, say, able to bump their photo score higher. just look at how the current 1 mark II fare at the dxomark rankings...

Dxomark site cannot be trusted. Google and you know they are $ oriented.

 

[maumu]

but they did upgrade the aperture..

f/2.0 to f/1.8. How much more u want?

Also, idk how good you want your camera to be... I have a DSLR and I use that frequently.. Sometimes I shoot the exact same scene with my phone.. side by side, I really cannot see much diff.. Even when I send to my friend, he cant tell which is which.

Like I do edit and send pictures around to people too and we all find it OK...

Don't get misled by advertising.

As someone once told me before, "unless you are printing on a football field, spend more money on a camera with more features, than a camera with higher MP count."

and fyi, my DSLR camera is also 12.2 MP..


From what I see, those who complain the camera suck, dont even know what they are talking about lol.

https://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/14/technology/15pogue-email.html

According to GSMArena the main and ultra wide lens for 1 mark iii and mark ii are identical... even the front camera remains unchanged. unless the website (https://m.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=10096&idPhone2=10712) is wrong

I understand MP is not a fair indicator. Actually Xperia phones have been lagging behind in terms of camera software (maybe the AI or something related). My last Xperia was Z5 and it paled in comparison to other flagships back then (photos were not as sharp, as vibrant, etc.) and I jumped ship to Huawei and didn't look back (until US bans Google with Huawei).

Was just hoping they could improve the specs for sensor size and aperture. Anyway, shall wait for the reviews to come up slowly (which is real slow as compared to other flagships).

Dxomark site cannot be trusted. Google and you know they are $ oriented.

Where else do you get trusted reviews from? Pls share

 

[Toader]

According to GSMArena the main and ultra wide lens for 1 mark iii and mark ii are identical... even the front camera remains unchanged. unless the website (https://m.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=10096&idPhone2=10712) is wrong

I understand MP is not a fair indicator. Actually Xperia phones have been lagging behind in terms of camera software (maybe the AI or something related). My last Xperia was Z5 and it paled in comparison to other flagships back then (photos were not as sharp, as vibrant, etc.) and I jumped ship to Huawei and didn't look back (until US bans Google with Huawei).

Was just hoping they could improve the specs for sensor size and aperture. Anyway, shall wait for the reviews to come up slowly (which is real slow as compared to other flagships).



Where else do you get trusted reviews from? Pls share

Gsmarena usually post the pictures. The 1/1.7inch 24mm sensor of the Xperia 1II is already a very good sensor. The rest is up to the user to set and optimize using photography pro.

 

[trenzterra]

I think it's more of software. The Xperia 1iii has a bigger sensor than the iPhone 12PM so that is clearly not the limiting factor. Coming from Sony alpha cameras, the familiar interface is quite attractive to me. Looking to upgrade from my note 10+ but dk by the time reach sg is when Liao...

 

[Toader]

I think it's more of software. The Xperia 1iii has a bigger sensor than the iPhone 12PM so that is clearly not the limiting factor. Coming from Sony alpha cameras, the familiar interface is quite attractive to me. Looking to upgrade from my note 10+ but dk by the time reach sg is when Liao...

Xperia 1 III will likely start selling soon during may but xperia 5III likely selling later half of year from Zackbuks.

 

[ThinkMe]

S/W matters bah. Pixel too.

Sony already gave their reason for not going up the megapixels because its a gadget to shoot and upload. You do not need super high resolution and size for media. Thats for high end cameras ~ so 12mp is really more than enough. Last time compact cameras only 3mp 5mp 7mp... 8mp

Actually I am for the 12MP cameras. So that the rear will not be that bulky and can at least stay still on the table.

 

[darkmatt]

Honestly, I find the camera software ok.. maybe u guys are just used to the auto processing provided by the other brands?

The unedited pics are actually more natural looking.

I can honestly get the same effect just by tweaking a few settings. And if need be, photoshop..

 

[robolee]

You got good hardware but software lousy also no use. I mean look at Xiaomi 11 Ultra, Got hardware but the software really omegalul. Megapixel high also useless

 

[maumu]

i agree wholeheartedly that 12MP is enough. it also means a higher pixel size (assuming similar sensor size) which will mean less noise.

however Sony's image processing software ironically produces kinda dull looking photos (saturation?). yes it could be that we're used to high saturated photos that are in-your-face. for typical day-to-day mobile photography i wouldn't be thinking of doing so much post-shoot editing using photoshop...

and I think overall, sensor size is still the most critical. just for comparison:

Xperia 1/5 mark III
12 MP, f/1.7, 24mm (wide), 1/1.7", 1.8µm, Dual Pixel PDAF, OIS
12 MP, f/2.3, 70mm (telephoto), f/2.8, 105mm (telephoto), 1/2.9", Dual Pixel PDAF, 3x/4.4x optical zoom, OIS
12 MP, f/2.2, 124˚, 16mm (ultrawide), 1/2.5", Dual Pixel PDAF

Oneplus 9 Pro
48 MP, f/1.8, 23mm (wide), 1/1.43", 1.12µm, omnidirectional PDAF, Laser AF, OIS
8 MP, f/2.4, 77mm (telephoto), 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS, 3.3x optical zoom
50 MP, f/2.2, 14mm (ultrawide), 1/1.56", 1.0µm

so on main lens it's 1/1.7" vs 1/1.43" but 1.8µm vs 1.12µm (lower noise but smaller sensor)
on ultrawide it's 1/2.5" vs 1/1.56" (much smaller sensor, not sure about pixel size)
telephoto I think they're comparable (I think Sony has a slight edge)

I guess we will have to wait for reviews to compare the photos side-by-side. i'm undecided between these two models!

 

[Toader]

Its you need to learn to fully use and optimize the software. What Sony camera takes is usually closest to what your eyes see during that time and day . Other phones apply HDR permanently. Not Sony. But Sony also has HDR settings. Combine it with the 24mm lens, the MVP lens, (f1.7 aperture will make a huge difference ) and you can see the difference. Another function is to take raw photo and edit instead of using JPEG. Sony usually don't do Instagram worthy (over punchy and over saturated colors and fake scenes ) out of camera default settings. It takes away the real meaning of photography.

 

[darkmatt]

i agree wholeheartedly that 12MP is enough. it also means a higher pixel size (assuming similar sensor size) which will mean less noise.

however Sony's image processing software ironically produces kinda dull looking photos (saturation?). yes it could be that we're used to high saturated photos that are in-your-face. for typical day-to-day mobile photography i wouldn't be thinking of doing so much post-shoot editing using photoshop...

and I think overall, sensor size is still the most critical. just for comparison:

Xperia 1/5 mark III
12 MP, f/1.7, 24mm (wide), 1/1.7", 1.8µm, Dual Pixel PDAF, OIS
12 MP, f/2.3, 70mm (telephoto), f/2.8, 105mm (telephoto), 1/2.9", Dual Pixel PDAF, 3x/4.4x optical zoom, OIS
12 MP, f/2.2, 124˚, 16mm (ultrawide), 1/2.5", Dual Pixel PDAF

Oneplus 9 Pro
48 MP, f/1.8, 23mm (wide), 1/1.43", 1.12µm, omnidirectional PDAF, Laser AF, OIS
8 MP, f/2.4, 77mm (telephoto), 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS, 3.3x optical zoom
50 MP, f/2.2, 14mm (ultrawide), 1/1.56", 1.0µm

so on main lens it's 1/1.7" vs 1/1.43" but 1.8µm vs 1.12µm (lower noise but smaller sensor)
on ultrawide it's 1/2.5" vs 1/1.56" (much smaller sensor, not sure about pixel size)
telephoto I think they're comparable (I think Sony has a slight edge)

I guess we will have to wait for reviews to compare the photos side-by-side. i'm undecided between these two models!

I agree about the saturation portion (Which btw can be adjusted ). That aside, don't blame the software if you cannot appreciate natural stuff.

What sony did is right. I dont need 100% saturation for everything. I am glad to be given the choice to use what I want. (You want it, can just turn it on. But I am glad the default is off)

Also, 3.5mm jack is ultra important for me. coz playing music games on a wireless DAC gives me a 1beat lag...

One gripe I have is sony needs to improve their night/low light shooting.. It's really a joke

 

[Illusionist_85]

Sorry go off topic a bit here: any Sony Xperia users switched from Samsung? Any major issues when exporting the apps to the new phone?
I am using Samsung S10 now and looking for an upgrade, and this Xperia 5 III seems to tick all the right boxes for me, and so I am seriously considering switching.
I have been using Samsung S Galaxy series phones for many years and have not used a Sony phone before (actually, I used a Sony-Ericsson phone before many years ago, but just because i needed a non-camera phone due to my job requirements).

I switched from S3 to xperia years ago.

app just redownload lo, you can use xperia transfer software on the phone to transfer files, phone number, sms,etc

 

[maumu]

One gripe I have is sony needs to improve their night/low light shooting.. It's really a joke

i'm not sure but I guess the sensor size makes quite a difference for night/low light shooting (smaller sensor, lesser light captured, more noise and also lower dynamic range)... phones with much bigger sensors tend to produce brighter shots at low light and more contrast.

 

[maumu]

just wondering for the ultrawide lens is it freeform like what sony has produced for oppo/oneplus? can't seem to tell from the specs/product website.

want to see if the mark III also has the distortion free effect.

 

[Toader]

I agree about the saturation portion (Which btw can be adjusted ). That aside, don't blame the software if you cannot appreciate natural stuff.

What sony did is right. I dont need 100% saturation for everything. I am glad to be given the choice to use what I want. (You want it, can just turn it on. But I am glad the default is off)

Also, 3.5mm jack is ultra important for me. coz playing music games on a wireless DAC gives me a 1beat lag...

One gripe I have is sony needs to improve their night/low light shooting.. It's really a joke

For low light use the 24mm sensor and turn on HDR . The 24mm sensor is the biggest sensor in the phone and the biggest aperture.

 

[garychengjw]

https://www.androidauthority.com/2021-sony-phones-price-release-date-1218316/

 

[Kepller]

https://www.androidauthority.com/2021-sony-phones-price-release-date-1218316/

The price is really not that great if Sony SG follows the Russian price. It is basically competing against Xiao Mi 11 Ultra with smaller sensors, lower peak brightness screen, smaller battery, smaller screen, awakwardly wide aspect ratio (media consumption will suffer especially since majority of content are 16:9, be prepared for thick black vertical bars on the left and right of the 6.5" screen resulting in an overall smaller viewing experience) etc. Overall it feels like a lower spec Mi 11 Ultra since Sony is positioning it in this price range.

If the Mi 11 Ultra had the Headphone Jack and Micro SD Card slot, it would've been game over for the Xperia 1 III. There are decent Cinema Pro app alternatives which the Android user can get on the Play Store.

On the other hand, if the Xperia 1 III had similar or larger sensors as the Mi 11 Ultra, high peak brightness screen, larger battery, larger or not too long-ish screen it would be truly worth the asking price and the Mi 11 Ultra would've been defeated.

Currently the only potential saving grace for this Xperia 1 III and the Xperia 5 III is if the price is significantly lower than those phones mentioned. Otherwise they will continue to remain the underdog as the average consumers would only pay attention to phones that have very obvious features. Xperia is focusing on very specialized features that not many will understand at first glance and will skip it for that reason alone if the price is similar to the other phones with more obvious "WOW" features. Price it against the basic ROG Phone 5 at $SGD 900 or perhaps the One Plus 9 at $950 +- and maybe then, the Xperia 1 III will begin to be relevant.