Sony is still going strong with its Xperia slate of smartphones, even in 2020. Where the Xperia 1 II is a great companion for photographers who like to shoot dynamically on the fly, its lanky body always meant that it was going to be slightly unwieldy even for the light packer.
That’s where the new Sony Xperia 5 II comes in. Sporting a compact, ergonomic design at just 68mm wide and 8mm thick, it is perfect for snapping your shots on the go as it fits comfortably in your hand or pocket without jutting out awkwardly and risk dropping out in the process. And during our brief time of trying it on-hand, it certainly does hold up as a bona fide secondary camera for just about any photographer.
Don’t be fooled by its diminutive size; the Xperia 5 II also comes with a camera system designed with tech used in Sony’s esteemed Alpha series mirrorless cameras, including Real-time Eye AF that lets users line up the perfect portrait shots for both humans and animals. Like the Xperia 1 II before it, this smartphone comes with up to 20fps burst shooting with continuous auto-focus that performs AF/AE calculations at 60 times per second so you can be assured of never missing a beat.
This is all accessed via the Photography Pro camera app on the Xperia 5 II, which gives users control on their camera settings with a UI akin to that of a typical Sony Alpha camera. And with lenses of 16mm/24mm/70mm, users are able to produce a wide variety of images compared to conventional smartphones.
Additionally, those who relish shooting 4K videos will be thrilled to know that the Xperia 5 II comes with the world’s first 4K HDR 120fps slow-motion movie recording in any smartphone ever. This is a continuation of the device’s focus toward dynamic photography, so you won’t have to rely on a dedicated action camera for your most high-speed shots on activities such as skateboarding or dancing; just use this smartphone.
Besides packing enough camera punch to potentially put other flagship smartphones to shame, the Xperia 5 II is also game- and video streaming-ready, with a massive 21:9 CinemaWide 6.1 FHD+ HDR OLED display with a buttery-smooth 120Hz refresh rate and 240Hz motion blur reduction. This ensures that not only colours are constantly crisp and vibrant on videos, images and movies, but also provides users with enough response time to react in intense competitive games such as Asphalt 9 or PUBG Mobile.
Rounding off the Sony Xperia 5 II specs-wise are a 4,000mAh battery, as well as IPX68 water resistance, and (surprisingly) even a headphone jack.
The Sony Xperia 5 II is available in Singapore now, and retails for S$1,349 at the official Sony flagship store on Lazada.
Marion has a serious RPG addiction. Sometimes it bleeds into real life; he forgets to sleep because he thinks he has a Witcher’s body clock. Forgive him in advance if he suddenly blurts out terms such as “Mind Flayer” and “Magic Missile”, because never once does he stop thinking about his next Dungeons & Dragons game.
Si Jia
Trinity Sun
