We've already seen phone launches from the likes of Samsung, Oppo, OnePlus and even Apple this year, but we were still waiting on Sony Mobile and additions to its Xperia line. Thankfully the wait is now over after the latest Xperia 1 - and Xperia 10 - were revealed at an event in May.

The successor to the Sony Xperia 1 III comes in the form of the Xperia 1 IV. There was a rumour Sony was looking to change up its name strategy again but don't worry, it didn't! 

This is everything you need to know about Sony's next Xperia flagship, the Xperia 1 IV - pronounced Xperia 1 mark four.

Sony Xperia 1 IV release date and price

  • 11 May 2022
  • Pre-orders open
  • Ships in next couple of weeks

The Sony Xperia 1 IV was announced at an event on 11 May 2022, which is a little later in the year than its predecessor was revealed.

Pre-orders will begin immediately for the Xperia 1 IV, and the device would be available on shelves in the next couple of weeks. In the UK it will be shipping from 16 June.

Sony Xperia 1 IV design

  • 165 x 71 x 8.2mm, 185g
  • Flat edges
  • IP65/IP68
  • Black, White, Purple

Sony hasn't changed up the design for its flagship Xperia smartphones too much in the last couple of years and that remains the case for the Xperia 1 IV. Since the move to the 21:9 aspect ratio, we've seen long, slim and narrow devices across the range.

The Xperia 1 IV features flat edges, bezels at the top and bottom of the display and a neat, pill-shaped vertical camera housing on the rear - far more inconspicuous than its competitors.

The physical fingerprint sensor within the power button continues to be present for the Xperia 1 IV again, along with a dedicated camera button. The often-omitted 3.5mm headphone jack is also present, but there is no Google Assistant button this time around.

Sony has long offered IP68 water and dust resistance on its devices - long before others did - so it's no surprise to see this on the Xperia 1 IV, along with a glass back and metal frame.

Colour options are Black, White and Purple.

Sony Xperia 1 IV display

  • 6.5-inches, OLED
  • 21:9 aspect ratio 
  • 4K, 120Hz, HDR

The Sony Xperia 1 IV has a 6.5-inch display, which is the same as the Xperia 1 III. It's an OLED display again - despite rumours suggesting an LTPO display might be on the cards for this device. It also continues with an 21:9 aspect ratio again, like previous versions of the Xperia 1 offer.

Resolution remains at 4K, which also comes as no huge surprise. Sony steered clear of the Quad HD+ trend, moving straight to a 4K resolution on its flagship smartphones so it was always expected on the Xperia 1 IV. 

There's also a 120Hz refresh rate and support for HDR, though the Xperia 1 IV is said to have a 50 per cent brighter display than its predecessor and Real-time HDR drive support.

Sony Xperia 1 IV hardware and specs

  • Snapdragon 8 Gen 1
  • 12GB RAM/256GB storage
  • 5000mAh battery
  • 30W charging

The Sony Xperia 1 IV runs on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor, which makes sense. Sony has long been a Qualcomm supporter, using its flagship chipsets in its devices so opting for the SD 8 Gen 1 in the Xperia 1 IV is a natural progression.

There's 12GB of RAM and 256GB storage as the base model, with microSD supported for stroage expansion up to 1TB. A 5000mAh battery is also under the hood of the Xperia 1 IV, which is a 500mAh increase from the Xperia 1 III.

The Xperia 1 IV offers 30W fast charging, like the Xperia 1 III, and it supports wireless charging too. One thing worth noting however, is the Sony Xperia 1 IV doesn't come with the charger, or the charging cable in the box.

There's full-stage stereo speakers on board, and the Xperia 1 IV supports features like Sony's 360 Reality Audio, DSEE Ultimate, 360 Reality Audio Upmix and something called Music Pro, designed for artists who want to record songs.

Sony Xperia 1 IV camera

  • Triple rear camera (12MP+12MP+12MP)
  • ToF sensor
  • 12MP front camera 

The Xperia 1 IV has a triple rear camera system on board with a ToF sensor and it is claimed to be the first smartphone to offer "true optical zoom". 

There are three 12-megapixel sensors making up the rear camera system, with one of these sensors an Optical Zoom lens offering optical zoom between 85mm and 125mm equivalent from a single module. This means the lens itself moves to achieve the zoom, as an interchangeable camera's would. 

The other two lenses are a 24mm lens with optical image stabilisation (OIS) and autofocus (AF) and a 16mm lens with AF. All three lenses can shoot 120fps 4K slow motion and they all offer features like Real-time Eye AF, Real-time eye tracking and 20fps AF/AE burst with HDR.

There's also object tracking for video on board, Eye AF for video, a higher dynamic range and live streaming.

On the front of the Xperia 1 IV, there's a 12-megapixel sensor.

Sony Xperia 1 IV rumours: What happened?

This is everything we heard about the Sony Xperia IV before it was revealed officially.

4 May 2022: Official Sony Xperia 1 IV teaser talks camera focal length, better zoom incoming?

Sony Mobile added a teaser video to its Weibo channel where Pierre Lambert - a photographer and YouTuber - talks about how it feels like using a "large optical lens", before stating "it just adds a range, not only in terms of focal length, but also in terms of creative possibilities." 

Details of the next Xperia 1 camera weren't revealed but the video suggests we're going to get a better zoom camera.

19 April 2022: Sony Xperia 1 IV leaks hint at price, design features and name change

A number of leaks surrounding the Xperia 1 IV have been rounded up by NotebookCheck, including information on the name of the device, price and some of the design aspects and specs.

28 February 2022: Leaked Sony Xperia 1 IV renders reveal all

Leaker OnLeaks in partnership with GizNext, presented a detailed look at the upcoming Sony Xperia 1 IV.

Along with the renders, a number of other key specs were detailed in the leak.

 31 January 2022: Sony Xperia 1 IV launching in May with Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, fast charging?

Leaker ZackBucks on Weibo claimed the Sony Xperia 1 IV could be revealed in May 2022, and a number of specifications were revealed.