Sony releases expensive phones at a rate of knots. It seems only a few months since we reviewed the Xperia Z3+ because, heck, it was. Just three months on Sony gives us the Sony Xperia Z5. The Z3+ is already old news. If you bought one, we feel your pain.
Where’s the Z4? The Xperia Z3+ was released as the ‘Z4’ in Japan: the name’s already taken.
Unsurprisingly, there’s no grand innovation with the Xperia Z5. Sony is gunning for that with the even more expensive Xperia Z5 Premium and its 4K screen, which hardly ever renders at 4K resolution. Oops.
This more sensible mobile doesn’t hit us like the Samsung Galaxy S6, which was as refreshing as a morning dip in an ice pool. However, it’s a decent choice if you can’t stand the thought of siding with Samsung.
A GLASSY AFFAIR
Sony can’t seem to stand by a phone for much longer than it takes to make a cup of tea, but it still loves the metal and glass boxy design it has been touting since the Xperia Z series began in 2013. You get glass on the back and front, metal on the sides and little bungs of plastic on the corners, so any impacts don’t head straight to the glass on the back and turn it into a fractured spider’s web.
It’d be a shame if that happened too, because the Sony Xperia Z5’s back glass in particular is quite lovely. It has a frosted finish unlike the earlier Z-series glossier phones, which both feels more refined and avoids any scratches becoming too apparent.
The Xperia Z5 I’m checking out has a dark green finish, but you can also get it with gold or black back and sides.
It’s a good look, but the feel of the phone isn’t best-in-class. The sides of the Xperia Z5 actually stick out from the glass back just a fraction, and it’s enough to give the rear a kinda sharp feel. It doesn’t have anything like the smoothness of the HTC One M9 or Samsung Galaxy S6.
We’re even at the stage where a 7.3mm-thick phone like this can feel slightly chunky, because that thickness extends across the whole width of the phone. The Huawei Mate S makes it feels like a pork pie fan by comparison. A teeny-tiny bit fat and a bit sharp isn’t the best combo for a £550 phone.
As ever with this sort of thing: try to get your hands on the Xperia Z5 and the competition if you can.
EXTRAS? NO EXTRA ££
There are some great side bits to compensate you, though. Unlike the top Samsungs or the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, the Xperia Z5 has a memory card slot. With 128GB cards available for under £50 and 64GB less than £20, it’s a media hoarder’s delight. There’s 32GB storage built-in too.
The Xperia Z5 is also waterproof. There’s been quite a bit of fuss recently about Sony saying you shouldn’t really submerge its phones, even though it has been showing them off hanging out in fishbowls for years. “We recommend not submerge our Xperia Z5 in water,” is the official line.
Why? Waterproofing is provided by little rubbery seals, not magic. And tiny little bits of rubber are fallible. Some have gone as far as to suggest overheating has caused bits of the seals to melt but… we’re not even going to go there.
If you want to take photos of the small grey fish you’re likely to see while snorkeling on your hols, get a GoPro with a waterproof case rather than an Xperia Z5.
The phone's most notable new hardware feature can be found on its side. What looks like an oversized power button is also a fingerprint scanner. Right now it doesn’t do much beyond unlocking the phone, but it works very well. It’s neat that Sony has managed to make it not feel like a 100 per cent ‘me too’ job as well, in bunging it on the side.
A front-loaded scanner is still a bit more convenient because it keeps you thumb even closer to the screen. And I have found myself using the passcode instead at times as a result. But it’s still a good scanner.
SONY SMARTBAND 2
Read more at http://www.stuff.tv/sony/xperia-z5/review#OtFMrdW1xM3PKmYf.99
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