Sony Xperia X, Xperia XA, and the Xperia X Performance were announced at the Mobile World Congress 2016 event in Barcelona, Spain.
However, unlike other devices announced during the same event and have already been availed to the market, the Japanese tech giant will only avail the three smartphones starting June 2016. This is a little bit disappointing, but given that the Xperia Z5, Z5 Premium, and Z5 Compact have only been in the market for a while, it somehow makes sense. However, it will be a huge task for Sony to convince buyers that have already been showcased devices from the likes of Samsung, LG, and HTC, among other companies.
If you are a Xperia die-hard, there is some great news for you here, well, not sure how great. Still, the official Xperia Blog notes that anyone who has pre-registered their interest in the already announced phones has begun receiving emails that inform them that pre-orders are near. In the email, the customers are told that they will be treated to an “exclusive offer” from Sony as long as they pre-order a Xperia XA or Xperia X smartphone.
Unfortunately, this “exclusive offer” from Sony does not cover the flagship Xperia X Performance. However, there is room for those who preorder a Xperia Ear headset. As of now, there is no information on what exactly this “exclusive offer” from Sony will be, however, predictions are pointing towards reduced prices or maybe some free accessories.
There is no clear explanation as to why those who preorder the flagship Xperia X Performance will not be included in the special offer or whether they will be included. For now, all the deal says is that the two phones – Xperia X and XA – will be part of the offer.
Sony unveiled the new Xperia X series to replace the Xperia Z series and even though the flagship version is not part of this special offer, it will still be available to buyers in the U.S. There is no mention of any possible deal with any U.S. carrier with respect to these devices, so expect them to be sold as unlocked versions. However, this might change given that June is still a little further ahead.
Specs-wise, the Xperia X carries a 5-inch 1080p display, 3GB RAM and 23MP snapper. Expandable storage is 32GB. These are the same specs that the flagship Xperia X Performance comes with, however, it uses the premium Snapdragon 820 SoC while the Xperia X uses a Snapdragon 650. In terms of screen size, the Xperia XA has no difference, but it rocks a 720p resolution and has almost no bezels on the sides. Under the hood, the XA packs an octa-core MediaTek Helio P10 SoC and 2GB RAM.