Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact is also a candidate this year to be the best choice among compact smartphones with Android on board to have all the potential of a true top-of-the-range hardware in an ultra-compact format. Let’s find out together in this review if we are faced with a pleasant reconfirmation of one of the most popular series in the range of the Japanese company
Sony is one of the few companies that, in the mobile field, limits itself to offering a range consisting of a few devices but able to meet the needs of the market and fit into the different price ranges without disfiguring the comparison with other competitors. After trying Sony Xperia XA2, I got the chance to take it with me Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact, the little gem of the Japanese company, during my summer holidays. Xperia XZ2 Compact is one of the few (if not the only) Android smartphone that continues to maintain pocket size without sacrificing top performance thanks to a very high level technical data sheet.
Data Sheet – Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact Review
- Processor: Snapdragon 845 Qualcomm (Quad-core 2.7 GHz+ Quad-core 1.7 GHz)
- Gpu: Adreno 630
- Internal memory: 64GB (expandable up to 400GB)
- RAM: 4GB
- Display: 5 inch IPS LCD HDR with 1080 × 2160 pixels Full HD + resolution, 441 ppi, Gorilla Glass 5
- Rear Camera: 19 Mp F2, stabilizzazione digitale SteadyShot , Flash LED, 4K 30 fps, slow-motion 960 fps in Full HD
- Front camera: 5 Mp
- Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.0 con A2DP/LE/aptX, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, NFC, USB Type-C 3.1, A-GPS/GLONASS/Galileo
- Sensors: accelerometer, proximity sensor, brightness, fingerprint reader, compass, noise reduction mic, gyroscope
- Battery: 2870 mAh
- Dimensions: 135 x 65 x 12.1 mm, 168g
- SO: Android 8.0 Oreo
Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact Review: renewed but still uninspired design
Sony’s XZ2 series smartphones represent the real turning point of the Japanese company, now set aside a little in the palmares of sales due to a design that did not find appeal among the many innovative proposals of competing companies. Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact is therefore a whole new product, renewed both internally and externally. The body acquires softer lines, the sharp corners are now a distant memory. In general it is a device that aesthetically does not mind but still a step below many other smartphones with a much lower price.
The build quality is undoubtedly of the highest level, accentuated by a steel monobody body and the use of glass Gorilla Glass 5 at the front. Inevitably, however, what is appreciated the most is its small size. I have to be honest: among the many smartphones I tried recently, I felt the lack of a device so compact that it could be handled with one hand practically on any occasion. Perhaps, the only drawback that can partially affect the handling of the device, is the rear body in steel and slightly rounded, certainly slippery when the grip is not firm with the whole hand.
Front Design – Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact Review
At the front there is a display from 5 ”IPS LCD with Full HD + and HDR resolution, protected by a fifth generation Gorilla Glass. The frames are well optimized but we are still far from the engineering work done by competing manufacturers on other devices. The speaker is present on the front and, together with the ear capsule, allows stereo audio reproduction. Unfortunately, the 3.5mm jack output is absent, an absence which the Type-C to 3.5mm adapter included in the sales package tries to make up for.
Back Design – Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact Review
The rear design maintains a clean and minimally invasive line but, at the same time, not very original. There back cover convexity it helps to improve the grip but increases even more the thickness dimension which reaches the value of 12.1mm (on paper they are really too many but it is not a defect or a limit in daily use). Present on sensor for unlocking with fingerprints and a single 19 Mp chamber.
Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact Review: for the first time I didn’t miss an AMOLED display on a top range
The Xperia XZ2 Compact’s onboard panel is a 5 ”with Full HD + resolution (1080 × 2160) and support for HDR technology. Usually, when the cost of smartphones reaches important figures as in this case, I begin to feel the need for an AMOLED display, much more satisfying on a visual level. In reviewing this Sony I instead had the demonstration that an IPS with excellent quality can also overcome this personal lack.
The colors turn out intense, lively, full of nuances and well-defined merit, among other things of the various software settings including X-Reality For Mobile which I really appreciate. Playing high resolution and HDR content is a pleasure. The only flaw I found is that the colors, obviously white above all, tend to veer slightly towards blue tones already at about 30-40 ° of angle, but it is a “defect” to be reported only in relation to the price range , nothing that really affects its use. Having used it during the month of August especially at the sea and in other very sunny locations, I had the opportunity to really test the maximum brightness of this device which proved to be more than sufficient in all conditions, managed very well by a sensor for the very well calibrated automatic brightness.
Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact Review: using this smartphone is a pleasure!
The task of managing all the operations required by the software is entrusted to an excellent hardware. The beating heart of the smartphone in review is in fact characterized by one Snapdragon 845 (the top among the current proposals of the processor manufacturer), 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of internal storage (expandable with micro SD up to 400 GB).
The performances are comparable to an absolute top. Applications that are always quick to open and extremely fluid during use. The navigation through the menus is immediate, also thanks to the Sony software that we have now come to know, similar to stock and well optimized. Having used it during the weeks of vacation, I was able to test it always on the move under mobile connection at high summer temperatures and I was able to find a impeccable behavior both in terms of overheating problems and drops in performance. For the most part, I have long used GPS for navigating the curves of the Amalfi Coast and I can say that I have been able to count without any limitation on a good GPS + data signal. Web browsing is just a pleasure with hardware of this type.
L’Adreno 630, video card combined with the processor, is the perfect solution for high-level gaming. The only limitation that differentiates this equipment from a gaming smartphone is the absence of adequate dissipation. For the occasion I decided to change video games and test the brand new one Asphalt 9 which, in the face of beautiful graphics, requires a lot of computing power. Also in this case Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact managed to get by never dropping from 30 fps even with the graphics settings set to maximum.
Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact Review: a photographic sector that finally convinces .. with some reservations
Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact is equipped with a 19 Mp rear chamber with focal distance F2, SteadyShot digital stabilization e flash LED. The anterior chamber is instead a module from 5 Mp. The Camera application is the typical Sony application, characterized by the automatic or manual shooting mode, in addition to the various shooting and shooting options (time-lapse, super slow-motion a 960 fps).
Rear Camera – Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact Review
Shooting with this smartphone is truly a pleasure. The rear camera returns some Faithful and well-made shots in almost all lighting conditions, very little margin for error for the photographer on duty. Using the application in automatic shooting mode, photos are well exposed and rich in color, without resulting in excess saturation. The amount of detail is certainly very high, the 19 Mp are more than enough in this sense, but still half a step below the absolute top camera phones. Auto HDR does a great job without completely distorting the tonal range of the scenes being shot. Unfortunately, the presence of only one camera precludes the possibility of taking shots with accentuated bokeh, even if the sensor already guarantees a dignified mechanical blur.
In low light condition it is certainly promoted. The shots undoubtedly acquire digital noise but in a limited quantity, managing to keep the amount of detail high. The response to flare and artificial lights is very good.
It maximum digital zoom has a value of (8X) but I would certainly have expected something more. Up to the value of 4-5X it is a good help, at maximum zoom it becomes unusable.
Front Camera – Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact Review
The shots captured from the anterior chamber they are perfect for social use but also for something more thanks to the good definition and the good balance of the colors achieved. Too bad the little brother Xperia XA2 is equipped with a wide-angle front camera and the same has not been done with the XZ2 series.
The rear camera records video to one 4K maximum resolution at 30 fps. As usual, the possibility of adjusting the various resolutions with the possibility of recording a 30 o 60 fps. L’HDR in the video recording phase is a plus to be taken into consideration, as well as the slow-motion in Full HD a 960 fps. The videos are of the highest quality and well stabilized, although the sensor is not optically stabilized but the SteadyShot digital stabilization intervenes, which Sony increasingly refines from version to version.
Even with regard to videos, however, the zoom at values higher than 4X becomes practically unusable, a real shame. To analyze in depth the video performance of the smartphone I suggest you to view the relative “A spasso con ..” recorded with Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact that I leave you below.
Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact Review: multimedia sector at the top
The phone compartment of this device confirms the expectations we would expect from a true top of the range of this generation. Impeccable reception in every situation, even at the sea and on the beach in Salento where, par excellence, all smartphones struggle a bit.
The audio of the ear capsule is comfortable and well balanced in its frequencies, as well as the double stereo system speaker, with a very high volume and not flawless bass but still present ….