Flagship Sony Xperia 1 IV phone leak shows familiar design, headphone jack

Sony Xperia 1 IV
(Image credit: GizNext/OnLeaks)

Sony's next flagship phone appears to have been leaked. Full renders of the fourth-gen Xperia 1 – allegedly called the Xperia 1 IV and the successor to the excellent Xperia 1 III – have shown up on GizNext

The detailed images don't leave much to the imagination, so if they are to be believed, we now have a pretty good picture of Sony's next flagship device. The Xperia 1 IV looks to follow the same design language of its predecessor, with a long, slender, flat-edge design. GizNext reports that the dimensions are 164.7 x 70.8 x 8.3mm (or 9.5mm with the camera bump included) – only very slightly down from the Xperia 1 III.

We're pleased to see the continuation of a headphone jack on the renders, as well as the physical fingerprint sensor integrated on the power key. It seems like we're in for a triple-camera configuration with an LED flash once again, although the report doesn't speculate on whether the lenses will be superior to its predecessor's 12MP f/2.3 telephoto, 12MP f/1.7 standard and 12MP ultra-wide f/2.2 snappers.

Sony Xperia 1 IV

(Image credit: GizNext/OnLeaks)

Fingers crossed we do get a bump up there, though, because so far this seems very much like evolution over revolution for Sony's next flagship, with the Xperia IV also reported to have a 6.5-inch display, presumably of the OLED flavour again. That's not the end of the world, mind. The Xperia 1 III was our favourite phone of 2021, edging the iPhone 13 and Samsung Galaxy S21 on the audiovisual front. If Sony can move its range-topper along with a camera, battery and perhaps even a RAM upgrade, the Xperia could be the one to beat in 2022.

Earlier leaks have pointed to a May launch date for the next Xperia phone – a month later in the calendar year than the current one's arrival time.

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Becky Roberts

Becky is the managing editor of What Hi-Fi? and, since her recent move to Melbourne, also the editor of Australian Hi-Fi magazine. During her 10 years in the hi-fi industry, she has been fortunate enough to travel the world to report on the biggest and most exciting brands in hi-fi and consumer tech (and has had the jetlag and hangovers to remember them by). In her spare time, Becky can often be found running, watching Liverpool FC and horror movies, and hunting for gluten-free cake.