Sony's latest flagship device is now available to pre-order in the U.S., but the Xperia Pro 5G comes in at a rather steep $2,499.99 price. This is more than twice the cost of its second-most expensive phone, last year's Xperia 1 II, which retails at 1,199.99. So why exactly is the Xperia Pro priced so high, and more importantly, is it worth the money?
While the Xperia brand has been around since 2008, it has never really had the cachet of other smartphone brands. Despite the fact that the Japanese company kills it in various other tech markets, from game consoles, to televisions, to digital cameras, Sony's phones have never seemed to garner the same type of interest.
Based on the specs, the new Sony Xperia Pro 5G is certainly not a slouch. It features a 6.5-inch 21:9 CinemaWide 4K HDR OLED (3840 x 1644) display, which is a higher resolution than the 6.8-inch Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra. It also boasts 12GB of RAM, 512GB of storage and a microSDXC slot that can take cards up to 1TB. However, it runs on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 5G Mobile Platform. It's certainly a powerhouse, being an octa-core CPU that can run up to 2.84 GHz on its fastest core, but it's the same chipset that can be found on a variety of phones from last year, including Samsung's Galaxy S20 series, the OnePlus 8 line and Xiaomi's Mi 10 phones. The SoC pales in comparison to the faster Snapdragon 888, found on the new Mi 11 and Galaxy S21 lines.
The Xperia Pro also has a relatively modest camera setup. It uses a triple-lens rear system with 12-megapixel wide, ultra-wide and telephoto lenses, along with an 8-megapixel front-facing camera. This is likely because Sony isn't expecting most consumers to use the built-in camera. After all, one of the main Xperia Pro selling points is that it can be directly attached to a DSLR or camcorder via an HDMI port. This means that experienced videographers can live broadcast content from their more-professional video setups using the phone's 5G (or Wi-Fi) connection.
A $2,500 Viewfinder?
While the phone is also technically being used as a streaming device, the Sony Xperia Pro can, in some ways, be considered a 4K viewfinder attachment for an even-more-expensive camera. Just the camera body (without lenses) of a 4K Sony DSLR can cost $2,000, which is still chump change compared to a professional video camera which can cost tens of thousands. So for people who are spending that much money on camera equipment, what's another $2,500, right? Not to mention, the phone's 6.5-inch 4K HDR display would certainly make an excellent screen to view the scene.
That being said, the price-tag is still ridiculously high for a smartphone, especially if the person isn't planning to use it for live broadcasting on a regular basis. It's actually the most expensive phone one can get from a major tech company — not counting, perhaps, some limited release editions or custom-designed ones with jewels embedded in the chassis. Even phones with more experimental designs, such as the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2, are less expensive. That phone starts at $1,999 in the U.S. Though, admittedly, the Galaxy Z Fold 2 has a lower resolution (2208 x 1776) and, at that price, only has 256GB of internal storage while lacking a memory card slot. Although it does has the same amount of RAM and a comparable camera setup to the Xperia Pro. It also uses the slightly faster Snapdragon 865+ chipset. Most importantly, the Samsung phone features a 7.6-inch display that can fold in half. It's a form factor with niche appeal, but it's at least clear what people are shelling out the extra dough for.
Ultimately, time will tell whether Sony has priced itself out of the market with its new Xperia Pro. It will likely make a great addition for video professionals who want to live broadcast their content, but Sony's new phone may end up appealing to an even smaller audience than a foldable phone does.
Source: Sony