Sony’s $1,800 Xperia Pro-I Has the RX100 VII’s Camera Sensor

The Sony Xperia Pro-I is the latest smartphone from the company for the camera-features-focused niche Pro audience. The $1,800 phone sports a 1-inch stacked CMOS sensor with built-in memory and phase-detection autofocus. It is the same as the one inside Sony’s RX100 VII compact camera which we proclaimed one of the best point-and-shoot cameras in our review. The smartphone comes with a dedicated shutter button on the right edge, and Zeiss Tessar calibrated optics.

In the name Xperia Pro-I, the “I” stands for Imaging. It features a 6.5-inch 4K HDR (3840 x 1644 pixels) OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate, a 21:9 aspect ratio, and 100% DCI-P3 color gamut. It is powered by the Snapdragon 888 chipset, paired with 12GB RAM and 512GB storage, which is expandable up to 1TB. It packs a 4,500mAh battery with support for 30W fast charging.

THE camera to rule them all.

Introducing Xperia PRO-I, combining professional imaging quality with superior communication capabilities, designed to empower your creative vision.#SonyXperia #THECamera #XperiaPROI

— Sony | Xperia (@sonyxperia) October 26, 2021

On the optics front, you get a triple rear camera setup. There is a 12MP 1-inch Exmor RS primary sensor with a variable aperture ranging from f/2.0 to f/4.0. It is accompanied by a 12MP 1/2.9-inch Exmor RS sensor with an f/2.4 aperture lens and another 12MP 1/2.5-inch Exmor RS sensor with an f/2.2 aperture lens. The smartphone camera offers high-end features, from 20 fps bursts to 60 fps object-tracking autofocus to minimal rolling shutter and a high frame rate 4K.

As DPreview notes, only a central section of that 20MP sensor can output a 12MP still (or 4K video). On the front lies an 8MP selfie shooter. The speakers include Dolby Atmos support, and connectivity options include 5G, Bluetooth v5.2, and a 3.5mm audio jack. The Sony Xperia Pro-I gets IPX5 and IPX8 ratings for water resistance and IP6X rating for dust resistance. It weighs 211 grams.

We don’t have full availability details yet, but it does look like this phone will come to the U.S. market alongside other international markets. Pre-orders begin October 28 with a wider release in December.

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