Sony has recently announced its first phones of 2024 – the Xperia 1 VI and Xperia 10 VI. The two Xperia phones bring many notable improvements over their last year’s counterparts, but how do they stack up against each other?
If you are following up on Xperia news or looking to upgrade to a new smartphone from Sony, keep reading this Sony Xperia 1 VI vs. Xperia 10 VI comparison post to find the best of the two.
Sony Xperia 1 VI vs Xperia 10 VI: Spec Sheet
| Features | Xperia 1 VI | Xperia 10 VI |
|---|---|---|
| Body | 162 x 74 x 8.2 mm 192 g | 155 x 68 x 8.3 mm 164 g |
| Display | 6.5″ screen size 1080 x 2340 pixels (FHD+) resolution 19.5:9 aspect ratio 120Hz refresh rate | 6.1″ screen size 1080 x 2520 pixels (FHD+) resolution 21:9 aspect ratio 60Hz refresh rate |
| Chipset | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (4nm) | Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 (4nm) |
| GPU | Adreno 750 | Adreno 710 |
| Memory | 12GB RAM + 256GB storage 12GB RAM + 512GB storage | 8GB RAM + 128GB storage |
| OS | Android 14 | Android 14 |
| Main Camera | Primary – 48 MP, f/1.9, 24mm, 1/1.35″, OIS Telemacro – 12MP, f/2.3 (85mm) – f/3.5 (170mm), 1/3.5″, OIS, 4cm macro @ 120mm Ultrawide – 12MP, f/2.2, 16mm, 123° FOV | Primary – 48MP, f/1.8, 26mm, 1/2.0″, OIS Ultrawide – 8MP, f/2.2, 16mm, 1/4.0″, 120° FOV |
| Front Camera | 12MP, f/2.0, 24mm, 1/2.9″, HDR | 8MP, f/2.0, 26mm, 1/4.0″, HDR |
| Battery | 5000 mAh (non-removable) 30W wired Wireless Reverse wireless | 5000 mAh (non-removable) |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 7 Bluetooth 5.4 NFC GPS USB Type-C 3.2 | Wi-Fi 6 Bluetooth 5.2 NFC GPS USB Type-C 2.0 |
| Durability | Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 IP65/IP68 dust/water resistant | Corning Gorilla Glass Victus IP65/IP68 dust/water resistant |
Design and Display
Both Sony Xperia 1 VI and Xperia 10 VI have a boxy design with a resemblance to their last year’s counterparts. The former is slightly taller, at 162 mm height (vs. 155 mm on Xperia 10 VI), and is marginally slimmer, too.
The Xperia 1 VI features a texture glass panel on the rear side with a frosted finish for better grip and more resistance to fingerprints and scratches. It has a larger 6.5-inch display with FullHD+ resolution, HDR support, and 240Hz touch sampling rate. The Xperia 10 VI, on the other hand, goes with a slightly smaller 6.1-inch FullHD+ display and a 120Hz touch sampling rate.
Both Xperia models have Gorilla Glass Victus protection, but the Xperia 1 VI is protected by a tougher Gorilla Glass Victus 2. This one also supports a 120Hz refresh rate with LTPO support. This means the device can automatically adjust the refresh rate from 1 to 120Hz based on the content displayed on the screen, while the Xperia 10 VI only supports a 60Hz refresh rate.
Sony is moving away from the 4K OLED display with a 21:9 aspect ratio towards a more conventional 19.5:9 aspect ratio, at least for the Xperia 1 VI. This means a slightly larger screen, while the Xperia 10 VI retains the 21:9 display, continuing the trend of tall and narrow Sony phones.
Performance
The Xperia 1 VI boasts superior performance, thanks to the flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset. This advanced chip has high-performance, power-efficient cores with higher clocked speeds and a powerful GPU compared to the Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 chip on the Xperia 10 VI. Hence, the Xperia 1 VI clearly outperforms the 10 VI in terms of performance.
Gaming should be better with the Xperia 1 Vi as it brings a vapor chamber cooler to optimize the overall performance. This is in fact the first Xperia 1 series phones to get a vapor chamber cooler.
The Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 is a popular chip among mid-range phones that can easily handle day-to-day tasks and lets you enjoy various games without any lag or performance drop.
The Xperia 1 VI has 12GB RAM and 256GB storage, although buyers in Japan and East Asia can also get a 512GB storage variant. The mid-range Xperia 10 VI is offered in a single storage option — 8GB RAM with 128GB storage. However, users can expand the storage up to 1.5 TB using a microSD card slot (it uses a shared SIM slot).
Camera
The Sony Xperia 1 VI, being a flagship phone, offers high-end camera specs than the midrange Xperia 10 VI. It’s pretty much the same as last year’s Xperia 1 V, but there are noteworthy minor changes that should make a positive difference. The main 48MP camera offers a full-res 48MP mode this year. It’s a 1/1.35” sensor with a 24mm focal length, f/1.9 aperture, and OIS. The 12MP ultrawide camera is ½.5” with f/2.2 aperture, 16mm focal length, and 123° field-of-view (FOV).
The 12MP zoom camera in Xperia 1 VI is ⅓.5” with a longer-reaching 85mm-170mm focal length, offering 3.5x to 7.1x optical zoom capability. The camera setup also has a dedicated tele-macro mode at 120mm.
The Xperia 10 VI has a 48MP ½.0” primary sensor with an f/1.8 aperture and OIS support. The camera setup also includes an 8MP ultrawide sensor with an f/2.2 aperture and a 120° field-of-view (FOV).
On the front, the Xperia 1 VI has a 12MP shooter, and the 10 VI has an 8MP shooter. Both the phones can take 4K videos. However, the Xperia 1 VI can take 4K videos at higher frames-per-second (FPS), resulting in extra smoothness.
What makes the Xperia 1 VI’s camera special is the integration of Zeiss optics and Zeiss T* lens coating, which improves image quality, reduces reflection and enhances low-light performance.
The camera specs look decent for the Xperia 10 VI, not as good as 1 VI, but it should be able to take good shots.
Battery & Charging
Both the Xperia 1 VI and Xperia 10 VI pack a 5,000 mAh battery and promise two days of battery life. These Xperia 1 phones feature Battery Care and Xperia Adaptive Charging to keep the battery health in good condition for a longer period. After four years of usage, the battery health should remain around 75%.
The Xperia 1 VI supports 30W fast wired charging, which, according to the brand, only takes 30 minutes to fill up half of the battery. The device also supports wireless and reverse wireless charging. The Xperia 10 VI, on the other hand, supports wired charging only.
Connectivity
Both Xperia phones have the necessary connectivity features. However, those on the Xperia 1 VI have newer technologies, such as Wi-Fi 7 support (vs Wi-Fi 6 in 10 VI), Bluetooth 5.4 (vs Bluetooth 5.2 in 10 VI), and USB Type-C 3.2 (vs USB Type-C 2.0 in 10 VI). Hence, you can expect faster data transmission in the Xperia 1 VI compared to the 10 VI.
Software
Sony Xperia 1 VI and Xperia 10 VI come with Android 10 out of the box. The company promises three Android version updates and four years of security updates for both devices.
It’s a decent software support for a flagship device like the Xperia 1 VI when brands such as Samsung and Google offer 7 years of OS updates to their high-end phones.
Pricing
Sony Xperia 1 VI is a flagship smartphone with a starting price of €1,399 (~INR 1,26,250). The midrange Xperia 10 VI starts at €399 (~INR 36000). There’s a big gap in pricing, which is also reflected on the spec sheet.
Which one of these two latest Xperia phones sounds like a sweet deal to you? Do let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
