Sony’s newest waterproof Xperia M5 is a mobile photographer’s dream

By Andy Boxall August 3, 2015

The Xperia C5 Ultra may be capturing some headlines due to its size and impressive selfie camera, but it’s not the only phone Sony announced at the end of July. The company also revealed the Xperia M5, a new waterproof phone that not only packs the same 13-megapixel selfie camera, but also a 21.5-megapixel rear camera.

Sony’s going all out on the photography side of the M5, and the list of features attached is long. Starting with the rear camera, Sony promises that zooming in on a subject will no longer mean a huge loss in quality, thanks to something called Clear Image Zoom. It doesn’t go into detail about how this works, though. There’s also a hybrid autofocus system that combines phase detection and contrast detection for super fast focusing, even on moving targets.

It also has an HDR mode, and will shoot video in 4K. Because the Xperia M5 is waterproof, it’ll do all of this underwater, and the IP65/68 rating is the highest given to a smartphone, according to Sony, and will keep it safe down to a depth of 1.5 meters. Flip the phone around for 13-megapixel selfies underwater too, and like the C5 Ultra, it has an HDR mode and autofocus, but no flash unit.

The Xperia M5 has a 5-inch, 1080p touchscreen and runs Android 5.0, while the processor is one of MediaTek’s new Helio X10 octa-core chips running at 2GHz. It has 3GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, plus a MicroSD card slot. Sony’s going to make both a 3G and a 4G LTE model, and there’s a 2600mA battery inside.

Frustratingly, Sony’s not saying where the Xperia M5 will go on sale, but has stated it’ll be out during August. The specification is good enough to make us excited about the M5, and we’re hoping for good news from Sony regarding its international availability.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Senior Mobile Writer

Andy is a Senior Writer at Digital Trends, where he concentrates on mobile technology, a subject he has written about for…

Mobile

Widescreen Xperia 1 II super phone is full of Sony’s camera and visual expertise

sony xperia 1 ii photos launch price availability news 10 mk2 top

If MWC 2020 had not been canceled and had gone ahead as usual, Sony would have started the first day of the show with its own smartphone launch. While the event itself may not be happening, we’ve still got the details of Sony’s new phones — the Xperia 1 II and the Xperia 10 II.

Leaving the unusual decision to use numbers rather than letters to differentiate these updated models aside, here’s what you need to know about the new widescreen Sony smartphones.
Xperia 1 II
The Xperia 1 II (or Xperia 1 Mk2 as it’s also known) is a serious upgrade over last year’s flagship Xperia 1 Sony phone, and the good news is it comes with the latest tech most will demand from a phone in 2020. It also continues the strategy seen in the Xperia 5, where it pulls in expertise from other parts of the Sony empire to enhance the new phone.

Mobile

How Sony’s camera guru is transforming Sony Mobile, starting with the Xperia 5

Sony Xperia 5

When Sony first introduced the DSC-RX100 in 2012, it delivered DSLR-quality pictures in a pocket-friendly, point-and-shoot camera. It was a trailblazing product that used a brand new 1-inch sensor when everything else comparable around it used smaller, less capable sensors. This is the camera that helped the company’s imaging division become the powerhouse it is today.

It was also primarily the project of Kimio Maki, who headed up Sony Imaging at the time. In June 2019, he became Executive Deputy President Sony Mobile and there are plans afoot to perform the same turnaround at the struggling mobile division. In the same way as the RX100 appealed to creative people who wanted pro-level products in their hand, Sony’s strategy to make its current and next generation smartphones more appealing follows a very similar path.
Understanding the plan
Sony Headquarters, Shinagawa, Tokyo Andy Boxall/DigitalTrends

Mobile

Sony’s Xperia 1 is the first smartphone with a 4K OLED display

The Sony Xperia 1 with Alexa is available for $100 off until August 26

Sony Xperia 1

Sony has had a rough history when it comes to smartphones. Last year, the company vowed to do away with its boxy design philosophy and adopt more modern sensibilities. But the tech landscape changes quickly, and those phones are already starting to look a little dated. At Mobile World Congress 2019, Sony unveiled three new phones it hopes will lead the company into the future, though whether Sony really has a future in the mobile business remains to be seen.