Sony Xperia 1 III Reviews: Is It Worth The Money?

The 21:9 aspect ratio won’t be for everyone – it’s designed that way to offer a ‘big screen’ experience when watching video – and this has a big impact on the design of the handset, and will make it difficult for people with smaller hands to hold. That said, this is the best screen we’ve seen from Sony for some time, and it’s one of the best on any phone released in 2021 so far.

The camera has been upgraded over the Xperia 1 II – the new features aren’t game-changing, but the company has included a variable telephoto camera and a few tweaks to the main shooter that make this a stronger handset for photography than previous Sony phones.

In fact, we found this to be the easiest camera to use on a Sony phone for some time. The automatic mode works well, and if you’re willing to play around with the settings you’ll find even more is possible via the in-depth shooting app.

There’s no denying that the price of the Xperia 1 III is high, and the 21:9 aspect ratio design will put some off, too. But if those aren’t issues for you, and you want a highly capable smartphone with a superb screen, the Xperia 1 III may be the perfect phone for you.

The Sony Xperia 1 III’s poor stamina is hugely disappointing because it’s otherwise a truly exceptional handset. Mostly unblemished in every other area, and truly exceptional in others, the Xperia 1 III is a solid indication that Sony absolutely knows what it’s doing in the mobile space.

All Sony needs to do now is swallow its pride, ask for less than what Samsung and Apple are currently charging and ditch the pointless 4K display in favour of better battery life. If they can do those things, there’s nothing standing in the way of its phones standing side by side with the best phones around.

For the time being, however, the Sony Xperia 1 III is simply too expensive, and battery life is too short-lived, to recommend.

I like the Sony Xperia 1 III, I really do, but $1,299 makes it one of the most expensive flagships to ever grace the market. Granted, the handset offers plenty of storage, a unique camera system, and one of the best displays in the business, not forgetting its assortment of charging, multimedia, and other technologies. But at this price point, you have to compare the phone to its competitors, and it’s missing a few key things.

Overall, the Sony Xperia 1 III stumbles to offer a flawless flagship package, but it’s as close as the company has ever come to building an exceptional smartphone. There’s fierce competition at this price point, and unless you will absolutely make the most of Sony’s more niche features, there are better all-rounders you can buy for the same or even less cash.

But if you do want to dive head-first into the Xperia experience, then this is undoubtedly Sony’s best phone to date and you’ll love it — and if that’s you, it’s still absolutely worth buying in 2022, especially if you can find it on sale as it has occasionally dropped to as low as $900. Personally, it’s a phone I’d love to own but could never justify buying.

It should be no surprise that Sony is capable of making excellent smartphones. The company knows more than a thing or two about audio devices, has plenty of pedigree when it comes to displays, and has a fine reputation when it comes to cameras. And the Xperia 1 III does the job of being more than the sum of those inherently good parts.

While some of the specs may be overkill, and the shape might take a little getting used to, there’s no denying it will be hard to beat this phone when it comes to audio and video excellence.

Sony has created a sophisticated device that both looks good and delivers flagship-level performance. It offers sophisticated camera hardware and software and a lovely high-resolution OLED that’s not quite like anything else in its class. And yet I’m struggling to think of anyone who should buy this phone over an iPhone 12 Pro Max or a Galaxy S21 Ultra.

There’s the basics: for $1,300, you’d be getting a device that’s likely to only see a couple of years of security updates. And if you’re on AT&T, you’re paying top dollar for a 5G device that can’t access the carrier’s 5G network. It’s hard to make a case for the Xperia just based on those facts.

None of these features go far enough above and beyond what you can get with an iPhone or Galaxy flagship to make the Xperia stand out. Factor in the shorter time frame for device support and uncertainty of any OS platform updates, and things just don’t add up in the Xperia 1 III’s favor.