Sony Xperia XA1 Plus First Impressions

Along with the launch of the flagship Sony Xperia XZ1, Sony Philippines also introduced to the market its latest mid-range smartphone, the Xperia XA1 Plus. Check out our first impressions of the device below.

The Xperia XA1 Plus was introduced in late August during IFA 2017. It sits between the Xperia XA1 Ultra and the Xperia XA1 in terms of screen size at 5.5-inches but has the largest battery in the pack at 3,430mAh, and equipped with a fingerprint scanner.

The 5.5-inch screen on the front has a Full HD resolution or 401ppi with slim side bezels. So far the quality is good as it is vibrant with accurate colors, although not as punchy compared to AMOLED screens.

Up top is the 8MP front camera, receiver, sensor, and LED indicator for notifications. The device uses on-screen navigation buttons so you’re left with a thick bottom bezel which houses the main microphone.

The left side houses the hidden tray for dual nano SIM cards and a dedicated slot for the microSD which is better compared to hybrid types.

On the right is the volume rocker, the power button which also doubles as a fingerprint scanner, and the dedicated camera button which is a staple to camera-centric Xperias.

Up top, we have the headphone jack and secondary microphone, while the bottom houses the USB Type-C port and loudspeaker.

Flip it on its back and you will see the 23MP main shooter, along with the LED flash and NFC.

On the hands, the Xperia XA1 Plus feels premium thanks to its metal build. It’s not actually unibody as it has visible segments but it’s well-built that it feels like it is. It’s easy to grip and relatively thin at 8.7mm, with a decent heft at 190g.

Sony’s signature design is very much evident on the XA1 Plus with its rounded sides, flat top and bottom, and thick bezels. It’s a decent phone but the design might tire consumers who are now lured towards devices with really slim bezels.

Sony Xperia XA1 Plus specs:
5.5-inch Full HD IPS display,
2.3GHz MediaTek Helio P20 Octa Core 64bit (Quad-core 2.3GHz + Quad-core 1.6GHz)
Mali T880 MP2 GPU
4GB RAM
32GB UFS
microSD up to 265GB (dedicated slot)
23MP 1/ 2.3-inch f/2.0 Exmor RS rear camera: Hybrid Autofocus, 24mm wide-angle F2.0 lens, HDR, Steadyshot
8MP 1/4-inch f/2.0 Exmor R front camera: up to ISO 3200, 23mm wide-angle lens, HDI, Steadyshot
4G LTE
Dual SIM (nano)
SmartAmp
Clear Audio+
WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n
Bluetooth 4.2, A2DP
GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS
NFC
Fingerprint scanner
Qnovo Adaptive Charging
Android 7 Nougat
3430mAh battery with Quick Charging (Pump Express+ 2.0)
155 x 75 x 8.7mm
190g
Colors: Black, Blue, Gold, Pink

The Xperia XA1 Plus is priced at Php16,990 is expected to arrive in October.