Sony has revealed that an all-new phablet will be joining its Xperia range of mobile devices. The phablet will be in the form of the Xperia XA Ultra, a mid-range device with one big headline feature.
It's a larger version of the firm's XA handset that uses a 6ins display but keeps the same 1080p full HD resolution rather than stepping things up to quad-HD. Overall, the way the device looks – apart from being larger – is the same. It's got the same edge-to-edge, almost curved at the edges display panel and square body outline.
Inside the device is where the XA Ultra "reveals its mid-range credentials", says Pocket Lint. It makes use of an octa-core MediaTek chipset mated to 3GB RAM, alongside just 16GB of internal storage – but there is an SD card slot for expandable memory.
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Despite being a big 6ins device, the battery is rather small. It's a 2,700mAh cell which Sony claims will give you two days of battery life. Wireless charging remains absent, but fast-charging tech is specced.
None of these quite compare to the camera hardware Sony has fitted on the XA Ultra though. The firm calls it a "selfie cam masterpiece" and with good reason – the front facing camera on the Ultra is a 16-megapixel low-light sensor with LED flash, optical image stabilisation and wide angle capabilities.
To put it into perspective, the iSight camera used on the iPhone 6S – the device's main camera – is a 12 megapixel sensor, likewise the new though highly optimised camera hardware found on the Samsung Galaxy S7.
Around the back of the handset, the main camera is a 21.5-megapixel setup boasting hybrid autofocus, and one that Stuff expects to deliver "excellent shots with little care and attention", though the selfie-camera will be the one that's bound to catch eyes.
According to Android Authority, details regarding the phone remain hazy, though it should be available in black, white and lime shades when it goes on sale in July. No prices have been revealed yet and neither have the markets the XA Ultra will be available in.
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