Following its launch in both unlocked HSPA and T-Mobile LTE flavors last year, the Sony Xperia Z1 is now available for purchase in an unlocked LTE variant as well.
Sony is now selling the Xperia Z1 LTE (C6906) in its official online store at a price of $619.99. This model is similar to the one that T-Mobile's been hawking since last year, meaning that it's got a 5-inch 1080p display, 2.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor, 20.7-megapixel rear and 2-megapixel front cameras, 16GB storage, a microSD card slot and 2GB of RAM. Sony is offering the Xperia Z1 LTE in black, purple and white colors.
As I mentioned previously, this version of the Xperia Z1 LTE comes unlocked out of the box. Connectivity options include HSPA+ 850/900/1700/1900/2100MHz as well as LTE bands 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, and 17. That means that the device ought to play nicely with both AT&T and T-Mobile in the U.S.
Sony is no stranger to offering unlocked smartphones in the U.S., having sold several of its previous Xperia models online in recent years. While it's unlikely that the unlocked devices offered by Sony are huge sellers because of the way that most U.S. consumers buy phones, it's still awesome to see Sony continue to offer the handsets to those of us that prefer our hardware to be free of carrier interaction.
The unlocked Xperia Z1 LTE can be purchased directly from Sony right here. If you're on the fence about dropping six Benjamins on the device, you should check out our two-part review of the Xperia Z1 right here and here to help make your decision easier.
Via XperiaBlog, Sony: Unlocked Xperia Z1 LTE