Sony’s confirmation regarding a new design for their next flagship is equal parts surprising and not surprising. It not surprising because just about everybody is getting in on the bezel-less fad while it’s still hot, but surprising because Sony has a tendency not to change much about their smartphone design year over year. However, with declining profits in their mobile division, a new design might be just the thing Sony needs to steer profits back in the right direction.
It’s anybody’s guess what the company means by “new design”, but it’s probably safe to assume that such a redesign, at the very least, means slimmer bezels. As a person who doesn’t usually care whether a phone has bezels or not – at least not at this point – I do think that Sony could benefit from this move considering there’s more to gain than there is to lose. Unlike manufacturers like Samsung and Apple, whose devices often featured a physical home button in the center front of the device until recently, Sony’s flagship Xperia series never did. The physical buttons all resided on the sides of the device, including the fingerprint scanner embedded in the power button. Additionally, the Xperia series also featured virtual navigation keys, meaning that the large top and bottom bezels only serve as just that - bezels.
But aside from the large bezels on the device, there isn’t much I dislike about the Xperia. I have always been fond of boxy devices with sharp corners. It just looks good in my opinion. It’s what led me to purchase the Xperia Z3 Compact (in the brilliant orange color) and the Nextbit Robin (which I maintain was one of the most comfortable devices to hold, even without a case). The latest XZ1 devices move away from the glass back in favor of an aluminum “Loop Surface” design. Although design elements in the current generation wouldn’t necessarily have any bearing on the redesign, I have hope that Sony would stick with aluminum over glass.
Another feature that I hope Sony decides to keep would be the headphone jack. As ridiculous as it is to have to mention it time and time again, I can’t stress that it’s still an important feature for most people and is currently inconvenient to give up.
I don’t think there is much that Sony needs to do in order to stay relevant. Aside from the bezels, the Xperia’s design is already distinct and has all the necesseties: dust and water-resistance, microSD support, and a headphone jack. If anything, it could use a slight rebranding to something more memorable (Xperia is fine; Xperia XZ1… not so much).
Above all, I mostly hope that Sony will keep their Compact series, which manages to encapsulate most of the power of their flagship into a smaller package. The smartphone industry is sorely lacking in truly compact devices these days, and is completely absent of compact phones with slim bezels. I’m rocking an iPhone SE at the moment, and as much as I love its small form factor, I do miss some of the perks of a larger screen. Sony is probably the only manufacturer I could see dedicating resources to make that happen.
Regardless of whatever changes to come, it’s an exciting prospect. As previously mentioned, Sony’s Xperia series has remained largely unchanged over the years, so this is a thrilling development. Here’s to hoping that the undisclosed changes end up being for the better.
Readers, what do you hope to see out of Sony’s flagship redesign? Do you think they need a complete overhaul, or just a few subtle changes? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
