Mobile World Congress has been and gone and we saw some nice phones announced but the many who were hoping to also see a flagship from Sony were left disappointed. Sony did make a few announcements there but nothing in the way of a new flagship, which is not a surprise, as it seems the Z3 was released only a few months ago. Now the apparent housing for the next flagship, the Z4, has leaked showing the size and giving some information regarding the specifications of the device.
Website Future Supplier has discovered some photos comparing the Z4 housing to the current flagship, the Z3. The photos show the two housings next to and on top of each other. The housings are approximately the same size, with the Z4 housing being 1mm thinner, which in my opinion is not a big deal but for some reason manufacturers seem to partaking in a race with each other towards a 0mm thin phone. How about the bezels?
The sim card slot has changed sides and there is no longer a slot for a microSD card, so for those punters who prefer an SD card your choices are becoming few and far between. Maybe the manufacturers know something the SD card proponents don’t. Something regarding the reliability and complex nature of having an SD card maybe?
The microUSB port is now on the bottom of the device, and assuming that they have just not included the flaps in the housing in this early stage, the Z4 may not have the same water resistant rating as the Z3. This will also be the only way to charge the device (unless Qi/PMA wireless charging is included) as the usual Sony magnetic charging port is not included, just as it is excluded on the Sony Xperia Z4 tablet.
All in all the Z4 housing looks to be very similar to the Z3 housing so I wouldn’t be expecting a massive change in design philosophy from the 2014 flagship to 2015’s. According to Sony the phone will be released when it is ready, rather than to a determined timeline so at this rate expect it around the middle of the year.
Are you excited about the Z4 or is it just another case of a company iterating rather than innovating?
