Sony Xperia 1 III costs the same as an iPhone 12 Pro Max in Malaysia

[ UPDATE 15/07/2021 15:00 ]: Sony Malaysia is now accepting pre-orders for the Xperia 1 III. It is priced at RM5,799 and pre-order customers will get a WF-1000XM3 for free. More details here.

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Sony’s latest smartphones – Xperia 1 III, Xperia 5 III and Xperia 10 III, are coming to Malaysia in the next couple of months. Ahead of its local release, the pricing for the Xperia Mark III series has been revealed and it costs a lot more than its previous models.

Pricing and availability

According to Sony Malaysia’s website, the Xperia 1 III is officially priced at RM5,799, which is RM800 more than the current Mark II model. For the same amount of money, you could buy an iPhone 12 Pro Max 256GB model.

If you don’t need a 4K display and prefer something smaller, the Xperia 5 III is priced at RM4,599, which is RM500 more than the Xperia 5 II. Meanwhile, the mid-range Xperia 10 III is officially priced at RM1,999. As a comparison, the current Xperia 10 II is priced at RM1,799.

Based on the previous Sony Malaysia announcement, the Xperia 1 III is expected to be available at the end of July, followed by the Xperia 10 III in August 2021. Meanwhile, the compact flagship Xperia 5 III is expected to be released sometime in September this year.

Looking at the previous flagship launches, we expect Sony to throw in a couple of bundle deals for the pre-order period. Perhaps they might include a free WF-1000XM4 or a WH-1000XM4 for its flagship phone pre-order. Do stay tuned to us for more updates.

Xperia 1 III

The Xperia 1 III is Sony’s top-of-the-line smartphone offering which comes with a 6.5″ 21:9 4K HDR OLED display that pushes a 120Hz refresh rate. It gets a Snapdragon 888 processor with 5G under the hood that’s paired with 12GB RAM and 256GB of UFS storage. Unlike most modern flagship smartphones, Sony is still offering microSD card expansion up to 1TB.

For imaging, it gets a triple 12MP camera setup that offers wide, telephoto and ultra-wide angles. Both wide and telephoto cameras get optical image stabilisation. The telephoto shooter uses Dual PDAF sensor and it is a variable unit that offers both 70mm and 105mm focal length. Sony boasts ZEISS optics with T* coating for reduced reflections.

Equipped with a 3D iToF sensor, the Xperia 1 III claims to offer accurate real-time tracking to keep fast-moving subjects in focus. It can do burst shots up to 20fps as the device is capable of performing AF/AE calculations up to 60 times per second. Upfront, the device comes with an 8MP selfie camera that supports 5-axis EIS SteadyShot Intelligent Active Mode.

For pro users, there’s manual mode and you can also shoot in RAW format. You can also hook it up to a Sony Alpha camera and use it as a secondary display or remote control. The Xperia 1 III also boasts Cinematography Pro powered by CineAlta. Apart from offering cinematic presets with 21:9 aspect ratio, you can shoot 4K HDR videos in 120fps and also in 24, 25 30 and 60fps settings.

As you would expect from a Sony, there’s IP68 rated dust and water resistance, and it comes with stereo speakers that are enhanced by Dolby Atmos. It still retains a fan-favourite 3.5mm headphone jack. Powering the device is a rather large 4,500mAh battery and it supports both wireless and wired charging via USB-C (Power Delivery standard). Out of the box it runs on Android 11.

Xperia 5 III

The Sony Xperia 5 III is essentially the compact version of the Xperia 1. It has a smaller 6.1″ 21:9 HDR OLED display that pushes a lower Full HD+ resolution but it still retains a 120Hz refresh rate. Under the hood, it still runs on a Snapdragon 888 processor with 5G but with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage which is still expandable via microSD.

In terms of cameras, it gets a similar triple-camera setup as the Xperia 1 III but it lacks the 3D iToF camera. Both main and ultra-wide-angle cameras also come with optical image stabilisation. Upfront, it still gets an 8MP selfie camera with EIS.

The device still offers stereo speakers, IP68 dust and water resistance and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Despite being a smaller device, the Xperia 5 III is still equipped with a 4,500mAh battery which charges via USB-C. However, it lacks wireless charging support.

Xperia 10 III

The Sony Xperia 10 III is the most affordable of the trio priced and it’s priced just under RM2,000. It gets a 6.0″ 21:9 Full HD+ HDR OLED display and it runs on a Snapdragon 690 processor with 5G. The device is configured with 6GB RAM and 128GB of UFS storage which is also expandable via microSD.

In the camera department, it gets a 12MP main camera, an 8MP ultra-wide-angle shooter and an 8MP telephoto camera with 2x optical zoom. For selfies, it still gets an 8MP front camera.

The Xperia 10 also gets IP68 rated dust and water resistance and a 3.5mm headphone jack, but it appears to lack stereo speakers. Interestingly, it also gets a 4,500mAh battery like its more expensive siblings and it charges via USB-C.

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