At the MWC 2016 event last month, Sony took the stage to announce a brand new Xperia X series which currently includes three smartphones: the Sony Xperia XA, Xperia X, and Xperia X Performance. The first two smartphones in the series are mid-ranger and the last one holds the status of being a flagship as it packs almost all the major which you would expect from a current generation flagship.

While the new Xperia X series is worth looking forward to because of the improved camera, smarter battery management, and a stylish design, it also becomes more important as Sony has confirmed that the Xperia Z series is now dead. So, if you have been a fan of the Xperia Z series and thinking of buying a new Sony Xperia smartphone, here's our specs comparison of the Xperia XA, Xperia X, and Xperia X Performance.

Display:

The Sony Xperia XA sports a 5-inch HD IPS LCD display with scratch-resistant glass while the Xperia X and X Performance have the same display size but with a Full HD display. This means that the Xperia XA will offer you a pixel density of 294ppi and the Xperia X and X Performance will offer 441ppi.

Other than this, the latter two also offers Sony's Triluminos display tech alongside the X-Reality engine. It is not hard to guess that in terms of display, the Xperia X and X Performance will surely come out to be better than the Xperia XA.

Hardware:

All the three smartphones in the Xperia X series have different processors to offer. The Xperia XA comes with 2GHz octa-core MediaTek MT6755 (Helio P10) SoC with Mali T860MP2 GPU, the Xperia X has 1.8GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 650 chipset with Adreno 510 GPU, and the Xperia X Performance has quad-core 2.15GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chipset with Adreno 530 GPU. As for the RAM, the Xperia XA has 2GB of RAM and the remaining two smartphones come with 3GB of RAM. Sony has also added a fingerprint scanner to the Xperia X and X Performance.

As each of the smartphones has different hardware configurations to offer, it is quite difficult to comment on the real world performance without using them. However, I expect Xperia X series smartphones to perform at least at the level which we have seen from other smartphones with the same set of offerings.

Storage:

The Sony Xperia XA comes in only 16GB storage, the Xperia X has 32GB and 64GB models, and the Xperia X Performance has only the 32GB model. All the three smartphones offer storage expansion up to 200GB via microSD card. So, you can see that there is nothing much to talk about here and it comes to one's preference and usage style (also the budget of course) to decide which storage variant he would prefer.

Camera:

Sony has decided to go with a 13MP rear shooter with the Xperia XA and a 23MP shooter for the Xperia X and X Performance. All the three smartphones' camera have features like dual-LED flash, phase detection autofocus, HDR, and panorama. However, Sony has introduced Predictive Hybrid Autofocus Technology for the latter two smartphones, the Xperia X and X Performance. As explained, this new technology focuses on the object and predicts its motion for eliminating the blur and providing you with better and sharper images.

On the front, you have an 8MP camera for the Xperia X and a 13MP camera for the other two smartphones. You will also get autofocus and 1080p video recording support in each of the smartphones.

Battery:

The Xperia XA, Xperia X, and X Performance comes with a non-removable 2300mAh, 2620mAh, and 2700mAh battery respectively. Sony has also partnered with a California-based startup Qnovo for implementing its Adaptive Charging Technology into its Xperia X series smartphones. It means all the three smartphones support this technology which not only helps in a longer battery backup than other normal devices but also almost twice the lifespan for the battery itself.

Software:

There is nothing much to differentiate and choose from when it comes to software front. As all the three Xperia X series smartphones with come with the familiar Sony software UI and experience which will be based on the latest Android Marshmallow. Sony recently did a beta testing of the software and it received an amazing response from the users. Hence, it is a good reason to believe that you will be getting a good user experience with the latest software build.

Build & Design:

Sony has continued with its tried and tested OmniBalance design language for the Xperia X series smartphones. The major difference is that the newly launched smartphone sport a metallic back with more rounded edges which gives them a more premium look and feel as well as makes easier to grip. Another thing to remember is that only the Xperia XA and Xperia X Performance are waterproof.

The dimensions are almost same with the Xperia XA and Xperia X being the thinnest of the lot at 7.9 mm. As for the weight, the Xperia XA is the lightest as it weighs just 138 grams. In case you are someone to whom color options also matter, all the three Xperia X series phones will be available in White, Lime Gold, Rose Gold, and Graphite Black color options.

Availability and Pricing:

The Sony Xperia XA and X will be available in almost all the regions wherever Sony sells its smartphones but as for the Xperia X Performance, there are reports stating that it will not be coming to certain markets like Germany. It will certainly available in the US, UK, and Asian market though.

The pricing of the smartphones is not confirmed but as they are up for preorders in a few markets which gives us an idea of what could be the price in other markets. The Xperia X is priced at €599 ($660), Xperia XA at €299 ($330), and the higher-end Xperia X Performance at €699 ($771). Do remember that these are not the exact and final pricing of the smartphones. These are just to give you an idea of what to expect.

Conclusion:

As you saw that the Xperia XA is on the affordable end of the price band with no fingerprint scanner and waterproofing. However, it does have a good display and is also the lightest of all. So, this should be your choice if you are tight on the budget.

On the other hand, the Xperia X and Xperia X Performance have almost similar set of features to offer but as we mentioned above that the Xperia X Performance might not be sold in a few regions, so you are pretty much left with only the Xperia X if you happen to be living in any of those regions. Although, you can always import it but would you really want to do that? And if you are someone who lives in other regions with no budget issues, then your best bet is to go with the Xperia X Performance.

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• The Sony Xperia X Performance isn't still available online. To be notified when it becomse available click here.