Sony Unveils Xperia Z and Xperia ZL 5-inch 1080P Flagships

Sony has welcomed the CES crowds of Las Vegas with two new smartphones - the Xperia Z and the Xperia ZL. Both sport similar under-the-hood specifications but different looks on the outside running Android Jelly Bean, having 5-inch 1080p screens laced with Sony's new Bravia Mobile 2 technology, quad-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro and new 13-megapixel Exmor RS camera sensors, capable of recording HDR video.

                           

Sony Xperia Z specs

The Sony Xperia Z flagship smartphone features a 5-inch, whopping 1080p display NFC (near-field-communications), 13-megapixel main camera and a water-resistant exterior. The fast quad-core napdragon S4 processor and 2GB of RAM are all top-notch specs. Plus its camera can record HDR video and it is waterproof to a depth of 1m. Unlike the many Xperia’s before it, the Xperia Z may mark Sony’s first chance to really stand out from the crowd and get some attention thanks to one big feature: water resistance. The Xperia Z may be one of the first high-end smartphones in the U.S. that you can use in the bathtub.

                          

Sony Xperia ZL specs

Sony also introduced the public to the new Xperia ZL, which is another high-end smartphone with the same display, camera and processor as the Xperia Z. It comes with one-touch mirroring and 4G LTE and has a maximized display with the highest ratio of screen to phone size. However, the Xperia ZL is not water resistant.

                     

The difference between Xperia Z and Xperia ZL                  

While the spec sheets are identical, the build of the two devices is significantly different. The Xperia Z features a carbon fiber skeletal frame, a tempered glass back panel and it is water and dust resistant. The Xperia ZL on the other hand is covered in a rubbery plastic and has a dedicated camera button. Unlike the Xperia Z, the ZL isn’t waterproof, and neither dust-proof. Sony is also claiming that the Xperia ZL has the highest screen to size ration than any other phone on the market.

                     

As I mentioned before, Sony plans on releasing both devices globally in Q1 of 2013. The former will be available in black, purple and white, while the latter will ship in black, red and white. There’s no indication that either device is scheduled for a U.S. launch, but I’ll venture to guess that Sony and AT&T will have some variant of the two launches as an exclusive in the next few months.