Sony’s latest mid-range phones offer a lot of power at a reasonable price. We’re looking at the Xperia 10 Plus, an excellent device for those who want to take their smartphone game up a notch.
The phone runs on Android 9 Pie, Google’s latest mobile operating system. This is an immaculate software version and does not include bloatware.
Display
The Sony Xperia 10 Plus’s display is one of its best features. It’s one of three phones to sport a 21:9 screen, offering some seriously immersive viewing experiences.
This is thanks to the more wide screen real estate it provides for optimized apps to take advantage of it and show a comprehensive view of content. It’s also great for watching modern films on Netflix, with a whole movie filling the screen and avoiding letterboxing.
The screen on the Xperia 10 Plus isn’t as bright as we’d like, but it’s still very sharp. Colours are vibrant, and whites don’t have the yellow tinge that can sometimes be seen on competing mid-range smartphones.
Camera
Sony has added a few excellent features to the camera of the Xperia 10 Plus. These include a telephoto lens on the secondary 12Mp f/1.8 lens and Optical SteadyShot image stabilisation.
While these are excellent additions to the smartphone’s camera, getting them to work correctly is a bit finicky. The camera can struggle to separate the subject from its background, and photos often look drab or lack vibrancy.
We also like the five flash options – on, off, fill-flash, red-eye reduction, and flashlight – which can be used at different times of the day to avoid overexposing the camera. This is something we don’t see on many phones.
Battery
The Sony Xperia 10 Plus battery is a relatively small one for a flagship phone. But it’s perfectly usable and can last a day of moderate use.
The Xperia 10 Plus also has some excellent features for extending its battery life. Its Stamina Mode can add several hours of extra run time by reducing screen brightness and notifications and scaling back processor output.
As you might expect, the Xperia 10 Plus is also equipped with a good set of sensors. It includes an accelerometer, ambient light sensor, e-compass, fingerprint, hall, magnetometer, motion detector, and proximity sensor.
Software
The Sony Xperia 10 Plus runs on the latest Android 9.0 Pie operating system with Sony’s simple user interface over the top. There are a few pre-installed apps from Netflix and Xperia Lounge, but most can be uninstalled if you don’t want them.
The 10 Plus has a 6.5-inch screen with an impressive 2520×1080 resolution, which looks great for watching movies or playing video games. It also supports comprehensive vine L1 for high-quality streaming content from services like Netflix or Amazon Prime.
The Xperia 10 Plus has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor with 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of eMMC flash storage. This makes the phone a good option for those looking for a high-end smartphone that will not break the bank.
Design
Sony’s latest smartphones – the Xperia 10 and Xperia 10 Plus – have a new form factor. They feature a 21:9 aspect ratio screen that’s a first for modern smartphone designs.
The unusual display helps these phones stand out from the competition but can also make one-handed use a little awkward. Similarly, the taller body and wide-angle lens can take some time.
Both the Xperia 10 and Xperia 10-plus are running Android 9 Pie with Sony’s custom user interface over the top. It’s not as clean or intuitive as Google’s version, but it does have some nice touches, such as an on-screen shortcut button called Side Sense that lets frequently used apps fall to hand quickly.
