Updated: Sony Xperia Z4: what we want to see

The Sony Xperia Z3 has only recently arrived on shop shelves but with Sony now in a pattern of releasing two flagships a year we're surely only a matter of months away from the Sony Xperia Z4, so it's not too early to make a wish list of what we want to see.

In fact we're even starting to hear rumors about Sony's next flagship, including one report which reckons the Japanese firm will return to an annual launch of its top device, ditching the recent trend of every six months, though not until after the Z4 launches.

Updates: New rumors point to a substantial but believable upgrade over the Xperia Z3 and we might see the phone as soon as January.

Cut to the chase

• What is it? Sony's next flagship smartphone


• When is it out? Likely to be on shelves in April but it could be announced as early as January


• What will it cost? A lot - this will be a high-end device

News and rumors

The Xperia Z3 hasn't been out for long, but already there's chatter on the web about its successor, the Sony Xperia Z4.

In fact we could be in for something quite special as initial claims include specs which would make the Xperia Z4 the most powerful smartphone around.

A 5.5-inch QHD 1440 x 2560 display, 64-bit 2.8GHz octa-core Snapdragon 810 processor, 4GB of RAM, Adreno 430 GPU, 32GB of storage and a Exmor RS CMOS sensor have all been touted for the Xperia Z4.

But more recent rumors are a little more humble. The latest we've heard still includes a QHD display, but at 5.4 inches rather than 5.5. The latest set of rumors also includes 4GB of RAM, but just a 32-bit Snapdragon 805 processor.

The camera is said to have a 20.7MP resolution, just like the Xperia Z3, but with a new sensor capable of taking in more light, along with an upgraded 4.8MP front-facing snapper.

The battery is pegged at 3420mAh, which is a slight boost over the 3100mAh Xperia Z3 and in news which should surprise absolutely no-one the Z4 will apparently run Android 5.0 Lollipop.

All in all while not quite as impressive as the initial spec rumors, that would still make for a big improvement over the Xperia Z3. Oh and there's also a brief mention of the design, from the same source, saying that it will have thinner top and bottom bezels as well as more rounded corners as you can sort of see in the accompanying image.

Sony Xperia Z4 release date

We can also take a guess as to when the Xperia Z4 will launch. Sony announced the Xperia Z2 at MWC 2014 on February 24, so there's a fair chance that the Xperia Z4 will arrive at MWC 2015, which next year is set to happen on March 2-5.

That will put almost six months between the Xperia Z3 and the Xperia Z4, so it would make sense if Sony is sticking to two flagships a year.

But we're now hearing that it might be announced even earlier, as Sony has confirmed that it will be holding a press conference at CES on January 5, though it might have something other than the Xperia Z4 planned.

Either way it probably won't hit stores until around April, as Sony is set to release its new Exmor RS IMX230 image sensor in April 2015 and the Xperia Z4 is likely to sport the new sensor. As for what we want to see, read on for all our thoughts.

4K video that actually works

Sony's been trumpeting its phones 4K video capabilities since the Xperia Z2, yet neither that nor the Xperia Z3 can actually record for more than around five minutes without heating up and shutting down the video.

That's obviously a major problem and while it doesn't quite render the 4K feature redundant it does severely limit it. The fact that Sony has left it unfixed in the Xperia Z3 is perplexing, presumably there isn't an easy fix, but if longer videos were possible it could be a genuinely useful feature, whereas right now it's just kind of an embarrassment.

So hopefully it will be fixed for the Sony Xperia Z4. You never know, some people might even have 4K televisions by then too.

A QHD display

The Sony Xperia Z, Z1 and Z2 all had 1080p displays and that was fine as that was the best any smartphone had at the time and the screen size was at least being increased.

But then the Xperia Z3 also launched with a 1080p screen and that was slightly more disappointing, since the size remained the same and other than increased brightness there wasn't much of an upgrade, plus some other phones, such as the LG G3, have started including QHD displays.

We want the Xperia Z4 to wow us and a 1080p display for the fifth time in a row won't do that, so we're hoping its QHD.

Smaller bezels

The Sony Xperia Z3 looks great, but the bezels above and below the screen are off-puttingly large. Presumably there's a reason for their size, they're likely housing vital components required to make the phone actually work, but they're unsightly and we hope they're smaller next time around.

Improved low-light performance

For the most part the Xperia Z3 has a perfectly capable and even impressive camera, but its low-light performance could still use some work.

Sony made some strides with the Xperia Z3, improving it over the Z2, but seemingly more with software than hardware as its low-light photos tend to come out over-processed, leaving it trailing behind the likes of the iPhone 6 and the HTC One M8 in darker scenes.

Clearly Sony is aware of the problem given that it made some improvements on the Xperia Z3, but it didn't go far enough. We want proper hardware improvements, rather than awkward software fixes.

Sony is due to release a flagship mobile image sensor, the Exmor RS IMX230 in April 2015 and it is likely that the Xperia Z4 will come with the new sensor.

More power

With a 2.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon 801 processor and 3GB of RAM you might not think the Xperia Z3 was lacking for power, yet in some ways it is. For one thing all that power seemingly hasn't translated into performance, as surprisingly we found a little bit of lag in use, especially when switching between apps.

It's not a big deal but it does feel less snappy than most other recent flagships despite the specs, which on paper should be more than up to the task. So we're more after increased performance than an actual boost in specs, if it takes improved specs to do that then fine, but if the same thing can be achieved with a bit more optimisation that's fine too.

Having said that superior specs wouldn't be a bad thing either way, as the Snapdragon 801 is starting to look a bit long in the tooth with the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 using a Snapdragon 805 chip and the Snapdragon 810 expected to start arriving in phones soon.

Fewer bugs

Another surprising aspect of the Xperia Z3 was just how buggy it seemed, with the keyboard sometimes bouncing or proving unresponsive and the notifications bar occasionally getting stuck half way down.

Hopefully Sony will patch those bugs out of the Xperia Z3 anyway but we'd really rather it makes sure the Xperia Z4 is bug-free before launching it.

Faster camera and autofocus

As long as the light's good the Xperia Z3 can take some exceptional snaps, but one problem with it is actually getting to the point of being able to take a photo, as both launching the camera and the autofocus are a little slower than we'd like.

We're talking milliseconds here, but that can still mean the difference between capturing a moment and missing it, so hopefully the Xperia Z4 will have a snappier snapper.

The new Exmor RS IMX230, which the Xperia Z4 is likely to come with, is claimed by Sony to be the industry's first CMOS image sensor built for smartphones which can track fast-moving subjects thanks to built-in image plane phase detection autofocus.

This new sensor would make the Xperia Z4's camera much better at photographing fast moving subjects.

A new design

We've mentioned that we want smaller bezels but what we'd really like to see is a totally new design. Sony has done a good job of refining its OmniBalance design but there's only so much you can do and with handset after handset sporting fundamentally the same look it's starting to get a bit boring.

Not to mention the fact that for our money both the iPhone 6 and the HTC One M8 look better. So hopefully Sony will do something new and exciting with the Xperia Z4.

Make it metal, give it curves, make it triangular. Ok, maybe not that last one, but we're sure Sony can come up with something, oh and get rid of all those annoying flaps! Most likely it will stick with OmniBalance, but we can dream.

Better Lifelogging

Sony's Lifelogging app is an interesting idea, as it goes beyond just counting steps to also tell you how much running, cycling and sleeping you do and even how long you spend listening to music or watching videos (as long as you do it on your phone).

Essentially as the name suggests it's designed to log your life, but it could do with some improvements. The biggest issue is that it's just not accurate enough, but there are also quirks like the fact that it counts all apps as games, so even if you've never touched a game on your smartphone it will likely peg you as a big mobile gamer.

Plus, while all this information is interesting it doesn't really lead to anything or give you any insights based on the data. If Sony can work on all those things for its Z4 implementation then it could become genuinely useful.

Innovation

Asking for innovation might seem a bit vague, but with smartphones increasingly levelling out when it comes to specs it's innovation that can really help them stand out, so it would be great if the Sony Xperia Z4 had one or more innovative new features.

What those might be is anyone's guess, maybe a scratch proof body, maybe a virtual reality display, probably not a virtual reality display, but something and ideally something that's more than just a gimmick.

Come on Sony, give us a new feature that even Z3 owners will consider upgrading for.

• We have ideas for the LG G4 as well.

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