Sony Xperia 10 VIII review

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Introduction

Sony has always had its own way of doing things in the mobile space, refusing to follow the latest mainstream trends. There is a certain charm and even utility to this old-school approach, as it produces devices that feel more genuine, timeless and deliberately restrained in their design language, even though their features may not be at the forefront of innovation.

The latest entry in Sony's midrange series, the Xperia 10 VIII, is a poster child for this approach, with a utilitarian design that doesn't pay lip service to the latest trends. Like last year, you get understated aesthetics, with a uniform color across the frame and back, coupled with ample display bezels.

We dug deep into the phone's spec sheet to see what's different this year, and we came back empty. The display is essentially the same, the chipset is the same Snapdragon 6 Gen 3, and the battery is still a 5,000 mAh unit. The camera setup hasn't been modernized either.

Sony Xperia 10 VIII specs at a glance:

• Body: 153.0x72.0x8.3mm, 168g; Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus 2), plastic frame, plastic back; IP65/IP68 dust tight and water resistant (low pressure water jets; immersible up to 1.5m for 30 min).
• Display: 6.10" OLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, HDR, 1080x2340px resolution, 19.5:9 aspect ratio, 422ppi; Triluminos display.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM6475-AB Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 (4 nm).
• Memory: 128GB 8GB RAM; UFS; microSDXC (uses shared SIM slot).
• OS/Software: Android 16, up to 4 major OS updates.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.9, 24mm, 1/1.56", PDAF, OIS; Ultra wide angle: 13 MP, f/2.4, 16mm, 123-degree, 1/3.0".
• Front camera: 8 MP, f/2.0, 26mm (wide), 1/4.0", 1.12µm.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60/120fps, gyro-EIS, OIS; Front camera: 1080p@30fps.
• Battery: 5000mAh; Wired, PD, QC.
• Connectivity: 5G; eSIM; Wi-Fi 6e; BT 5.4; NFC; 3.5mm jack.
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (side-mounted); stereo speakers.

This raises a lot of questions about Sony's reasoning for re-releasing essentially the same device under a new name. Unfortunately, we don't have the answers, but we do have a full review that puts the Xperia 10 VIII through its paces and judges it for what it is. For instance, what's not obvious from the numbers on the spec sheet above is that Sony promises improved screen brightness and better-sounding speakers for this model, so we'll make sure to put those claims to the test as well.

Unboxing

Sony has been going the minimalist and eco-friendly route with its packaging for some time now. The Xperia 10 VIII is no exception. It arrives in a very simple box made entirely from paper, bamboo and sugar cane fibers, which is admirable. Sony says some of the materials are recycled, too.

Since the Xperia 10 VI, Sony phones have been shipping without not only a charger but also a USB cable of any sort, so we didn't expect things to be different here, and they aren't.

The phone supports charging at up to 30W using a conventional USB-PD charger, so you have plenty of affordable options to choose from.