Sony Xperia X2 release date, news and rumors

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The Sony Xperia X is almost a year old, so we should be due a successor any time now.

That said, we don’t yet know a huge amount about Sony’s next mid-range marvel, though a small but growing number of rumors are gradually giving us hints of what to expect.

Join us below as we dive into them and fill in the gaps with our best educated guesses.

Cut to the chase

  • What is it? The successor to the Xperia X
  • When is it out? Possibly late February or early March
  • What will it cost? An upper mid-range price is likely

Sony Xperia X2 release date

The soonest we’ll likely see the Sony Xperia X2 is at MWC 2017, which takes place from February 27 until March 2.

It’s the biggest phone event of the year and we’re sure to see a lot of handsets there, but more to the point Sony has a history of launching phones at the show, including the Xperia X at last year’s MWC.

As such it would make a lot of sense for the Xperia X2 to be launched at this year’s show. The only thing that makes us think it might not be is that really we don’t know a whole lot about the handset yet, and if a launch is imminent we’d expect to have heard more rumors.

But model numbers for two new Xperia handsets were revealed by the Eurasian Economic Commission in October, which suggests we’ll see them soon.

The numbers are G3112 and G3121, while the Xperia X’s model number began with an ‘F’, and the Xperia Z5 before it started with an ‘E’ – so the move to ‘G’ suggests a new generation of phones.

TechRadar’s take: While we don’t know a huge amount about the Xperia X2 there is evidence that it’s coming soon, and MWC lands around a year after the Xperia X launched, so that’s our best guess.

Sony Xperia X2 screen

Hottest leaks:

  • A 5-5.2-inch screen
  • A 1080p resolution

Sony has stuck with a 1080p screen on the majority of its upper mid-range and flagship devices, including the Xperia X, and as even the Xperia XZ has just a 1080p screen we expect the Xperia X2 will as well.

Current leaks suggest that two fairly high-end handsets could be on the way, one of which will have a 5 or 5.2-inch screen – which is fairly typical for Sony, and could well be the Xperia X2.

The other sounds like it could be an Xperia XZ 2, as it’s said to have a 5.5-inch 4K display – a higher spec than we’d expect from the X2.

Alongside these rumors we’ve also seen an image that’s supposedly of an unannounced Sony handset, shared by Slashleaks. The shot is very blurry, so it’s hard to make out much, but the screen appears to be edge-to-edge.

However, it’s labelled as the “Xperia XZ (2017)”, so may be a successor to the XZ instead.

TechRadar’s take: The Sony Xperia X2 will almost certainly stick with a 1080p screen again, since even on its flagships Sony has shown little interest in moving beyond that.

Sony Xperia X2 design

Hottest leaks:

  • A familiar design
  • A button-free front

Our only real hint at the design of the Sony Xperia X2 comes from the picture above, in the screen section, though this is possibly of the XZ 2 instead. 

It shows large bezels above and below the display, with a front-facing camera, but seemingly no buttons on the front, despite there being plenty of space below the screen.

Other than the edge-to-edge display the design is broadly similar to the Xperia X, and whether this image is accurate or not a continuation of Sony’s boxy design language is likely, along with a metal back, as that’s what the original Xperia X has.

The Xperia X2 may also be water-resistant, as some Sony handsets are, though the Xperia X isn’t, so don’t count on being able to take it swimming.

TechRadar’s take: The one possible image we’ve seen is believable, in so much as it’s broadly similar to the very rectangular design Sony has used on its phones for years. There’s no word on what the X2 is made of, but our guess would be metal, given that Sony recently switched from glass to metal on its phones.

Sony Xperia X2 camera and battery

There’s no word on what camera the Sony Xperia X2 will have, but there’s a chance it will use the same one as the Xperia X. In which case you can look forward to a 23MP rear snapper and a 13MP front-facing one, though it’s likely Sony will make some changes or improvements to the camera, in order to help its new handset stand out.

We also don’t know what size battery to expect. The Sony Xperia X has a 2620mAh one, so the X2’s could be similar. One thing that is likely is fast charging and a USB Type-C port, as Sony’s already switched to those on its higher end phones.

Sony Xperia X2 OS and power

The only real power rumors we’ve heard are that the X2 could have 4GB of RAM, which isn’t unrealistic at all given that the original Xperia X has 3GB. As for the operating system, Android Nougat is likely.

The Xperia X2 is also likely to have a Qualcomm chipset. The Xperia X has a mid-range Snapdragon 650, so perhaps the X2 will have the newer Snapdragon 653 – an octa-core chip clocked at up to 1.95GHz.

Sony Xperia X2 other features

There aren’t any feature rumors yet, but we’d expect the X2 will have a fingerprint scanner, as its predecessor does (though not on the US version).

Sony Xperia X2 price

There aren’t any price rumors yet, but expect an upper mid-range price, probably roughly in line with the Sony Xperia X, which launched for $549.99 (£450, around AU$735).

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