The phone is the company’s first SIM-free model in Japan

Mar 19, 2015 14:36 GMT  ·  By

We might have to wait a while until we see the Sony Xperia Z4 grace us with its presence, as sources are indicating that the phone will make a debut at IFA 2015, but while we wait for that to happen, Sony has a new phone for us.

Or for the folks living in Japan to be more precise, because the handset in question will be sold exclusively in the country, at least for the time being.

Sony Xperia J1 Compact is a new premium handset

Now, come and meet the Xperia J1 Compact, which is quite similar in size to the Xperia Z3 Compact. It offers a 4.3-inch HD LCD display and Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (MSM8974) processor clocked at 2.2GHz and working hand in hand with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage (expandable via microSD card).

So that you can get an idea of the phone’s dimensions, we’ll tell you the J1 Compact measures 5.04 x 2.56 x 0.38 inches / 128 x 65 x 9.7 mm, so it’s a little bit bigger than the Xperia Z3 Compact (5.00 x 2.56 x 0.34 inches / 127 x 64.9 x 8.6 mm).

In terms of design, Sony is offering the Xperia J1 with a metal frame, so the device will feel a lot more premium than the Xperia Z3 Compact.

Other specifications include an advanced 20.7MP camera on the back, plus a 2.2MP front-facing sensor, Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, LTE and NFC.

Everything on board is maintained alive by a 2300 mAh battery with Stamina Mode software to prolong the device’s life cycle as much as possible.

The smartphone runs an outdated OS

Puzzlingly enough, the phone was launched with Android 4.4.4 KitKat pre-installed on it, which is pretty odd especially since the company didn’t mention anything about a possible update to Lollipop.

As is characteristic of Sony, the phone arrives with IPX5/IPX8 water and dust protection. However, Sony might soon abandon its habit of making its phones waterproof, as rumors are suggesting the Xperia Z4 will arrive devoid of water protection.

The phone is SIM-free and will be made available starting April 20. Pre-orders for it will start on March 27 for a cool $454 / €425.

Sony Xperia J1 Compact (5 Images)

Sony Xperia J1 Compact arrives in Japan
Sony Xperia J1 Compact boasts a smaller form factorSony Xperia J1 Compact runs on KitKat
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