The New Sony Xperia XA 2 and XA 2 Ultra: Hands-On Review

Hey guys, I'm Tom The Tech Chap, and I've been hands-on with a new Sony Xperia x8 - and XA - ultra. I've been playing with both the new phones, and while it can be hard to get excited about mid-range phones like these, the previous Sony XA and XA one were surprisingly popular and sold quite well. The good news is that the new XA 2 brings with it a lot of upgrades.

From a bigger 5.2 inch full HD screen to more powerful but still mid-range Snapdragon 630 processor alongside 3 gigs of ram and 32 gigs of storage, the new XA 2 offers a nice spec bump over the old exa 1. We also get the latest Android 8 Oreo software, something that many cheaper phones seem to fall behind on. Additionally, the phone now has a 23 megapixel f 2.0 rear camera capable of shooting 4k video and 120 fps slow motion video.

Design-wise, however, not much has changed here. The phone is just under 10 millimeters thick and weighs 171 grams, which does feel quite bulky and heavy, although it's a little bit slimmer than before. It still got fairly chunky bezels at the top and bottom as well, so overall it just feels a little bit bigger than you'd expect it to. Unfortunately, the phone also lacks any sort of water resistance, which is disappointing.

On the other hand, on the plus side, you do get a super-fast fingerprint meter on the back, which is all too elusive these days - and a half mil headphone jack on the top, so it may look a little pedestrian on the outside. But first impressions of actually using the x8 2 are very good. The old 720p resolution has been bumped up to 1080p, which looks sharper brighter and more vibrant than ever. It's a good size at 5.2 inches, so it's still relatively easy to use one-handed.

The most noticeable upgrade is just how much faster and more responsive the phone is thanks to the new audio software with Sony's own UI screen on top and that faster processor. It feels so much quicker that it'll comfortably run any app or gaming thirty-something, which was something that the old xa1 with its mediatek chip struggled to do.

Battery life should also be a lot better this time around, with a much bigger 3300 milliamp hour cell and support for quick charging. I haven't had a chance to properly test the battery life yet, but I did expect to see a solid day and a half of use. For the camera, like the design, it's one of the areas that hasn't seen a huge improvement. The phone still has the same 23 megapixel sensor as before, but it can now shoot 4k and slow motion video.

The front-facing camera is an 8 megapixel camera with a 120 degree super wide angle lens, so it's much easier to fit you and your mates in the frame. That's definitely an improvement over the old exa 1. So that's the XA 2 for now, but what about the XA 2 ultra?

The ultra is largely the same aside from offering a bigger 6-inch screen. It has the same full HD resolution as before, and also the same 600 processor. However, it does boast an extra big of ram, so the ultra does have an ace up its sleeve. It boasts dual front facing cameras with the main 16 megapixel camera offering oh is for more stable selfies and vlogs, and the second 8 megapixel camera giving you a wider 120 degree field of view and even a flash for low-light photos.

The rear camera is the same as before, so really it's the ultra that's the better option if you want a bigger screen and you're really into your selfies. Both phones will start shipping in February with pricing around 300 pounds for the XA 2 and a little under 400 fully ultra. They both offer a nice spec bump over the old exa 1, which is great to have more options in this price bracket.

I'd love to hear what you may call the new XA 2 in the comments below, do let me know. Thank you very much for watching guys click that like and subscribe button if you enjoyed this video, big thanks to ebay comm and Corsair for sponsoring my CES trip, I'll see you guys next time right here on the texture

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enhey guys i'm tom the tech chap and I've been hands-on with a new Sony Xperia x8 - and XA - ultra so I've been playing with both the new phones and while it can be hard to get excited about mid-range phones like these the previous Sony XA and XA one were surprisingly popular and sold quite well and the good news is the new XA 2 brings with it a lot of upgrades from a bigger 5.2 inch full HD screen and I'm more powerful but still mid-range Snapdragon 630 processor alongside 3 gigs of ram and 32 gigs of storage we also get the latest Android 8 oreos software something a lot of cheaper phones seems to fall behind on and a 23 megapixel f 2.0 rear camera now capable of shooting 4k video and 120 fps slow motion video design-wise though not much has changed here just under 10 millimetres thick and weighing 171 grams it does feel quite bulky and heavy although a little bit slimmer it's still got fairly chunky bezels at the top and bottom as well so overall it just feels a little bit bigger than you'd expect it also lacks any sort of water resistance which is disappointing but on the plus side you do get a super-fast fingerprint meter on the back and that all too elusive these days - and a half mil headphone jack on the top so it may look a little pedestrian on the outside but first impressions of actually using the x8 2 are very good the old 720p resolution has been bumped up to 1080p which looks sharper brighter and more vibrant than ever and it's a good size at 5.2 inches so it's still relatively easy to use one-handed but the most noticeable upgrade is just how much faster and more responsive it is thanks to the new audio software with Sony's own UI screen on top and that faster processor it feels so much quicker it'll comfortably run any app or gaming thirty-something the old xa1 with its mediatek chip struggled to do and just as importantly battery life should be a lot better this time as well with a much bigger 3300 milliamp hour cell and support for quick charging I haven't had a chance to properly test the battery life but I did expect to see a solid day and a half of use as for the camera well like the design this is one of the areas that hasn't seen a huge improvement it's got the same 23 megapixel sensor as before but it can now shoot 4k and slow motion video so like most mid-range phones don't expect the camera to blow you away although the 8 megapixel front camera has a 120 degree super wide angle lens so it's much easier to fit you and your mates in the frame so that is the XA 2 but what about the XA 2 ultra well the ultra is largely the same aside from offering a bigger 6-inch screen it's got the same Full HD resolution same 600 processor a slightly bigger battery and it boasts an extra-big of ram so the ultra does have an ace up its sleeve boasting dual front facing cameras with the main 16 megapixel camera offering oh is for more stable selfies and vlogs and the second 8 megapixel camera giving you a wider 120 degree field of view and even a flash for low-light photos the rear camera is the same so really the ultra is the better option if you want a bigger screen and you're really into your selfies so both phones will start shipping in February with pricing around 300 pounds for the XA 2 and a little under 400 fully ultra they both offer a nice spec bump over the old exa 1 and it's great to have more options in this price bracket but I'd love to hear what you may call the new XA 2 in the comments below do let me know thank you very much for watching guys click that like and subscribe button if you enjoyed this video I big thanks to ebay comm and Corsair for sponsoring my CES trip I'll see you guys next time right here on the texturehey guys i'm tom the tech chap and I've been hands-on with a new Sony Xperia x8 - and XA - ultra so I've been playing with both the new phones and while it can be hard to get excited about mid-range phones like these the previous Sony XA and XA one were surprisingly popular and sold quite well and the good news is the new XA 2 brings with it a lot of upgrades from a bigger 5.2 inch full HD screen and I'm more powerful but still mid-range Snapdragon 630 processor alongside 3 gigs of ram and 32 gigs of storage we also get the latest Android 8 oreos software something a lot of cheaper phones seems to fall behind on and a 23 megapixel f 2.0 rear camera now capable of shooting 4k video and 120 fps slow motion video design-wise though not much has changed here just under 10 millimetres thick and weighing 171 grams it does feel quite bulky and heavy although a little bit slimmer it's still got fairly chunky bezels at the top and bottom as well so overall it just feels a little bit bigger than you'd expect it also lacks any sort of water resistance which is disappointing but on the plus side you do get a super-fast fingerprint meter on the back and that all too elusive these days - and a half mil headphone jack on the top so it may look a little pedestrian on the outside but first impressions of actually using the x8 2 are very good the old 720p resolution has been bumped up to 1080p which looks sharper brighter and more vibrant than ever and it's a good size at 5.2 inches so it's still relatively easy to use one-handed but the most noticeable upgrade is just how much faster and more responsive it is thanks to the new audio software with Sony's own UI screen on top and that faster processor it feels so much quicker it'll comfortably run any app or gaming thirty-something the old xa1 with its mediatek chip struggled to do and just as importantly battery life should be a lot better this time as well with a much bigger 3300 milliamp hour cell and support for quick charging I haven't had a chance to properly test the battery life but I did expect to see a solid day and a half of use as for the camera well like the design this is one of the areas that hasn't seen a huge improvement it's got the same 23 megapixel sensor as before but it can now shoot 4k and slow motion video so like most mid-range phones don't expect the camera to blow you away although the 8 megapixel front camera has a 120 degree super wide angle lens so it's much easier to fit you and your mates in the frame so that is the XA 2 but what about the XA 2 ultra well the ultra is largely the same aside from offering a bigger 6-inch screen it's got the same Full HD resolution same 600 processor a slightly bigger battery and it boasts an extra-big of ram so the ultra does have an ace up its sleeve boasting dual front facing cameras with the main 16 megapixel camera offering oh is for more stable selfies and vlogs and the second 8 megapixel camera giving you a wider 120 degree field of view and even a flash for low-light photos the rear camera is the same so really the ultra is the better option if you want a bigger screen and you're really into your selfies so both phones will start shipping in February with pricing around 300 pounds for the XA 2 and a little under 400 fully ultra they both offer a nice spec bump over the old exa 1 and it's great to have more options in this price bracket but I'd love to hear what you may call the new XA 2 in the comments below do let me know thank you very much for watching guys click that like and subscribe button if you enjoyed this video I big thanks to ebay comm and Corsair for sponsoring my CES trip I'll see you guys next time right here on the texture\n"