Sony's Xperia XA1 has a bad name but a cool screen

Sony's latest affordable smartphone - the Xperia XA1 - is now on sale, and it touts a pretty unusual feature for its price: an edge-to-edge display. It's 5-inch 720p screen sits flush with the phone's aluminium frame, making it one of the few truly bezel-less phones on the market.

Of course, this is only true for the display's left and right edges. The top and bottom are still flanked by a sizeable chin and forehead, but I guess you can't have everything at $399.

Somewhat confusingly, the Xperia XA1 is actually the second Xperia XA series smartphone, succeeding last year's Xperia XA. We're not 100% sure why Sony didn't call it the Xperia XA2, given that, it's well, the second Xperia XA smartphone.

Other key specifications for the Xperia XA1 include a MediaTek P20 eight-core processor, 32GB of expandable storage, 3GB of RAM, a 2,300mAh battery, Android Nougat, and a 23MP rear-facing camera. Notably, the rear-facing camera is the same as used in Sony's current flagship, the Xperia XZ, which could be bode well for photo quality, especially at the asking price. As always, we'll reserve judgement until we actually get some hands on time with the device.

You can get the Xperia XA1 in black through JB Hi-Fi, or in a choice of black and white direct through Sony.

Alex Choros

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Alex Choros is the Managing Editor of WhistleOut Australia and an award-winning journalist. He's been writing about consumer technology for over a decade and is an expert on the Australian telco sector, to the point where he knows far too many phone and internet plans by heart. In addition to leading the WhistleOut editorial team, Alex is responsible for ruining the office Sonos with his troubled taste in music.

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