Sony Xperia X Compact review: Small, but not quite as mighty

Sony Xperia X Compact review: Performance, display and battery life

How much of a negative impact does that hexa-core Snapdragon 650 processor have on performance? Well, it’s no slowpoke, that much is clear from using the phone from day to day. Launching apps, flicking between them and navigating around feels slick and quick. And because the screen, sensibly, is limited to a resolution of 1,280 x 720, it performs well, even with demanding games such as Sky Force Reloaded.

Indeed, in the GFXBench Manhattan 3 onscreen test, which is run at the phone’s native resolution, the Sony Xperia X Compact’s Adreno 510 GPU gains a higher average frame rate than the Galaxy S7 Edge. And yet, if you look closely, you can’t help but notice that performance is actually a downgrade on the Xperia Z5 Compact, a phone that’s a year older now. In both Geekbench and GFXBench, the older handset streaks ahead, proving that Sony’s approach with its compact smartphones has well and truly changed.

As for screen quality, that’s a slightly more positive story. As I’ve pointed out, the resolution and 4.6in size remains the same as before, and that’s a good thing. On a screen this small, you simply don’t need a resolution higher than 1,280 x 720. Sony hasn’t made any big hardware changes behind the scenes, either, still using an IPS panel.

That’s not to say the screen isn’t good. It’s sharp to the eye and photos and video look superb on it, whether you have Sony’s X-Reality image turned on or not, and measurements with our colorimeter suggest it’s an excellent screen as well. Contrast, maximum brightness, and colour reproduction are all top notch. Indeed, the X Compact even manages to outdo its forebear, with a maximum brightness of 535cd/m2 compared with the Z5 Compact’s comparatively 461cd/m2.

I’m also pleased to see that battery life is better, as well. In our video rundown tests, in which we set the screen to a predefined brightness level of 170cd/m2, switch the phone into flight mode and play a movie until the battery dies, the Sony Xperia X Compact lasted 14hrs 41mins, a full 1hr 20mins longer than the Sony Xperia Z5 Compact.

Sony Xperia X Compact review: Verdict

With a price that’s £70 less than the Xperia Z5 Compact at launch, an improved camera, and even better battery life, the Sony Xperia X Compact is clearly not a bad phone. If you’re looking for a pocketable Android smartphone, in fact, it remains pretty much the only game in town.

Equally, though, the X Compact is a disappointment in other areas. It’s nowhere near as nice a thing as the Z5 Compact, it’s not as quick and it isn’t water-resistant, either. All things told, I still prefer the Z5 Compact, even more so now that the two phones are now on sale for around the same price.