Revealed Xperia 5 II details dashes expectant fans' hopes for a compact flagship

Sony is finally set to launch the Xperia 5 II as a direct successor to last year's Xperia 5. The Xperia 5 was marketed as an Xperia 1 in a smaller package, and rumors from months ago claimed the Xperia 5 II would be the much-awaited Sony compact device. New information proves otherwise, however.

While those reports claimed that the Xperia 5 II could be as small as 5.7", they can now be written off as false, as the Xperia 5 II will actually offer a 6.1" display. On paper, there doesn't seem to be much difference between those two display sizes, but what difference that exists takes the Xperia 5 II from a proper compact phone to a merely not-so-large one. Fans of the older XZ Compact line are unlikely to be thrilled.

As it stands, there aren't any compact premium phones on the market. There was the Galaxy S10e last year but an S20e was not—and will not be—released, leaving lovers of small-sized phones without any options. The Google Pixel 5 is expected to be sized around the 6" mark and will likely be the best bet for those who expected a smaller Xperia 5 II. It's not much but it's something. 

The Xperia 5 II will supposedly offer a 6.1" FHD+ 120 Hz OLED in a 21:9 ratio, a Snapdragon 865, 8 GB of RAM, and 128 GB of storage. A September 17 launch is expected.