Sharp has unveiled the Aquos R7, another Leica-branded smartphone that builds on its predecessor. If the Aquos R6 is anything to go by, the Aquos R7 could be a Japanese exclusive. Sharp has not ruled out the possibility that it will launch the Aquos R7 elsewhere, though. Incidentally, Sharp will sell the Aquos R7 through Docomo and SoftBank, not directly.
Unsurprisingly, Sharp has returned to a 1-inch camera sensor for the Aquos R7, a selling point of its predecessor. However, the large camera sensor outputs at 47 MP in the Aquos R7, up from 20 MP in the Aquos R6. Also, the Aquos R7 offers an f/1.9 aperture, a 19 mm equivalent focal length, 8K video recording capabilities and Octa PD autofocus, previously seen in the Huawei P40 series.
Additionally, the Aquos R7 relies on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, LPDDR5 RAM, UFS 3.1 storage and a 5,000 mAh battery. Predictably, Sharp pre-installs Android 12 and includes an ultrasonic fingerprint scanner. Moreover, the Aquos R7 has a 6.6-inch OLED display that operates natively at 2,730 x 1,260 pixels and features a 120 Hz refresh rate. Furthermore, the display offers a 10-bit colour panel, 2,000 nits of peak brightness and a 2,000:1 contrast ratio.
Currently, Docomo and SoftBank state that the Aquos R7 will be available from July. For some reason, the former claims that Sharp will not release the smartphone until late July, whereas the latter asserts that the Aquos R7 will arrive in early July. Either way, neither company has confirmed pricing yet, nor has Sharp.
Source(s)
Sharp, Docomo & SoftBank via @yabhishekhd & @RODENT950