Sony Xperia XZs shipping in the US this week

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It will be quite a while before Sony's "true" 2017 flagship, the Xperia XZ Premium, hits the market, thanks to the embargo Samsung and Qualcomm put on the Snapdragon 835. In the meantime, however, Sony fans who can't really wait, or don't need all the bells and whistles, might be able to settle for the Xperia XZs instead. This one is now available for pre-orders, unlocked, and with a relatively lower price tag to match its relatively lower specs.

To be fair, the Xperia XZs does have some of the specs of early 2017 flagships. You know, those that don't have to wait for the Snapdragon 835. That means a Snapdragon 820, 4 GB of RAM and 32 or 64 GB of storage. But make no mistake, the Xperia XZs is no top of the line smartphone. The 5.2-inch Full HD screen pretty much makes sure of that. And the 2,900 mAh battery is probably not going to win any favors.

To make up for those flaws, Sony bestowed on the Xperia XZs its new Motion Eye camera tech, which is the marketing term for its slow motion recording at 960 fps. It also inherits the Predictive Hybrid AF from last year's Xperia XZ. Predictive Capture will also be present, despite our previous note that it might be missing!

While the final US price of the Xperia XZ Premium has yet to be confirmed, though speculation and calculations put it at around $740, Sony has already revealed the price tag for the Xpreia XZs. That will be $699 in the US, unlocked and from Amazon, in Black, Ice Blue, and Warm Silver colors.

It's still a pretty steep price to ask for a phone with late 2016 specs. But for those who are nevertheless still interested, the device starts shipping on 5th April

Sony Xperia XZs from Amazon (Black), (Ice Blue), (Warm Silver)