Xperia 10 III renders' surprise is that it doesn't have any

Although there are rumors circulating again that LG might be shuttering its mobile business, others that have been in the red far longer don't seem to have any qualms just yet. HTC just announced an admittedly decent mid-range Desire 21 Pro 5G earlier this month and now it seems that Sony will soon be following suit. The successor to its Xperia 10 mid-range selection has just gotten some leaked renders and it's pretty much like a blast from the past.

The Xperia 10 II, launched in February last year, and the Xperia 10 III depicted here are like two peas in a pod. There is no discernible difference in design, at least not at first glance, and the two phones look almost eerily identical. Given Sony's history, that will definitely earn not a few criticisms but it might not all be bad as it looks.

On the one hand, it does mean that Sony kept some of the things that its customers did like about the Xperia II. There are front-firing stereo speakers that are rather rare these days, even more so a 3.5mm headphone jack. The optical fingerprint scanner is also off to the side rather than under the screen, promising better reliability and accuracy.

On the other hand, it also means that the Xperia 10 III looks not only dated but, to some extent, unpleasant. The thick forehead definitely stands out and not in a good way. It seems that Sony will also stick to its 21:9 aspect ratio that was novel only for the first few minutes.

The Sony Xperia 10 III is leaked to also have a triple camera system that has a 12MP main sensor, 8MP telephoto camera, and an 8MP ultra-wide shooter, definitely unimpressive even for mid-range phones these days. Sony announced the Xperia 10 II in February last year and it may also stick to that schedule, just like it's sticking its old design.