Rumors about Sony’s upcoming flagship model, the Xperia 1 VIII, which have been circulating online for weeks, finally have a clear answer. Well-known foreign websites MyMobile Exclusively obtained factory CAD data, the exact size and design of the Xperia 1 VIII were disclosed for the first time, and it also officially ended the heated discussion on “whether to switch to a hole-punch screen”.
Sony Xperia 1 VIII CAD rendering confirms: retaining traditional forehead and chin
According to the factory CAD data obtained by MyMobile, the Xperia 1 VIII is determined to follow the symmetrical forehead and chin design of the Xperia 1 VII. The front camera and dual stereo speakers are still located in the top frame. This is undoubtedly good news for users who insist on the traditional design style of Xperia. The biggest debate in the community over the past month has been whether Sony will abandon the iconic frontal symmetrical design in order to keep up with the trend.
Size fine-tuning: the camera module is the biggest highlight
Judging from the CAD data, Xperia 1 VIII is not a major facelift, but a cautious evolution. The main dimensions are as follows:
- high:161.9 mm (Xperia 1 VII is 162.0 mm)
- width:74.4 mm (Xperia 1 VII is 74.0 mm, increase by 0.4 mm)
- Body thickness:8.58 mm (Xperia 1 VII is 8.2 mm, an increase of 0.38 mm)
- Total thickness including camera protrusion:11.37 mm (Xperia 1 VII approx. 9.3 mm)
- screen:Approximately 6.5 inches, flat screen
Although the thickness is increased by 0.38 mm, it is almost insignificant in the hand, but the changes in the internal space are worthy of attention. Reports speculate that Sony may have prepared a larger main camera sensor, a larger vapor chamber cooling system, or a slightly larger battery for this generation, or even a combination of the above three.
The most obvious change comes from the camera module. The ancestral vertically arranged cameras of the Xperia 1 series have been replaced by a new square camera island on the VIII, which contains three lenses, a flash and an additional sensor. The height of the camera protrusion has also increased significantly from about 1.1 mm on the VII to 2.79 mm (including the total thickness of the fuselage to 11.37 mm), indicating that Sony may have invested heavily in the imaging system.
Publish timeline forecast
Although the CAD data cannot reveal information such as processor, battery capacity or price, based on Sony’s release rhythm in the past three years, it can be reasonably speculated:
- Publication time:Estimated May 2026
- Time to market:Estimated June 2026
Xperia 1 VII will be released on May 13, 2025 and will be available on June 4; Xperia 1 VI will be released on May 17, 2024 and will be available in June. If we follow the same pace this year, the chances of it being released in May and going on sale in June are very high. In addition, records with the model prefixes XQ-GE (flagship model) and XQ-GH (Xperia 10 VIII) have appeared in the IMEI database, which also supports Sony’s advancement of the product schedule as usual.
Conclusion: The Year of Evolution
Judging from the CAD picture data, Xperia 1 VIII is the “year of evolution” of Sony’s flagship product line: there is no drastic change in the design language, but the camera system and internal structure are optimized on the existing basis. The real focus of the upgrade (processor, sensor, battery capacity) still needs to wait for official announcements or further revelations to be confirmed. For users who like the traditional design of Xperia, retaining the dual stereo speakers and symmetrical frames is the biggest good news. We will have detailed reports when it is officially released.
Source: KOCPC Chinese