With the high-end smartphone niche fully covered by the beautiful Xperia Z and ZL, all that Sony needed to make 2013 look like the most promising year ever was a little something something for the entry-level and mid-range market sectors.

And boy, are we in for some treats there as well! The L and SP have been made official less than 24 hours ago, and, if their spec sheets alone didn’t get you excited, the price points will seal the deals.

The 4.6-inch Xperia SP is to officially cost €399 in both Italy and the Netherlands and a slightly steeper €419 in Germany. While that doesn’t line up with our speculations from yesterday, it still sounds more than fair, given the Xperia Z and ZL are worth €250-€300 more on the continent.

Also, you have to keep in mind that these are Sony’s suggested retail prices, meaning third-party retailers are not forced to abide them by the cent. In other words, expect to see the SP available for €375 or even €350 soon after its release.

And remember, the big guy is basically all that a flagship was back in 2012. It has a nice 720p display, a dual-core 1.7 GHz processor, 1 GB of RAM, an 8 MP rear-facing snapper and a 2,370 mAh battery. The design is another strong point, even if the SP is chunkier than the Z and ZL. You get a robust aluminum frame and a snazzy illuminated transparent strip at the bottom.

As for the slightly less exciting Xperia L, this has been officially priced at €279 in the Netherlands and €299 in Italy and Germany. That’s more or less on-par with what last year’s Xperia P goes for these days and the two are similar in many ways.

True, the P has a higher ppi and 16 GB of on-board memory, but the L sports a bigger screen, has Jelly Bean on-board and a bigger battery beneath its hood. Bottom line, we think the L is the better choice.

We still don't have any official ETAs for the L or SP, so we only know they're due out in “Q2″. Besides Europe, the duo will certainly hit Asia, but America… probably not.