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Xperia XA2 Plus is now a thing, because Sony forgot XA2 Ultra exists
- The Xperia XA2 Plus has quietly surfaced on Sony’s website, delivering few changes over the XA2 Ultra.
- The two phones share the same horsepower, main camera, and battery capacity.
- It’s not all doom and gloom, as the new phone has LDAC and Hi-Res Audio support for better audio quality.
Sony’s Xperia XA series devices tend to offer good cameras and decent grunt for the price. Now, the company has quietly revealed the Xperia XA2 Plus (h/t: Xperia Blog), but it feels like a rather pointless release in the wake of the XA2 Ultra.
The two devices share numerous similarities, starting with the mid-range Snapdragon 630 chipset and 32GB or 64GB of expandable storage. We also see 4GB of RAM in both phones, although the XA2 Plus is available in a 6GB RAM variant too.
Moving to the endurance field, the phones share a 3,580mAh battery. Now, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as it’s arguably above average for a mid-range smartphone. The XA2 Plus is also slightly smaller than the Ultra, so props to Sony for keeping the battery size intact.
The two phones also share a 23MP f/2.0 main camera, which has been a Sony fixture since the days of the Xperia Z5 series. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right? But rivals like Xiaomi and Huawei are sporting dual camera setups — and in cheaper phones.
The selfie department sees a notable change though, from the Ultra’s 16MP+8MP dual-camera setup to a solitary 8MP wide-angle camera with bokeh effects. The other major hardware change is the move to a 6-inch full HD+ screen and taller screen ratio, instead of the Ultra’s 6-inch full HD display and 16:9 screen ratio.
Sony’s new phone does have a few more features over the Ultra, in the form of LDAC wireless audio and Hi-Res Audio support. Audiophiles on a budget will want to put this on their watchlist.
As for everyone else, the Xperia XA2 Plus is virtually the same phone as the Xperia XA2 Ultra. Expect a similar level of performance, practically identical camera quality, and the same endurance. You should probably either wait for the inevitable XA3 range or opt for one of our favorite budget phones instead.