Sony unveiled its latest Xperia Z5 series lineup at the IFA 2015 in Berlin. The company has released a flagship every six months since 2013, following a trend prevalent among smartphone makers.

This year it seems Sony will slow down launching new handsets. Word is Sony won’t reveal the next generation of its flagship device until the second half of 2016 -- or even later.

Specs and Features

Like the Xperia Z5, the next generation Xperia Z6 might retain the same display resolution of 1080p or opt for a more refined technology such as Ultra HD found on the Xperia Z5 Premium model. Another possible feature that Sony might incorporate is its OmniBalance design first introduced with the XperiaZ1.

In 2016, all high-end phones are expected to include Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 820 chipset and Xperia Z6 won’t be an exception. The new device will likely support a USB Type C port and feature a microSD card for memory expansion. The device will probably run on Android 6.0 Marshmallow.

Sony will probably retain the other noteworthy features of its Xperia Z5 lineup like the fingerprint scanner, water and dust resistance and chemical tampered glass panel with anti-fingerprint coating. PC Advisor speculates the device may include wireless charging apart from an upgraded battery size.

Sony may also continue with the same 23 MP IMX300 sensor which has already been highly appreciated by industry experts. The sensor helped the Xperia Z5 to be ranked No.1 with the “best mobile photo and video scores to date,” by DxOMark, a French imaging firm specializing in mobile phone cameras.

A month ago, Tech Radar reported Sony’s Art Director Rikke Gertsen Constein saying the company’s design department is working on flagship phones for the second half of 2016, 2017 and 2018.

Release Date

Sony will unveil the new Xperia Z6 release date at IFA in September 2016, according to PC Advisor. But there’s also speculation the upcoming flagship might be launched early next year at the Mobile World Congress (MWC).

A report published in AndroidPit suggests that going by the pattern of the release of the Xperia smartphones, Sony might unveil the new Xperia Z6 range at MWC 2016, which will take place from Feb. 22 to Feb. 25.

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