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Both Apple and Sony have rather compelling compact smartphones to offer at the moment. We’ll compare those two devices in this article, the Apple iPhone 15 Pro vs Sony Xperia 5 V. Both of these devices are the company’s flagship compact devices. They are overshadowed by their larger siblings, but if you’re not into huge smartphones, these two are quite compelling.
They do look quite different and are rather different in general. That should make this comparison rather interesting, though. As per usual, we’ll first list the specs of both smartphones. Following that, we’ll go over a number of categories and compare them. Those categories include design, display, performance, battery life, cameras, and audio. There’s plenty to talk about here, so let’s get started.
Specs
Apple iPhone 15 Pro vs Sony Xperia 5 V, respectively
– Screen size:
6.1-inch Super Retina XDR display with ProMotion (120Hz, HDR10, 2,000 nits)
6.1-inch OLED display (120Hz, 1B colors, HDR10)
– Display resolution:
2796 x 1290
2520 x 1080
– SoC:
Apple A17 Pro
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
– RAM:
8GB
8GB
– Storage:
128GB/256GB/512GB/1TB (NVMe)
128GB/256GB (UFS 3.1)
– Rear cameras:
48MP (f/1.78 aperture, second-gen sensor-shift OIS), 12MP (ultrawide, f/2.2 aperture, 120-degree FoV, macro photography), 12MP (telephoto, f/2.8 aperture, 3x optical zoom)
48MP (wide, f/1.9 aperture, Dual Pixel PDAF, OIS), 12MP (ultrawide, f/2.2 aperture, Dual Pixel PDAF)
– Front cameras:
12MP (f/1.9 aperture) + TrueDepth
12MP (f/2.0 aperture, 1.25um pixel size)
– Battery:
4,355mAh
5,000mAh
– Charging:
20W wired, 15W MagSafe wireless, 7.5W Qi wireless, 4.5W reverse wired (charger not included)
30W wired, 15W wireless, 5W reverse wireless (charger not included)
– Dimensions:
146.6 x 70.6 x 8.25mm
154 x 68 x 8.6mm
– Weight:
187 grams
182 grams
– Connectivity:
5G, LTE, NFC, Wi-Fi, USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.3
– Security:
Advanced facial scanning
Side-facing fingerprint scanner
– OS:
iOS 17
Android 13
– Price:
$999+
$849.99+
– Buy:
Apple
Amazon
Apple iPhone 15 Pro vs Sony Xperia 5 V: Design
The moment you lay your eyes on these two devices, you’ll notice how different they are. The iPhone 15 Pro has a pill-shaped display cutout and uniform bezels. The Sony Xperia 5 V doesn’t have a display cutout of any kind, but it does have slightly thicker bezels above and below the display. Considering that the Xperia 5 V has a tall and narrow display aspect ratio (21:9), it has an entirely different shape than the iPhone 15 Pro.
The iPhone 15 Pro has a 19.5:9 display aspect ratio, while the two devices have the same display size. The iPhone 15 Pro is shorter, while it’s also wider than the Xperia 5 V because of all this. The two devices are similar in terms of thickness, but they do feel entirely different in the hand. The display aspect ratios are only half the story, though. Both smartphones have flat sides with slightly curved edges, but the Xperia 5 V also has lines embedded into that frame.
The back sides of both smartphones are flat, but they do look different. The iPhone 15 Pro has a larger camera module with three cameras. The Xperia 5 V packs in two cameras on the back. Both camera islands are placed in the top-left corner. The iPhone 15 Pro corners are more rounded in comparison. Apple’s handset is also slightly heavier at 187 grams, compared to 182 grams of the Xperia 5 V.
They’re both IP68 certified for water and dust resistance. Both of them also feel like quality pieces of tech in the hand, and both are quite slippery too.
Apple iPhone 15 Pro vs Sony Xperia 5 V: Display
The iPhone 15 Pro includes a 6.1-inch 2556 x 1179 LTPO Super Retina XDR OLED display. That display is flat, and it has a 120Hz refresh rate (adaptive). Its maximum brightness is 2,000 nits, while the display aspect ratio is 19.5:9. The Ceramic Shield Glass protects this display. The iPhone 15 Pro has around 88% screen-to-body ratio, and there is a pill-shaped cutout on this display, while the bezels are uniform.
The Sony Xperia 5 V, on the other hand, has a 6.1-inch fullHD+ (2520 x 1080) display. That is an OLED panel with a 120Hz refresh rate. This is not an LTPO display, by the way. It supports HDR10 content, and it has a 21:9 aspect ratio. That panel is also flat, and the phone has an 83% screen-to-body ratio. The Gorilla Glass Victus 2 sits on top of the display in order to protect it.
Both of these displays do look very good. They are vivid, have deep blacks, and have great viewing angles. They’re sharp enough, and the touch response is also very good. The panel on the iPhone 15 Pro does have one advantage, though… its brightness. It does get noticeably brighter than the Xperia 5 V, even though the Xperia 5 V’s display is bright enough. This may be of importance to you if you spend a lot of time outdoors, especially if there’s plenty of sun outside.
Apple iPhone 15 Pro vs Sony Xperia 5 V: Performance
The Apple A17 Pro fuels the iPhone 15 Pro. That is Apple’s latest and greatest processor at the time of writing this. The phone also includes 8GB of RAM, and NVMe flash storage. The Sony Xperia 5 V, on the flip side, comes with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC. It has 8GB of RAM on the inside, and UFS 3.1 flash storage. Both of these processors are quite powerful, but Apple’s has the edge in terms of sheer power.
That chip has the power to run some console games, like the Resident Evil Village. On the other hand, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 can run pretty much anything from the Google Play Store without a problem, even the most demanding games. Both smartphones can get quite warm during gaming, though. It remains to be seen how many console-quality games will become available for the iPhone 15 Pro moving forward.
If you’re not a gamer, you’ll be glad to hear that both smartphones shine in regular, everyday scenarios. They can open apps really fast, do great in terms of multitasking, and also shine in multimedia consumption, browsing, and all the other tasks that you can think of. We did not notice any outstanding problems with either phone, especially after a couple of initial software updates.
Apple iPhone 15 Pro vs Sony Xperia 5 V: Battery
The iPhone 15 Pro has a 3,274mAh battery on the inside. The Sony Xperia 5 V, on the other hand, includes a 5,000mAh unit. Apple’s iPhones usually have smaller battery packs, as they need less power to provide similar results, due to how iOS functions. That being said, they both do offer really good battery life, but the Xperia 5 V does have the edge, at least that was the case for us.
Both smartphones are capable of crossing the 7-hour screen-on-time level, presuming gaming is out of the question. The Xperia 5 V didn’t really have a problem going over the 8-hour limit, though, so… it does offer a bit better battery life. However, both of these devices will offer plenty of juice for the vast majority of people. Do note that your mileage may vary, of course, you’ll use these phones differently, with different apps, and different signal strengths.
When it comes to charging, the iPhone 15 Pro supports 20W wired, 15W wireless (MagSafe and Qi2), 7.5W Qi charging, and 4.5W reverse wired charging. The Xperia 5 V, on the other hand, supports 30W wired, 15W wireless, and 5W reverse wireless charging. Do note that neither smartphone includes a charger in the retail box.
Apple iPhone 15 Pro vs Sony Xperia 5 V: Cameras
There are three cameras on the iPhone 15 Pro, and two on the Sony Xperia 5 V. A 48-megapixel main camera (sensor-shift OIS, dual pixel PDAF) sits on the back of the iPhone 15 Pro. A 12-megapixel ultrawide camera (120-degree FoV) is also included, as is a 12-megapixel telephoto camera (3x optical zoom). The Xperia 5 V has a 48-megapixel main camera (OIS, dual pixel PDAF), and a 12-megapixel ultrawide camera.
You’ll be glad to hear that both of these smartphones try to keep images close to real life, while giving them some pop. They also do a great job at that, although the images do look a bit different, of course. The Xperia 5 V shots are a bit more contrasty, though during the day images from both smartphones do look great. They’re sharp, vivid, and have plenty of details. That goes for ultrawide cameras too, though they’re a level below the main shooters. The iPhone 15 Pro wins the telephoto battle easily, both day and night.
During the night, both phones can capture plenty of detail, though the styles are a bit different. The noise is either minimal or not there at all, and that goes for both phones. They both also handle street lights really well in such conditions. The point-and-shoot video recording is definitely better on the iPhone 15 Pro, but there are so many manual options on the Xperia 5 V (for both images and video).
Audio
You’ll find stereo speakers on both of these devices. Both smartphones do offer really good sound quality from those speakers, and they’re on the same level when it comes to loudness. We did hear better and louder speakers, but not many people will find many complaints here. These are good speakers.
There is an audio jack on the Sony Xperia 5 V, while you will not find one on the Apple iPhone 15 Pro. You can, however, use the iPhone 15 Pro’s Type-C USB port in case you want to connect your headphones via a wired. Both smartphones do offer Bluetooth 5.3, by the way.