Sony appears to be shifting its focus for the next Xperia flagship, particularly in terms of zoom photography. Recent leaks about the upcoming Xperia 1 VIII indicate that Sony is moving away from the variable telephoto system featured on the Xperia 1 VII.

The details have emerged from listings found on Amazon Germany and Amazon UK, as reported by NotebookCheck. According to ITHome, the Xperia 1 VIII is expected to replace the previous continuous optical zoom lens with a fixed 70mm telephoto camera offering 3x optical zoom.

On the surface, this might seem like a step back. The Xperia 1 VII had the ability to smoothly transition between 85mm and 170mm focal lengths (approximately 3.5x-7.1x), a feature that no other phones offered as of early 2026. However, Sony seems to be making up for this change in another area that could be more relevant for everyday use: sensor size.

A much larger telephoto sensor (rumored)

The new telephoto camera is said to utilize a significantly larger 48MP 1/1.56-inch sensor, replacing the older 12MP 1/3.5-inch unit. This represents a substantial improvement and should enhance light capture, detail, and low-light performance. It's possible that this trade-off could actually benefit Sony in the long run.

According to reports, the new setup can cover an effective 70mm to 139mm range. While the extreme long-range zoom from the previous model may no longer be available, most users might end up with better-quality photos at the focal lengths they commonly use. The main and ultra-wide cameras are expected to remain similar, sticking to 24mm and 16mm equivalents.

Outside of the camera system, benchmark listings suggest that the Xperia 1 VIII (Sony XQ-GE54) will be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip paired with 12GB of RAM. Online Geekbench scores indicate that it will deliver flagship-level performance.

There also appear to be some design changes this time around, including what looks like a more squared-off camera module. At the same time, Sony is reportedly retaining features that Xperia fans tend to appreciate, such as the 3.5mm headphone jack and the tall cinematic-style display.

Although nothing has been officially confirmed yet, the overall direction is becoming clearer. Sony doesn't seem to be focused on achieving the highest zoom numbers anymore. Instead, it looks like the company is aiming to improve the types of shots that people take most often, while still maintaining the enthusiast-focused identity of the Xperia line.

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