Sony may change the Xperia design for the first time in years. Here’s why it might not matter.

Sony is famously conservative with its smartphone design, and its devices have been looking largely the same for years. That may be about to change as the company is likely to redesign its upcoming mid-range smartphone, the Xperia 10 VII.

A listing by a case maker on the Japanese Amazon shows the Xperia 10 VII with a fresh new look. The changes aren’t anything drastic, but Sony may rearrange the cameras on the back. So, instead of the vertical double camera, the Xperia 10 VII may feature a horizontal camera.



While that might not sound radical, it could be a significant step for Sony, considering that the previous five generations of the Xperia 10 are barely distinguishable from each other. However, the original Xperia 10 was the last Sony device with horizontal cameras, so the change could be seen as Sony going back to the roots of the series.

Sony purists who are worried about the change can remain calm because the front of the device in the images appears unchanged. That shouldn’t be a surprise, as most smartphones look the same from the front, save for the slimmer bezels. That’s true for the iPhone 16, the Galaxy S25, and the Pixel 10 phones, the front sides of which look like their predecessors’. 



We know little else about the Sony Xperia 10 VII. The device is already late, as its predecessor was released in June last year. So far, we’ve only seen a database listing suggesting the premiere of the device will be in October.

I am glad that Sony hasn’t completely ditched its smartphones after it was forced to suspend the sales of the Xperia 1 VII. I don’t know if such a minor redesign could help it overcome its issues, but I’ll be excited for the company to return to at least some of its former glory.