Sony confirms that there won’t be an Xperia Z6, Z series to be replaced by the X series

After much rumor and speculation floating around over the last couple of days, Sony has now confirmed in a statement that its Z series of flagship smartphones is now dead. The Z line has “reached its culmination,” according to the Japanese company, and it’s now time for a “new chapter and evolution” in its product strategy…

Here’s the statement in full (via XperiaBlog):

“The Xperia Z line has reached its culmination – Xperia X series represents a new chapter and evolution of our product strategy. Whilst the Xperia Z series was all about bringing the best of Sony’s advanced technologies to smartphones, Xperia X series is based on bringing smart, adaptive Sony user experiences across camera, battery performance and hardware / software design.”

The entry-level device is the XA, with a MediaTek MT6755 processor rather than a Snapdragon chip. The phone has a 720p display and 16GB storage, as well as 2GB RAM and 13MP/8MP cameras. Sony’s describes it as a “super mid-range” phone. The standard X is better, boasting a Snapdragon 650 processor with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage, alongside a 5-inch 1080p display, a 23MP rear camera as in the Z5 and a 13MP front camera.

At the top is the Xperia X Performance, which is basically an Xperia X swapping out the Snapdragon 650 for Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 chip. Sony claims two-day battery-life for all three models.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that the recently launched line of Z5 handsets are going to be immediately discontinued. The Xperia Z5 Premium, notably, was the world’s first smartphone with a 4K display, and none of the X devices that Sony announced offer such a feature. It would seem, however, that Sony doesn’t plan on offering the “best” going forward, but would rather focus on “bringing smart, adaptive Sony user experiences”.