Sony Xperia 5 review

Video recording

The Xperia 5 records video up to 2160p at 30fps and it's missing 2160p at 60fps, which a lot of top-tier devices now offer. It does have 60fps at 1080p, however. Sony lets you record HDR videos (4K only) to play on that HDR display and you get a choice between the h.264 and h.265 codecs for the regular vids (HDR is h.265 only).

The 4K videos are encoded at around 55Mbps, which is a little higher than average. 1080p/60fps footage gets 30Mbps flat, while 1080p/30fps is treated to 17-17.5Mbps. Audio is recorded in stereo and gets a 156kbps bit rate regardless of video mode.

Electronic stabilization is available in all modes, and now works in conjunction with the stabilized optics of the main and telephoto modules. We found the Xperia 5's stabilization on the main an ultra wide angle shootres to be effective at canceling out camera shake from walking and it handled pans without issues too. The telephoto cam is similarly capable of producing stable footage, though its limitations were exposed on this particularly windy day. Still, we've seen even smoother clips from competitors, so while good and usable, we wouldn't call Sony's stabilization class-leading.

Put the Xperia 5 on a tripod and you can count on some really nice videos. Little has changed in this respect since the Xperia 1, and using its main camera the 5 captures a wide dynamic range and renders true to life colors. Detail in 4K isn't the best, however - while the footage isn't bad, we've seen others capture finer videos. 1080p at 30fps is among the better ones, however, though there is the usual drop in quality in 1080p at 60fps too.

The telephoto cam outputs slightly softer videos than the main one, and it's also outresolved by the Galaxy Note10, for example, which captures more detail both in 4K and 1080p. We're still liking the Xperia's colors and dynamic range, no complaints here.

The ultra wide angle camera adds a bit of a warm color cast, but it's not too disturbing. It's decently detailed too, though it's still bested by others on the market. Ultra wide videos aren't really meant for staring from up close though, we reckon.

Cinema Pro video recording app

Finally, besides the standard camera app, Sony also provides the "Cinema Pro" video recording app, which is designed in collaboration with Sony's CineAlta movie camera division and is squarely aimed at videography enthusiasts. We're already familiar with it from our Xperia 1 review, and you can also check out our in-depth Cinema Pro app review for more details of our experience shooting video with it.

It is hard to describe what it offers in a few words, but some of the most important highlights include shooting at a cinematic 23.98 fps at 21:9 resolutions of either 3840 x 1640 or 2520 x 1080. The footage is HDR, and is shot in H.265. There is also adjustable ISO, ranging from 50 to 1600, adjustable shutter speed (1/23.98 to 1/1541.32) and manual control of focus. Finally, the app also allows you to choose the camera you'd like to shoot with - the 16mm f/2.4, or the 26mm f/1.6 or the 52mm f/2.4.

The version on the Xperia 5 is slightly different than the one we have on our Xperia 1, and this updated one gives you the option to overlay different frame lines (for 4:3, 2:1, 2.39:1, or 16:9) as well as a rule-of-thirds-grid. More importantly, manual focus now gives you a ton more options, including focus racking to precise pre-set distances with the ability to set the speed as well.

Cinema Pro app UI

Most interesting, however, is the Look selector, which gives you a pick from professional color profiles for your video. These include VENICE CS, Strong/BU60 YE60, Bright/BU20 YE60, Soft/YE80, String/BU100, Cool/BU60, and Deep/YE40. Of those, Venice CS is the flattest one with soft colors, the least amount of contrast and soft tonal transitions. It should lend itself well to color grading in post-processing.

Here's a sample of what is possible to achieve with the Cinema Pro video recording app. We shot it on the Xperia 1, but the Xperia 5 we have here has identical capabilities.