The Sony Xperia 1 III will launch in Europe in August, Xperia 5 III gets delayed to September
Sony announced pre-orders for its Mark III flagships in Europe last week, but it was a false start and pre-orders were taken down a few days later. Now, they are back on again and we have some bad news.
Some good news first. The Sony Xperia 1 III will become available for pre-order in Germany on July 15 and should start shipping on August 31. At least that’s when the pre-order bonus ends, the press release doesn’t actually name a shipping date (originally, the 1 III was planned to ship on August 6). The phone will cost €1,300 and you’ll get a free pair of WH-1000XM3 noise canceling headphones, a three month Tidal subscription and Joyn Plus+ (though that last bit seems specific to Germany) with a total value of €450.
In the UK there will be no pre-order, the Xperia 1 III will be available to purchase from August 19. The price is set at £1,200 and those that buy at launch will receive the Wh-1000XM3 headphones that are “worth” £330 (maybe when they were new), but no streaming subscriptions.
Sony Xperia 1 III, available in August • Sony Xperia 5 III, available in September
Now, the bad news – the Sony Xperia 5 III launch has been pushed back to September. The German and UK press releases agree on that time frame. The phone will cost €1,000 and £900, respectively, with no bonus in Germany and a free pair of Sony WH-H910N h.ear on 3 wireless ANC headphones “worth” £250 (we’re not sure if they were ever worth that and they certainly aren’t now, let alone in September).
The 5 III was originally scheduled to ship alongside its bigger sibling on August 6, but instead it will arrive half a year after it was first unveiled.
In Norway, the Xperia 1 III will go on pre-order on July 5 and sales will begin on August 10 at NOK 12,800 with a free pair of over-ear 1000XM3 attached. There’s no mention of the 5 III. The same goes for Denmark where the 1 III will cost DKK 10,000.
