Sony has made a fresh play for the competitive mid-range smartphone market, as it launched a new waterproof 4G capable handset today.
The Xperia M4 Aqua is Sony's first octa-core 64 bit smartphone and the company claims it will have a battery that will last two days, and 13MP rear facing and super wide angle 5MP selfie cameras.
Despite having an IP65/8 waterproof rating, the phone has a capless micro-USB charging socket. It also features a tempered glass display and runs Android 5.0 Lollipop.
The device, which will go on sale at around €299 in the Spring, was launched on the opening day of Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona.
There had been speculation that Sony would announce a new version of its current flagship handset, the Xperia Z3 at this year's event.
But executives said the decision had been taken not to launch the Z4 at this stage, as customer feedback had indicated that it was too soon after the Z3's launch.
They also claimed the features on the Z3 remain market leading.
However, Sony did use MWC to launch a new version of its premium large sized tablet, the Xperia Z4 tablet.
Similar in looks to previous versions the new model has a 2K display and weighs in at 392g (wifi version). And at just 6.1mm thick, Sony claims it is the world's brightest, slimmest and lightest 10 inch tablet.
The device is powered by a Snapdragon 810 octa-core 64 bit processor and its claimed the 6,000mAh battery will support 17 hours of video playback.
Sony says it hopes that in the Irish market it will bundle the tablet with a snap on docking detection Bluetooth keyboard.
Unlike previous years Sony did not host a press conference at MWC. The company has recently been reported to be considering its future in the mobile market.
