Sony might not yet be considering the release of the Xperia Z6 anytime soon, but if trends were to be believed, the company could come out with its newest flagship model by the second half of 2016. Since 2013, Sony has been in the habit of releasing at least two phones per year from the launch of the first Xperia Z. However, it seems that Sony is starting to slow things down. After all, it can't let its own new products eat into the potential sales of its previous releases.
In an interview with Rikke Gerstsen Constein, Sony's art director, at the Berlin IFA 2015, she revealed that the design team is already working on new phone models for the second half of 2016, 2017 and 2018. It is important to note that Constein did not mention anything about a new release for the first half of 2016, leading industry observers to speculate that the company might not be launching anything in the near future, writes Tech Radar.
According to Android Pit, the Xperia Z6 will either have the same screen resolution of 1080p, like the Xperia Z5, or go for a much more sophisticated technology like the ultra HD display found on the Z5 Premium. The Z5 was reportedly the first smartphone to employ a 4K UHD display. In addition, the rising popularity of virtual technology tools like the Google Cardboard may convince Sony designers to come up with a model that's at par with the advancements. Another feature to be expected is Sony's OmniBalance design, which was first introduced in the Z1, and focuses on the users' comfort when holding the phone at whatever angle. Android Pit adds that there's really no point in changing a design that already works, even if it's considered conservative and uneventful.
Nearly all high-end phone models are equipped with the Snapdragon 820, so it is highly likely that the Xperia Z6 will have this, as well, if not better. There's still over six months to go before the company is expected to roll out a new smartphone and newer processors could already be in the works. The new device will likely support USB type C and a microSD card feature. It will also probably run on the Android Marshmallow.
Some observers still believe, though, the that Xperia Z6 could come as soon as February 2016, if Sony's previous pattern were to be followed. Right now, all we can really do is wait.
Note: the introduction in this video is in German but the interview is in English.