In pictures: Sony's Xperia XZ2 and XZ2 Compact now sport gentler, curvier designs

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The newly announced Sony Xperia XZ2 and XZ2 Compact ditch Sony's familiar boxy OmniBalance aesthetic in favor of gentler lines and a more curvy design. The curved Gorilla Glass 5 back falls neatly into your hand when you hold it, although it can be quite the fingerprint magnet. 

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The XZ2 sports a 5.7-inch IPS LCD display with an 18:9 aspect ratio, which is in line with many flagships on the market today. However, while the XZ2 Compact shares the same aspect ratio and 2,160 x 1,080-pixel resolution, it squeezes all that into a much more compact 5-inch screen. Both screens also support HDR content and can up-convert SDR video to HDR on-the-fly, thanks to Sony's X-reality engine. 

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Taller aspect ratios are usually associated with thinner bezels, but you'll notice that Sony's bezels are still considerably thicker than the competition. According to the company, that's partly because of the need to accommodate the larger and more powerful stereo speakers.

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Sony says it paid attention to ergonomics with its XZ2 phones, and one of the biggest changes you'll notice is that there's now a dedicated fingerprint sensor at the back of the phone (it used to be part of the power button). This feels like it might be located a little too low at first, but Sony deliberately placed it this way so it's more easily accessed when you're using the phone and typing with one hand. 

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The power button, volume rocker, and dedicated camera shutter button are all located on the phone's right edge. The power button looks like it's located in an awkward position as well, but it follows the same placement logic as the fingerprint sensor and is meant to sit where your thumb would rest if you were using the phone one-handed. 

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The phone charges over USB-C, and Sony has unfortunately joined the ranks of manufacturers who've kicked the 3.5mm headphone jack to the curb. That said, the Xperia XZ2 is not a thin phone, and there's actually considerable heft to it. In fact, it weighs a good 198g and measures 11.1mm at its thickest point. 

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The nano SIM tray also houses a microSD card (supports up to 400GB), but some versions of the phone will also take a second SIM in place of the microSD card. The SIM tray doesn't require any special tool to pop out, and you can simply pry it out if you need to pop in a different SIM. 

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Both the Xperia XZ2 and XZ2 Compact use the same 19-megapixel Motion Eye rear camera with a 1/ 2.3” Exmor RS memory-stacked image sensor and an f/2.0 lens. Thanks to the Snapdragon 845 SoC, the XZ2 phones are also the first that can shoot 4K footage in HDR at a color depth of 10-bit in the Hybrid Log Gamma (HLG) format. What's more, it can record 960fps slow-motion footage at 1080p. 

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While the XZ2 and XZ2 Compact share a lot in common, the larger model has something Sony calls a Dynamic Vibration System. This takes the form of an extra-large vibration module that's similar to the ones found in Sony's PlayStation DualShock controllers. In the XZ2, this will make your phone rumble while you're watching videos or playing games. 

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Here's an exploded view of the innards of the phone. The second pane from the left houses a large graphite sheet that channels heat away from the screen and spreads it out more evenly. 

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Under all that glass, the Xperia XZ2 features an aluminum frame which you can see here. 

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Here's the Xperia XZ2 Compact in Coral Pink. Other than the Dynamic Vibration System, the XZ2 Compact is also missing Qi wireless charging support. It doesn't share the XZ2's Gorilla Glass 5 back either, opting instead for a polycarbonate shell. However, the layout of both phones is still markedly similar, with the volume rocker, power, and camera shutter sitting on the right.

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At 168g and 12.1mm thick, the Xperia XZ2 Compact feels extremely dense in hand, and it's sort of like holding a small brick. The SIM card tray sits on the left of the phone, and it also doubles as a microSD card slot as on the XZ2. In addition, it looks like there's support for dual SIM as well on certain versions.

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The Xperia XZ2 Compact lacks a 3.5mm headphone jack as well. The phone's 2,870mAh battery pack (versus the 3,180mAh pack on the XZ2) charges over USB-C just like its bigger brother and it also supports Qualcomm's Quick Charge 3.0. 

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The front camera on both the Xperia XZ2 and XZ2 Compact is the same 5-megapixel shooter with a 1/5” Exmor RS sensor and a 23mm wide-angle f/2.2 lens. However, it's capable of taking more than just selfies and can scan your head to create a 3D model of it, which you can then upload directly to Facebook using the 3D Creator app. 

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Next, here's a look at the innards of the XZ2 Compact. 

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Finally, here's a shot of all the different colors for both phones (as you can see, the glass backs of the Xperia XZ2 are a nightmare to keep clean). Which is your favorite?