Sony Xperia Z5 Compact review: The overachiever

Benchmarks

Don't get fooled by the Z5 Compact's small size. It might be compact, but it is part of the prestigious "Z" family nonetheless. Consequently, it packs some beastly silicon under the hood, namely, the Qualcomm MSM8994 Snapdragon 810, backed up with 2GB of RAM. That means a total of eight cores, four Cortex-A53 units clocked at 1.5 GHz and the other four Cortex-A57 at 2.0 GHz. Graphics are also well taken care of by the Adreno 430. Furthermore, given its native resolution of only 720p, the Z5 Compact should offer some serious pixel-pushing power.

Like we already mentioned, the Z5 Compact is more or less in a league of its own. Digging through the phone finder we were really hard-pressed to find many other offers with such powerful hardware and a display smaller than 5.0 inches. Of course, we can't fail to mention the iPhone 6 and 6s but if you are looking for a good Android phone that doesn't adhere to today's huge-display fads, you aren't exactly spoiled for choice.

In fact, it seems that Sony currently has somewhat of a monopoly on the niche, as the closest viable candidates we could find include the Xperia Z3 Compact, which we already mentioned on several occasions and, interestingly enough, the new Xperia M5. Don't be fooled by the latter's "M"-line affiliation. The M5 is actually more of a toned-down flagship than anything else and runs on the impressive MediaTek Helio X10. However, Sony is still having some issues with this new MediaTek adoption and the Xperia M5 seems to have a lot of untapped potential.

Other candidates we picked out with roughly the same screen real estate include two offers by Huawei - the P8 lite and the Honor 6, as well as another two by Xiaomi - the Mi 4 and Mi 4c. However, they aren't nearly as powerful as the Z5 Compact, at least on paper that is.

Just to give you a proper perspective on how well the Z5 Compact is utilizing its Snapdragon 810 SoC, we decided to pit it against a few other popular devices that use the same silicon, despite generally being quite a bit larger. These include the HTC One M9, ZTE Nubia Z9, LG G Flex 2 and the OnePlus 2. We also threw in some closely equipped candidates, like the LG G4 and the Lenovo Vibe X2.

Last, but not least, the Z5 Compact does cost a pretty penny, so we decided to compare it with other devices you can pick up at a similar price point. It so happens that the Galaxy S5 meets the bill, so do the Nexus 6, Asus Zenfone 2 and surprisingly enough, even the new Moto X Pure Edition.

First up, we have the raw CPU performance test with GeekBench 3 and this is where the eight cores really get to shine. We can happily report that the Z5 Compact is performing up to par with other Snapdragon 810 devices. It fact, Sony seem to have done a truly terrific job in utilizing the raw CPU power to the fullest extent. The bigger Z5 does squeeze a little more power out of the chip, but it's not a major difference.

There is an interesting observation to be made here, pertaining to the Xperia M5. Like we already mentioned, despite being a mid-range phone by design, its MediaTek Helio X10 SoC definitely holds its own and scores only a couple of hundred points below the Z5 Compact. If it is raw computational power you are after, then the latter might be a perfectly viable choice and it does come with a lower price tag than the Z5 Compact. However, the weaker GPU does take its toll in most of the other tests, so there is a definite tradeoff in making the more economical choice.

GeekBench 3

Higher is better

• OnePlus 2
  4429
• Sony Xperia Z5
  4017
• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  3796
• ZTE Nubia Z9
  3795
• HTC One M9
  3761
• Lenovo Vibe X2
  3647
• LG G Flex2
  3604
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  3554
• LG G4
  3522
• Moto X Pure Edition
  3433
• Motorola Nexus 6
  3285
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  3175
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  3120
• Huawei Honor 6
  3081
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  2856
• Huawei P8lite
  2813

AnTuTu is a compound benchmark, which also takes into account RAM and GPU performance. Surprisingly, the Z5 Compact blew all of the competition out of the water. It seems that Sony has invested in some quicker chips and now reaps the benefits with a whopping lead over its competitors, be it Snapdragon 810-based or not.

We did also manage to run Antutu on our pre-production Xperia Z5 unit to see how well the Z5 Compact compares to its bigger brother. Taking the smaller screen resolution into account, as expected, it actually turned out that the Compact is comes out on top, as far as synthetic benchmarks are concerned.

Also, the aforementioned difference between the Z5 Compact and M5 is a lot more obvious this time around. The Z5 Compact is a true flagship, no doubt about it.

AnTuTu 5

Higher is better

• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  61481
• ZTE Nubia Z9
  54705
• HTC One M9
  51427
• Moto X Pure Edition
  50629
• Sony Xperia Z5
  50611
• Motorola Nexus 6
  49803
• LG G4
  48693
• LG G Flex2
  47680
• OnePlus 2
  47207
• Lenovo Vibe X2
  46666
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  46566
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  45348
• Huawei Honor 6
  42688
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  38786
• Huawei P8lite
  35205

Basemark OS II is another all-round benchmark. It gives an overall score along with single, multi-core performance, math performance and more. Once again, the Z5 Compact really shines, especially in the single-core department. Multi-tasking, however, seems to be a bit lacking, but it is nothing serious, nor is translatable to real life performance. Our experience with the unit showed fluent performance with even the most liberal usage pattern.

Basemark OS II

Higher is better

• Moto X Pure Edition
  2016
• OnePlus 2
  1942
• Sony Xperia Z5
  1825
• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  1696
• LG G Flex2
  1601
• HTC One M9
  1526
• Motorola Nexus 6
  1509
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  1324
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  1167
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  1147
• Lenovo Vibe X2
  930
• Huawei Honor 6
  863
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  804
• Huawei P8lite
  600

Basemark OS II (single-core)

Higher is better

• Sony Xperia Z5
  3089
• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  3085
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  2573
• Lenovo Vibe X2
  2571
• LG G Flex2
  2528
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  2510
• Moto X Pure Edition
  2508
• HTC One M9
  2401
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  2282
• Huawei Honor 6
  2279
• OnePlus 2
  2047
• Motorola Nexus 6
  1967
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  1538
• Huawei P8lite
  1443

Basemark OS II (multi-core)

Higher is better

• Lenovo Vibe X2
  13999
• Huawei Honor 6
  13916
• Huawei P8lite
  11873
• OnePlus 2
  10799
• HTC One M9
  10128
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  10063
• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  9994
• Motorola Nexus 6
  9915
• LG G Flex2
  9758
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  9646
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  9508
• Moto X Pure Edition
  9132
• Sony Xperia Z5
  8148
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  6168

Moving on to pure graphics tests and namely GFX Bench. Despite its slam size, the Z5 Compact packs the very same Snapdragon 810 chip its bigger sibling has and it performs accordingly. As anticipated, the phone simply breezes through the graphics test thanks to the powerful Adreno 430 GPU. This is especially true in the on-screen tests, where the lower HD resolution puts a lot less strain on the chipset and allows for a lot higher frame rates.

This is especially evident in the Open GL ES 3.1 test, which generally produces frame rates that are barely usable for practical purposes, such as gaming. However, with a 720p resolution things look quite different and the Z5 Compact seems to be more than happy to facilitate this new age of mobile graphics. However, the question of how enjoyable said games would be on a 4.6 inch screen is still open for debate.

GFX 2.7 T-Rex (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

• ZTE Nubia Z9
  58
• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  56
• Sony Xperia Z5
  49
• HTC One M9
  49
• LG G Flex2
  49
• OnePlus 2
  48
• Motorola Nexus 6
  38.9
• Moto X Pure Edition
  34
• LG G4
  34
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  27.6
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  27.4
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  27
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  23
• Lenovo Vibe X2
  17.8
• Huawei Honor 6
  16
• Huawei P8lite
  10

GFX 2.7 T-Rex (onscreen)

Higher is better

• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  57
• ZTE Nubia Z9
  51
• HTC One M9
  50
• Sony Xperia Z5
  49
• LG G Flex2
  48
• OnePlus 2
  46.7
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  41.3
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  28.2
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  28
• Motorola Nexus 6
  27.4
• LG G4
  25
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  24
• Moto X Pure Edition
  24
• Huawei Honor 6
  17
• Lenovo Vibe X2
  17
• Huawei P8lite
  16

GFX 3.0 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

• ZTE Nubia Z9
  27
• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  25
• Sony Xperia Z5
  24
• HTC One M9
  23
• OnePlus 2
  22
• LG G Flex2
  22
• Motorola Nexus 6
  18.6
• LG G4
  15
• Moto X Pure Edition
  15
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  12
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  11.8
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  11.6
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  8.4
• Huawei Honor 6
  8.1
• Lenovo Vibe X2
  6.1

GFX 3.0 Manhattan (onscreen)

Higher is better

• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  39
• ZTE Nubia Z9
  26
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  25.4
• Sony Xperia Z5
  25
• HTC One M9
  24
• OnePlus 2
  22
• LG G Flex2
  22
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  12
• Motorola Nexus 6
  11.9
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  11.3
• LG G4
  9.4
• Moto X Pure Edition
  9.3
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  8.7
• Huawei Honor 6
  8.7
• Lenovo Vibe X2
  6.1

GFX 3.1 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

• ZTE Nubia Z9
  19
• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  18
• Sony Xperia Z5
  18
• OnePlus 2
  16
• Moto X Pure Edition
  10
• LG G4
  9.9
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  4.5

GFX 3.1 Manhattan (onscreen)

Higher is better

• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  38
• Sony Xperia Z5
  19
• ZTE Nubia Z9
  19
• OnePlus 2
  16
• LG G4
  5.6
• Moto X Pure Edition
  5.6
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  4.9

In terms of browsing, the Z5 Compact offers a splendid experience, again while keeping the limitations of the 4.6-inch display in mind. BrowserMark definitely backs up our statement, but the all JavaScript Kraken benchmark isn't quite so favorable. Naturally, we would be quick to point a finger at the built-in browser, but in the case of Sony, that is Chrome, so other forces must be at play here.

Kraken 1.1

Lower is better

• LG G Flex2
  4621
• LG G4
  4639
• Lenovo Vibe X2
  4747
• HTC One M9
  5500
• Sony Xperia Z5
  5635
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  5968
• Motorola Nexus 6
  6088
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  6137
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  6480
• OnePlus 2
  6808
• Moto X Pure Edition
  6910
• Huawei Honor 6
  6937
• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  7868
• Huawei P8lite
  16743
• ZTE Nubia Z9
  20208
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  25088

BrowserMark 2.1

Higher is better

• Sony Xperia Z5
  2303
• Lenovo Vibe X2
  2211
• Moto X Pure Edition
  2132
• Sony Xperia Z5 Compact
  2099
• LG G Flex2
  2086
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  2066
• OnePlus 2
  2055
• LG G4
  1992
• HTC One M9
  1681
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  1500
• Motorola Nexus 6
  1447
• Sony Xperia M5 Dual
  1203
• Huawei P8lite
  981
• ZTE Nubia Z9
  887
• Huawei Honor 6
  745
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  744

Overall, the Xperia Z5 Compact is a true powerhouse and a worthy flagship in any sense of the word. Sony has kept to its original promise for a compact unit without the need for performance compromises. This all makes the Z5 Compact an excellent device worthy to fill the shoes of the Z3 Compact, but price might be a major factor in the process.

While undoubtedly superior to its predecessor, the Z5 Compact does cost a pretty penny. The Z3 Compact, on the other hand, is still alive and kicking, enjoying enormous popularity among fans and not really that far-behind in terms of technology, specs or performance. The real question is whether the newer one can present enough of an incentive to upgrade, especially for about €150 more.