S21

The Sony Xperia XA1 is a mid-range phone with premium styling. The Xperia XA1 has a lot going for it. At its price it looks a lot more premium than it has any right to do.

Recombu | Chris Barraclough

Sony's affordable Xperia XA1 smartphone packs some serious style into a pleasingly compact frame. It is a significant improvement over last year's Xperia XA and a strong rival to the likes of the Moto G5 and Lenovo P2.

NotebookCheck | Florian Wimmer

Sony has reworked its Xperia XA1 mid-range smartphone and manages to outrun the competition in terms of camera, power consumption and gaming performance. The design is unique and is very successful and elegant. Only the low-resolution screen might deter some buyers.

T3

A good budget buy with a superb camera sensor. You'll struggle to find a better camera for this low, low price. It's a shame the camera software is a little too enthusiastic.

Stuff | Andrew Williams

Smart-looking and affordable mid-range phone with more megapixels than the rest. A cracking camera squeezed into a merely OK mid-range phone. That said, if you're after a phone so slight it'll slip in and out of your pocket without touching the sides, look no further. Just don't tell the pickpockets.

TechRadar | Andrew Williams

If you want a slim, diminutive phone that won't make your wallet weep, but has a good camera, the Sony Xperia XA1 is one of your best options. You can get sharper screens at the price, but the photo hardware is hard to beat.

phoneArena | Daniel P.

You can't ask much more from a $300 phone than what the Xperia XA1 already offers, yet Sony will have a steep hill to climb in the US, as for less than that you can get handsets like the Moto G5 Plus. Still, the Sony brand, the blocky but distinctive design, and the solid all-around performance are points in the XA1 favor at this price point.

Expert Reviews | David Court

It's hard to get excited about mid-range Android phones. Essentially they're shiny oblongs filled with the specs found in previous year's flagship smartphones... This XA1 has two significant points of difference from the rule above, however. First, the camera is excellent. And second, the design of this phone is fantastic.

Trusted Reviews | Michael Passingham

If having the best possible smartphone camera for the money is a priority, then the XA1 is a no-brainer. A brilliant camera with a mediocre phone attached.

Mobile Syrup | Rose Behar

The fact that this phone's value hinges on the camera experience makes it less valuable in my eyes.