Sony’s Xperia 1 VIII AI camera tool gets a rough early verdict
The Verge’s testing found Sony’s AI Camera Assistant inconsistent, filter-heavy and linked to camera app slowdowns on the Xperia 1 VIII.
By Maya Lindqvist · Senior Technology Correspondent
3 min read
Sony’s new AI Camera Assistant for the Xperia 1 VIII is drawing a harsh early assessment after a week of testing by The Verge. The feature matters because Sony is using AI to sell a high-end phone camera, yet the review found the tool often produced heavy-handed image changes and added strain to the camera app.
The Verge’s Dominic Preston reported that the Assistant is built into the default camera mode rather than placed in a separate mode. As a user frames a shot, a small preview box appears in the viewfinder with AI-selected alternate settings; tapping applies one, and swiping reveals three more options. Sony lets users disable the feature.
Preston contrasted Sony’s approach with Google’s Camera Coach on recent Pixel phones. Google’s tool asks what the user wants to focus on and offers guidance on framing, subject position, lens choice and Portrait mode, according to The Verge. Sony’s tool, by contrast, does not explain composition or focus and does not identify the effects it is applying.
Suggestions that act more like filters
The Verge found that most of the AI Camera Assistant’s suggestions changed basic image characteristics such as exposure, white balance and contrast. Preston said the results were often aggressive, including dark, moody versions of scenes, blown-out highlights, sepia-style looks, warmer yellow tones and boosted saturation.
The Assistant can also add artificial background blur, similar to portrait mode, according to the report. In some cases, it appeared to treat different parts of the frame separately, such as brightening a subject while darkening the background.
Sony has said the feature can suggest switching among the Xperia 1 VIII’s three rear lenses and help users find what it calls the “most photogenic angle,” The Verge reported. Preston said he did not see either behavior during a week of use.
The feature also appeared uneven in when it surfaced suggestions. According to The Verge, it does not work with the selfie camera, often failed to appear when pointed at bright lights, backlit windows or blank walls, and behaved inconsistently with close-up shots and hand positions.
Strong camera, weak AI layer
Preston described the underlying Xperia 1 VIII camera system as good, with large sensors across all three rear cameras and a processing style he generally liked. The Verge called it Sony’s best Xperia camera yet and competitive at its price level, which the report described as the equivalent of $1,850. The phone is not launching in the United States, according to The Verge.
That made the AI feature stand out for the wrong reasons in the review. Preston said only a small number of AI-assisted images were worth keeping, fewer were worth sharing, and only one or two had a credible case for improving on the original photo. He found the tool somewhat more useful in weaker lighting, where the default camera settings were more likely to struggle.
The report also tied the Assistant to performance problems. The Xperia 1 VIII uses Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, but The Verge said the phone already ran unevenly and tended to overheat. With the AI Camera Assistant active, the camera app often opened slowly and could freeze for several seconds while switching lenses, loading AI suggestions or taking a picture.
Preston said the camera app crashed once during his testing and that turning off the AI Camera Assistant appeared to reduce those issues. The Verge noted that Sony’s AI tool does not edit objects out of photos, expand images or reframe shots in the way some AI features from Apple, Google and Samsung do; its main problem, the review found, is that the suggested looks rarely made better photos.
This story draws on original reporting from The Verge.