Sony has just launched the Xperia A4, which is billed as the successor to the Xperia A2, but features similar build quality and specifications to those of the Xperia Z3 Compact. Sony's new smartphone carries the model number SO-04G, which has fueled speculation that it could be the future global Xperia Z4 Compact.

Measuring 128 x 66 x 9.1mm and weighs 129 grams, the Sony Xperia A4 features a 4.6-inch 720p (1280 x 720) Triluminos Display with X-Reality engine. Similar to the Xperia Z3 Compact, the Xperia A4 is also powered by Snapdragon 801 quad-core processor running at 2.5GHz, along with an Adreno 330 GPU for graphics and 2GB of RAM. The Sony Xperia A4 sports a 20.7-megapixel camera (Exmor R sensor) on the back and a 2.2-megapixel camera on the front. Sony's new smartphone offers 16GB of in-built storage, which can be expanded up to 128GB via a microSD card. The Sony Xperia A4 packs a 2,600mAh battery with STAMINA mode, and has IPX5, IPX8 and IP6X certification for water and dust resistance. The device comes with Android 5.0 Lollipop pre-installed with Sony's UI placed on top of Google's operating system. Connectivity options include Wi-Fi, FM radio with RDS, Bluetooth 4.0, GPRS/ EDGE, A-GPS, 3G, 4G LTE, 3.5mm audio jack, and Micro-USB.

Given the Snapdragon 801 processor inside the Sony Xperia A4 and its display, the smartphone hardly falls in the high-end segment, but still has too powerful specs to be called a mid-range device. The Japan-exclusive Sony Xperia A4 comes in blue, white, grey and pink color options, and will make its way to NTT DoCoMo in mid-June 2015. The Sony Xperia A4 is currently available for preorder in Japan, though there's no information on the smartphone's pricing at the moment. Just like Sony's previous model, the new Xperia A4 is unlikely to be released in other markets across the world.