The Sharp Aquos R6 beats Huawei and Samsung to the punch
While most of us were still sleeping, Sharp announced a brand-new and rather intriguing smartphone in the Aquos R6. The most interesting aspect has nothing to do with the 6.6-inch display sporting a 240Hz refresh rate, or the 12GB of RAM, or even the massive 5,000mAh battery.
Nope. The key selling point and most interesting aspect of the Sharp Aquos R6 is that this marks the first smartphone to launch with a 1-inch camera sensor. The sensor is not the first of its kind, as Android Authority points out that the first smartphone released with a sensor this size was the Panasonic Lumix CM-1 from back in 2016. However, we have been seeing other phone makers using larger and larger camera sensors, with plans to eventually culminate in integrating a one-inch lens.
Sharp’s done just that with the Aquos R6, while packing the phone with some flagship-level specs. The 6.6-inch display sports a resolution of 2,730 x 1,260 and features a 240Hz refresh rate, outdoing the likes of Samsung and even ASUS with the ROG Phone 5. Powering the Aquos R6 is the Snapdragon 888 SoC, paired with 12GB of RAM and 128GB of expandable storage.
Another key feature of the R6 is the enormous 5,000mAh battery that will easily last an entire day, if not a day and a half. Sharp added a dedicated Google Assistant button to the side, placed right between the power button and volume rocker. And if you’re still holding onto your traditional wired headphones, you’re in luck thanks to the 3.5mm headphone jack.
All of this brings us to the downside of the Aquos R6 – you can’t buy it. The phone is launching exclusively in Japan, and Sharp has no plans to make it available in other markets across the globe. The company also didn’t share how much the R6 would be priced at, only stating that it will be coming to Japan sometime in mid-June. It will be interesting to see what the price ends up being, but I for one can’t wait until Huawei and Samsung catch up and include 1-inch sensors on their flagship smartphones.