Sony makes some impressive Android phones but is not a major player in the US smartphone market. In fact, outside of Japan — its home market — Xperia phones have limited reach, with consumer interest declining in them with every passing quarter. Despite this, the company keeps launching new Xperia phones regularly. Just recently, Sonyannounced the Xperia 5 V, a compact flagship Android phone with a microSD card and a headphone jack. If you were hoping to pick up the Xperia 5 V when it launched in the US, prepare for disappointment.

Sony confirmed in a statement that it “will not [be] carrying the Xperia 5 V in the North American market this year. We want to focus on our flagship Xperia 1 V.” There’s room for interpretation here that the company could launch the phone next year. However, with theOnePlus 12andSamsung Galaxy S24purportedly out by January 2024, interest in the Xperia 5 V will likely evaporate even among the most loyal Sony fans by then.

TheXperia 1 V is a better phone than the 5V, featuring a bigger 6.5-inch 4K screen with 50% more pixels than the latter’s 6.1-inch FHD+ OLED panel. It also has 12GB RAM and up to 512GB of storage. Even in the camera department, the Xperia 1 V trumps the 5V with a 5x 12MP telephoto lens. Both phones feature a 48MP primary sensor and can record 4K HDR videos at up to 120fps, a feature you won’t find on any other Android phone.

The problem is the high price tag, though, as theXperia 1 Vretails for a whopping $1,400. This makes it almost as expensive as some of thebest foldable phones. It’s hard to justify the steep price tag, especially when the phone does not offer enough value for its price and falls short of the competition in design and camera. Add in Sony’s slow software update rollout pace and limited presence in the US, and the $1,400 MSRP becomes even more difficult to digest.

So, the Xperia 5 V would have made for a great (and cheaper) alternative to the 1 V, especially for customers who wanted to experience Sony’s take on Android without having to spend so much.

Admittedly, there are far betterbudget and mid-range Android phonesavailable in the US that deliver a better experience than the Xperia 5 V. If you want a compact flagship, it is hard to beat theSamsung Galaxy S23, which retails for a reasonable $800 and packs a fantastic set of cameras.

If you are in the UK or Europe, you can get your hands on the Xperia 5 V by paying £849 and €999, respectively.