Last month, Sony unveiled a new flagship handset in Japan — the Xperia Z4 — and yesterday, it launched the same handset globally under the Xperia Z3+ moniker.

So, why the change in name, you ask? Sony has explained its confusing decision to the folks over at The Inquirer. 

The company states that consumers in the Japanese market want the latest features and internals in their handset as soon as they are available, and since Sony is a dominant force in Japan, it had to release a new flagship in the country that it is calling the Xperia Z4.

“The main reason for the name difference here is down to Sony being such a dominant force in the Japanese market [where] consumers crave flagship devices with the latest features as soon as they can be delivered,” the firm explained.

Xperia Z3 continues to perform well as our flagship device across the rest of the world. To address those customers that would like to have the very latest features and refinements, we have introduced Xperia Z3+ as a premium addition to our existing flagship Z3 series.”

Externally, the Xperia Z3+/Z4 looks largely similar to its predecessor, the Xperia Z3, though it is slightly lighter and thinner (6.9mm vs. 7.3mm) than it. The handset also lacks a flap on the microUSB port despite retaining its IP65/67 rating. Other changes on the Z3+/Z4 include a faster Snapdragon 810 chipset and an Adreno 430 GPU.

The key differences between the last 3 flagship handsets from Sony are their slim waistline, their weight and faster internals. The company needs to realise that its OmniBalance design needs a refresh, and that its flagship devices need to offer more features in order to better differentiate themselves from their predecessors.

Do you think Sony launching the Xperia Z3+ or Z4 makes sense?