Created: 15 October 2015 · Last edited: 17 September 2026

Sharp have announced their winter 2015/2016 lineup for both NTT Docomo and SoftBank, with the Aquos Zeta SH-01H, also known as Aquos Xx2 502SH as their flagship model. The former hit shelves in Japan in the end of October, while the latter took almost a month to follow.

The 5.3-inch IGZO display uses Sharp's familiar EDGEST design, with particularly narrow bezels along the top and sides, while its IGZO technology helps maximise energy efficiency. The resolution is full HD (1920 × 1080 px), but the real novelty is the screen refresh rate: Sharp has doubled it from the standard 60 Hz to 120 Hz, allowing fast-moving objects in video to be rendered more smoothly and making scrolling through pages noticeably more fluid. The familiar S-PureLED backlight and colour-filter technology are used with the high-speed IGZO display. Its high-sensitivity touch panel can also be operated while wearing gloves, using a dedicated on/off setting.

Although the SH-01H/502SH display is 0.2 inches (0.51 cm) smaller diagonally than that of the SH-01G, for reasons that are beyond me, Sharp have enlarged the SH-01H's chin, resulting in the two phones being almost identical in size. The newer model is, however, noticeably thinner – 1 mm according to the specifications, but more like 2 mm when the phones are placed next to each other.

The 13.1-megapixel main camera is an upgrade over last year's (found on the SH-01G and SH-03G, for example), and is the third in Sharp's RICOH GR-certified professional single-focus digital camera series. It features newly developed high-speed autofocus combining phase-detection AF and contrast-detection AF*. Optical image stabilisation and an f/1.9 aperture help with low-noise night-time photography, complemented by BrightEye, real-time HDR, and Night Catch II. Like its predecessors, it can record 4K video, but it can now also capture 120 fps in Full HD and 210 fps in FWVGA. Using frame-interpolation technology, the SH-01H can create super slow-motion video at up to 2100 fps in FWVGA and 1200 fps in Full HD.

Other camera features include the familiar Framing Advisor, the option to blur the background or foreground after taking the photo, and Photo Sphere and Panorama modes.

The front-facing camera is now 8 MP and features wide-angle 100-degree shooting for those selfie enthusiasts out there. This camera is also enhanced by a one-touch self-timer and face-detection AF; its lens aperture is f/2.4.

The Aquos Zeta SH-01H / Aquos Xx 502SH is powered by a 64-bit Qualcomm processor, the hexa-core MSM8992 with two 1.8 GHz cores and four 1.4 GHz cores. RAM is 3 GB, while onboard storage is 32 GB and can be expanded with microSDXC cards up to 200 GB.

It is powered by a 3100 mAh built-in battery.

This device, like its predecessors, features Grip Magic sensors for convenient operation – but there are now four sensors, including one at the back and one at the front, whereas previous models had one on each side of the phone. Restricted by Google's requirements, after upgrading the phone to Android 7.0, the Grip Magic vibration notifications (missed calls, unread email/text) are sadly no longer supported. On the rear panel, we also find a fingerprint sensor, which allows easy unlocking and launching of selected applications.

The Clip Now feature found on the Aquos Crystal phones by SoftBank is now also available – it allows taking a screenshot by simply sliding one's finger left-to-right along the top edge of the display.

Further features include a "small window with flip cover" mode that enables a reduced screen visible through the flip cover window and operation without opening the cover. Also available is the reduced screen mode to allow easy one-handed operation.

In the Aquos Zeta SH-01H / Aquos Xx2 502SH, Sharp have decided to use Corning Gorilla Glass 4 for the rear panel, presumably to give the back a more scratch-resistant surface as well. My observations of second-hand models offered for sale in Japan show that the part of the phone most prone to damage is actually the aluminium rim. Of the hundreds of devices I've seen on Yahoo Auctions Japan with some sort of exterior damage, not one had a scratched or cracked back panel.

High-resolution audio is supported in WAV / FLAC format at 24 bits and 48 / 88.2 / 96 / 176.4 / 192 kHz – but only when using the Sharp-made Music app. The phone also boasts high-quality audio output to Bluetooth speakers or headphones, enabled by AM3D's ZIRENE® SOUND digital signal processing technology.

Sharp have raised the bar in the protection game, too: waterproofing is now rated IPX5/8. Dust-resistance is a curious case, though: Docomo's original launch announcement did indeed say that dust resistance had been improved to IP6X on the SH-01H, but Sharp's own support page lists it as IP5X. Meanwhile, SoftBank's 502SH unambiguously states IP6X for dust protection.

Rather than a small dot-like LED indicator in the middle of the chin like in the SH-01G, there are now two illumination LEDs on each of the bottom corners – they indicate incoming calls, email, etc. and also light up when using the Emopa functionality.

Originally released with Android 5.1, the Docomo SH-01H received two OS upgrades, first to Android 6.0 and then to Android 7.0 (details below). But SoftBank never bothered to roll out a single upgrade, leaving users stuck sucking on their Lollipop.

* Phase detection autofocus was first introduced in Samsung Galaxy S5 and iPhone 6 and 6+. I do not know if theirs was also a combination of both, like on the SH-01H, or just the phase detection.