Given Sony’s tradition of biyearly flagship launches, it hasn’t been surprising to see that the Xperia Z3 is already under testing less than three months after the Xperia Z2 went up for sale. We’ve seen live photos of a device purported to be the Xperia Z3, and today, Sony’s upcoming hero device has taken a step closer to launch with a stopover at the FCC. 

The early FCC certification indicates that Sony is aiming for a simultaneous launch of the phone in the US and other markets, instead of making stateside customers wait months on end like it has done until now. Other than that, the FCC filing doesn’t reveal any useful information, except for the model number (D6603) and a general diagram that only confirms that the Z3 will look nearly identical to the Xperia Z2, albeit with slightly more rounded corners that will hopefully result in better handling.

According to recent leaks, the Xperia Z3 will be an extremely minor upgrade over the Z2 in terms of hardware, and is is expected to feature the same 20.7-megapixel G Lens camera setup and Full HD display. Prototype units are said to be powered by the Snapdragon 801, and while it’s possible Sony will switch to a Snapdragon 805 for the final product, it wouldn’t be the best idea to keep your hopes up (especially since the Snapdragon 805 would be overkill for a device with a 1080p display.)