Moto X – Review
I had been hearing lots about the Moto X but it wasn't on my radar for phones to check out. Then out of the blue I had an opportunity to get my hands on one, so I figured why not.
The biggest thing to remember about the Moto X is that it is not a hardware monster. It wasn't desgined to take on the Note 3 or similar top of the line phones in benchmarks, it was designed to be unique, be extremely well optimized and provides a great user experience. So lets see what Motorola have brought to the table.
Display
The Moto X is a smaller phone by todays standards and has a 4.7 inch display. At that size you can get away with a 720p and get the benefits of reduced battery consumption. That's what they did and I think it was the right choice. The screen is repsonsive, bright and looks pretty good overall. To make sure their phone is durable they went with Gorilla Glass to keep the front safe.
Software
The biggest asset the Moto X has, is its software. Motorola have obviously taken the time to think about what would enrich the users experience with a mobile device. It’s the small things they have worked in that all add up to leave a noticeable impression at the end of the day.
The phone does a good job walking you through its unique extras, teaching you what functions are available and how to use them. I really liked the always listening access to Google Now. Even when the device was asleep, Google Now was accessible. Turning your wrist twice will activate the camera, and only a single touch on the screen is required, making it easy to take pics with the phone in one hand and using your thumb to snap the pic. The list goes on, but you get the point. Add in the fact that the phone is incredibly optimized allowing far better performance than the hardware would indicate, and you have a solid offering.
WiFi
The Moto X has 5 Ghz and 2.4 Ghz Wifi. I tested them by taking a reading directly beside the router, another reading at the furthest point on my upper level, and a 3rd set of readings at the furthest point in my basement.
5Ghz
-27 mbps at the router
-14 mbps upper level
-4 mbps basement
2.4Ghz
-30 mbps at the router
-27 mbps upper
-25 mbps basement
These are fairly descent speeds as I've had some devices get almost unusable signal upstairs, and no signal at all in the basement.
Call quality
I’m not a big talker, I would much rather text. From the calls I did make, I can say the phone is fairly clear. I listened from my end and then had someone call me using the phone while I listened. I would definitely give the phone a thumbs up.
Speaker
The speaker in the Moto X really surprised me. It wasn't the loudest or clearest speaker I’ve heard but it was pretty darn good. It had just enough volume and remained crystal clear even when maxed. I could even feel a little bit of bass in my hand while testing, something many mid to lower end phones lack.
Video playback
I tested the playback with HD clips from YouTube as well as a movie played through VLC player. The phone handled both situations well, as would be expected with a phone using an Adreno 320. Although it’s last years GPU tech, it still has more than enough grunt to play media with ease.
Web browsing
The Moto X wasn’t the snappiest device for browsing but it held its own. At no point did I say “Man , these pages are taking a long time to load”
You can check out the Vellamo HTML5 scores further down in the review.
GPS
The GPS was on par with other Qualcomm device testing I’ve done. It locks quickly and holds its connection at all times.
I put the phone into Airplane mode to eliminate data assistance and got a cold lock in 20 seconds.
Subsequent locks were less than 5 seconds.
Cameras
The 2 MP front facing camera proves you don’t need huge mega pixel numbers to produce a nice image. The selfies I took were really nice and more than expected from the device. The rear 10MP camera was ok in well-lit conditions but suffered from a green hue in lower light conditions when the flash was used. Overall, I would say the rear camera could have been done better and needs an upgrade.
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Benchmarks
This is where I feel the optimization came into play. For an older tech processor that was bumped down to a dual core, the Moto X did ok.
Antutu = 22,083
CPU Prime = 3377
Nenamark 2 = 60.8 fps
Vellamo
HTML5 = 1445
Metal = 730
Battery
It was pretty easy to get a full day out of the Moto X with moderate usage. It also did ok in regards to screen time. I played movies on the phone taking it down to 9%. I put the screen on auto and I managed about 6hrs 45 minutes but forgot to start a new movie a couple of times, so the device probably could have handled over 7 hours of playback.
Gaming
I tested the phones gaming abilities with Dead Trigger 2 and Asphalt 8. The games defaulted to a mid-range graphics setting but I manually set them to high graphics. The phone played both games fairly well thanks again to the Adreno 320. It wasn’t as responsive and smooth as my Lenovo Vibe Z which uses an Adreno 330 but hey, that’s to be expected.
Conclusions
Many people say the Moto X is way overpriced for what it is. To a certain extent I agree. In regards to hardware and specs it’s hard to justify spending the asking price. What makes the phone worth taking a look at, is its uniqueness. Motorola have tried to do something a little different and in my opinion succeeded. There are rumblings about a new updated version coming this summer named the Moto X+1. I would hope they take a look at a better camera/flash combo, and add an expansion slot for extra memory. I am interested to see if the Lenovo purchase impacts Motorola’s strategy and direction or if they will leave them to continue their own course.
Do you think anything will change?
Also check out my video review
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAHFTaOdHDc
nice review and amazing camera captures :good:
xkvegans said:
nice review and amazing camera captures :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks.
The camera on the Moto X is alright, I just found when the flash was used it would cause a strange discoloration to the pictures.
Related
W.D Fone W92 Review
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The first thing you might notice is that the W.D Fone W92 looks an awful lot like the Lenovo S960/ Vibe X. I’ve never owned the Vibe X but it appears the W92 is indeed the same phone but with a Mediatek MT6592 octa core SoC clocked at 1.7 Ghz, and a 2800 mAh battery. The other big differences are the ROM and the much lower price. I bought the phone for about $200 and for such a low cost device it has a lot of promise. Let’s take a look at how it handled itself.
Specs
5 inch 720p display
Dual SIM
Mediatek MT6592 octa core processor clocked at 1.7 Ghz
Mali 450MP4 GPU
2GB RAM
16GB storage with expansion slot for up to 32GB cards
2MP front and 8MP rear cameras
2800 mAh battery
Android KitKat 4.4
Unboxing
I bought the W.D Fone W92 from Merimobiles and had it shipped by DHL. It took a few days for the order to process and ship, and then about 4 days to get it from DHL. The phone was well packaged to ensure no damage occurred.
The box was silver and was nothing too fancy. Inside were headphones, manuals, micro usb cable, and a wall adapter.
Check out the unboxing video here.
Check out the full video review here.
Physical feature
The W.D Fone W92 has a comfortable feel with it’s 145 x 73 x 8.1mm dimensions. At 104 grams it’s also a very light device making prolonged use very easy.
The back has a nice textured back plate that aids with grip. On the back top left corner you’ll find the 8 MP camera and flash.
On the front right hand side is the 2 MP camera.
On the right hand side is the power button.
On the left side is the volume rocker.
Micro USB connector is right in the centre on the bottom.
3.5mm headphone jack is on the top.
Display
The W92 has a 5 inch 1280 x 720 IPS display, but no Gorilla Glass, so you’ll have to be a little more careful. For scratches and blemishes I always recommend a screen protector since they are so inexpensive to put on. The screen has a good feel to it and is fairly responsive during use. Although the screen quality doesn’t stand out as amazing, it is quite bright and looks more than acceptable for a 720p display. Of course the big benefit with a 720p display, especially with the MT6592 SoC is the added battery life.
Software
I’ve seen this phone advertised with Android 4.4 but didn’t think much about it. Upon further investigation, the official W.D Fone site talks about 4.4, the box is labelled as 4.4, and the settings screen has it listed as running Android 4.4 KitKat.
The default ROM runs just fine and the launcher has minimal lag. I haven’t run into any significant glitches, but the appearance of the UI is a bit generic and boring. Of course that is a very simple fix by downloading something more to your liking from the Play Store.
Boot time is only 11 seconds which is very nice to see.
WiFi
The W.D Fone W92 has 2.4 and 5 Ghz WiFi. I tested the phone by taking both a 2.4 and 5 Ghz reading:
By the router
At the furthest point on my upstairs level
At the furthest point in my basement level
5Ghz
Router = 28.17 mbps
Upstairs = 7.71 mbps
Downstairs= 1.35 mbps
2.4Ghz
Router =32.99 mbps
Upstairs =21.38 mbps
Downstairs=11.96 mbps
Call quality
The call quality was average. For some reason all of the Mediatek powered devices I’ve tested have ok sound quality but it is set very low. The quality is not bad but can be harder to hear. Luckily this is an easy fix. You can root the phone if not already rooted, and then install MobileUncle from the Play store. In that app you can access the handset volume portion and raise the volume to your preferred level.
Speakers
The rear speaker on the W92 does an ok job. It’s not an over achiever but gets the job done. It has descent volume but seriously lacks bass and often distorts when the volume is set to full.
Video Playback
Video playback has been good on all MT6592 powered phones I’ve tried. All formats play well and the nice thing about having a 1280 x 720 display is it helps out with frame rate/ FPS. I tried YouTube clips as well as several movies in different formats and did not experience any issues.
Web Browsing
The W92 like other MT6592 phones I’ve tested does very well with web browsing. Page change overs are quick as are load times. Expect general online performance to be on par with higher end devices.
Cameras
The W92 has pretty much what I expected out of a $200 phone. The 2 mega pixel front facing camera does an ok job under normal conditions and the 8 mega pixel is for capturing spontaneous pictures but would certainly not be my first choice for a camera if I knew I was going into a situation that I would be taking pics. The flash was bright enough but overall there is too much noise in the pictures.
GPS
The GPS is always an uncertainty with many of these less expensive Mediatek devices. I’m pleased to say the GPS worked fairly well on the W92. I tested it on a clear, sunny day using Google maps(with data), and NavFree(no data) and both worked with no issues.
I obtained a cold lock with the phone in airplane mode to eliminate the data assistance and got a lock in
25 seconds with subsequent locks in less than 3 seconds.
Actual use of the GPS while travelling was also good with no issues to report.
Benchmarks
It’s often easy to forget that for such an inexpensive SoC, the Mediatek MT6592 offers very good performance. The W92 is not exception and with the 720p display the results only looked better.
Antutu
27,205
This puts it pretty much on par with the Samsung Galaxy S4
Nenamark 2
60.5fps
This is a great score in this test. 1080P display with this SoC score on average around 48fps.
CPU Prime
6432
This put the device 432 points ahead of the LG G2
Bottom line, lots of CPU power.
Vellamo
HTML5
2109
Metal
658
Battery
With the specs listed, one would think the battery life of the W92 would be exceptional. Unfortunately it wasn’t. With light use the phone can easily last a full day but don’t expect much more than that. To test the on screen time I put the phone on a video loop playing a movie with the brightness on auto. It managed a rather weak 4 hours and 43minutes. This leads me to believe the battery isn’t actually 2800 mAh.
Gaming
I tested the device with: Into the dead, Dead Trigger 2, and Front Line Commando 2. All 3 worked very well with no lag but the responsiveness is just not at the same level as Snapdragon devices using Adreno 330 graphics such as the Lenovo Vibe Z I reviewed. Also trying to enjoy games on a 5 inch display is more of a challenge as in my opinion it feels just a tad cramped.
Final Thoughts
The W.D Fone W92 is a solid offering at the $200 price range. It has a good feel to it and performs well overall. I was surprised how well the GPS worked as several recent Mediatek powered devices I’ve used, have still exhibited poor GPS results. The MT6592 performs well as usual and the addition of Android 4.4 KitKat is a welcome addition. Weak areas of the phone are the cameras, and the battery life.
The cameras will only satisfy those that are looking for mediocre results. If you want quality shots, this phone is simply not capable.
I thought the battery life might be a huge pro for this device with it’s 5” 720p display and 2800 mAh battery. but it ended up being rather disappointing. While it will easily make it through a full day for a light user, power users will certainly need a a top up charge.
Those looking for something similar to an updated version of the Lenovo Vibe X at a reduced price might want to take a look.
is the phone still working?
I see this phone for under $130. Was wondering if it is reliable and was worried that they use unreliable screens that will become unresponsive within 2 months. Was going to buy this for my cousins overseas. Honest truth would be appreciated.
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THL T11 – Review
One of the first Mediatek MT6592 octa core devices that hit the market was the THL T100. Although it did well on the market it did have some issues. One of the biggest criticisms was the poor battery life. This time around THL have taken the same popular design and transformed it into something a little lower spec’d, a little less expensive, and hopefully a little better as an all around device.
Unboxing
I bought the THL T11 from 1949deal and had it shipped with EMS. It took a few days for the order to process and ship, and then another week and a half in the mail. I’m O.K waiting a little longer as I find EMS works better for me in the area where I live. The device was extremely well packaged to make sure it arrived safely.
The box for the T11 was a fairly plain white box but it did have some specs on the bottom. What I did see was WCDMA listed as 850/1900/2100, which is what I had hoped. Inside was the device, a manual in English, NFC card, a set of standard headphones, a micro-USB cable, and the wall adapter. I also found a screen protector had been installed on the device with a spare in the box, a hard snap-on case as well as a flip style case. I don’t know if the screen protectors and cases came from THL or 1949deal. Regardless, it was a nice gesture and was noticed.
Check out the Unboxing video here.
Specs
5″ 720p display with Gorilla Glass 3
Mediatek MT6592 octa core clocked at 1.7Ghz
2GB RAM/16GB storage
expansion slot for up to 32GB cards
8MP rear and 5 MP front cameras
2750 mAh battery
Check out the full video review here.
Physical features
The THL T11 measures in at 70.4 x 144.3 x 8.4 mm and weights 145 grams.The design is identical to the THL T100 with it’s well known sharp corners. Although it looks very sharp the sides on the back have a nice radius which makes the phone very comfortable to hold.
On the right hand side is the power button.
On the left is the volume rocker.
The 3.5 mm headphone jack and the micro-USB port are both found on top.
As you look at the front the 5 MP camera is on the left.
As you look at the back of the device the 8 MP camera and flash are on the top left with the speaker being on the bottom left.
Display
I think the 1280 x 720 resolution that was chosen for the T11 was definitely the right thing as it still gives 294 ppi. It looks crisp on the 5 ” sizing, is plenty bright, as well as perfectly responsive.
Software
The T11 comes with Android 4.2.2 and is a fairly basic ROM. Depending on what you like it can be a good or a bad thing. If you are looking for fancy, you’re out of luck. If you are looking for basic, fast access Android, then you’ll be right at home.
During my time using the device I didn’t notice any glitches or issues with the ROM, and the stock launcher was smooth enough that I never felt a need to change it.
Wi-Fi
I tested the THL T11 ‘s 2.4 Ghz Wi-Fi by taking a reading beside my router, then taking another at the furthest point of my upper level, and a third at the furthest point of my basement.
Router= 27.16 mbps
Upstairs= 25.34 mbps
Basement= 20.08 mbps
These are good results and I didn’t have any issues web browsing, streaming music or videos in any location within my home.
Call quality
The call quality is good on both ends with the T11. With some Mediatek devices people complain about the quality but what I’ve found is the device is usually just quiet and the volume can be raised by accessing engineering mode. I felt the T11 was fine as is.
Speakers
The speaker for the T11 is on the back of the device and does a good enough job, but I would call it average. I tested it with various types of music, video clips, and movies and it did alright. It could have been a touch louder though.
Video Playback
I threw all sorts of video at the T11 and it handled them all with ease. Some people feel the Mali-450MP4 is slightly under-powered but I find it consistently does a great job with all kinds of media. I have to admit I had a hard time enjoying videos on the T11 because I love large screen devices. I had been using a 7″ display so going back down to 5 inches was painful for me.
Web Browsing
Another consistent positive result with MT6592 devices is the web browsing. I used Maxthon browser and found web browsing quick and smooth just as I expected. I opened a bunch of apps and tried to bog the device down, then opened the browser and starting surfing again with good results. Score for the octa core.
Cameras
The T100 had dual 13 MP cameras so one of the down grades with the T11 is in the cameras. The 5 MP front camera did a good enough job with selfies but the 8 MP rear camera was just ok. In bright light it was fine but as soon as the environment became dim, noise started to creep into the shots. Not high quality results, but fine for general use.
GPS
Even thought the MT6592 SoC’s seem to have a better track record with working GPS’ than previous Mediatek chips I still find there are a number of devices that struggle. Luckily the THL T11 is not one of them. I was very surprised at how quickly it got its first cold lock and subsequent locks were always within seconds. To make sure the app tests were accurate I took the T11 for a drive and it performed well on our trip. I used Navfree which works from pre-downloaded maps so there was no data being used to help out.
Benchmarks
As you read through these benchmarks keep in mind that this phone costs just a little over $200, unlocked.
Antutu
27,921
This score puts the device ahead of the Samsung Galaxy S4 and less than 7,000 points behind the brand new Snapdragon 801 Samsung S5, and HTC M8 flagships.
Nenamark 2
59.8 fps
CPU Prime
6441
This score shows the strength of the CPU portion of the MT6592 by placing the T11 ahead of the Samsung s4 and LG G2.
Vellamo
HTML5
2122
Metal
678
As can be seen by all of the results the T11 scores better than many devices that cost 2-3x more.
Battery
This is were the 5″ 720p display benefits the T11. I figured with t a 2750 mAh battery the device should do quite well, and I was right. The phone can easily make it through an entire day, even with fairly heavy use. When I put it on a video loop with the brightness set to auto the phone made it to the 7 hour mark and still had 5% battery life left.
Gaming
The MT6592 with it’s Mali-450MP4 has proven that it does well with media playback and it also does well with video games. Simple games are a breeze, and even graphically demanding games play fine. High end games like Dead Trigger 2, Front Line Commando 2, and Asphalt 8 get defaulted to mid level graphics settings but still look and play well. Once again the 720p display paired with the 2750 mAh battery will help with allowing longer game play times.
Final Thoughts
Pro’s
Good performance especially considering the reasonable price tag
Very good battery life
Expandable storage giving you up to 48 GB with the combined internal plus expansion card
WCDMA 850/1900/2100 is awesome for people in North America
Fairly strong, reliable Wi-Fi
Con’s
Loud speaker could be a little louder
Cameras are just O.K
Ships with Android 4.2.2
No LTE
The THL T11 is an affordable device that still offers high levels of performance. Many companies are pushing the device screen sizes up to 5.5 inches and beyond. Inevitably this creates a larger device and there are still a lot of consumers that don’t want to go beyond a 5″ display. The T11 respects that and offers a fairly compact device that performs fairly well in all areas. If you are looking for a good all purpose device with good battery life then the THL T11 certainly deserves a closer look.
Great review, thanks!
thanks for this review
thanks for this review
I have this phone and every thing is ok but there is one thing that annoy me.
The three below buttons are not sensitive as well. some times you must tap multiple times on the return button to act.
i got the phone as well.
as long as you use your whole finger its just fine.
anyone can suggest a good rom? i tryed miui but battery drains like 1.5X faster..
confirm 3G works
I just received my T11 and I am very happy with it. Just want to confirm that 3G works with Rogers network here in Canada, in case any fellow Canucks ask! I read reviews saying 3G also works with AT&T in USA.
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iOcean X8 – Review
I’ve been wanting to try out an iOcean product for some time now, but they tend to favour the 900/2100 WCDMA frequencies. When I saw that the iOcean X8 was available in a 850/2100 Mhz WCDMA as well , I couldn’t resist. The X8 is a slick looking phone with Gorilla Glass on both the front and the back of the device. With it’s stylish appearance and nice specs, I was hoping for a good experience. Here is my full review.
Unboxing
I bought the IOcean X8 from 1949deal and had it shipped by EMS. After a few days for processing it shipped and took about a week and a half to arrive. When I opened the package, the device was so well protected with bubble wrap it took me quite some time to get into it (that is a compliment to the seller not a complaint).
The box was white with X8 written on the top and some specs listed on the bottom. Among the information listed there was the supported frequencies. Under WCDMA it says 850/2100 OR 900/2100, so make sure you get the correct version for your area. Inside was the X8, an English instruction manual, SIM ejection tool, micro USB cable and wall charger adapter. There was also a screen protector, and hard snap on case. I didn’t order either so they were provided as a bonus by iOcean or by 1949deal.
You can check out the unboxing video here.
Specs
5.7″ 1080p display with Gorilla Glass
Mediatek MT6592 octa core clocked at 1.7 Ghz
2GB of RAM
32GB of storage
5MP front and 13 MP rear cameras
2650 mAh battery
You can watch the full video review here.
Physical Features
The iOcean X8 measures 79.1 x 159 x 7.7 mm and weights 172 grams. On the left side near the top is the SIM slot, that takes micro or nano SIM cards.
On the right side is the power button that is located just below the volume rocker.
The bottom of the device has the micro USB and the loud speaker.
At the top you’ll find the 3.5 mm jack.
As you look at the front of the device the 5 MP camera is located to your left side.
Looking at the back of the device the 13 MP camera and flash are also located to your left.
The iOcean X8 does feel a little heavy but it also feels very solid and well built.
Display
The iOcean x8 has a 5.7 ich 1920 x 1080 IPS LCD that produces 386 ppi. The screen is very bright and produces beautiful colours. Overall it is a very vivid screen that reminds me of the Zopo ZP998. There were several instances were I thought the screen was a little too sensitive but that could have just been me getting use to the device or software in need of tweaking.
Software
The X8 ships with Android 4.2.2 but there is a 4.4 KitKat update in beta that should be available soon. The theme of the ROM is almost identical to that of the Zopo ZP998. Icons look great, and the general Android pulldown menu and settings menu are standard but default to a white background giving it a fresh look. The stock launcher works fairly well with only occasional and very slight lag. If it bothers you, it can easily be swapped out for something from the app store. The only gltich I found in the ROM is the battery indicator likes to occasionally only show the device as 98% charged even though it is completely charged. It didn’t seem to effect the actual battery usage times so I really didn’t worry about it. The Google Play store comes already loaded on the phone.
Wi-Fi
The X8 is listed as having both 2,4 and 5 Ghz Wi-Fi. The results were very good and I didn’t have any problems with the Wi-Fi. I tested both Wi-Fi connections in thre locations. Beside the router, the furthest point of my upstairs level, and the furthest point in my basement.
2.4 Ghz
Router = 34.54 mbps
Upstairs = 25.34 mbps
Basement = 20.21 mbps
5 Ghz
Router= 33.20 mbps
Upstairs= 18.66 mbps
Basement = 8.94 mbps
The iOcean X8 has very strong Wi-Fi capabilities. As expected the 2.4 Ghz travels better but the 5 Ghz still worked very well everywhere in my home.
Call quality
The X8 sounds good on both ends and doesn’t display any of the “too quiet” behavior that some other Mediatek devices are known for. It’s really just preference and can be adjusted through engineering mode or with the MobileUncle app if you are rooted.
Speakers
The loud speaker is located on the bottom of the device, which I like. You can simply put the phone down and not have to worry about the speaker getting muffled. I tested it with a wide variety of music, video clips, and movies. The speaker is clear and sounds fairly good, but it’s just a tad too quiet. As long as you don’t have any requirements for the speaker being very loud, you’ll be fine.
Video Playback
I tested the phones video playback capabilities using VLC player and a variety of different file formats. I’ve used a variety of Mediatek MT6592 devices and got pretty much what I expected. Everything, including HD, played smoothly with no stuttering. The good playback results along with the devices gorgeous display makes watching HD movies a very nice experience.
Web Browsing
I tested the X8 out by browsing the web using Maxthon browser. As expected the experience was a good one. Load times were quick, and overall everything was fast and smooth.
Cameras
The iOcean X8 has a 5 MP front camera that is fairly unique, it offers auto focus. Looking to step up the quality of your selfies? This could do it. Auto focus on a camera, genius.
The 13 MP rear camera does a nice job outdoors or in very well lit areas. It doesn’t do so well once things get dimmer. This is likely due to the f/2.4 aperture. In a world were many of the phones cameras are sporting f/2.0 or even f/1.8, it’s too bad iOcean chose to go this route. The camera is better than those found in low end devices but I would only call it O.K. That is unless all of your photography is done outdoors or in well lit areas.
GPS
The first lock on the iOcean took less than 30 seconds and cold locks since then have been less than 10 seconds, even in airplane mode. The device is quick to lock on an app, but I l’ve started taking the device for a test drive to make sure it works in the real world. I performed the test with Navfree since it uses pre downloaded maps and doesn’t use data to gain assistance. The X8 locked on quickly and worked well on the trip. Voice prompts were in the right locations and I felt confident in the directions the GPS was giving me.
Benchmarks
The iOcean X8 did very well in the benchmarks. I was especially surprised with the Nenamark 2 results considering it has a 1080p screen.
Antutu
27,948
This puts the X8 ahead of the Note 2, Galaxy S3, Galaxy S4, and Nexus 4.
Nenamark 2
58.3 fps
Many of the earlier 1080p Mediatek MT6592 devices were hard pressed to reach 50 fps, so this score is pretty good in my eyes.
CPU Prime
6221
Vellamo
HTML 5
2008
Metal
638
Battery
I was a little concerned about the 2650 mAh battery in the X8 due to the slightly larger 5.7″ 1080p display. Since the phone is a sealed unit, the battery is non-removable so you can’t battery swap if needed. Fortunately the phone did alright in the battery test. With moderate use the phone easily made it through a full day. When I put it on a video loop using VLC player and setting the brightness to auto the phone lasted 6 hours. For some reason my battery monitoring app had an issue and didn’t register the screen time, but as you can see the Wi-Fi and radio times are listed as 6 hours. Not bad.
Gaming
I tested the iOcean X8 with Go Go Ghost and Into the Dead on the easier side of things with no issues. For a bit more of a challenge I tested Front Line Commando 2, Dead Trigger 2, and Asphalt 8. As per normal the MT6592 drops the default graphics down a notch on more demanding titles to ensure the best experience. All these titles played well and looked great on the X8′s nice display.
Final thoughts
Pro’s
Stylish design with Gorilla Glass on the front and back of the phone
Beautiful display
Good performance for the cost
GPS works out of the box
Auto focus on front camera
Very strong Wi-Fi results
Android KitKat update coming soon
Con’s
13 MP rear camera could have been better
No expansion slot (although you do get 32GB built in)
Even though the 2650 mAh battery did alright when tested, I would have gladly accepted an extra 1 mm in the devices thickness to have a 3000+ mAh battery
No LTE
iOcean have done a good job with X8 by making it stylish yet capable. The ROM is pleasing to the eye and when combined with the vivid display, it really does draw you in. I feel the battery could have been bigger and I would have liked to see a 3000 mAh included, but that is just me nit picking.
The only big let down for me was the rear camera. iOcean took the time to design a unique device that functions well and then opted for an average camera at best. Perhaps with the Medaitek LTE capable chips starting to hit the market, iOcean can upgrade the camera add LTE and offer a refined version of what is other wise a well rounded phone.
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THL 5000 – Review
We hear lots of news about thin phones but we all know that with that cool thin factor comes very limited battery life. There has always been a portion of mobile users that value long battery life (I’m one of them), so it’s really good to see companies starting to recognize this and make phones based around it. The THL 5000 comes with a lot of good hardware and a fairly low price tag which makes it a very appealing device. Lets have a look and see if the package as a whole comes together to deliver the performance it’s capable of.
Unboxing
I ordered the THL 5000 from 1949deal and had it shipped via EMS. The handset was shipped and arrived in a timely manner. As with previous purchases from the reseller the phone was very well packaged ensuring the product arrived undamaged.
The 5000 came in a somewhat plain white box with the main device specs listed on the back of the box. Inside was the phone, a micro USB cable, a wall adapter, head phones, instructions and a few unexpected extras. These included an OTG adapter, a generic case, a flip cover case, a screen protector installed on the phone and an extra screen protector.
You can check out the unboxing video here.
Specs
5″ 1080p display with Gorilla Glass 3
2GB RAM
Mediatek MT6592T clocked at 2.0 Ghz
Sony IMX 135 13MP rear camera
5000 mAh battery
You can check out the full video review here.
Physical Features
The THL 5000 measures 144.9 x 72.3 x 8.9 mm and weights 146 grams. Fairly compact and light for a device with a 5000 mAh battery in it if you ask me.
On the top of the device is the micro USB port and 3.5 mm headphone jack.
On the right side is the volume rocker.
On the left side is the power button.
On the front right side is the front facing camera.
On the back left side is the main camera and on the bottom left is the speaker.
Display
The THL 5000 has a 5 inch IPS 1080p display with 441 ppi and Gorilla Glass 3. The display is responsive and crisp, viewing angles are good but it isn’t a vivid capture your attention type display. It gets the job done but doesn’t wow you in the process.
Software
The phone comes preloaded with Android 4.4.2 KitKat and the ROM has very flat looking icons to help capture the newer feel. In general it’s a very standard ROM with very little extra added but it does run quite well. I didn’t experience any major issues to report. Boot time was 28 seconds.
Wi-Fi
The 5000 has 5 Ghz and 2.4 Ghz wi-fi. My router is now located at the mid point of the basement level.
5 Ghz
Router= 87.52 mbps
Main level(directly above the router)=22.13 mbps
2.4 Ghz
Router=30.88 mbps
Main level (directly above)= 30.14 mbps
Far side of the main level=10.63 mbps
The wi-fi results for the THL 5000 are quite good. I do find it odd that the router reading of the 2.4 Ghz wi-fi is so much lower than the 5 Ghz but it was fairly consistent and covered my entire house.
Call Quality
I had no issues with the making calls on the phone. Everything was fairly clear both using the phone and receiving a call from the phone on a landline.
Speakers
The loud speaker is located on the back of the device and was tested using a variety of different audio tracks and music styles. The speaker volume was average but the sound quality was pretty good. It was clear and did well with all music types. There wasn’t a ton of bass but it was definately present in the sound which is better than many handsets on the market.
Video Playback
I tested the 5000 using VLC and a variety of video clips both online and physically on the phone. The MT6592 has always done well with media and with the bump in clock speed up to 2.0 Ghz the THL 5000 is no exception. Everything played smoothly regardless of format. If you enjoy watching your movies on your phone, the 5000 should definitely be up to the task.
Web Browsing
I used Maxthon browser to test the phones browsing capabilities. i’ve said it many times in the past, that the Mediatek MT6592 does a great job online. The MT6592T at 2.0 Ghz obviously continues with that tradition. Pages load quickly, even if they have images and everything transitions smoothly. No issues here.
Cameras
The THL 5000’s 5 MP front facing camera does a nice job with selfies but it’s really the rear camera that is the superstar. THL used a 13 MP Sony IMX135 Exmor RS with a f/2.0 aperture as the main camera and it really surprised me how well it works. Low light, outdoors, you can put the camera in any situation and it does a nice job with the pictures it takes. Have a look.
GPS
As always the GPS is a concern for many people with a Mediatek based phone. The device does fine in this category which is no doubt a relief to many people looking at purchasing it. My initial lock in airplane mode took several minutes but after that I didn’t have any problems.
I always like to take the phone for a drive to make sure the GPS also works in the real world situations. I tested it out with Google Maps for data assisted navigation and Navfree for no data and both worked well. I’m not saying it’s as responsive as the Qualcomm based handsets I’ve tried but the GPS is certainly usable.
Benchmarks
Antutu
30,490
As can be seen this score puts the phone very close to Snapdragon 800 territory.
Nenamark 2
52.2 fps
CPU Prime
6497
Vellamo
Multicore
1258
Metal
986
Browser
1852
As the benchmarks show, this handset can handle itself very well, especially in the browser area.
Battery
No doubt, this is the area most people are really curious about. With a 5000 mAh battery in a regular size device, the thing should last forever, right?
I put the screen brightness on auto and put the phone on a video loop. The phone lasted just 7 hours 36 minutes. I find this a bit disappointing, and was expecting much more.
Now to be fair, that is not a bad number for on screen time, but many phones do as well or better with a much smaller battery.
In a daily application the phone does much better. It’s the on screen time that drags the times down quicker than they should. Talk time and standby times are fantastic. If you are a light to medium user the phone should be able to go several days between charges.
Gaming
The Mediatek MT6592T with Mali-450 MP4 proves to be a very competent SoC especially considering the price. As always, it performed well with all types of video games. I tested it with Into the Dead, Go go ghost, Frontline Commando 2, Dead Trigger 2, and Asphalt 8. All the games play well but with games like Dead Trigger 2, and Asphalt 8 the phone will lower the graphics settings to help keep things running smoothly.
Final Thoughts
Pro’s
Good battery life
Very good performance for the price
Very good cameras
Con’s
was expecting a bit more out of the battery
the THL T11 has WCDMA 850/1900/2100 but the THL 5000 has reverted to 850/2100 Mhz
Overall this is a great phone for the price. If you don’t need LTE then this phone is loaded with great hardware making it one of the better buys among Chinese phones. The bump in CPU clock speed from 1.7 Ghz to 2.0 Ghz is a bonus, as are the surprisingly nice cameras. It’s hard to find fault with this handset as THL have covered all the bases well making it a stand out in the shrinking 5 inch and smaller phone segment.
I’ve been very impressed with THL’s progress this year. If they continue on this path with the upcoming MT6595 and 64-bit SoC’s I’m sure they’ll deliver some outstanding phones.
Has battery life (specifically screen on time) improved? Over at Redflagdeals, someone is getting 10 hours SOT very easily on his THL 5000.
Great reading, thank you very much.
I am looking to get a new phone and looking at either this phone or the Doogee DG900. Do you have any experience with the Doogee DG900?
I know the THL doesn't have 4G and the Doogee doesn't have 3G but I live in rural Britain so this is not really an issue for me as I can hardly ever get a 3G signal and I am not subscribed to a 4G service either as it's not that important to me as I would rarely get the opportunity to use it.
What is the Quality from earphones for listening to music? I mean if i put good earphones ill get nice quality or the 3.5 jack can effect the quality etc like some other chinese phones?
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Design
Let’s start off with the design and how the phone looks. The Elephone M1 is a very stylish smartphone I have to say, it has an elegant look and looks quite premium. Its body includes up of a metal construct which not only supplies durability to the smartphone, nevertheless it appears first-rate aesthetically too. When I gripped the smartphone for the very first time, I knew that I have been dealing with a premium best handset in view that of the fabric that was used to make it used to be made of very excessive first-class., also the fingerprint scanner in the back of the device gives a more eye-catching look to the M. Elephone M1 heirs the design of the Huawei P8 and the iPhone 6, both smartphones are beautiful so is the M1.
Button Placement
In 2015 people tend to buy smartphones with big displays and that’s the issue, some hands are small and some big. The M1 with the 5.5inch display is quite big and in many phones with that big display placing the buttons in the right position is a nightmare. Thankfully the M1 buttons are well aligned and correctly placed, coming from a Note 4 with a 5.7inch display I enjoyed more having the power and volume buttons in the right hand side. Not incorporating a bodily residence button proper within the core is a process that a number of Chinese smartphone OEMs follow and it's not necessarily a good approach. This is because it's not going to provide that clicking sensation when a user really presses a physical home button, and majority of the instances, they will need to tap on the capacitive button.
Display and resolution
I would love to see a Full HD Display on this smartphone but sadly, Elephone integrated it to the Elephone M2 which is an upgraded version of the M1, but don’t panic having an HD display will you more battery life. Despite the HD display on the M1, performs very good. Having the brightness to maximum level I had no problem using the phone under the Sun, also the display is gorgeous, I have never seen such a beautiful HD display on a smartphone at first I couldn’t believe that it was only HD. The M1 has some awesome viewing angles thanks to the IPS panel, even though you will easily be able to notice the difference in display quality thanks to its 5.5 inch screen. The pixel per inch density of Elephone M1 is relatively low, which will degrade the overall quality and experience of the user, but eventually you will get used to it. MediaTek has developed features that are simple to use and cater to the latest trends. MiraVisionTM provides the high-definition, fluid video playback you would expect from an HD television screen while using a mobile device.
Performance
As Isaid earlier the performance of the phone so far is absolutely amazing. With a quad core CPU clocked at 1.3GHz having multiple applications open and gaming was piece of cake for the M1. I tried to squeeze and push the device to its limits I haven’t seen it lag yet, I have to say that Elephone did a great Job with this device. Comparing it to my Note 4 clocked at 2.7Ghz some apps run faster and much smoother on M1, maybe the reason for that is that the MediaTek CPU has a 64-bit architecture, but hey it’s still a 1.3Ghz CPU it won’t give you too much power.
Camera
The camera is not that great but not so bad either. I would rank it as a medium-range smartphone camera. OmniVision 13MP camera (physical 8.0MP, upgraded to 13MP with software) says Elephone. It also supports 1080p video recording. A variety of shooting modes like sunset, landscape and portrait are supported. And various filters in black and white, cameo, neon, etc, fun techniques like Smile Snapshot, Picture in Picture Mode and more, so obviously picture taking is more interesting.
Battery Life
You hardly find smartphones with awesome battery life, and this phone isn’t one. It has a very good battery life but not awesome. The idle times were amazing, better than my Note 4’s. The Elephone M1 lasted for 3 and a half days without charging while in the end I had 2hours and 30minutes of SOT. The M1 has two power saving modes , one is for intelligent power saving standby which means when the phone is idle it consumes way less energy and there is also the Battery Saver Mode which reduces the device’s performance and limits vibration and background processes.
Conclusion
Overall the Elephone M1 is an almost perfect smartphone, despite the beautiful elegant look with its all metal body design it also has an awesome display, a very good speaker, quite good back camera, great battery life and the performance is great. Don’t forget the awesome fingerprint scanner which is located in the back of the device. The only drawbacks I found on the M1 were the front camera and the lack of customizations on the System. Elephones UI (Interface) does a really good job of keeping up the performance. I would also like to point out that the M1 has a two slots one for SIM and one for microSD card up to 128GB, but you can also have two SIM cards instead. If you care about aesthetics then this smartphone is for you because it can combine enough performance for many different tasks and also having a smartphone that others will be jealous about. The best price I could find was at Geekbuying which they have it for $130. I think it’s a great deal since the phone it solid as rock and the performance brilliant in light to medium tasks.
You can read the full review here : http://goo.gl/JTYcmW
Thanks for all your work !
Krystyna said:
Thanks for all your work !
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i try to do my best..the review on my website is more specific
Sent from my SM-N910F using XDA Free mobile app
wow, nice review, do you have video review?
FumiJ said:
wow, nice review, do you have video review?
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Yes it will be up soon
Love this mobile.
Nice review,
could you give more information about device's sensors(compass ,gps,etc...)