Nov 28, 2013 12:57 AM
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This is my first ever review on an Android based smartphone. I shall try to cover all the aspects of this phone that I found were really good, and also share some of the factors that can receive improvement.
As a casual mobile user, I never really caught on to the fancy of owning a big screened smartphone. Since the beginning of the smartphone race, starting with the Samsung Galaxy S, India has observed a radical change of pace in mobile technology, as well as the innumerable model launches made in the last few years or so. I observed that each model arrived with a bang, and similarly depreciated faster than a Ferrari could accelerate to a hundred, along with becoming obsolete. The lure of a smartphone always seemed distant to me. They always seemed too expensive to invest in. Call me economical, but I'm just a logical Indian buyer.
Fast forward to the present, and I made up my mind to buy a smartphone that would at least be relevant for a couple years or so, and since, the hunt for a budget smartphone began.
After a mind numbingly long search, I arrived at three options: Either a Gionee Elife E6(Which I really, really loved); or a Xolo Q2000, or finally, the Auxus Nuclea N1. The Gionee, being my favorite, turned out to be too expensive at around Rs. 21, 000; And I sadly shied away from it.
The Xolo Q2000 seemed to be an excellent purchase, with every feature that I wanted, there, at a low price too. But after a few horror stories about the apparently bad after sales service and reliability, (Don't judge me, I'm only telling you what I heard from others' personal experiences), I ended up buying the Auxus, after not hearing many complaints, albeit with a little skepticism.
Lo and behold, my first smartphone was delivered shortly thereafter. After savagely unwrapping the package, I set my eyes on my sleeping beauty.
Coming to the looks, it is absolutely wonderful to behold, and equally nice to handle. The fit and finish did NOT disappoint. It comes with 4 different swappable back covers(Red, white, black and extra bright pink! - Which is of no use to us guys). Like its absurdly long name, it comes with a long list of features too! Spec-sheet:
5 inch full HD IPS LCD w/ GGlass3 and OGS(One Glass Solution), 1.5ghz Mediatek 6589Turbo QCore, 1GB RAM, Android 4.2.1, 13MP rear cam, 8MP front cam(!), 8GB inbuilt storage( I got the higher spec model at Snapdeal), expandable upto 64GB externally via microSD. All at a killer price of just Rs. 15800!
Well, just like you, I was quite skeptical. But, the truth is that these days, around 90% of smartphone manufacturers are Chinese/Korean/Taiwanese, and even the Chinese copy phones use the same or equivalent hardware as many'branded' phones. It all boils down to the firmware management and software optimization. This phone, essentially a re-badged Tianhe Butterfly, is a clone of the HTC Butterfly. And it shows! Even the touch key layout mimics the original. With its trademark brushed silver strip at the top, you'd be hard-pressed to tell the difference immediately, logos aside.(Note that I am just comparing the phones externally.)
I was blown away by the Android Jellybean experience. I had missed SO much! And enjoyed it to its full potential thanks to the ultra smooth and slick response the N1 offered. I heard from some forums that gaming was a real issue on this phone. I quickly installed Subway Surfer and Temple Run 2 to check how it handles games. It ran without a hitch. No lag whatsoever. This was because the good folks at iBerry have reportedly provided the latest firmware and bug fixes to enable flawless operation. I am yet to try out more graphic intensive games, but judging by how easily it handled these, I'm sure it'll be a cinch for the N1.
The screen is absolutely sharp, black levels are rich and deep, no sign of pixelation at all, good color representation, and excellent viewing angles. It is a talking point of this phone. Simply a treat to use it. The browsing experience was also smooth and clear with crisp text and images. Videos are played very smoothly on this phone; even in full HD.
The camera is a 13MP rear with LED flash and auto focus. I would say that it does it job well, although if you are a photo perfectionist, this camera is not for you. Outdoor pics are great, but in low light conditions, the pictures appear very slightly grainy. I'm just nitpicking here. The front camera, however, isn't that great. It is as good as say, a 5MP cam.
Also, the phone comes pre-rooted for all you Android tweakers out there.
A few criticisms would be the low earpiece volume while taking calls. It was quite hard to hear the caller. However, this can be solved. Google "How to access Android Engineer mode". A few simple tweaks can bring everything back to normal! Also, as it is a common issue on all smartphones these days, the battery life seemed to be pretty average. With moderate usage, expect it to last to around one and a half days max. The speaker quality is also average, as are the accessories such as the earphones and charger.(The charger being sub-par in quality). Also, there is a slight heating near the rear camera at times. But it is not so hot as to be an impediment to the experience. Also, I find that it tends to attract smudges and prints on the screen.
To conclude, I would definitely recommend buying this phone, as it enabled me to be part of the superphone league without stabbing my wallet in the heart! My advice is to keep the firmware updated to the latest version and take care of this smart but delicate baby! Good luck and thanks for reading!:)
