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iBall Slide i701 Review: Don’t Judge Books by Their Covers

February 10, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

How low can prices go? iBall's announcement of the launch of its latest tablet, the Windows-based Slide i701, made us sit up and take notice. Our first reaction was disbelief, and then we had to resist the urge to dismiss it as a joke. There have been plenty of products over the years promising advanced functionality at unbelievable prices, and most of them have been absolute junk.
Such products infuriate us not only because they are essentially e-waste before they're even out of their boxes, but also because the people who actually buy such things tend to be the ones who don't have any money to spare in the first place; ones who trust advertisements and hope that they're getting a killer bargain only to be devastated a short way down the line. Low-brow manufacturers know this and deliberately prey on those who are the weakest, which is something we cannot abide.
We couldn't help but be suspicious of the iBall Slide i701's shockingly low price tag. This th..

Lenovo Vibe Shot 2025

December 5, 2017 Richard Gomez 0

Lenovo isn't known to shy away from experimenting with its phones. We've had the 'layered' Vibe X2 (Review | Pictures) in the past and, more recently, the overgrown Phab Plus (Review | Pictures).
Today, we'll be reviewing its camera-centric Lenovo Vibe Shot. We first saw this phone at its announcement at MWC 2015, and it then launched in India in September. The Vibe Shot is an upper-mid-range offering that aims to capture the hearts of photography lovers with its compact-camera-like design and features. Let's see if it's worthy of its Rs. 25,000 price tag.
Look and feel
Lenovo has done an excellent job with the design and build of the phone. The monolithic look with an aluminium frame and glass on the rear oozes style. It's quite slim at 7.6mm and doesn't weigh your pockets down too much. The 5-inch form factor also makes it easy to grip and use with one hand most of the time.
The 5-inch, full-HD IPS display produces sharp images with pun..

Moto X Style Review: Falling a Bit Short

February 22, 2016 Richard Gomez 0

Motorola struck a chord with Android purists with the original Moto X back in 2013, and it resonated loud and clear in India too. Since then, the company has been on a winning streak with very successful launches in the budget and upper mid-range phone segments. The company's outgoing flagship, the Moto X (Gen 2) (Review | Pictures), added some much-needed improvements to the camera and battery performance of the original. Today, we have the third generation of the device, but instead of calling it 'Gen 3', Motorola has gone with the name Moto X Style or Pure Edition, as its known in some countries.

The Moto X Style features incremental updates in most areas and fixes one major gripe we had with its predecessor, which was the lack of expandable storage. But is this enough to make it a must-have for those shopping in the Rs 30,000 segment? Motorola's own Google Nexus 6 (Review | Pictures) retails for around the same price point today, and offers very similar specif..

Xiaomi Mi Pad 2025 Review

April 9, 2019 Richard Gomez 0

After taking the smartphone world by storm, Xiaomi is trying to repeat its success where tablets are concerned. We've been almost universally impressed by what the Chinese company has managed to produce given the prices it charges, and the rest of the industry has had to scramble to match this new competitive force. As customers and compulsive bargain hunters ourselves, Xiaomi has brought nothing but good news this past year.
Recent launches haven't had as much of an impact as the first few did, but that's set to change again with the new Xiaomi Mi Pad. While there are plenty of Android tablets in this price range already, the company is promising high-end features and the kind of quality that competitors do not deliver. Apple, in particular, stands out as the prime target – not the horde Android manufacturers offering oversized phones.
Xiaomi's biggest constraint has been its strategy of hosting weekly online flash sales, which might be great for generating some in..

Gionee Marathon M5 2025 review

February 16, 2017 Richard Gomez 0

Battery life was never a problem back in the pre-smartphone era, but ever since we became slaves to touchscreens, it has been a major concern. Until new technology is developed, we are stuck with Lithium Ion batteries and there's only so much it can deliver. The most obvious way to get more battery life is increase size and capacity, which is exactly what Gionee has been doing with its Marathon series.
We reviewed the Marathon M4 (Review | Pictures) quite recently, which shattered our internal battery life record in a test of continuous video playback. We're expecting the Marathon M5 to do even better, as this time, Gionee has squeezed in two 3010mAh batteries for good measure. But is the Marathon M5 a phone you can actually live with or is it merely a power bank masquerading as a phone? Has Gionee fixed all the issues with its predecessor to make it more likable? Let's find out.
Look and feel
The Marathon M5 features a combination of metal and plastic which feels stu..

Dell Venue 7 Review 2025

March 2, 2019 Richard Gomez 0

We were fairly impressed with the Dell Venue 7 and Venue 8 which we reviewed almost exactly a year ago. Dell has only just decided to get serious about the Android tablet world, and despite some flaws, the first two Venue models were pretty good for their asking prices. In the time since then, Dell has launched an updated model in India. These were first shown off at Computex 2014, and are currently available in our market.
The big new thing this time is the inclusion of voice calling. A lot of people feel that if you're going to have a SIM card for cellular data, you might as well be able to make and receive voice calls. On the other hand, there's the staggering impracticality of holding a 7-inch tablet up to your face or plugging in a headset every single time the phone rings. Dell has left the choice up to the buyer, and so versions of the 2014 Venue 7 (and Venue 8) with and without voice and data are available. We have the voice-enabled 2014 Dell Venue 7 in for review tod..

Micromax Canvas 5 – 2025 Review

November 27, 2017 Richard Gomez 0

The Canvas 5 is Micromax's new flagship offering, arriving nearly two years after its predecessor. Priced in the chaotic sub-Rs. 15,000 segment, the Canvas 5 aims to deliver stellar camera performance without costing buyers a whole lot of cash. Let's see if it can make a strong impression on us.
Look and feel
The Micromax Canvas 5 scores some brownie points for its 2.5D curved arc display which saves it from getting lost in a sea of look-alikes. The front is made of Corning Gorilla Glass 3 for protection against scratches. The rest of the phone isn't too exciting to look at and won't be turning heads. The metal frame on the sides offers decent grip and the buttons are well within the reach of your thumb when you hold it. The volume rocker feels a bit stiff but the power button has better response. There's a 3.5mm headphone socket at the top and a Micro-USB port at the bottom.
The back is covered by a textured plastic cover which is removable. However, this is..

HP 7 VoiceTab Review 2025

February 23, 2019 Richard Gomez 0

HP seems to be focusing on the voice-calling tablet market with its VoiceTab line of products. We saw the launch of HP's previous range in this category early last year, and the HP Slate6 VoiceTab (Review | Pictures) didn't receive a favourable opinion from us.
Moving forward, HP's newest voice-calling Android tablet, the HP 7 VoiceTab, is a 7-inch tablet as its name suggests. You won't need to break a bank to purchase one since it costs less than Rs. 10,000. Here's hoping that HP has learnt a thing or two from its previous mistakes.
Look and feel
The HP 7 VoiceTab looks and feels like a sturdy device, which is great since the Slate6 VoiceTab had poor build quality. Made entirely of plastic, the HP 7 VoiceTab is quite chunky at 10.2mm thick and 305g in weight. Even so, the bezels are fairly thin, making the HP 7 VoiceTab feel more compact than some other 7-inch tablets we've used in the past.
Thanks to its soft matte rear, the HP 7 VoiceTab doesn't ..

Gionee Marathon M5 [year] first impressions

Gionee Marathon M5 2025 first impressions

December 28, 2017 Richard Gomez 0

Coming from a brand that's famous for super slim phones such as the Elife S7, the Gionee Marathon M5 might be the thickest phone the company has ever made. It's aimed at solving a major pain point for most smartphone users – battery life.
The phablet-sized Gionee Marathon M5 is fitted with a 6020mAh battery as well as plenty of other features meant to extend its life. Considering that there are power banks with smaller capacities than what you get with this phone, battery life promises to be off the charts – it can run without for two days between charges for heavy users, and four days for moderate/light users, according to a company spokesperson.
Announced in June 2015, the phone has finally made its way to India as a Flipkart exclusive, and is priced at Rs. 17,999. The Indian version has improved internal specs – it's fitted with 3GB of RAM and 32 GB of storage. The starring feature of course is the battery, which is actually two cells of 3010 mAh, each with its own c..

Micromax Canvas Tab P666 2025 Review

February 18, 2019 Richard Gomez 0

Lots of people think that phones with 5.5-inch and 6-inch screens are too big, but that hasn't stopped companies from pushing ever further. The Micromax Canvas Tab P666 is an 8-inch smartphone – or more accurately, an 8-inch tablet that can be used to make voice calls. We can't imagine why anyone might want to use it as a phone, risking public ridicule and sprained wrists – maybe the logic is that since you have a SIM card slot anyway for 3G data, you might as well be able to use cellular networks for voice and messaging as well. Ridiculous or not, the functionality is there.
That aside, the Micromax Canvas Tab P666 is an otherwise ordinary Android tablet with a low price and entry-level specifications. Let's see if it's worth buying.
Look and feel
The most unique thing about the Canvas Tab P666 is its design. The device itself is fairly slim at 7.9mm, but its weight and blocky shape aren't great in terms of grip and comfort. There are two metal strips running ..

Alcatel Flash 2 – 2025 Review

September 9, 2017 Richard Gomez 0

Alcatel Onetouch, the joint venture between France's Alcatel and China's TCL, has been a background player in the Indian market for a while now. Several other Chinese companies have entered and made big splashes – not all have sustained their momentum, but Alcatel has popped up every now and then with a new release, reminding us that it's here.
The new Alcatel Flash 2 might raise the company's profile in India. It has a reasonable price and some interesting looks and features that set it apart in a very crowded space. We're eager to see what this device has in store for us.
Look and feel
The Alcatel Flash 2 has a pretty bold look which most other manufacturers seem to shy away from. At first glance it seems like a premium phone, but on closer inspection the shiny chrome frame which cradles the black front face and wraps around the sides is actually plastic. The front face is black and is bordered by subtle plastic strips which almost make it look as though the ..

Acer Iconia A1-713 2025

September 7, 2018 Richard Gomez 0

Acer's Iconia series of tablets has been in the market for some time and the Taiwanese manufacturer is not a stranger to this space. The latest to hit the retail shelves is the Iconia A1-713. The tablet costs around Rs. 13,000 and has a mediocre specifications list. However, its USP is its support for 3G data and voice calling. We try to find out if it is worthy as a tablet that can also make calls.
Look and feel
The Acer Iconia A1-713 looks like any other 7-inch Android tablet in the market today. The uninspired design doesn't attract too much attention.
The front is dominated by the 7-inch screen with thick borders on all sides. While the tablet is mostly made of plastic, Acer proudly advertises the metallic finish on the rear. It looks premium but the finish actually makes the rear slimy and we had to be extra careful not to drop the device. The Iconia A1-713 has dimensions of 193x116x8.95mm and weighs 305g.
Above the display are the front-facing camera, earpiece, a few ..