Author: Hector Melencio

Moga Pro Power Controller Review

Hector Melencio Leave a comment

The Moga Pro Power is a Bluetooth gamepad designed for serious Android gamers. We tested the controller for a couple of weeks to see if it can indeed deliver on its promise to “transform your Android device into a mobile gaming system”.

Features

The Moga Power Pro features:

- 2 full-sized analog sticks
- A directional keypad
- 4 action buttons
- 2 shoulder buttons
- 2 analog triggers
- 2 function buttons (Start & Select)
- SMRT Lock Arm
- Tablet stand
- 2200 mAh internal battery
- Micro USB charging port
- Full-sized USB port for charging of external / other devices
- Bluetooth connectivity
- Multiplayer support

Design

With its ergonomic feel and familiar button configuration, it actually looks like an XBox 360 controller.

Although it’s made from plastic, it feels solid and well built. So solid, that after accidentally dropping the Moga Power Pro a few times from heights of 3 to 5 feet, the controller didn’t sustain any damage at all.

As tested, the SMRT lock, with clamps fitted with a sticky rubber –like substance, can securely accommodate small phones (like the Sony Xperia Z1 Compact – at 4.3 inches) to bigger phablets (like the Starmobile X1 – at 6 inches). We believe the arm can even accommodate a slim 7-inch device. For larger tablets, you can always use the included tablet stand.

Performance

We tried the controller with a number of processor-intensive games (like Dead Trigger 2, Asphalt 8, and Dungeon Hunter 4) on a number of Android phones/tablets. And the Mogo Power Pro works like a charm! All the buttons and sticks offered great tactile response and precise control. Even with the Bluetooth connection, lag is non-existent, which is always a big plus for serious gamers.

First person shooters (i.e. Dead Trigger 2) and dungeon crawler RPGs (i.e. Dungeon Hunter 4) immensely benefit from this device. As you no longer have to rely on on-screen controls, you can see the battle field in all its glory. This also assists you make quicker decisions on the fly, helping you enjoy the games better.

Case in point: Using the Moga Power Pro in Dead Trigger 2 allows a couple (so far) of unique features vs. just using the on-screen controls: 1. It enables you to seamlessly use the scope on the FN2000 rifle, 2. The mounted machine gun doesn’t overheat, letting you maintain the rate of fire, thus helping you kill more zombies.

For those who are used to on-screen controls, you may initially have some difficulty with the accuracy. Fortunately, the learning curve is not steep. You could master the controls in under an hour of continuous play.

We haven’t actually tested this function, but the gamepad also features multi-player support, meaning a maximum of 4 Moga Power controllers can connect to a phone/tablet.

Battery

The full-sized USB port allows the Moga Power Pro to power external devices. The internal battery’s capacity isn’t much, but it can be very useful if you don’t have a phone charger handy, albeit for short spot uses only. Plus, it would only allow external device charging if the Moga’s power is more than 25%.

With its 2,200 mAh battery, the Moga Power Pro can easily last a week on casual gaming. But this can be reduced to 3 days or less if you play for about 4 hours a day, and occasionally use it to charge the phone.

Connecting with the controller

Connecting your device with the Moga Power Pro is very easy. Just install the Moga Pivot App (available in Play Store), switch on the controller, run the Moga Pivot App (which turns your device’s Bluetooth on and pairs it with the controller), and you’re good to go.

The Moga Power Pro has 2 modes:
- A: For compatible games. The Moga Pivot App provides you with an extensive list of compatible apps.
- B: For non-compatible games such as emulators, the controller allows you to map buttons. On a related note, we tried the gamepad with Flappy Bird, but no, it doesn’t work.

We had initial difficulty with Asphalt 8’s calibration (the car always favored going right). But after restarting both the phone and the controller, all went smoothly.

Conclusion

Even if the Moga Power Pro was the first Android gamepad we extensively tested, we have a feeling other controllers would have a hard time matching what the Moga Power Pro could offer.

Just like what was advertised, the Moga Power Pro did indeed transform my Android devices into “mobile gaming systems with its precision controls and console-style comfort.” The controller certainly makes gaming on your Android device more addictive than usual. In fact, what used to be minutes of casual gaming turned into a couple of hours of daily hardcore play.

If you have Php4,490 to spare and are a serious gamer (or are interested in maximizing the gaming potential of your Android device), this is definitely a good buy (see listing on Widget City here).

Pros:
- Solid build
- Ability to charge your phone like a power bank
- Familiar gaming console layout and feel

Cons:
- Not compatible with Apple devices

The post Moga Pro Power Controller Review appeared first on YugaTech | Philippines, Tech News & Reviews.

Sony Xperia Z1 Compact Review

Hector Melencio Leave a comment

Phone manufacturers have steadily increased the sizes of their screens from the 3.5 – 4 inches two years ago, to the current norm of 5 to 5.5 inches. Sony bucks the trend with its Xperia Z1 Compact.

The Sony Xperia Z1 Compact is probably one of the most feature-packed phones for its size. Just like Manny Pacquiao, today’s greatest pound-for-pound boxing champion, the Z1 Compact has all the goodies packed in one small package.

Design and Construction

The Xperia Z1, Z1 Ultra and Z1 Compact all share the same design signature, including the water- and dust-proof casing. Compared to its larger siblings, the Z1 Compact only has 4.3 inches. The smaller form factor (only 2.56 inches wide and 5 inches tall) makes the phone surprisingly easy to handle with one hand.

The front is made of scratch-resistant tempered glass, where you’ll find the Sony logo, earpiece, front camera, a three-color (RGB) notification light, and proximity sensors on the top portion of the screen. The bezel measures around 4mm at the sides. The Z1 Compact’s edge and frame are aluminum.

As there are no capacitive buttons on the lower part of the phone, the back, home and switch buttons appear near the bottom edge of the screen only when you turn on the phone. Unfortunately, these take up valuable screen space, which could have been shifted to the empty space below the screen.

Only the headset jack is on top of the phone. The power button and volume controls are on the right side along with the dedicated camera button. The water-sealed caps for the microSD card slot, micro-USB port, the micro-SIM slot and the docking pogo pins are all on the left side. The speakers and a provision for straps are at the bottom.

Flip it on its back, and you’ll see the non-removable back plastic (polished to look like glass), the 20.7 megapixel camera and a single LED flash.

As claimed by Sony, the phone is indeed water- and dust-proof. With all the ports sealed, we took and played pictures, videos and music while the phone was under water. Because the touch screen won’t work while under water, you can only take pictures and videos using the dedicated camera button.

And since this phone doesn’t float, make sure to hold it or use a strap while under water.

With its heft and excellent build, there’s no question about the quality of the Z1 Compact.

Display

The 4.3-inch display also looked richer and more vibrant on the Z1 Compact versus the original Z1. While the screen resolution is now down to just 720p (1280×720 pixels), the display quality is still very good.

With above average sharpness and contrast, the Triluminos screen makes individual pixels almost impossible to see with the naked eye. Viewing angles are also very good. The auto-brightness function makes using the phone outdoors a synch.

OS, UI, Apps

Sony uses its own lightly modified UI on top of Android 4.3 Jellybean. It looks simple, really clean and well-done. Access to Google Play gives you thousands of options to customize your handset.

With a Snapdragon quad-core chipset, the handset performs extremely well, is very snappy and loads apps quite fast.

Even if it’s “only” a quad core phone, it delivers way better performance than a Mediatek octa-core. With graphics settings on high, the Z1 Compact even delivers smoother gameplay on Dead Trigger 2.

Camera and Multimedia

With its 1/2.3-inch 20.7MP Exmor RS CMOS image sensor, 27mm wide angle and bright F2.0 aperture, BIONZ for mobile image processing engine, and fast shutter speed, plus a single LED flash, it’s no surprise the Z1 Compact camera takes really good photos and videos both above and under water, in broad daylight or under low light conditions.

Video fanatics won’t be disappointed. Both the 20.7MP rear and the 2MP front cameras can take 1080p videos with 30fps.

Tick on the HD settings to see the full 1080p video.

Sony’s homegrown camera app suite gives users a plethora of options: Superior Auto, Manual Adjust, Timeshift Burst, AR & Picture Effects, Sweep Panorama, and more. The Z1 Compact can also take still shots while recording video. It even has an option to take multiple photos that save directly to your Evernote account.

Except for the obviously smaller screen size, the Z1 Compact is a very capable multimedia device. The Z1 Compact can play HD movies, and has a Walkman app for listening to music.

The speaker placement (at the bottom of the phone) may pose some problems though. Holding the phone in landscape to watch a movie may mean one of your hands would inevitably block the speaker, muffling the audio. You may want to use earphones as a workaround.

Performance and Benchmarks

Under the hood of the Z1 Compact is Qualcomm’s quad-core Snapdragon 800 chipset running at 2.26GHz, paired with Adreno 330 graphics, and 2GB of RAM.

After a couple of weeks of using the phone, we’re happy to report that apps launch fast, animations and transitions are smooth, and overall, very responsive.

Benchmark results are also impressive with Antutu scores reaching 33,442 points and Quadrant at 21,523 points. Vellamo scores are 2,688 and 1,187 for HTML5 and Metal, respectively. Nenamark 2 got a final score of 59.6fps.

Call Quality and Connectivity

The Z1 Compact handled calls normally as expected. We can be heard clearly on the other line and vice versa.

Since the Z1 Compact comes with the new LTE chip, it’s supposed to reach up to 150Mbps. Of course that’s just the theoretical speed. We tested it out using our Smart LTE microSIM and got up to 14Mbps at one time in SM MOA.

Battery Life

The battery rating of the Z1 Compact is 2,300mAh. In our usual battery test which includes playing a 1080p movie file in Airplane mode with volume set to 50% and brightness at 50%, the result is a respectable 8 hours’ worth of movie playback.

The smaller screen size and the phone’s power management suite help the phone last more than 1 day on a single charge.

Conclusion

Just like Manny Pacquiao, the Z1 Compact has all the goodies packed in one small package.

It certainly has its target market — those who yearn for a powerful handset in a not-so-huge form factor.

But this phone is not for everyone. Its size may be too small for some. We know a few people who had difficulty using the phone, probably because they were now used to 5 – 6 inch phablets.

That being said, it’s either you’ll love that combination or you’ll just settle for the original Z1 altogether.

Sony Xperia Z1 Compact specs:
4.3-inch IPS LCD Triluminous display @ 1280×720 pixels, 342ppi
Qualcomm MSM8974 Snapdragon 800 2.2 GHz quad-core CPU
Adreno 330 Graphics
2GB RAM
16GB of internal storage
up to 64GB via microSD
HSPA+, LTE 150Mbps
WiFi a/b/g/n, WiFi Hotspot
NFC
ANT+ support
Bluetooth 4.0
GPS with aGPS support, GLONASS
DLNA
MHL support
1/2.3-inch 20.7MP Exmor RS CMOS image sensor
27mm wide angle and bright F2.0 aperture
BIONZ for mobile image processing engine
IP55/58 dust and water resistance
2,300mAh battery
9.5mm
137 grams
Android 4.3 Jellybean

The Sony Xperia Z1 Compact was officially launched a couple of weeks ago and is set for release this week for a suggested retail price of Php25,490.

Widget City provided us the review unit last month and selling it for Php22,500 (see listing here).

What we liked about it:
* Excellent build and construction
* Waterproof and dustproof
* Top notch specs in a small package

What we didn’t like:
* Odd speaker placement
* Screen size may be too small for power users

The post Sony Xperia Z1 Compact Review appeared first on YugaTech | Philippines, Tech News & Reviews.

Sony Xperia Z1 Compact Review

Hector Melencio Leave a comment

Phone manufacturers have steadily increased the sizes of their screens from the 3.5 – 4 inches two years ago, to the current norm of 5 to 5.5 inches. Sony bucks the trend with its Xperia Z1 Compact.

The Sony Xperia Z1 Compact is probably one of the most feature-packed phones for its size. Just like Manny Pacquiao, today’s greatest pound-for-pound boxing champion, the Z1 Compact has all the goodies packed in one small package.

Design and Construction

The Xperia Z1, Z1 Ultra and Z1 Compact all share the same design signature, including the water- and dust-proof casing. Compared to its larger siblings, the Z1 Compact only has 4.3 inches. The smaller form factor (only 2.56 inches wide and 5 inches tall) makes the phone surprisingly easy to handle with one hand.

The front is made of scratch-resistant tempered glass, where you’ll find the Sony logo, earpiece, front camera, a three-color (RGB) notification light, and proximity sensors on the top portion of the screen. The bezel measures around 4mm at the sides. The Z1 Compact’s edge and frame are aluminum.

As there are no capacitive buttons on the lower part of the phone, the back, home and switch buttons appear near the bottom edge of the screen only when you turn on the phone. Unfortunately, these take up valuable screen space, which could have been shifted to the empty space below the screen.

Only the headset jack is on top of the phone. The power button and volume controls are on the right side along with the dedicated camera button. The water-sealed caps for the microSD card slot, micro-USB port, the micro-SIM slot and the docking pogo pins are all on the left side. The speakers and a provision for straps are at the bottom.

Flip it on its back, and you’ll see the non-removable back plastic (polished to look like glass), the 20.7 megapixel camera and a single LED flash.

As claimed by Sony, the phone is indeed water- and dust-proof. With all the ports sealed, we took and played pictures, videos and music while the phone was under water. Because the touch screen won’t work while under water, you can only take pictures and videos using the dedicated camera button.

And since this phone doesn’t float, make sure to hold it or use a strap while under water.

With its heft and excellent build, there’s no question about the quality of the Z1 Compact.

Display

The 4.3-inch display also looked richer and more vibrant on the Z1 Compact versus the original Z1. While the screen resolution is now down to just 720p (1280×720 pixels), the display quality is still very good.

With above average sharpness and contrast, the Triluminos screen makes individual pixels almost impossible to see with the naked eye. Viewing angles are also very good. The auto-brightness function makes using the phone outdoors a synch.

OS, UI, Apps

Sony uses its own lightly modified UI on top of Android 4.3 Jellybean. It looks simple, really clean and well-done. Access to Google Play gives you thousands of options to customize your handset.

With a Snapdragon quad-core chipset, the handset performs extremely well, is very snappy and loads apps quite fast.

Even if it’s “only” a quad core phone, it delivers way better performance than a Mediatek octa-core. With graphics settings on high, the Z1 Compact even delivers smoother gameplay on Dead Trigger 2.

Camera and Multimedia

With its 1/2.3-inch 20.7MP Exmor RS CMOS image sensor, 27mm wide angle and bright F2.0 aperture, BIONZ for mobile image processing engine, and fast shutter speed, plus a single LED flash, it’s no surprise the Z1 Compact camera takes really good photos and videos both above and under water, in broad daylight or under low light conditions.

Video fanatics won’t be disappointed. Both the 20.7MP rear and the 2MP front cameras can take 1080p videos with 30fps.

Tick on the HD settings to see the full 1080p video.

Sony’s homegrown camera app suite gives users a plethora of options: Superior Auto, Manual Adjust, Timeshift Burst, AR & Picture Effects, Sweep Panorama, and more. The Z1 Compact can also take still shots while recording video. It even has an option to take multiple photos that save directly to your Evernote account.

Except for the obviously smaller screen size, the Z1 Compact is a very capable multimedia device. The Z1 Compact can play HD movies, and has a Walkman app for listening to music.

The speaker placement (at the bottom of the phone) may pose some problems though. Holding the phone in landscape to watch a movie may mean one of your hands would inevitably block the speaker, muffling the audio. You may want to use earphones as a workaround.

Performance and Benchmarks

Under the hood of the Z1 Compact is Qualcomm’s quad-core Snapdragon 800 chipset running at 2.26GHz, paired with Adreno 330 graphics, and 2GB of RAM.

After a couple of weeks of using the phone, we’re happy to report that apps launch fast, animations and transitions are smooth, and overall, very responsive.

Benchmark results are also impressive with Antutu scores reaching 33,442 points and Quadrant at 21,523 points. Vellamo scores are 2,688 and 1,187 for HTML5 and Metal, respectively. Nenamark 2 got a final score of 59.6fps.

Call Quality and Connectivity

The Z1 Compact handled calls normally as expected. We can be heard clearly on the other line and vice versa.

Since the Z1 Compact comes with the new LTE chip, it’s supposed to reach up to 150Mbps. Of course that’s just the theoretical speed. We tested it out using our Smart LTE microSIM and got up to 14Mbps at one time in SM MOA.

Battery Life

The battery rating of the Z1 Compact is 2,300mAh. In our usual battery test which includes playing a 1080p movie file in Airplane mode with volume set to 50% and brightness at 50%, the result is a respectable 8 hours’ worth of movie playback.

The smaller screen size and the phone’s power management suite help the phone last more than 1 day on a single charge.

Conclusion

Just like Manny Pacquiao, the Z1 Compact has all the goodies packed in one small package.

It certainly has its target market — those who yearn for a powerful handset in a not-so-huge form factor.

But this phone is not for everyone. Its size may be too small for some. We know a few people who had difficulty using the phone, probably because they were now used to 5 – 6 inch phablets.

That being said, it’s either you’ll love that combination or you’ll just settle for the original Z1 altogether.

Sony Xperia Z1 Compact specs:
4.3-inch IPS LCD Triluminous display @ 1280×720 pixels, 342ppi
Qualcomm MSM8974 Snapdragon 800 2.2 GHz quad-core CPU
Adreno 330 Graphics
2GB RAM
16GB of internal storage
up to 64GB via microSD
HSPA+, LTE 150Mbps
WiFi a/b/g/n, WiFi Hotspot
NFC
ANT+ support
Bluetooth 4.0
GPS with aGPS support, GLONASS
DLNA
MHL support
1/2.3-inch 20.7MP Exmor RS CMOS image sensor
27mm wide angle and bright F2.0 aperture
BIONZ for mobile image processing engine
IP55/58 dust and water resistance
2,300mAh battery
9.5mm
137 grams
Android 4.3 Jellybean

The Sony Xperia Z1 Compact was officially launched a couple of weeks ago and is set for release this week for a suggested retail price of Php25,490.

Widget City provided us the review unit last month and selling it for Php22,500 (see listing here).

What we liked about it:
* Excellent build and construction
* Waterproof and dustproof
* Top notch specs in a small package

What we didn’t like:
* Odd speaker placement
* Screen size may be too small for power users

The post Sony Xperia Z1 Compact Review appeared first on YugaTech | Philippines, Tech News & Reviews.

Starmobile Diamond X1 Review

Hector Melencio Leave a comment

Launched only in January, the Starmobile Diamond X1 is the 1st octa-core phone released by a local brand in the Philippines. With its octa-core processor, 6-inch IPS 720p screen, 2GB RAM, let’s take a look if the X1 has the potential to be the best locally branded phablet. Here’s our full review.

Starmobile teased us with their octa-core handset as early as December. When the Diamond X1 came out and finally revealed itself, it became an instant hit.

Design and Construction

The X1 only comes in 2 color palettes: one is a black front, polished metal frame, brushed aluminum back cover, and white back panels; while the other is a two-tone black finish with a matte, metallic back panel (one is a unit we bought on the first day it was released and the other one was later sent out by Starmobile to review).

Polished metal frames the front of the phone, where it houses the 6-inch display, 3 capacitive buttons (menu, home and seek), the earpiece, front-facing camera, light and motion sensors.

The thin bezel (only 2mm on the side) and the rounded corners make the phone look sleek and elegant. These also help make the phone surprisingly easy to handle, despite its massive screen.

Placed on top are the headset jack and the power buttons. On the right is the volume control, while the bottom has the microusb port.

Flip it on its back, and you’ll see 18 megapixel camera, a single LED flash, and the 2 Yamaha speakers. The removable brushed aluminum back cover protects the battery, dual-SIM and micro-SD slots.

Just make sure to buy one of their phone covers. Although the screen is scratch resistant, the metal cover and frame may easily get scratched if you have keys in your pocket.

With its heft and better than average build, it looks like Starmobile pulled all the stops to please the end user.

Display

Up at the front is the 6-inch IPS LCD display with 720p resolution (245ppi) that’s decent enough even for its size. The display quality is good, color reproduction is great and has good viewing angles. The images are crisp and clear and the only time you will notice the pixels is if you look a little closer to the screen.

The auto-brightness function makes using the phone outdoors works well although one cannot really avoid the glare.

OS, UI, Apps

Starmobile uses its own custom UI on top of Android 4.2 Jellybean. It looks simple, nothing fancy but really clean and well-done. It comes with a few pre-loaded apps like Starmobile App Store and Starmobile Sync. With apps like Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp and Youtube, third-party apps were kept at minimum.

The handset performs well, is very snappy and loads apps quite fast. Gaming is also equally good and so are the dual Yamaha speakers at the back.

We played Dead Trigger 2, and the X1 didn’t fail to impress! Even when graphics were set on high, game play was buttery smooth. The octa-core processor and the 2GB RAM certainly make this a topnotch gaming phone.

Camera and Multimedia

Users who like taking photos with their smartphones won’t be disappointed with the 18MP BSI auto focus camera. It comes with a LED Flash, so taking pictures in the dark isn’t half bad.

Just like most other smartphones, the camera app itself is pretty much standard and comes with the usual bells and whistles like HDR, Smile Detection, Multi-Angle shot, and some filters.

You can also manually adjust exposure, white balance, and scene modes if you dig inside the settings. As for its 8 megapixel front-facing camera, it will suffice for video calling and some selfies as long as you have an ample amount of light available. Check out some samples below:

The X1′s camera is also capable of recording 720p videos at 30fps and saves it in 3gp format. Watch the sample video below:

As for multimedia capabilities, the X1 is a top notch phone for watching movies, listening to music, and playing games. The 2 Yamaha speakers are very audible and can produce acceptable levels of bass. When playing Cytus or Deemo, earphones now become optional.

Performance and Benchmarks

The X1 is equipped with a MediaTek MT6592 1.7GHz Octa-core processor, Mali 450MP4 GPU, 2GB RAM. It has an 8GB internal storage, can be expanded up to 64GB via microSD card. After a month of using the phone, we’re happy to report that apps launch fast, animations and transitions are smooth, and overall, very responsive. If things do get a bit slow, just use an app killer or restart the phone, and it’ll be back to giving you an lag-free experience.

As highlighted above, the X1 was able to handle 3D and 2D games with ease.

We also took a bunch of benchmarks on the device and got these scores.

Benchmarks scores for Diamond X1:
Quadrant Standard: 16,069
Antutu Benchmark: 27,490
Nenamark 2: 60.2fps
Vellamo: 2,086 (HTML5), 653 (Metal)
SunSpider: 1,106.4ms

The Antutu score was pretty high, coming close to the Snapdragon 800 of Qualcomm. So is the Sunspider score (lower is better).

Call Quality, Connectivity and Battery Life.

The X1 handled calls normally as expected. We can be heard clearly on the other line and vice versa.

The final battery rating of the Diamond X1 is only 2,400mAh. In our usual battery test which includes playing a 1080p movie file in Airplane mode with volume set to 50% and brightness at 50%, the result is a below average 6 hours’ worth of movie playback.

As we use the X1 to share mobile internet in the office, the unit barely has enough juice to last the day. The battery may not be enough to power all the goodies under the hood.

Conclusion

With its relatively affordable price, yet impressive hardware, this may indeed be the best locally-branded phablet. But the X1 is not for everyone.

The display size may be too big for some; but for those who love 6-inchers and bigger yet are afraid of spending too much, this phablet is perfect. Well, almost perfect.

The Starmobile Diamond X1 is available in stores with a suggested retail price of Php13,990.

Starmobile Diamond X1 specs:
6-inch IPS LCD display @ 1280×720 pixels, 245ppi
Scratch-resistant coating
MediaTek MT6592 1.7GHz Octa-core processor
Mali 450MP4 GPU
2GB RAM
8GB internal storage
up to 64GB via microSD card
3G/HSPA+
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth 3.0
18MP BSI auto focus camera with LED Flash
8MP BSI front-facing camera
Dual-SIM, dual standby
GPS w/ aGPS support
FM Radio tuner
2 x Yamaha 1420 speakers, 1.2watts
Li-Ion 2,400mAh
Android 4.2.2 Jellybean
SRP: P13,990

What we liked about it:
* Large IPS display
* Solid build and construction
* Octa-core!
* Dual-SIM
* Affordable price
* Yamaha speakers

What we didn’t like about it:
* Below-average battery life

The post Starmobile Diamond X1 Review appeared first on YugaTech | Philippines, Tech News & Reviews.

Starmobile Diamond X1 Review

Hector Melencio Leave a comment

Launched only in January, the Starmobile Diamond X1 is the 1st octa-core phone released by a local brand in the Philippines. With its octa-core processor, 6-inch IPS 720p screen, 2GB RAM, let’s take a look if the X1 has the potential to be the best locally branded phablet. Here’s our full review.

Starmobile teased us with their octa-core handset as early as December. When the Diamond X1 came out and finally revealed itself, it became an instant hit.

Design and Construction

The X1 only comes in 2 color palettes: one is a black front, polished metal frame, brushed aluminum back cover, and white back panels; while the other is a two-tone black finish with a matte, metallic back panel (one is a unit we bought on the first day it was released and the other one was later sent out by Starmobile to review).

Polished metal frames the front of the phone, where it houses the 6-inch display, 3 capacitive buttons (menu, home and seek), the earpiece, front-facing camera, light and motion sensors.

The thin bezel (only 2mm on the side) and the rounded corners make the phone look sleek and elegant. These also help make the phone surprisingly easy to handle, despite its massive screen.

Placed on top are the headset jack and the power buttons. On the right is the volume control, while the bottom has the microusb port.

Flip it on its back, and you’ll see 18 megapixel camera, a single LED flash, and the 2 Yamaha speakers. The removable brushed aluminum back cover protects the battery, dual-SIM and micro-SD slots.

Just make sure to buy one of their phone covers. Although the screen is scratch resistant, the metal cover and frame may easily get scratched if you have keys in your pocket.

With its heft and better than average build, it looks like Starmobile pulled all the stops to please the end user.

Display

Up at the front is the 6-inch IPS LCD display with 720p resolution (245ppi) that’s decent enough even for its size. The display quality is good, color reproduction is great and has good viewing angles. The images are crisp and clear and the only time you will notice the pixels is if you look a little closer to the screen.

The auto-brightness function makes using the phone outdoors works well although one cannot really avoid the glare.

OS, UI, Apps

Starmobile uses its own custom UI on top of Android 4.2 Jellybean. It looks simple, nothing fancy but really clean and well-done. It comes with a few pre-loaded apps like Starmobile App Store and Starmobile Sync. With apps like Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp and Youtube, third-party apps were kept at minimum.

The handset performs well, is very snappy and loads apps quite fast. Gaming is also equally good and so are the dual Yamaha speakers at the back.

We played Dead Trigger 2, and the X1 didn’t fail to impress! Even when graphics were set on high, game play was buttery smooth. The octa-core processor and the 2GB RAM certainly make this a topnotch gaming phone.

Camera and Multimedia

Users who like taking photos with their smartphones won’t be disappointed with the 18MP BSI auto focus camera. It comes with a LED Flash, so taking pictures in the dark isn’t half bad.

Just like most other smartphones, the camera app itself is pretty much standard and comes with the usual bells and whistles like HDR, Smile Detection, Multi-Angle shot, and some filters.

You can also manually adjust exposure, white balance, and scene modes if you dig inside the settings. As for its 8 megapixel front-facing camera, it will suffice for video calling and some selfies as long as you have an ample amount of light available. Check out some samples below:

The X1′s camera is also capable of recording 720p videos at 30fps and saves it in 3gp format. Watch the sample video below:

As for multimedia capabilities, the X1 is a top notch phone for watching movies, listening to music, and playing games. The 2 Yamaha speakers are very audible and can produce acceptable levels of bass. When playing Cytus or Deemo, earphones now become optional.

Performance and Benchmarks

The X1 is equipped with a MediaTek MT6592 1.7GHz Octa-core processor, Mali 450MP4 GPU, 2GB RAM. It has an 8GB internal storage, can be expanded up to 64GB via microSD card. After a month of using the phone, we’re happy to report that apps launch fast, animations and transitions are smooth, and overall, very responsive. If things do get a bit slow, just use an app killer or restart the phone, and it’ll be back to giving you an lag-free experience.

As highlighted above, the X1 was able to handle 3D and 2D games with ease.

We also took a bunch of benchmarks on the device and got these scores.

Benchmarks scores for Diamond X1:
Quadrant Standard: 16,069
Antutu Benchmark: 27,490
Nenamark 2: 60.2fps
Vellamo: 2,086 (HTML5), 653 (Metal)
SunSpider: 1,106.4ms

The Antutu score was pretty high, coming close to the Snapdragon 800 of Qualcomm. So is the Sunspider score (lower is better).

Call Quality, Connectivity and Battery Life.

The X1 handled calls normally as expected. We can be heard clearly on the other line and vice versa.

The final battery rating of the Diamond X1 is only 2,400mAh. In our usual battery test which includes playing a 1080p movie file in Airplane mode with volume set to 50% and brightness at 50%, the result is a below average 6 hours’ worth of movie playback.

As we use the X1 to share mobile internet in the office, the unit barely has enough juice to last the day. The battery may not be enough to power all the goodies under the hood.

Conclusion

With its relatively affordable price, yet impressive hardware, this may indeed be the best locally-branded phablet. But the X1 is not for everyone.

The display size may be too big for some; but for those who love 6-inchers and bigger yet are afraid of spending too much, this phablet is perfect. Well, almost perfect.

The Starmobile Diamond X1 is available in stores with a suggested retail price of Php13,990.

Starmobile Diamond X1 specs:
6-inch IPS LCD display @ 1280×720 pixels, 245ppi
Scratch-resistant coating
MediaTek MT6592 1.7GHz Octa-core processor
Mali 450MP4 GPU
2GB RAM
8GB internal storage
up to 64GB via microSD card
3G/HSPA+
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth 3.0
18MP BSI auto focus camera with LED Flash
8MP BSI front-facing camera
Dual-SIM, dual standby
GPS w/ aGPS support
FM Radio tuner
2 x Yamaha 1420 speakers, 1.2watts
Li-Ion 2,400mAh
Android 4.2.2 Jellybean
SRP: P13,990

What we liked about it:
* Large IPS display
* Solid build and construction
* Octa-core!
* Dual-SIM
* Affordable price
* Yamaha speakers

What we didn’t like about it:
* Below-average battery life

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