It’s been the norm for manufacturers to release dual SIM Android phones with entry level specifications. From Samsung to Cherry Mobile, low screen resolution and a slow processor has become the standard. Not stopping with the A60 and A65, Lenovo takes another stab at the dual SIM market. This time, however, they’re taking things a step further.
Specifications:
OS: Android 4.0 ICS
Processor: 1 GHz
Display: 4 inch Capacitive screen with 800 x 480 screen resolution
Wireless Communication: 3G, WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, FM radio and FM transmitter
Memory: 512 MB RAM, 4 GB ROM (comes with a free 2 GB micro SD card)
Connectors: standard micro USB port
Camera: 5 MP camera plus a VGA front facing camera
Price: Php 10,990
The norm for an entry level and mid range Android smartphone is that manufacturers tend to use outdated versions of the Android OS on these devices. Lenovo took the high road and burned ICS (Ice Cream Sandwich) into the P700. Competing Android phones in the same price range as the Lenovo P700 is sill being sold loaded with Gingerbread, so yeah, kudos to Lenovo for going with ICS. There are some slight customizations that Lenovo did to the stock UI of Android ICS, but the modifications are so minuscule and minor that it would have been better if Lenovo just left the stock Android UI untouched. Stil, it’s ICS and Lenovo deserves a lot of high fives for that.
Hefty with a substantial amount of girth, the Lenovo P700 won’t be mistaken for a sleek, top-of-the-line phone. On the other hand, it doesn’t look like an entry level phone either. The overall size of the phone feels just right. It sits comfortably in the palm of my hand. The P700 has a very rectangular shape that’s reminiscent of early smartphone designs, like a page out of HTC’s old Pocket PC Phone catalogue. Suffice to say, like the HTC phone of yore, the Lenovo P700 feels pretty sturdy. It’s built like a brick and I’m confident that it can take a few bumps and drops and still keep on ticking.
The screen of the P700 is absolutely top of the line … like 3 years ago. A capacitive touch screen with a 800 x 480 resolution, playing with it really reminded me of the my old HTC Desire. Still, after having tested numerous dual-SIM Android phones, it’s nice to use something that has a screen resolution that’s higher than 640 x 480. For the typical user, the screen of the Lenovo P700 is quite serviceable. It’s really great for a mid range phone, the colors are not overly saturated and the and the tone of the screen is soft on the eyes which doesn’t cause too much strain during long stretch of use.
As with all dual SIm phones, only 1 SIM can connect to 3G while the second SIM is limited to 2G
Powered by a single core 1 GHz processor, the P700 chugs along admirably doing basic smartphone tasks like calls, messaging and email. Data intensive activities like web browsing, uploading photos and updating statuses on social networking apps like Facebook and Twitter are also handled well by the Lenovo P700. The limitations of the processor is apparent when a lot of apps are open, and the 1 GHz heart of the P700 can only efficiently juggle a limited number of apps. I had to manually close apps periodically to have the phone run in pristine condition. Browsing through very high resolution photos can also effectively bog down the performance of the P700.
Size comparison: small pack of Marlboros (left), Lenovo P700 (middle), iPhone 4S (right)
The 5 megapixel camera of the P700 is no where near as good as that of the iPhone 4S and Galaxy SIII, but saying that, the P700 can produce decent photos assuming that there is sufficient natural light available. Daytime outdoor shots are good but indoor shoots can be a bit of a challenge. In a room with sufficient fluorescent lighting, I was able to take some nice photos, but with only a little bit lighting, the photos produced are very grainy.
Sample pictures from the P700's camera: Indoor shot (left) outdoor shot (right)
The P700 can easily last me a day, pretty amazing as most smartphones nowadays won’t even last a full day. The P700 achieves this by having a huge 2,500 mAh battery. In comparison, the next smartphone with the largest battery is the Samsung Galaxy SIII which has a 2,100 mAh rated battery. The Galaxy SIII is priced 3X more expensive than the P700, and this just shows how much more generous Lenovo is compared to Samsung.
After having used the P700 for a couple of weeks, it’s hard to recommend other competing dual SIM Android phones. While other dual SIM Android phones are priced in the Php 6,000 price range, spending almost double the amount for the P700 is completely worth it! For the price of Php 10,990, you get ICS, a huge battery, decent display and performance from the Lenovo P700.
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You guys should do a comparison with the other dual-sim smart phones! (as suggested by others on FB box)
@Mica Problem is, it’s hard to get all of the loaner units at the same place and time. but we’ll try to coordinate with the dealers and see if its possible.