Everything you need to know about Lenovo K3 Note
When a manufacturer like Lenovo jumps into a price war which has been already raging hot between Xiaomi, Micromax (Yu) and Asus, it’s the customers who get to win. We have already seen these players play tug of war in under Rs 10,000 smartphone market early in the year. Entry of Lenovo with its K3 Note spiced up things all the more. No, the phablet is not a head turner nor does it give breakneck performance. But what it gives is absolute value of money with features you could only imagine in the top tier bracket phones just a year ago. This seems to be Lenovo’s strategy, which seems to be working, with an only hiccup in the smooth sail is the availability of the phone. You might have to wait for its flash sale to book yours.
The Blueprint
Phones in this price band seem to follow a common design trend, flat back panels, almost nil curvature on the edges and shells of various hues covering the back and the sides. Nothing flashy here to be frank. However, the screen is an enormous 5.5 inch 1080 X 1920 pixels fully HD that gives it 401 PPI. It makes use of MediaTek MT6752 chipset with an Octa core 64 Bit processor clocked at 1.7 GHz with 2 GB RAM. Yes you read it right! A phablet, with 64 Bit architecture, Octa core processor, loads of RAM and with an HD screen, all under 10,000! BTW did we forgot to mention 13 MP rear camera, dual sim with 4G LTE connectivity?
Display and Build Quality
Lenovo’s latest salvo of bringing a full HD screen under Rs 10,000 will definitely entice customers. Other than Yu Yureka no other phone stands a chance here. The only thing which is missing is Gorilla Glass, now come-on let other players also do some business!
Build wise the phone seems solid, there is no rattle and squeeks as is common with phones with plastic back panels. The back panel has a satiny texture, giving is a good grip. If you wish to be flashier go for a yellow one. There is a thin raised lip around the edges of the screen to prevent it from getting scratched.
Camera and Storage
The phablet is equipped with a 13 MP rear and a 5 MP front shooter coupled with a twin LED flash light. The rear camera can also do 1080p full HD video recording. The placement of camera might be a problem for few as it is placed pretty close to the corner. Chances are that you might cover it up with one of your fingers. However, this depends from user to user.
The phone has 16 GB of internal storage expandable to 32 GB with a SD card.
Hardware and Performance
It makes use of Media Tek MT6752 chipset mated to an Octa core 64 Bit processor clocked at 1.7 Ghz with 2 GB RAM. The phone is snappy in performance and users would not complain of lag in general use and multitasking.
Multiple reviews point out to respectable scores in most of the benchmark tests.
Software
Lenovo K3 Note comes with Android 5.0 with Lenovo’s VIBEUI layer on top of it. Reviews claim that most of the functionalists of 5.0 are untouched, which is good, and VIBE enhances some of the features. However, the icons still come of the homepage and there is no dedicated app drawer. The phone also comes with a plethora of bloatware installed which users might like to remove. However, the best part is all these can be uninstalled so no worries there.
Lenovo’s “secure zone” feature allows you to hide and lock certain apps and folders. Again, Ultimate Power Saver disables every other app except calling and messaging which the company claims can enhance your battery backup for several days. Smart Scene feature allows you to automatically change the phone mode as you change location. For example, the phone will automatically switch on mobile internet and switch on wi-fi as soon as you step home. These small changes definitely improve the likeability of the phone and balances its boring external appearances. Wide Touch provides an iOS like floating shortcut button. You can also draw shortcuts on the screen to launch apps.
Network and Battery Life
The Lenovo K3 Note supports LTE on the Indian 2300MHz band on both SIMs which is not always the case. There's also Wi-Fi b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.1 and A-GPS. In addition to the usual accelerometer and ambient light sensor, there's a digital compass as well. USB-OTG storage is supported, and there's also Dolby Atmos audio enhancement.
Battery life is respectable 7 to 8 hours depending upon usage but very well within the range of its competitors.
Conclusion
K3 Note is a great device if you are not looking out only for a flashy device. The performance is better than any other competitor phone available in the current price bracket; with newly launched Yu Yureka Plus as its only nearest competitor. However, the only flip side is that this device is available through flash sales, obviously to control cost, and you might have to wait a bit before getting your hands on one.