Few weeks ago, I gave my first impressions on the Lenovo Vibe X. From its packaging to specs, I would have to say that it really looks very promising. After spending some time with the unit, I could say that it is a sufficient phone with great build and superb display.
Design
The design is one of the strongest points of the Lenovo Vibe X. It will instantly attract you with its handsome build. Its pencil width at 6.99mm that only weighs 121 grams makes it one of the slimmest and lightest units I have ever tested. A shinny metallic bezel holds the front and back panel of the phone and is elegantly curved around the edges. I like how the phone fits perfectly in my hand; it is huge but not too wide – just enough to have a good grip of it.
There are no physical buttons except for the power button on the left side and the volume controls on the right. You will find the usual Android Home, Menu and Back buttons just below the screen. At the top is where the 3.5mm audio jack is located while at the bottom is the the micro-USB port for charging and connecting the smartphone to any PC. The non-removable battery cover is made up of plastic that has a 3D tactile finish. Also found in the back panel is the micro-SIM slot that can only be opened using a pin (similar with inserting a SIM card in an iPhone).
Display and Performance
The Full HD 5-inch display (1080 x 1920 pixels) of the Lenovo Vibe X supports 16M colors. It’s very impressive and special; pictures and video are more vibrant and detailed, and I find it better to read ebooks compared to other smartphones I’ve reviewed.
For the equally important part, the Lenovo Vibe X is powered by MediaTek Quad Core 1.5GHz and runs of the latest Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean. On top of the standard Android user interface, the Lenovo Vibe X gets a unique feel with its modified UI. With 2GB of RAM and 16GB internal memory, the general performance of the Vibe X is okay. It did have some considerable lags when there are several applications running at the same time. Based on the AnTutu benchmark scores, the Vibe X is just ahead of the Samsung S2 despite its promising specs.
The Lenovo Vibe X packs a 2000 mAh battery that lasts about a day with moderate usage. I believe it is its high-resolution display that eats up the battery life so quickly. Charging time takes about an hour or so.
Multi-media Experience
Browsing the internet with the Lenovo Vibe X was really enjoyable. With the 5-inch display, I never had to zoom in to be able to read texts. The full HD resolution display plus a sufficient audio quality makes a reasonable smartphone for watching movies and playing games. The speakers are loud enough to fill up a small room. The flat cable earphones of the Vibe X were sufficient as well.
I did not experience any lags in playing 3D games that are CPU-intensive but with regard to fast-paced, reflex games such as 2Fuse (which is my default game for testing performance), I noticed that it was not as responsive as I thought.
Camera
The Lenovo Vibe X sports a 14-Megapixel auto focus rear camera and a 5-Megapixel auto focus front camera, both with face recognition. It has a pinch to zoom function to easily adjust the shots. I was totally surprised by how well it performs in low lighting conditions. It is worth noting, however, that the color contrast is not as good as you would have expected. As a compromise, the Lenovo Vibe X features special filters and lighting effects similar to digital cameras to better enhance the quality of the photos.
Meanwhile, the front camera with an 84-degree 24mm wide angle lens is also great for video chatting. It has a beauty shot feature for taking better selfies. Feel free to check out the sample photos below.
Lenovo Vibe X Antutu Benchmark
Verdict
To sum it all up, I’m giving The Lenovo Vibe X a 7 out of 10. What I liked about the unit is its overall build of the Lenovo Vibe X. It doesn’t look flimsy, albeit the ultra slim and lightweight polycarbonate body. The camera is sufficient to take decent photos, and I would to give credit to Lenovo for focusing on the quality of its camera. The display is superb but its performance is not that impressive for PHP 19,990. It would have been attractive if the price was a lot lower. There is a lot of potential in the Lenovo Vibe X and with continuous improvements, it is not far from being able to compete with other leading smartphones.