Sensibly fast yet wallet friendly
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Xplorer W140 is the second phone from the makers of Symphony Z II that we would be reviewing. Though the Z II is the spiritual ancestor of W140 but still the latter has some refined distinctions. Those points will come up later on. Let's start with the review then:
The first thing that comes to notice is the smooth and swab 5 inch IPS display with full HD resolution. The IPS display was efficiently touch-sensitive. Though it does not come with a gorilla glass protection but still I don't think you should be bothered. Just use a decent screen protector. That will work just fine. The dimensions are good for one handed operations but it might at some point feel a bit heavy; which it is actually. The thickness is just 8.8mm. Great, right?
Like the Symphony Z II, it also comes with a Quad core 1.2 GHz processor. This processor ensures you have smooth gaming experience. Games like Need for Speed or Asphalt 8 runs good as well. But may be that has something to do with the awesome GPU that this phone comes with. SGX 544 MP, a 5 series gfx rendering hardware by PowerVR, provides nearly flawless graphics experience. The RAM of this phone is 1GB which means user accessible is only 950 MB tops. Many might consider it OK, but we still think Symphony could afford to put another 512 MB RAM in this device. Most applications run perfectly but if you don't restart the phone in a week you might find it quite laggy. Also make sure you have apps like Android Assistance or Cleanup Pro installed for cleaning up the RAMs and cache memories occasionally.
The OS of this gizmo is Android 4.2.1 Jellybean. And most likely you won't be getting any update in the near future. The UI is better. No more cartoonish icons in the menu. The primary camera, an 8 MP BSI ( Backside Illumination Sensor), is surprisingly better than Z II. Definitely it was better than the cameras of other local smartphones in this range, but the fancy BSI spec still failed to capture decent snaps in low light environment. The secondary camera was good. Not just good, in fact very good.
Now comes, the most frustrating thing in this handset. It's the memory/ storage. Only 2.65 GB in total! For a smartphone running on Android this spec is simply not acceptable. Even there are some feature phones that have 2GB of memory in built. Of course there is an option to add external memory with micro SD cards, but that have some problem of its own. Frequent hang, lag in running apps etc are just the top of the iceberg that comes with external memory. But with this phone you actually don't have any option other than to install most of your apps in the external memory. Talking about apps: it has some built in too.
The battery is decent. You could easily manage work and play in a single charge for the entire day. Adding some third party apps like juice defender might even make it last a bit longer. The Wi-Fi and the GPS are ok. Although does not comes with GLONASS (Russian military version of GPS) which works far better than GPS in this subcontinent.
The Verdict
W140 is symphony's new handset to compete with other local branded midrange and foreign branded entry level smartphone. Considering the specs and price tag it's certai
nly a great deal. The processor runs good, games run fine too. Touch-sensitivity is OK. The aesthetics are of first-class. But we cannot guarantee you about the longevity of this handset since Symphony users tend to sell out their phones in second hand market due to poor touch sensitivity or screen problems generally after 9-12 months. The customer support is good and wide spread so it won't be a issue in the long run. But unlike Walton, Symphony usually does not provide any firmware update. Lastly the built in storage is terrible. So be prepared to buy a pricey microSD for uninterrupted performance.
SPECS
Display: 1280 X 720, 5" IPS HD Capacitive
OS: Android 4.2.1 (jelly bean)
CPU: 1.2 GHz Quad-core
ROM: 4 GB (User available 2.65GB)
RAM: 1GB
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, EDGE, 3G, HSPA+ etc
Camera: 8MP (BSI) Primary + 1.2MP (BSI) Secondary
Sensors: Accelerometer, GPS etc
Battery: 2100 mAh
Price: Tk. 14,490/-
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