MyPhone-Ocean-Pro-Review

MyPhone presents the third smartphone for its Ocean line-up, the MyPhone Ocean Pro. Compared to its brothers, the Ocean Pro has a phablet form factor; or in layman’s term, a larger screen.

As what we have said before, the phablet era is really closely reaching maturity, which means almost all manufacturers have thrown their aces on the table, offering a variety of phablets to cater different markets with different buying capabilities. This attempt by MyPhone aims to hit the hearts of people who are on a very tight budget. Thus, pricing it at only Php6,999.

But what could you expect on a phablet with a friendly price tag? Is the performance undermined just to achieve this competent price tag? Let’s figure that out on our full review.

MyPhone Agua Ocean Pro Specs

  • Android 4.2 Jelly Bean
  • 5.5-inch IPS LCD (540×960 qHD), ~200ppi
  • 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6582M processor
  • Mali 400 MP2 GPU
  • 1GB RAM
  • 4GB internal storage
  • microSD support up to 32GB
  • 8-megapixel main camera, with autofocus and LED flash
  • 2-megapixel front camera
  • Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wireless Display
  • 3G, HSPA+
  • Bluetooth
  • GPS
  • USB OTG
  • 2350mAh battery

What’s in the Box?

The MyPhone Ocean Pro’s box is still kinda similar to other MyPhone’s former devices. We’ve seen something like this with the MyPhone Agua Hail.

MyPhone Ocean Pro Unboxing MyPhone Ocean Pro Unboxing (1)

The packaging still has this black elegant design with details printed on the sides. Opening the box shall reveal the device itself. Beneath it are the microUSB cable, wall adaptor, headphones w/ mic, 2350mAh battery, quick start guide, pinoy guide and the warranty certificate.MyPhone Ocean Pro Unboxing (2)

Hardware and Design

The MyPhone Ocean Pro is made with almost the same materials and colors like any other locally branded device, but the overall look and design accents have a distinctive and unique look, making it standout from any of the company’s devices.

At the front you would see 5.5” qHD LCD Display, the earpiece at the top side-by-side with the proximity and ambient light sensors and the 2MP camera.MyPhone Ocean Pro Review (4)

At the forepart is the capacitive buttons. Beneath it is this striking design accent which has a gray-ish design that’s being divided from the main front glass panel by a silver line metal. This design continues to the lower back of the the device.MyPhone Ocean Pro Design

Power/lock button and the volume controls are placed at the left and right side of the device respectively. It’s nice to note the buttons good quality as it is made of metal-like design and has a nice texture on it.MyPhone Ocean Pro Review (12) MyPhone Ocean Pro Review (14)

At the top is where the 3.5mm headphone jack is placed together with the microUSB port and the grip for opening the whole back panel. The bottom only contains the built-in microphone.

MyPhone Ocean Pro Review (11) MyPhone Ocean Pro Review (13)

The back panel contains the 8MP camera with LED flash and the loudspeaker at the bottom. The back panel has this rare design, as the top part all the way from the sides are also covered by this plastic-y , slightly glitterized back cover.MyPhone Ocean Pro Review (3)

Popping-out the back cover shall reveal the 2350mAh battery, two slots for sim card, one of which is intended to carry a micro sim card, and a microSD card slot which is capable of up to 32GB.MyPhone Ocean Pro Review (22)

The device feels good in the hands. For a 5.5 inch device, it has a decent weight on it. Plus its extra unique design gives it a more for-professionals look.

DisplayMyPhone Ocean Pro Review (8)

The MyPhone Ocean Pro has a 5.5” qHD IPS LCD display with 960×540 resolution and has a 240 pixel-per-inch. Just by looking at the display’s specifications, you would know that it’s a disappointment for such a huge screen. But as what we have noticed, almost all of the devices in this particular size category share the characteristic of having a low resolution screen.MyPhone Ocean Pro (31)

That said, the screen have some plenty of brightness but still looks washed-out, under-saturated, plus with only 240ppi, details are disappointingly subdued. When we placed a photo we’ve took from the MyPhone Agua Infinity’s 16MP camera on the Ocean Pro, the photo suddenly had some grains and noises in it on the device’s screen. Even just the browsing the homescreen looked really uninspiring.MyPhone Ocean Pro Review (26)

Viewing angles and sunlight legibility is also disappointing on this one. The device is really a glare magnet. Watching movies is passable, but it could have gotten better.

Performance

The device has a MediaTek’s 1.3GHz quad-core processor under the hood, with Mali-400 MP GPU, and only 1GB of RAM. That said, the MyPhone Ocean Pro delivers satisfactory performance. A quad-core processor can handle almost every apps, but a 1GB RAM may be insufficient for moderate to heavy multitasking. The lower resolution also helps the device in a way since less pixels are being pushed which translates to slightly better performance. MyPhone Ocean Pro Review (23)

Antutu gave it a score of 17258, a normal grade for a Mediatek quad-core chip like this. And as what we have tested, this device can really deliver. We’ve threw different apps from light to heavily muscled apps and games (Asphalt 8:Airborne, Dead Trigger 2 and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas), and it carried them all well.

Overall, it’s fast and snappy, though we have seen better, but considering the Ocean Pro’s price tag, it’s a serious contender.

Software

And just like any other local devices, the MyPhone Ocean Pro also runs on Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean out of the box. There is nothing much to talk about the device’s UI as it still looks the same with any other MyPhone devices we had before, and also with any other Android devices in the market. The Ocean Pro’s UI is dressed on a native Android look. The only thing that MyPhone had probably touched on this one are the look of some of the icons, the clever motion and pre-installing some apps which, thankfully, can be uninstalled for your storage-needs’ sake.Screenshot_2014-05-30-22-37-48

Clever motion, which we’re not really a big fan of, still has the same features as what the other MyPhone devices had.

If you’re a big fan of stock Android UI, which, unlike any other manufacturer-made UI like Samsung’s TouchWIz and HTC’s Sense, doesn’t occupy sizable amount of storage and also decelerate the device’s performance, then you would surely love the Ocean Pro, and probably not only this one, but most of the local devices that are in the market today.

Camera

The MyPhone Ocean Pro is packed with a 2MP front-facing camera and an 8MP primary camera with LED flash. The main camera produces reasonable snaps, reasonable for a smartphone this cheap. Details were well captured with the right color reproduction and saturation. The device can also take fair photos in low-light conditions. It may not be vivid and sharp, but it’s there, and that’s what’s important for budget devices.

Check out our sample shots:MyPhone Ocean Pro Camera (6) MyPhone Ocean Pro Camera (5) MyPhone Ocean Pro Camera (4) MyPhone Ocean Pro Camera (3) MyPhone Ocean Pro Camera (2) MyPhone Ocean Pro Camera (1)

MyPhone Ocean Pro CameraRecorded videos also has the same as the quality of still images. Though you might have to be extra steady and have stable hands as videos can really look extremely awful on this one if you’re shooting with casually.

Related: MyPhone Agua Iceberg Slim ReviewMyPhone Ocean Pro Review (24)

Probably one of the highlights of the device is its jam-packed camera app. It has clever features like, Object eraser and Cinemagraph (which can animate a chosen subject on a photo. Pretty cool.) Other usual and familiar features are also present like HDR shot, Face beauty shot, Panorama, Multi-angle view,Scene detection, Smile shots, Best shot and EV bracket shot. Probably the only bummer that we have encountered in the camera app is, as usual, the lack of exposure and focus mode controls. Though capability to control the ISO is present, but those two are still important for aspiring mobile photographers like some of us.

Battery

Battery life is probably the muscle of the Ocean Pro. You can really extract a lot of juice on its 2350mAh battery despite also its large 5.5” and low-reso qHD screen. It’s also worth noting that the battery’s light weight. While other smartphone batteries add a considerably heft to the phone itself, this one’s on the lighter side.MyPhone Ocean Pro Battery

Having said that, light to moderate use like casual internet surfing and making calls and texts can last the device for up to roughly 2 days. Meanwhile heavy use like continuous gaming and watching videos online will make the device last for 5 to 6 hours before the juice completely runs out.

Media

As what we have said, the Ocean Pro had a fail grade in terms of display, which greatly affects its entertainment capabilities. Though high definition movies and clips ran fluidly, colors aren’t as vivid and accurate as compared to other competing devices. Tiny details are also hard to see, and due to poor viewing angles, watching movies with friends can also be harsh.MyPhone Ocean Pro (40)

The only thing that this device excels as a media device is its loudspeaker. It’s loud. It’s properly placed. Though rock and other loud music sounded a little distorted, but it’s pretty bearable. There’s nothing new with the music app. You still got that same UI with easy navigation from lists and categories.

As a Phone

MyPhone Ocean Pro Review (5)

Call quality is pretty decent. Though calling in public or in any place with extreme environmental noise can be almost impossible to accomplish. The device also only has one mic, which means there’s no extra mic for noise cancellation. But as what we have tested, the people on the other line had no complaints on the call that we’re in.MyPhone Ocean Pro Review (25)

Texting is really superior on this one. This is due to the device’s large 5.5” screen, which makes the keyboard larger compared to other devices, keys are also extra immense which provides better accuracy.

Verdict

MyPhone Ocean Pro (45)

The MyPhone Ocean Pro is probably one of the most good-looking phablets we’ve seen.  It looks like a phablet, but it doesn’t feel much like it. It’s distinguishably light for the size and extra gorgeous for a Php6,999 device.

The performance also doesn’t come second best. It’s fast and snappy, it can cater all your document tasks, multi-tasking, communicating needs, etc. with ease. Also, the well-equipped camera app with all its clever features can be fun to use.MyPhone Ocean Pro (44)

To wrap it up, we can safely say that the MyPhone Ocean Pro is really a good smartphone for people who want a bigger than average screen, nice design and affordable price tag. The Ocean Pro is available on all MyPhone stores and retailers nationwide for Php6,999.

 Pros

  • Nice design
  • Snappy Performance
  • Decent camera, Jam-packed camera app
  • Good Battery Life

Cons

  • Low resolution display
  • Mediocre viewing angles

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4 Comments

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  1. hello. ask ko lang po. wala po ba talagang move to sd ang my phone ocean pro? nagdownload po ako ng apps 2 sd. pero it says na 1Gig lang memory ko. the fact na 8gig po talaga sd card ko. help naman po. i cant download games na malaki files.

    1. I hope wireless display means miracast and you can display your phone screen on a smart tv for surfing the web or video/movies.