O+ Evo 4G Review

In today’s fast-moving society, there are two things that people always require on their devices: Power and Speed. From either their smartphone’s processing performance, to its capability to connect with the world immediately, everything should be reliable and real-time.

O+ wants to address this demands by introducing a smartphone that has the right qualifications to help cater people’s current needs. The O+ Evo 4G, as the name would obviously suggest, this thing sports a high-speed data connection – LTE connectivity. Plus, there’s also a 64-bit processor in tow. Is this smartphone for you? Know more about it in our review below.

O+ EVO 4G Specs

• Android 4.4 Kitkat
• 5-inch HD IPS Scratch Resistant Display
• 64-bit 1.5GHz quad-core processor
• 8GB internal storage
• expandable up to 32GB
• 8-megapixel autofocus rear camera
• 2-megapixel front-facing camera, f2.0 aperture
• 3G, 4G LTE Connectivity
• LTE Bands: 850/1800/2100
• WiFi, WiFi hotspot
• Bluetooth, GPS, A-GPS
• Dual-SIM
• Colors: Black/Grey
• Dimensions: 145.8×72.2 x9.3mm
• 2500mAh battery

O+ EVO 4G Video Review

Design

The O+ Evo 4G looks very identical with HTC’s One M9 (and M8). Now that we got that out of the way, let’s start.

The company didn’t entirely copied the prominent device’s look, though. Taking a deep and extended look shall part this device from the M8’s design. The general look of the front with the gray borders from the upper and higher sides, and the rounded edges are the only design perspective that’s identical with HTC’s masterpeice. The Evo 4G doesn’t even has stereo speakers in front, not made with metal, and the back is far south with the M8’s beauty.

We got a 5-inch HD IPS display in front together with the 2-megapixel front-facing camera, speaker grill, ambient light and proximity sensors, and the capacitive buttons.

Left side is empty, the right has the lock/power button and the volume controls.

The top has the microUSB port and the 3.5mm headphone jack while the bottom part only has the lid to pop-out the removable back cover.

We got the 8-megapixel primary camera with LED flash, O+ branding, and the loudspeaker.

Removing the back cover shall reveal the two sim card slots, and the microSD card slot (capable of up to 32GB). You can also get a glimpse of the actual battery, but it’s secured tightly and held up by the back material so you can’t remove it.

Display

The O+ Evo 4G doesn’t only boast some beautiful aesthetic, but also a wonderful display. There’s a 5″ HD IPS display that’s fronting this device, with 720×1280 resolution and has  294 pixels-per-inch.  It’s also safely coated with a scratch-resistant glass for a tougher protection against scratches.

In a nutshell, the display’s capability is just okay for the device’s price. In fact, some may argue that we should be getting Full HD at this price point, but that’s not the main selling point of this handset anyway. The colors are well-saturated, as well as the contrast ratio. Sunlight legibility is kind of middling, but still pretty usable outdoors during extreme daylight condition.

Viewing experience is also imposing. Watching movies and any other clip are enjoyable; not only because of the Evo 4G’s display hardware, but also with the processor’s advanced features. MediaTek’s ClearMotion smoothens everything out, and gives the user a 60 frames-per-second video playback. MiraVision is also present, a technology that MediaTek designed to help mobile devices provide and display contents with more vivid and colorful quality, that also intelligently manages the display panel’s  backlight to optimize battery consumption.

Performance

The device brags a 64-bit processor, A MediaTek quad-core chip, clocked in at 1.5GHz. There’s also a pleasant 1GB of RAM in tow and a Mali-T760 GPU.

To give you a perspective on how a 64-bit powered device is better than other smartphones which runs with a 32-bit processor, here’s a brief and straightforward explanation: as how the marketing peeps hype it, yes, it makes the device a lot faster. A 64-bit processor can perform more calculations-per-second than the 32s’, which results to faster processing muscle that leads to a snappier performance.

Although, there are still some things that also needs to be considered before pumping a device with a 64-bit processor: RAM memory, apps and the operating system. Also, the leading apps that are out today only support 32-bit. Although, this applications will work seamlessly on 64s’, but they can’t fully utilize the processor’s capability.

Operating systems is also a plays a crucial role in taking advantage of this processor. As with the  O+ Evo 4G, it sports Android 4.4.4 Kitkat with only a 32-bit architecture. The software will also work seamlessly with the processor, but then again, it can’t take full advantage of it. The only software version that can take full advantage of this processor is Android Lollipop 5.0 – we don’t have any information about plans on updating this handset as of the moment.

But nevertheless, processing performance have been pretty pleasing on the Evo 4G. Day-to-day tasks can be done seamlessly. Applications and games ran fluidly and the start-up time is fast. Multitasking is also a breeze, even if  the device’s RAM capacity is only 1GB.

The processor on this device has a lot of hit-or-miss at this time, but it has all the great potential, a potential that can be unleashed with just an over-the-air update.

For a perspective, check out the results of some benchmarking tests I’ve ran:

Connection

The O+ Evo 4G supports the ultra-fast 4G network connection. I know some are still doubtful with the network’s capabilities in this country; which makes this device not for everybody.

You might want to figure out with your service provider if your place has 4G signal. Thus, if it your place supports 4G, you could really utilize this device. I have tested the device on a place with prominent and stable 4G connection, and the results are incredibly amazing. The highest speedtest score that I’ve achieved reached for an all-time-high was 53MBps. The speed varies though, it would sometimes reach for only 30Mbps, 20Mbps, or 10Mbps.

You want to make sure 4G signal is one you’re using, as the 3G and H+ connections are pretty annoying to use once you get used to the speed.

Software

There’s nothing much to talk about on this section, because just like the majority of the devices on the local market, the Evo 4G also sports Android 4.4.4 Kitkat, with no manufacturer UI customizations aside from the icons and some pre-installed apps, which means you’re blessed with a fast and snappy stock-Android experience, as if the Kitkat isn’t known to be swift just by its own.

Although, some people may find Android’s stock user interface tedious and uninteresting due to its lack of fancy transition effects and clever-looking icons. If that’s your case, third-party launchers are always available for download in Google’s Play Store.

Camera

Despite the price tag, the device’s camera modules doesn’t come second-rate. It still boasts an 8-megapixel primary camera, and a 2-megapixel front-facing one.

The photo quality it can produce is fairly impressive; it has some excellent saturation and sharpness, given that the lighting conditions are great. Low-light shots were still pretty usable, however, expect some mushy-ness and some obvious grains and noises on the photos taken.

Check out these sample shots:

Battery

The Evo 4G hosts a 2500mAh battery, which offers a sizable amount of juice to power the device for a decent amount of time.

The device was able to stand alive with three to four hours of heavy and continuous use, almost seven hours of web browsing via 4G connection, and almost one to two days with casual, light to moderate use.

Verdict

O+’s first take on a 64-bit device is off to a good start. Offering it alongside with other pleasing specifications and a pretty acceptable price tag, you couldn’t go wrong with this device.

Although, as for now, the device only utilizes Android Kitkat, which only has 32-bit support. But, no worries, as the device has a great potential, and just one software update away to greatness – if O+ USA plans to give it an Android Lollipop update. Nonetheless, it’s already doing well in it’s current form and performance is very good.

Let us also don’t forget its 4G LTE network capability. The connection is reliable and fast, although the feature’s full potential is also a bit tucked away due to some network/ISP limitations. But given that your geographical location has a 4G signal connection, then this feature is fully usable.

If you’re interested in O+ Evo 4G, you  could test it out in the company’s kiosks and get yours at a retail price of Php7,995.

Pros

• 4G LTE
• Beautiful design
• Snappy performance and multi-tasking
• Great Battery life

Cons

• Can’t fully utilize 64-bit processor until Android Lollipop
• Flimsy build
• Non-removable battery