Five flagship Chinese smartphones
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We decided to introduce you to 5 popular flagships from China — you can see their comparison in the table. The full phone catalog is located at link.
![]() Very powerful battery, high-quality screen, support for a memory card and two SIM cards, powerful external speaker , low cost, extended package. Heat under high loads, camera worse than other flagships. | The ThL 5000 does not stand out among Android smartphones with its design and looks less solid than other premium models. But the ThL has a flagship screen — 5" with Full HD resolution (pixel density 441 per inch). Observers note that there are deviations from quality standards, but they are not significant. Third-generation Gorilla Glass protects the screen from damage. And the absence of an air gap between the glass and the display (One Glass Solution technology) gives the impression that you are touching the icons with your fingers. The smartphone runs on Android 4.4.2. The user interface is standard and includes the usual applications and widgets. Users do not complain about problems with the Russian language. The hardware platform ThL 5000 is an overclocked eight-core MediaTek MT6592T clocked at up to 2 GHz. In synthetic tests, the smartphone does not show record performance, but the power of the MediaTek chip and 2 GB of RAM is enough for stable and performant work. Although, under heavy loads, the smartphone can noticeably heat up. Unlike some competitors, the ThL 5000 supports microSD memory cards. In addition, it has a lot of built-in memory for storing files — 16 GB. It has a chic package that includes a silicone bumper, a film on the screen, an OTG adapter, a case and other accessories. Finally, among other smartphones, the ThL 5000 stands out with an incredibly powerful battery, the volume of which hints the name is 5,000 mAh. This volume is enough for a smartphone to work for about two or three days with the active use of its capabilities. This is the main advantage of the top ThL over its competitors. |
![]() Original design with three colour options, great screen, dual SIM support, additional overlays per body, relatively low cost. Little battery life, not the best camera, no memory card slot. | Lenovo X2 attracts the attention of buyers, first of all, with its appearance. Thanks to the original “puff” design, the smartphone seems to be assembled from several plates. You can choose from three colour options: white, red and gold. Among the flagship phones, the X2 also stands out due to its compact dimensions: its thickness is only 7.3 mm and the weight is 120 g. For example, you can fasten a JBL speaker or an additional battery. The latter, by the way, will become a useful accessory, because battery life was sacrificed for the sake of design — a 2300 mAh battery is enough for a day of service. And here equipment is not very different from other smartphones in this class. The MediaTek MT6595 processor is not the fastest chip available on the market. In synthetic benchmarks, Lenovo scores high, though not as well as the Samsung GALAXY S5 and other premium models. More importantly, the smartphone handles well with games and applications, at the level of other models in the TOP-5. A five-inch display with thin bezels (about 3 mm), an IPS matrix with Full HD resolution is of high quality. Experts have no significant claims to it. The screen looks great in any conditions — in bright sunlight and from any viewing angle. And a high pixel density of 441 ppi delivers crisp, detailed images. By the way, like other Lenovo smartphones, there are no problems with the correct display of the Cyrillic alphabet. The 13 MP camera in the Lenovo Vibe X2 works at the usual level for high-end smartphones. However, with a few reservations — photos on the main camera may turn out a little blurry due to active noise reduction or have insufficient sharpness. Still, this is not a camera phone, but rather a fashion model for those who are tired of banal and nondescript devices. |
![]() Stylish design, great display, good camera, powerful processor, relatively low cost. Low battery life, not very optimized user interface, no slots for a memory card and a second SIM card. | First of all, I would like to praise the appearance of the Meizu MX4 — in design it is not inferior to many models from Samsung, HTC, etc. When you pick up a smartphone, you may get the feeling that the screen has no frames — their width is only 2.6 mm. In other aspects of ergonomics, it also leaves a good feeling. The device received a display with a non-standard diagonal of 5.36" and an IPS matrix. The 1920x1152 resolution ensures high pixel density and excellent image quality on a smartphone screen. However experts note a slight deviation of the gamma into cold tones, but such nuances do not spoil the overall impression. At the price, this flagship will give odds to competitors from leading brands, despite the fact that its characteristics are no less impressive. Mediatek's MT6595 octa-core chip handles a wide variety of tasks and performs well in synthetic benchmarks. However as practice shows, Flyme OS 4's proprietary user interface can sometimes slow down. Perhaps, in the near future, Meizu programmers will eliminate this flaw (and they coped with the correct display of the Cyrillic alphabet from the very beginning). We also add that due to the powerful processor, the battery lasts for a day in intensive mode. Among the advantages of this model is the camera. Its interface is simple and functional, with separate menus for manual settings and automatic operation. And the 20 MP Sony module handles with complex tasks up to recording video in 4K format at a speed of 30 frames per second. An improved modification of this smartphone has recently appeared — Meizu MX4 Pro. It has a slightly larger screen, a more powerful processor from Samsung and more RAM. Nevertheless, Meizu MX4 with the reputation of a beautiful, powerful and inexpensive Chinese flagship will be relevant for a long time. |
![]() Large high-quality screen, Cyanogen Mode operating system, powerful processor and large amount of RAM, video recording in 4K. < span>Lack of slots for a memory card and a second SIM card, the price is close to the cost of analogues from A-brands. | The main distinguishing feature of One Plus One is the operating system. It works on the basis of Cyanogen Mode 11S (one of the modifications of Android), which is convenient for personalization. Outwardly, it resembles the Google mobile platform and supports all standard programs. So the differences are almost imperceptible, but those who like to play with the settings have a place to turn around. The smartphone pleases with its appearance. There are white and grey versions of the smartphone, while the white surface is smooth to the touch, and the grey one is rough. The One Plus One features a flagship-worthy 5.5-inch IPS display with Full HD resolution. And for reliability and durability, it is covered with Gorilla Glass 3 and an oleophobic coating. The display is highly rated by experts (for example, in the review of www.ixbt.com) due to balanced natural colours, correct colour temperature, etc. The hardware of the smartphone is very powerful — Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 clocked at 2 .5 GHz and Adreno 330 easily cope with all complex tasks and games at maximum graphics settings. In addition, One Plus One has 3 GB of RAM built in, so it's a pleasure to work and play on it, even with several applications open at once. The user may only encounter the problem of lack of memory — its maximum volume is limited by the built-in 16 GB. As a nice bonus, there is an NFC and support for 3G and 4G standards. On the other hand, The amount of memory is limited to built-in 16 GB. Good main and front cameras — 13 and 5 MP, respectively — take high-quality photos and record video in 4K format. The battery in the smartphone is 3100 mAh, but the system is “gluttonous” and you should not count on more than a day and a half of active work. One Plus One stood out in that at first it could be ordered by special invitations, but now it is freely available in stores. At the time of release, this flagship was ahead of the flagships of A-brands in terms of characteristics and a year later it keeps on par with them. One Plus One is chosen for its excellent parameters and Cyanogen Mode shell. |
![]() Powerful hardware, great screen, user-friendly MI UI, 8 MP front camera, recording 4K video. Glossy back cover, relatively short battery life, lack of slots for a memory card and a second SIM card, stripped-down packaging, the price is close to the cost of analogues from A-brands. | The 8.9 mm thin body and five-inch display of the Xiaomi Mi4 are a good solution for a flagship model at the moment. Its design cannot be called unequivocally successful or not — the metal edging gives it charm and goes well with both colour options of the model (black and white). But the glossy plastic of the back panel leaves a double impression. The smartphone has a MI UI shell for Android, which at one time caused a stir by transferring application icons to the main screen. It is well optimized and works without any lags. Although initially there was no Russian localization, now the smartphone supports Russian and Cyrillic. The smartphone received a powerful Snapdragon 801 processor with a clock speed of 2.5 GHz, which easily handles with any complex tasks, which is noticeable both in fact and in synthetic tests — the smartphone outperforms the HTC One M8 and Samsung S5. The Adreno 330 video chip is suitable for 3D games with beautiful graphics. And 3 GB of RAM (of which about 2 is available to the user) is more than enough to work with a large set of applications at the same time. A 3080 mAh battery is enough for a smartphone for a day and a half of maximum active work — a good indicator for a model with such components. The display is made using OGS technology without an air gap between the touchscreen, IPS matrix and Gorilla Glass 3 protective glass. This is important for a better image and feeling of “icons under the fingers”. The resolution is high — you can not see the pixels even at close range. Reviewers testify to the chilly gamma of the display, but this small drawback is eliminated by adjusting the colour rendering. The front camera is of high quality — 8 MP and with good optics, so self-portraits (selfies) will decorate your Instagram. Pictures of the main camera with fast optics (f/1.8) and a 13 MP Sony sensor are also pleasing in quality under almost any shooting conditions. pins, so you will need an adapter to use with our outlets. Nevertheless, Xiaomi Mi4 attracts with top technical characteristics and an interesting and convenient software shell. |
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