In a market flooded with a range of affordable smartphones, the consumer is often at crossroads when it comes to choosing a device that comes with desired features and is also easy on the pocket. The Coolpad Note 3 may come at an attractive price of Rs 6,999, but does it get the right boxes checked in terms of features and experience? Read on to know.
The Coolpad Note 3 Lite is lightweight at 142 grams and that is one of the most prominent features to be noticed about this phone. With its slightly curved edges and a thin body, the phone makes for a comfortable hold and it - quite literally - is easy carry around.
The phone has a standard designing, with the lock/power button on the right and volume controllers on the left. The headphone jack sits atop and speakers are encased in the rear. Although the battery remains non removable, the SIM and memory card/second SIM slots are layered beneath the matte-textured rear panel.
The phone's display has narrow bezels, which could be mistaken for an edge-to-edge screen if the display is switched off. At 5-inches, the HD display comes with a 1280x720 resolution and offers a decent viewing experience both in dim lit conditions and outdoors. The touch response is good and during out review period we didn't have to struggle with executing any function.
An interesting addition to this affordable device is the hottest new feature in smartphones - a fingerprint sensor. As more and more users have started taking their device security seriously, manufacturers are also pushing to incorporate the technology in the newest smartphones as a default feature. The Coolpad Note 3 Lite, despite being a budget device, offers premium-like security with its rear fingerprint sensor that sits neat below the camera. With the option to store up to 5 different fingerprints, the sensor is quick and responsive in identifying users' fingerprints.
There were no lags or app crashes with the 3GB RAM and 1.3GHz 64bit quad-core + ARM Mali T720 MTK MT6735 processor core powering the phone. While the Note 3 Lite comes with about 16 GB of internal storage, some of it is eaten up by bloatware and about 10 GB is at user disposal. But the phone lets users expand its memory up to 32 GB via a microSD card.
In terms of battery backup, the phone's 2500mAh battery survives the day for an average user.
Coming to the most concerning and also a disappointing feature of this otherwise good budget smartphone is its camera. It features a decent 13 megapixel rear camera with flash and a 5 megapixel in the front for selfies, however, the review unit we received suffered heating issues. Less than about 5 minutes of continuous usage and the phone started to feel really hot. Other than the heating issue, the results are also grainy and kill the prospect of having another decent budget smartphone.
The camera comes with a Pro mode for both the rear and front lenses which comes handy in composing creative shots. Other than basic filters, it offers SLR-like features to adjust ISO, White Balance, colour contrast, along with a manual focusing option. While the rest of the adjustments work well, the focus meter needs a little struggle to get the right capture. The camera further lets you shoot videos in 480p, 720p, and 1080p. However, if you try to capture in motion, the results are also not up to the mark.
Verdict
The pros include compact overall designing, fingerprint sensor, and OTG support, while the cons primarily include the disappointing camera. It had almost made to our recommended list of smartphones until we put its camera to extensive tests. But given that the camera is one of the key features in the phones today, we would not suggest you to go for it.