Smartphone Lenovo Z5 - advantages and disadvantages

Lenovo is a Chinese electrical engineering company. Popular products are laptops and mobile phones. In the production of laptops, the company occupies a leading position in the world market. By selling mobile phones - 5th place in the world. A young company that has been in business for only 34 years and started with $24,000 in seed capital has managed to achieve incredible results in the electrical market.

In June 2018, the company presented a new smartphone model - Lenovo Z5. Before the presentation, the company “warmed up” the audience with claims that this gadget would outperform its competitors in all respects. The creators said that this model will become a hit in the mobile device market: full frameless, 4 TB of memory, capacious battery. Has Lenovo really managed to create a budget quality gadget? During the presentation, Lenovo Z5 was compared with the iPhone X and Xiaomi Mi8. Because these Z5 is similar with them in design. But comparing with the iPhone is a stupid idea, since it does not constitute any price competition. Still, let's take a look.

Technical specifications

Well, let's try to find out what surprises us with the Chinese this time?

Design

Particular attention in this smartphone should be given to design. The screen diagonal is 6.2 inches. In the hands, like a "shovel" and catches up in size with some tablets. But despite this, it lies well in the palm of your hand. It is not convenient to control with one hand, and you need to be careful so that the gadget does not fly out of your hands. In general, the appearance of a smartphone in 2018 will not surprise anyone. But it is worth recognizing that in its price category the gadget looks the most modern and stylish. At first glance, the Lenovo Z5 smartphone is indistinguishable from the iPhone X. The same narrow frames, “monobrow”, full screen. But this is only from the front.

So what's on the front? The upper “monobrow”, on which fit: earpiece, front camera and notification sensor. The unibrow is narrower than that of competitors, but it cannot be hidden. And although the manufacturer stated that the screen will occupy 95% of the front panel area (frameless), in fact - 90%.

In addition, Z5 before the presentation was positioned as a breakthrough and innovation in the world of mobile phones. But among the hundreds of new gadgets, this model does not stand out in any way. The frames are narrow, the bottom is almost invisible. On the back panel there are two cameras, one of which is 16 megapixels, and the second is 8 megapixels, a fingerprint scanner and a flash. Colors: Black and Aurora (gradient from blue to purple). Material: metal glass and aluminum frames.Oleophobic coating, thanks to which fingerprints on the case are easily wiped off. Looks beautiful, shimmers in the light. Will not leave the owner unattended.

On the left side of the case are the volume rocker and the unlock key.

On the right is a slot for a SIM card and a memory card. You can insert either two SIM cards into the gadget, or one SIM card and one memory card.

Below the device are:

• 3.5mm headphone jack;
• Type-C connector for charger;
• Speakers and microphone.

There is an additional microphone on the top frame of the smartphone. By design, everything is clear, now let's move on to the screen.

Display

The screen in Lenovo Z5 is love at first sight. The display of this model was immediately presented as the main advantage of a smartphone. This can be understood by picking up the phone. IPS matrix with FullHD Plus resolution and 18.7 to 9 aspect ratio. Screen resolution 2248 x 1080.

Particular attention should be paid to color rendering. You don't have to mess around with color settings - white will be pure white, bright colors will stay bright. Also a huge plus is that the picture is not distorted at any angle. Although the light sensor is present, the gadget does not change the brightness of the screen depending on the lighting. But this is not a problem, since the brightness of the screen can be changed independently. It is guaranteed that in bright daylight the screen will not be illuminated, and in the dark the eyes will not be hurt by too bright light. In general, the display in the Lenovo Z5 model will please even the most demanding user.

Operating system and firmware

Firmware - ZUI 4.0. This is a simple, unremarkable version. Everything is intuitive to use. It looks nice and attracts with its simplicity.

The operating system is Android 8.1.In the first weeks of use, it works smartly, almost without interruption. But, after some time, it starts to lag a little. This is not to say that this is Lenovo's oversight. Small problems are noticeable in other Android devices. When buying any modern smartphone with this operating system, you should expect good work only at first. Then you need to reset everything to factory settings.

Connection

Supports all communication standards, including 4G, works great with all Russian mobile operators.

CPU

The Z5 has an octa-core Snapdragon 636. This is not to say that this is a bad processor. Not at all. It copes with daily tasks, and even runs any game, but not at the highest settings. The processor has eight 64-bit Kryo 260 cores, clocked at 1.8 GHz. For the price, this is a great stuffing. He copes with his tasks "with a bang."

Memory

The gadget has 6 GB of RAM, and built-in 64 or 128 GB. In fact, it is not clear why a smartphone from this price category and with these features even has 6 GB of memory. It was possible to reduce the memory, and thereby make the smartphone even cheaper. Built-in memory at the choice of the client - 64 or 128 GB. The 128 GB version costs $80 more, so don't forget that you can insert a memory card and not overpay.

Interestingly, the manufacturer in the advertising campaign stated that this smartphone has a memory of 4 TB. But at the presentation it was indicated that 4 TB can only be accessed in the cloud for file storage. In fact, before the presentation of the smartphone, the claims of the creators for such an amount of memory were impressive.If they managed to create such a device, then for sure it would become innovative in the Chinese device market. But, alas...

Camera

There is not much to say about the cameras in this gadget. Because there is nothing special to say. The most standard cameras. The main one is 16 + 8 megapixels. It is impossible to say that the quality is good. But this smartphone was not presented as a camera phone. Enough to take photos of notes, capture something on a walk, but high-quality pictures will not work. For photos, it is better to look for other gadgets. The light sensitivity of the camera is 16 MP f / 2.0, and an additional 8 MP camera is responsible for the relief of the photo. There is a portrait shooting mode, that is, there is a “bokeh” effect. It is worth noting that the portrait mode works quite well. It is possible to select the degree of blurring the background. The pictures are quite detailed. But, of course, it is clear that the camera here is not designed for modern mobile photography. There is no camera stabilization. Flash - double LED.

8MP front camera with f/2.0 aperture. Selfies are of decent quality.

If you evaluate a smartphone by the camera, then there is definitely nothing special here. Design - vertical two cameras on the rear panel. Lenovo, like other Eastern firms, is chasing the trend. Therefore, we chose this arrangement of the main camera, and the front camera on the top panel is “monobrows”.

Wireless technologies

It should be noted right away that there is no NFC, as in most Chinese smartphones. This is explained by the fact that this technology is not used in China, therefore, manufacturers do not always consider it necessary to add such a function to their gadgets. It turns out that you will not be able to pay at the checkout of the store using your phone.

From wireless technology Z5 has Wi-Fi 802/11ac and Bluetooth 5.0.

Navigation

This smartphone supports navigation systems typical of Chinese smartphones: GPS, Beidou, GLONASS.

Battery

We will also talk about batteries separately. Battery capacity - 3300 mAh. But despite this, the device is quite autonomous. With active work, it lasts for a whole day, and this is with the dimensions and display of the device. In normal mode, if you use the phone only for calls and SMS, it lasts even for 2-3 days. But who now buys a smartphone just for calls?

Although by today's standards, a battery capacity of 3300 mAh is not so much, but for such a smartphone at such a price, it is quite enough. Those who will use the gadget longer than the expected autonomy will carry PowerBank with them, but this cannot be avoided even with expensive phones. At the presentation, they said that the gadget can work in standby mode for 45 days. But most likely, it was said for advertising purposes.

The device supports fast charging.

Sound

The sound quality is quite high, despite the fact that there are no stereo speakers. There is a slight hiss at high volume.

Sensors

The smartphone contains:

• Notification sensor;
• Fingerprint scanner;
• Light sensor;
• Gyroscope - determines the viewing angle;
• Compass;
• Accelerometer - allows you to change the orientation from portrait to landscape.

Unlock

You can unlock your phone with your fingerprint. The scanner is located on the back cover. There is no face unlock.

The weight

The smartphone weighs only 165 grams. For a 6.2-inch display and its dimensions, this is not enough.

Equipment

• Mobile phone;
• Network adapter;
• Type-C cable;
• Instruction;
• Silicone Case;
• SIM eject tool.

Price

Lenovo knows how to please with the price. The Z5 costs just $200 for 64GB, and $280 for 128GB. That is, approximately 13,500 rubles or 19,000 rubles. Despite the fact that the average price of smartphones in 2018 is 24,000 rubles. Of course, the quality is not the same as Apple or other big competitors. But the design is captivating! Therefore, buying this smartphone, you will spend a minimum of money, but you will get a maximum of aesthetic pleasure. Well, it is worth noting that the smartphone is completely worth the money.

Advantages and disadvantages

• Design;
• Price;
• Screen;
• Memory;
• Well-functioning gesture controls.

• Lack of NFC, infrared and barometer;
• cameras;
• Battery;
• Lack of face unlock
• The software is intended for the Chinese market;
• Disabled notifications.

Reviews

What is the first thing everyone notices? Design. Yes, almost everyone is delighted with the large screen and the minimum of frames. Of course, this is not the screen that was announced before the presentation, but still.

Next, the price. Although no one is surprised by Chinese cheap novelties, Lenovo this time "shot". The smartphone is presented as for the middle class, but the price is even lower. It is not clear why immediately after the presentation you can buy a phone so cheaply. Perhaps marketers thus attract customers. But, on the other hand, this is the right tactic. Because if prices were higher, hardly anyone would buy these gadgets. Indeed, in fact, the price for competitors' devices would be the same, but the quality would be better. Therefore, Lenovo hit the mark with the price. It is clear that over time it will become even cheaper. But by that time, there will be many new products again.

The third thing that attracts users is the processor. Among the reviews you can find a comparison of processors - Snapdragon 630 and 636.The differences are noticeable. The 636 scores 15% more in multi-core mode and as much as 53% more in single-core mode. This suggests that version 636 is many times more productive than 630. And, as it was written above, the phone copes with all its functions more than well.

Conclusion

Lenovo marketers did a good job on the advertising campaign. Everyone expected the effect of "Wow" from the phone, but many had a chance to be disappointed. And although much of what was supposed to be a feature of this gadget could not be implemented, the smartphone still has more advantages.

Who should buy this smartphone?

Yes, photography lovers will definitely be disappointed. But those who appreciate aesthetics will obviously not pass by. Also, a smartphone is worth buying for those who want to get a stylish gadget for ridiculous money. It is cheaper than most modern Chinese smartphones, and in some ways better than them. For those who do not use the phone to the maximum, it will do.

Among other gadgets in this price category, it looks bright and attractive. If you do not want to overpay, then this smartphone is definitely for you.