Motorola Moto G Turbo Edition: The most responsive Moto G yet

The smartphone market is always buzzing with new updates and launches. After reclaiming the position in the market with its Moto E and Moto G series, Motorola has been on a roll. This time they have come up with a new smartphone in the mid section – Moto G Turbo Edition. The phone was launched in the Indian market last week for INR 14,499 (USD 220 approx).

Similar to its predecessor, no new variations in the design

Turbo Editions’ body is 142.1X72.4X11.6 mm and weighs about 155g. The textured silica back cover has a premium feel, and the frame is made of plastic. The left side of the phone is clean and the volume button and a textured power button are placed on the right side. There is a standard Micro USB port at the bottom. Underneath the back cover there are two slots that hold Micro SIM cards and a slot to hold a Micro SD card at the top. The phone is available in two colours- black and white. The black phone has a bluish back panel. However, Motorola has provided back panel changing options in different colours on their website.

Standard HD display with TFT panel and Oleophobic screen

The device has a 5-inch display screen with a resolution of 720X1280p that has a pixel density of 294 PPI. Initial speculations about the device suggested a 1080p resolution. The LCD screen has a TFT panel which allows good visibility at odd angles and under bright sunlight. However, there are options available by brands like Xiaomi and Obi that offer a better display and screen experience at a lesser price. The screen has Gorilla Glass 3 panel that protects the HD Display. The oleophobic coating avoids smudges on the screen and keeps the display clean. Moto G Turbo Edition is IP67 rated that makes the device water-proof, provided the back-panel is properly closed.

New improved software allows ability to perform heavy tasks smoothly

As per Motorola, Moto G Turbo Edition is the fastest, most responsive Moto G yet as per Motorola and helps run the phone without stutter, with a 1.5 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon Octa-core processor (615 chipset) and 2GB RAM. It runs on Adreno 405 GPU, so graphically intensive games are played with ease. Apart from this, Motorola G Turbo Edition has a 16 GB internal memory and comes with an SD card slot expandable up to 32GB which seems a bit limited for the given price. The OS runs on Android 5.1.1 Lollipop and is will soon receive and updated version 6 (Marshmallow).

Turbo charger for quick charging

The Turbo Edition has a turbo charger that promises up to 6 hours of battery life in 15 minutes. It has a non-removable 2470 mAh, battery that claims to give a full day backup. Although Asus, Xiaomi and Obi Worldphone are amongst the few brands that offer a higher battery capacity of up to 3000 mAh or more for a far lessees price.

Decent camera with dual LED flash

It has a 13 megapixel rear camera with auto focus and dual LED flash. The 5 megapixel front camera will help click that perfect selfie. You can tap anywhere on the screen to take a picture making it easier to take a selfie. Initial tests show an above average image quality. The camera also has features like Geo-tagging, face recognition and panorama view.

Conclusion

Motorola G Turbo Edition is a mid-range phone that has a water-proof and dust-resistant design. Among other features like 4G, Bluetooth and WIFI connectivity, the phone also has FM Radio. However, there is no new innovation in terms of design and also the fast processor is borrowed from Moto’s high end variant Moto X Play. The phone tries to impress but fails at multiple specifications like display, battery power, absence of a USB charging cable and the fact few companies offer better specifications at a lesser price. Priced at INR 14,499 (USD 220) the phone is available on Flipkart.

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Obi Worldphone poses challenge to Xiaomi, Asus and Meizu

Obi Worldphone recently launched its flagship device Obi Worldphone SF1 in India through NDTV Gadgets 360. This device with its unique design stands out and is different from other available devices in the market. Considering the specifications and looks that this device carries it can give a tough competition to the existing smartphones such as Xiaomi Mi 4i, Asus ZenFone2 and Meizu M2 Note. Therefore, we decided to compare and see the four Android smartphones to find out on what all aspects Obi Worldphone can give competition to others.

Design and Build

The device that can easily fit into the palm is considered the best suit for its user. Looking at the specification chart, Xiaomi is comparatively lighter and slimmer. However, Obi Worldphone with its sleeker looking body and comparatively lesser weight can also deliver the same comfort like Xiaomi. Rest like Asus and Meizu seem big and heavy to hold.

Another fact that matters is the look. In this regard, Obi Worldphone simply stands out for its unique floating glass. Well, with this floating glass idea one can think that the display screen has the risk of breaking. Exactly at this point Obi impresses me more as they protect this stylish floating glass with extended metallic accent combined with the strength of the latest and strongest Corning Gorilla Glass 4. So, if protection is the major concern, then the device that appears more prone to breakage among all ends up giving maximum protection to its display.

Also, I find the power button and volume buttons more user friendly on Obi worldphone SF1. Amongst all, only Obi could gauge the need of heavy smartphone users who feel disturbed when they have to do all the tasks with their right hand including unlocking the screen or increasing the volume. So with Worldphone SF1 in hand, one can leave the unlocking job to the left thumb.

Display

The spec sheet above shows that Obi and Xiaomi have similar screen size, whereas Meizu and Asus have comparable screen sizes. All four smartphones have a comparable resolution, but the pixels per inch (PPI) is the highest in Obi SF1. More PPI in a 5 inch display screen makes Obi Worldphone stand out with a better visual quality.

UI

In this regard, each device has UI of its own. Asus comes with Asus Zen UI, Xiaomi have MIUI 6 on-board, Meizu offers Flyme 4.5 UI and Obi Worldphone presents Lifespeed UI. Well the UI of all the devices stands different from each other and have pro and cons of its own. But the UI of Obi Worldphone stands unique and different as it allows its user to reach the dialler and camera with a single swipe which is not a possibility with others.

Platform and Storage

On this front, Obi Worldphone and Xiaomi run on similar processor with a minor difference in the clock speed, whereas Meizu and Asus run on completely different processors. All the processors have plus and minus of their own. Furthermore, the Android version is similar in Meizu and Asus which is also outdated when compared to Obi and Xiaomi, as the later two offer the latest Android version.

On storage front, all the four Android smartphones are available in two variants, but Obi Worldphone seems to be at par as it offers 3GB RAM variant which the rest do not give. Also, Xiaomi misses out to give expansion facility.

Camera and Battery

Considering the megapixels offered by all four smartphones, they appear equally powerful. But the differentiator here is the camera features of Obi SF1 that make its camera more powerful in comparison with others. Features such as Opti Zoom, Chroma Flash and UBI Focus make the images more creative, clean, and beautiful. These features are missing in the other devices. However, the others do offer basic features like HDR, face detection, beautify etc.

On the battery front, all the four offer comparable power. Hence, none of these devices will run out of battery before the day ends. However, with Obi Worldphone SF1, charging the device is also not a pain as the company offers quick charge feature that can re- energize the device in a lesser time.

Final statement

Obi Worldphone SF1 is different from the rest with its unique design, CGG4 protection, better visual quality, camera features and quick charge feature. This way Obi Worldphone gives a tough competition to Xiaomi Mi 4i and races ahead of Meizu and Asus on almost all the aspects. Looking at the price tag, all the four devices cost between INR 10000 – INR 12000. Within this range Obi Worldphone sounds a better deal.

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Comparative Review: Asus ZenFone Selfie vs Obi worldphone SF1

Asus and Obi have launched their devices in the recent past targeting the youth. While Asus aims at impressing the selfie generation with its device named ZenFone Selfie, Obi promises to help youth step ahead in life with their Worldphone SF1 in hand. In this brief review, we compare the two devices to see which one has better chances with the selfie-loving youth.

It is evident from the data slide that ZenFone Selfie is relatively bigger and heavier device than Obi’s SF1. While ZenFone is available in three-color options (i.e. white, pink and aqua blue), SF1 comes in the all time standard black only. However, Obi SF1 stands out for sleek unibody with metallic accents and floating glass that give it a premium look.

On the display front, given its larger overall dimensions, ZenFone offers bigger display screen size. While the resolution of the two devices is same, Obi takes a lead in terms of higher pixel density, which means relatively sharper images. Also, while both the devices offer the protection of Corning Gorilla Glass (CGG) 4 protection, Obi SF1 has an edge due to its Oleophobic coating that does not allow fingerprints.

On the performance front, Obi Worldphone SF1 runs on Android 5.0.2, which is slightly ahead of ZenFone Selfie. While both the devices are powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 Octa-Core processors, ZenFone takes slight (0.2GHz) lead in the processing strength.

ZenFone Selfie and Obi SF1 come in two variants: 2GB/3GB RAM. Moreover, the 3GB RAM devices of both Asus and Obi have same internal memory (32GB), ZenFone takes a lead in expandable memory front by offering 128GB as opposed to Obi’s 64GB.

On the Camera front, while the primary cameras of both Obi Worldphone SF1 and ZenFone Selfie are 13MP, the key difference lies in the secondary camera, where Selfie takes a huge lead over SF1 by offering 13MP front camera too. However, Obi SF1’s camera offers features such as UBI Focus, OptiZoom and Chroma Flash that allow users to be more creative than in the case of Asus ZenFone. SF1 camera certainly takes a lead due to its Sony Exmor sensor.

Both the devices have same battery capacity, however, Obi SF1’s Quick Charge 1.0 allows for charging the device 40% faster. Moreover, SF1 also offers the advantage of Dolby Audio Surround Sound, something that is missing in ZenFone. All other features such as Wi-Fi, GPS, Blue Tooth, number of SIMs, proximity sensor, accelerometer, ambient light sensor and gyroscope etc. are available in both the devices.

Overall, we think, while Asus ZenFone Selfie does live up to its name by offering a whopping 13MP front camera and larger expandable memory, Obi Worldphone SF1 seems lot more balanced device with attention to details in terms of design, viewing experience, sound quality, quick charging etc. Moreover, in terms of price, Obi SF1 costs about USD30 lesser than ZenFone Selfie.

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