Micromax has overtaken Samsung to become the largest mobile phone supplier in India in Q2 2014, according to independent market research and consulting firm, CounterPoint Research.
As per the report, Micromax’s handset shipments share was 16.6% in the quarter while Samsung’s share was 14.4%. This is the first time that Samsung has been usurped from the pole position. Nokia was at the third position with a 10.9% shipments share, followed by domestic brands Karbonn and Lava which had a 9.5% and 5.6% share, respectively.
Rank
India Handset Shipment Share(%)
Q2 2014(%age)
1
Micromax
16.6%
2
Samsung
14.4%
3
Nokia
10.9%
4
Karbonn
9.5%
5
Lava
5.6%
6
Others
43%
Total
100%
Micromax also became the leading feature phone supplier overtaking Nokia for the first time. Micromax became the 10th largest handset brand globally in terms of mobile phone shipment volumes in the quarter and has 2.3% market share. This is the first time Micromax enters into the top 10 rankings.
After a highly disappointing launch of the Samsung S5, things continue to get from bad to worse for Samsung as Micromax overtook Samsung to become leading mobile phone supplier brand in India in Q2 2014 . It will be interesting to observe how Samsung will retaliate and what stratergy they will employ to regain the Number 1 position they have held so proudly in the past.
At the same time Micromax through its rigorous publicity and successful launch of the Canvas Series have taken this throne from Samsung. KUDOS to Micromax!
Google’s plans that were announced this year at Google I/O are finally unfolding and creating a stir. Recently, Google came up with new Chromecast 1.7 update which now allows users to display their Android homescreens on a Chromecast-connected TV and lets you use any application on your television. And now, Google is set to launch the first Android One smartphone in October this year in India.
They’ve planned a strategic launch around the Diwali season, and it has also been said that the company is planning a 100 Crore investment on marketing and advertising.
Google is aiming big with these Android One devices, estimating a reach up to 5 billion people in emerging markets. They said that the handsets will be updated directly by Google. The all rounder technology giant will also provide hardware and software reference points, while manufacturers will be able to put in their own apps in the devices.
Back in June at the I/O 2014, Google announced Micromax will be the first one to release an Android One device which will be priced at $100. The reports are also saying that the much talked about Micromax Android One device will be available exclusively on Flipkart.
Google added that the device will have a 4.5 inch display screen, expandable memory, dual sim capabilities and integrated FM Radio. The Android One devices will come with Play Auto Installs, that tells users which apps are recommended for his smartphone.
The Economic Times reported that Google has also roped in Indian low-cost smartphone maker Celkon Mobiles and Intex Technologies is also in talks with Google for a similar partnership.
Micromax has recently transitioned into a newer dimension of phones, from bulky and dated phones running older versions of Android, the trend is now to get shapely, sleek devices with Android KitKat out of the box. The current flagship, aka the Micromax Canvas Gold A300, is a testament of that, and while the Canvas Knight was burning our desires (quite literally), the Golden boy here may have turned our mood around. Let’s see how it holds up.
Overview
[pullquote_left]The oddly questionable gold colour is far from that of the iPhone 5s[/pullquote_left]
The Canvas Gold A300 is yet another flagship Canvas phone from the company that promises a roundup of interesting elements. A good set of specifications, great build quality, design and good optics, giving it a big thumbs up on the premium look and feel. Even though most have called it a replica of the iPhone 5s in a bigger version, the oddly questionable gold colour is far from that of the iPhone 5s.
Hardware and Build
Running the Canvas Gold A300 is an Octa-Core Mediatek 6592T chipset clocked at 2.0 GHz tied up with 2 GB of RAM and 32 GB of Storage. 25GB of the 32 GB is available to dump your media, games and files. The rear camera is a 16MP shooter with a 5MP front camera which does an impressive job with selfies (see camera section)
The front has an impressive and vivid 5.5 inch 1920 x 1080p display this is surprisingly visible outdoors and has good viewing angles. The phone has dual SIM capabilities and can run data on 3g on both cards. The Sim slots comprise of a full size SIM slot and a micro SIM slot on either side of the device.
The phone is manufactured out of a “single billet” of aluminium alloy with slots for antennas in plastic on the rear of the device. The phone is readily available in two variants, a Gold+White and the Gold+Black, the only difference being the plastic inserts and the colour of the bezel.
Apart from the exceptionally golden – gold colour the phone has a pretty good design, and the metal is nicely finished to give a great feel in the hand. The beveled edges of the phone quite replicate the iPhone look, seen specifically iPhone 4 and up. The flat lay-on-the table design will be appreciated by owners quite a lot, although a fatter lip for the front would have given a strong protection to the screen albeit taking away a bit of the slim profile of the smartphone.
Phone and Networks
The phone is unique in many ways, instead of selection your data network, you can have data on either SIM, which is great. The weird combination of Sim card sizes may work for some people, especially if they don’t want to cut/get micro SIM cards vs. regular sized ones.
The networks are strong and audio in and out of the phone is impressive. The network remains positively active even during tower switches, and we didn’t see a huge problem with dropped calls.
The WiFi seemed a bit low to us, and in our initial tests seemed weak.
Multimedia, Display and Camera
For most media is playable on the Canvas Gold A300, and we found nothing to complain about, the audio could be a little bit louder in our opinion. The music output from the headphones is a lot more impressive when compared to any previous handset, the “flaming knight” included.
As far as the video playback goes, the display does a fantastic job, jitter-free vibrant video playback. The phone is capable enough and will deliver a good experience to most users.
The camera system is a good hardware and software upgrade, and the 16 MP sensor is big enough to give a noise free low light performance. The day shots are noteworthy and brilliantly saturated to give a larger than life photography experience. The camera app is simplistic and new features like 99 shot continuous burst along with tap-hold to track subjects actively will come in handy for video.
Video capture frame rates are slow to display on the screen, in fact when you are capturing video there seems to be a lag in the screen aka the viewfinder. But, we were testing a pre-production software and apparently this has been fixed in the final build. Video is captured at a resolution of 1920 x 1080p at 30fps just like many other handsets in this bracket.
Performance and Gaming
The Canvas Gold A300 is a star performer scoring great results on benchmarks and showing excellent performance in daily use overall. You will be happy multitasking on this handset as it can handle app switching very well and thanks to inbuilt RAM management the phone automatically drives resources to the active application. The apps in the background use the adaptive suspend from Android KitKat.
Thanks to all this software and management goodness, the gaming experience is excellent, with heat at a minimum. The device does heat up from around the camera with extended periods of use, however the minute you are done you will be happy to put the phone in your pocket and move out. Games have a superfluid experience along with excellent touch screen feedback and responsiveness.
Battery Life and Conclusion
The battery on the Canvas Gold A300 lasts a good full day of use, and thanks to KitKat and power management you will not be searching for the charger in a hurry. The bloatware on the Canvas Gold A300 has been brought down to a minimum, and most of the preloaded apps useful, those which are not required can be gotten rid of.
With a software update thanks to FOTA, the device may get Android L (hopefully) and with the company working to fix their service issues the Micromax Canvas Gold seems like a good overall product. With little or no complaints from the hardware and excellent UI including a new keyboard (Swiftkey) pre loaded for use, most will be happy with the device out of the box.
With more options in this price bracket including Gionee Elife S5.5, the Moto X and the Desire 816 it will mostly come down to user requirements.
Android market has come up with some of the best devices this season. The flagship Android segment has always been on war, and these four are in their most bloody mood. HTC Desire 816, Micromax Canvas Gold, Gionee S5.5 and Sony Xperia M2 are the front runner in the INR 20-25,000 category.
The international brands Sony and HTC have been challenged quite effectively by the domestic contenders Micromax and Gionee. Let’s have a quick blow by blow of where each phone bests its opponents.
Phone
Gionee S5.5
HTC Desire 816
Sony Xperia M2
Micromax Canvas Gold
Price
INR 21,500
INR 23,990
INR 19,300
INR 21,799
Operating System
Android (4.2)
Android (4.4)
Android (4.3)
Android(4.4.2)
Display
5 inches
Screen Type: Super AMOLED Capacitive Touch Screen
Details: 16M Colors
Screen: 1920 X 1080
5.5 inches
Screen Type: Super LCD2 Capacitive Touch Screen
Details: 16M Colors
Screen: 1280 X 720
All phones are the best their manufactures offer in this price category. Gionee certainly gets an extra point for its ultra slim S5.5, but Desire 816’s build quality steals the show. The new Micromax Gold offers a 16MP camera with a wide range of features it doesn’t have much competition against the 13MP in S5.5 and Desire 816; and the 8MP in Xepria M2. Also, the Micromax Gold champagne-colored body makes it a great looker, with 32 GB of internal storage and 2 GB RAM. In the end, the efficiency of the device is based on the needs of the user.
In our recent interview with Shubhodip Pal, CMO of Micromax, we learnt that the company is not making Windows Phone handsets as a one off, and we will see a Windows Phone flagship with a 6 inch display in the coming weeks.
Put it on Record! We will have a 6 inch Windows Phone in the coming months and will many more phones that you will hear about soon.
[/quote]
The company is ready to show a new product that will run on high end chipsets like Snapdragon 800 will have impressive camera sensors and displays and will also have impressive battery life, said Shubhodip in conversation with iGyaan.
We have heard rumours of a Rs. 25000 phone which houses all the aforesaid specifications, including a 2500 mAh battery along with a 16 MP + 8MP camera combination and 2 GB of RAM, all of which would make it a beast on the Windows Phone device sheet.
Micromax plans to have this device out to the consumer as early as August, with a new lineup of products that are said to compete with the “Flagships of the world”, i.e. HTC One M8 and Galaxy S5 by the end of this year. But Shubhodip claims that, it will only happen once they have delivered their “Promise” on service issues starting next month.
Micromax today upped its market position by launching what the company is calling their “most premium” handset yet, the Micromax Canvas Gold A300.
The smartphone builds on the canvas series of devices and brings about a complete new design and build quality to the table. At first glance, the handset is a huge improvement over the previous generation of handsets and comes packed in a box that shows the new direction the company plans to head in.
The Micromax Canvas Gold A300 comes at a price of Rs. 23999/- making it the most expensive phone available from the company today. This handset comes in just a day after the launch of their first foray into Windows Phone 8.1 devices by the name of Micromax Canvas Win.
For the price (market price much lower: presently at Rs. 20,800), the phone offers a 1920 x 1080p 5.5 inch display with an IPS LCD panel. The Micromax Canvas Gold A300 also has an Octa Core 2.0 Ghz MTK6592 chipset, 2 GB RAM and 32 GB of storage.
The build and finish on the Micromax Canvas Gold A300 are impressive, and the device is a unibody device which lays flat on the table and has chamfered edges. Packing the optics is a 16 MP main camera and a 5 Mp front facing selfie booster, both will capture 1080p video at 30fps. The main camera is very impressive with a f/2 lens and excellent low light performance in our initial tests.
The Micromax Canvas Gold A300 will accept two SIM cards, one micro SIM and one full size SIM, both capable of data connectivity.
The device comes out of the box with Android 4.4.2 KitKat along with standard features like Mobile Hotspot, FM Radio and Micromax apps preloaded (which may not essentially be appreciated).
The display is stunning on the Micromax Canvas Gold A300 and has great visibility and colour reproduction, almost making the handset feel a notch above the price bracket it is available in. For now check out the video up top, and images below, and stay tuned for more.
Micromax’s much talked about association with Microsoft took a huge leap with the launch of two new phones in its Canvas Win series; W092 and W121. Considering W121’s price tag (INR 9,500) and Windows phone 8.1 OS, it is expected to give a hard time to Nokia’s newly launched Lumia 630.
Lumia 630 is equipped with impressive quad-core Snapdragon 400 processor clocked at 1.2GHz in comparison to W121’s mediocre 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 200. People who love to use apps on their phones may have some problems with Lumia 630’s 512MB RAM against W121’s 1GB.
Canvas Win W121 fashions an 8MP rear snapper with LED flash and also a front-facing 2MP front-camera for selfies and video conferencing while in Lumia 630 front camera is missing, and it has a 5MP rear camera with auto-focus but no flash.
Considering the present state of the company, I personally won’t recommend Nokia Lumia 630. Furthermore, Canvas Win121 is a better option while comparing both. Canvas Win121 definitely provides you with better feature and performance
Specifications
Nokia Lumia 630
Micromax Canvas Win W121
General
Battery capacity (mAh): 1830
Colours: Bright Green, Bright Orange, Black, White
There have been a serious shortage of Windows phones in the market. Micromax is the latest entrant in the segment. The Micromax Windows phones (Canvas Win W121 and W092) look like a good effort on the part of Micromax. The two phones have managed to create some buzz around and have been appreciated by tech enthusiasts. Micromax’s lower end offering – The Canvas Win W092 also looks like a promising Windows device.
This phone will directly compete with the Nokia Lumia 525, let’s see how the Win W092 scores up against the fallen legends offering.
First up, Win 092 runs Windows OS 8.1 out of the box, while the Lumia 525 runs on the Windows 8 Black. While the Nokia possesses a 1 Ghz Snapdragon s4 processor, the Canvas Win W092 flaunts a Snapdragon 200 processor with 1.2 GHz Quad Core CPU. Both phones have 1 GB RAM’s and 8 GB ROM.
Canvas Win 092 seems like an updated Lumia 525
The Micromax phone offers a dual SIM option whereas the Nokia is a Single- Micro SIM device.
Nokia has been known for its camera capabilities. The Lumia 525 has a 5 megapixel shooter and is capable of shooting 720p HD videos. The Win W092 also has a 5 Megapixel camera with LED flash but if the past experiences with Micromax camera at this price range are considered, the camera probably would not be comparable to the Nokia quality.
Looking at the specs it is evident that Lumia 525 must have been the inspiration behind the Win W092. Micromax has tried to one up the Lumia 525 in almost departments, while giving a competitive pricing. The Win W095 has the ability to challenge the Lumia and only time will tell if this would be the last usurping of the Nokia brand name.
The Lumia 525 is available on Flipkart at Rs. 8550 while the Win 092 is priced at 6500. This war just got serious. A Windows phone enthusiast now has to some serious option to choose from. XOLO has already geared up to release a new devices based on Windows OS 8.1. With Windows releasing the OS free for licensing purposes for screen size below 9 inches, many more companies might want to join the Windows OS ecosystem.
Although it is not Micromax’s first foray into Windows domain, its is their first set of Windows Phone 8.1 Smartphones. The two devices 5 inch W121, and 4 inches W092 are both relatively lower end devices, and their prices below the Rs. 10000 bracket.
The Micromax Canvas Win W121 is their 5 inch handset with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 Chipset with 1 GB RAM 8 GB ROM, along with 32 GB storage expansion via MicroSD card. The W121 costs Rs. 9500 and features a much better build than its lower sibling, almost mimicking the “Pleather” seen on the Note 3. On the back of the W121 is an 8MP camera, with a 2 MP front facing camera. Overall the device is an impressive looking unit, when compared to many other phones available in this price bracket.
The OS seems build on the prototype units we saw, and Windows Phone 8.1 comes preloaded with many of the new features of the OS. For most using Windows as a main PC OS will enjoy the continued features that were earlier available on devices like Nokia Lumia.
The Micromax Canvas Win W092 is a lower end variant of the two and costs a significantly low Rs. 6500. The w092 comes with many identical specs when compared to the elder brother, including the Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 Chipset with 1 GB RAM 8GB ROM, along with 32 GB storage. Whats different here is a smaller 4 inch display the 5 MP main camera and a 1500 mAh battery. The secondary camera also comes down to a mere 0.3 MP vs. the 2 MP on the bigger sibling.
Both the Micromax Canvas Win w121 and the W092 are expected to be available early July and we will keep you posted on further news.
And it’s here! Micromax just announced its brand new Smartphone series at an event in New Delhi. The two new budget smartphones – Canvas Win W092 and Canvas Win W121 are powered by Microsoft’s new Windows Phone 8.1.
Specs of the Canvas Win W121 include:
12.7 cm (5″) HD IPS Screen
1.2 GHz Quad Core Processor
Qualcomm Snapdragon Processor
1GB RAM and 8GB ROM
8MP AF Rear Camera with LED Flash
2MP FF Front Camera
Leather Finish Back Panel
2000mAh li-polymer Battery
32GB External Storage Capacity
Specs of the Canvas Win W092 include:
Windows Phone 8.1 OS
Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 processor with 1.2 GHz Quad Core CPU
4-inch IPS display
1500 mAh battery
5MP rear camera with flash; 0.3MP front camera
Dual-SIM
1GB RAM; 8GB ROM
The Canvas Win W121 and Canvas Win W092 are priced at Rs. 9,500/- and Rs. 6,500/- respectively, will be available starting early July 2014.
After our exclusive story on Micromax’s lineup of Windows Phone devices headed towards you, Micromax has today confirmed a launch for the same on the 16th of June. The even will be held in New Delhi and the flagship Canvas running Windows Phone is said to be scheduled for launch.
As previous information points out the new Canvas Windows phone will have :
Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 chipset.
2 GB RAM.
16 GB storage.
5 inch display (AMOLED rumored)
1920 x 1080p Resolution
16GB Storage
microSD Expandability
13 MP main camera (Possible 4K video)
5 MP front camera (with Selfie Mode)
2500 mAh Battery
Unibody Design
INVITE
The company has new heads that are set to launch the new products, and a new invite more or less confirms the news. The phone is expected to be priced at Rs. 25000 with an included flip-case and freebies for the initial set of buyers
Recently Micromax was in the news for rumors around a Windows Phone device, well turns out they are not only true but there is more to the game. Sources close to iGyaan and top brass at Micromax confirm that not only is the company working on launching windows phone handsets, they will launch handsets ranging from Rs. 7000 and up to Rs. 25000 effective.
These 7 to 8 handsets will be launched within the next few months, and Microsoft is said to be pushing for the quick release and promotion of the handsets. There is long term tie up between Micromax and Microsoft, and the redmond based computing giant is interested in cross promoting the products for which Micromax has been well funded by Microsoft.
Sources also tell us that both companies have invested in design and most of the Micromax Windows Phones will be seen with a unibody design, with a lot of help provided by designers and engineers from Nokia. As of today, apart from Nokia no other manufacturer is manufacturing Windows Phone handsets as a global product. Micromax Windows Phones will be sold in India and overseas in existing Micromax markets.
Micromax has been eyeing the Windows Phone market since the beginning of the operating system, and the first positive step was the announcement of the Indian manufacturer as a partner at the Microsoft Build conference earlier this year.
New Micromax CEO Vineet Taneja will host the first round of launches of Micromax Windows Phone devices in the coming week, which might see more than one Windows Phone device from Micromax being launched. The flagship phone from the Indian manufacturer is said to have a 5 inch 1920 x 1080p display, 2GB RAM, a 13 MP + 5 MP camera combination, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 chipset and is said to be priced at Rs. 25000 for a 16GB storage and expandability via micro SD.
Micromax’s flagship is expected to have a metal unibody design with Dual Sim capabilities and micro SD card expansion via sim tray style slots, as seen in the HTC One M8. The design of the phone is also said to mimic the HTC lineage with round edges and unibody structure.
We won’t know what will actually unfold until the new CEO announces the handsets, however it looks like the budget game might get really interesting going forward.
The biggest Indian mobile company is having quite a good year. According to several leads, Micromax has just decided to cross the Rs. 20K point and enter into the premium segment with a Windows phone. Microsoft identified Micromax as one of its hardware partners at its build conference.
The phone is reported to be have a 5-inch full HD 1080p screen. The battery stands at 2600 MaH. It is expected to be priced around 23,000-25,000 INR.
In a first for Micromax, the Smartphone will be powered by Snapdragon 800 chipset with 2GB RAM. It will run Windows 8.1 operating system.
The main camera is a 13 megapixel shooter with LED flash. The selfie shooter is a 5 megapixel camera. The phone will have 16 GB of internal memory expandable to 64 GB which is a welcome step.
The specs look pretty impressive for a Micromax Windows phone. We hope to bring you a hands on review, as soon as we can, to tell you if it’s worth the glitter.
[poll id=”2″]
P.S: We would like to Thank AmitAgarwal2 for bring the update on the leak on this Story. The source on twitter Leakster Inc has stated that the Snapdragon device and the Windows phone are two different devices. As this is still a leak story we won’t confirm anything yet but we appreciate AmitAgarwal2 for being an awesome IGyaani .
Micromax’s new Unite 2 is priced to excite the buyers of the Moto E, however it wasn’t how the company planned it. The Unite 2 was supposed to be priced for a higher price, and since the launch of the Moto E, many companies seem to have revised their pricing schemes and Micromax seems to be one of them.
The Unite 2 does some of the magic of the Motorola Moto E, as Micromax claims that the handset will stay updated with FOTA “Free Over the Air” updates. But Micromax is using a new approach to the handset as it will be one of a few handsets that support Indian Languages. The Micromax Unite 2 will support 21 Indian languages and will come with Android 4.4.2 Kit Kat out of the box.
Micromax Unite also beats the Moto E on paper, as the new Unite 2 also has a 1.2 Quad Core processor, a 4.7 inch display with 800 x 480px resolution, 2000 mAh battery and a 5 MP main camera.
Design wise the Unite 2 is also taking its cues from the Moto E by offering replaceable back panels. and a similar design but build quality details are vary and we couldn’t get confirmation on the use of reinforced plastics or gorilla glass.
The idea is really novel, however will it give people the kind of assurance they have gotten in the past with Motorola and their Moto G and X. Micromax is trying to bring the better specs and pricing to the market with this handset, they have also made it more localized by adding multi language support, but it really comes down to experience. If Micromax can deliver a good package, they might be able to save their most important price market which is currently been highjacked by one of the oldest manufacturers of cellphones.
Micromax has changed the perception of the company yet again with the new Micromax Canvas Knight, But does this new smartphone keep up to the expectations of the people. Lets find out.
Overview
The Canvas Knight is a brilliant attempt from the company at providing a premium experience. The phone uses good quality materials and has an impressive new chipset. The pricing seems right and the battery life is great* (read below), the phone is the company’s new flagship and holds that position well among its competition.
Build Quality, Design and Hardware
A metal shell with glass on both sides, we have seen this design repeat several times, but it is actually impressive coming from an Indian manufacturer at this price. The front and back are solid toughened glass and should withstand a fall or two, we would however recommend the use of a case (there is one included in the box).
The side bezels and frame are of brushed aluminum with excellent finish and quality. The buttons of the Micromax Canvas Knight are also robust and tactile in feel.
The phone looks good to look at and has a heavy reassuring built, definitely a refined canvas, but its not there yet. The company’s major reluctance in designing their own handsets is still unclear. Micromax time and again choses to buy designs from OEMs and not to make their own handsets. A plastered bad logo at the back shows distasteful branding, even though its a far cry from the usual we have seen in the past.
Another thing to mention is the quality of in box accessories is definitely higher than in the past. the company has improved with their accessories and inclusions, we do however wish for better earphones in the future.
In box Goodies
Hardware wise Micromax has pulled out all the stops, well at least on paper. The Micromax Canvas Knight has a true Octacore Mediatek 6592T chipset, the “T” stands for turbo. The CPU runs on 8 cores at 2.0 GHz and is paired with a Mali 450MP4. RAM is kept at 2 GB and internal storage is a good 32 GB out of the box.
Cameras include a mix of 16 MP shooter at the back along with an 8 MP front facing selfie cam, both capable of 1920 x 1080p video capture. The phone accepts two micro sim cards and has a 2350 mAh battery.
Multimedia
The display on the handset plays a major role, it is a good quality display with vivid colors and bright outdoor visibility. You also get acceptable levels of viewing angles without a lot of shadows at extreme corners. The levels of black are deep, however there is some aliasing noticed on the display from time to time.
Content consumption is better enjoyed with a set of good quality headphones, thanks to the lack of a good on board speaker. The sound from the speaker is tinny and not even comparable to the previous canvas flagship.
Streaming is good, and the Canvas Knight A350 can handle unto 4k video playback, with the right codecs and software, however what really matters is the smooth playback of a full HD video and the phone does that with ease.
Camera
Both the cameras on the Canvas Knight are disappointing with washed out images and lack of detail. We have seen the company deliver great cameras in the past, however this time around the sensor and lens combination is simply torrid.
Video is actually better than the pictures that this camera can click , video captured has better color and less washout. A camera stabilizer inbuilt would help the likes of me with shaky hands, however the software helps a little.
Camera UI
Camera Settings
Camera Modes
Special Modes
Video Settings
Third party apps improve the camera experience a little bit, however it seems like poor choice of camera hardware is mainly the cause of this.
Performance and Gaming
While the phone can handle all tasks, it seems that the software has not been stabilized or tweaked to take the full advantage of the hardware. You see considerable crashes and lag throughout usage and heavy apps end up quitting on you, especially graphic intensive games.
Daily performance is good if you don’t want this to be a power driver, personally we feel the software needs a lot of work. Games run on this without a problem, almost all games that are compatible with the chipset will work aside from the quitting mentioned above.
The phone heats up considerably during usage, so much so that it might be the reason that apps quit. The phone becomes unmanageably hot and uncomfortable to handle. This causes severe effects to the battery, of the 3 handsets we tested two had this problem. Micromax claims problematic handsets will be replaced, and they should be.
Phone and Battery
The Micromax Canvas Knight accepts 2 micro Sim cards on either side of the bezel. The handset is 3G network capable globally with one sim card handling 3G data. On this phone both SIM cards can accept calls and run simultaneously.
Network performance was generally good, we did see some outage from time to time but a good cause for that could be the network. Overall good network performance and phone call capability. Audio on the incoming and outgoing side remains crisp with the noise canceling doing most of the magic for the outgoing voice.
Battery life, when not being affected by the over heating battery drain mentioned above, will last a whole day with a good amount of use. approximately 5-6 hours on 3G calling mixed with a few hours on Social Networks and some music playback. So the battery gets a good thumbs up, when not being burned out.
UI and Conclusion
Apart from the fact that we get Android 4.2.2 with a pseudo-false promise for an update soon, we feel the Ui needs real work. Micromax seems to be slacking in making a handset that they can call their own and this old approach does not seem to work for us anymore. The company needs to bounce back and fix it reputation by bringing phones that not only look good on paper but work too. A more refined user experience will go a long way.
Dialer
Notification Panel
App Drawer
Quick Toggles
Messaging and Keyboard
Software Info
The fact that their flagship smartphone is a mini hell in the pocket is worrisome, the phone heats up often and to high temperatures. This causes the phone to lose battery power and how.
The end resultant is not acceptable, not as a flagship!
While the trend seems positive around the Micromax Canvas Knight A350, and we couldn’t agree more with the phone in terms of what it sets out to do. Design is a huge leap forward and so is the build and choice of materials, but the end resultant is not acceptable, not as a flagship.
A lot of patches are required for the software and something that will fix this overheating issue and quick. The Micromax Canvas Knight A350 is a good move from the company, but seems like a hasty handset, one that lacks finesse and with more stable and choicer options in the market like the Moto X, the Moto G, Gionee S5.5 and the likes of Sony and market leader Samsung in this price bracket. We recommend you give this one a pass until all of the above can be fixed by the company.
