American smartphone maker InFocus’s latest smartphone is trying to hit the right note with Indian buyers demanding affordable good-looking smartphones with big screens. InFocus’s latest phone M680, priced at Rs.10,999, faces stiff competition from Asus Zenfone 2 Laser, which has almost similar specifications, but sells at Rs.9,999 only.
Design: Well-built and good looking
The all-metal exterior and the gold polish gives InFocus M680 the look and feel of a more expensive phone. It is 7.2mm thick which is impressive for a big screen smartphone, but it doesn’t really feel handy and easy to operate with one hand. The phone has a slightly longish appearance as the bezels on the front look a bit wide. It weighs 160g, which is less than Asus Zenfone 2 laser’s 170g, but the latter fits into the hand more comfortably than the InFocus M680 because of the curved back design. Though the Zenfone 2 looks ordinary, it is more handy to use.
Display: Big but not very sharp
The M680 comes with a 5.5-inch display with 1280x720p screen resolution. That is a bit low for the big screen size and that shows up in videos and during games. However, it is adequate for reading e-books and web browsers. During HD videos, the screen looks a bit dull in terms of colour vibrancy. The display is a bit too reflective to be used comfortably under bright sunlight. The M680 allows users to customise the colour tint of the display between slightly warmer yellow or the more natural looking white, and that makes it more comfortable to use. It also comes with a blue light filter which reduces strain on eyes when being used in a low-light environment.
The Zenfone 2 packs in a 1280x720p resolution but looks more vivid and is better at handling reflections. It also comes with Gorilla Glass 4, which is more rugged and found in more expensive smartphones.
Software: Runs a unique Android with a different flavour
The InFocus M680 runs Android 5.1 (Lollipop) with a heavily altered custom user interface. It allows users to play around with the interface, arrange apps in the app drawer according to name, frequency of use and time of installation, and even change the layout from app drawer mode to no app drawer mode. Not many custom interfaces allow such options.
In terms of customisation, the ZenUI, which runs on Zenfone 2 Laser, is pretty similar. However, the ZenUI is more colourful and funky and is more likely to appeal to design-conscious users.
Performance: Smooth with individual tasks
The M680 is powered by MediaTek’s MT6753 octa-core processor with 2GB of RAM and can handle most apps and games quite convincingly. Even games like FIFA 15 and Smash It ran without any hiccups or heating. We did notice a slight lag while switching from one app to another and also when opening the app drawer when we had more than 10 apps running in the background. The phone offers 16GB as internal storage but one can expand it to another 32GB via micro SD cards.
Its rival, the Zenfone 2 Laser, is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor and 2GB RAM and is comparatively better with multi-tasking.
InFocus M680’s 2,600mAh battery gives a day’s back-up at most, while the Zenfone 2 laser’s 3,000mAh battery easily lasts over a day and half with similar usage.
Camera: Good daylight snapper
The Zenfone 2 Laser’s 13-megapixel primary camera is faster and focuses quickly on objects. It is better with variations in light and handles colour and detail well, even in low light.
Verdict
The InFocus M680 is a mixed bag with some very good features such as a powerful front-facing camera and good looks as well as the big screen experience. But it doesn’t really offer much more than the Asus Zenfone 2 Laser, which also costs less.
