Is there an affordable Android smartphone which genuinely looks beautiful? There aren’t many out there, but Panasonic’s Eluga Arc is one example. This smartphone is an outright looker. Priced at Rs.12,490, the phone’s compact size makes it even more attractive.
Design: Compact and good-looking
The phone’s key highlight is its looks. It is very well-built, compact and has a curved back which snuggles quite naturally into the palm. The gold plated metal finish gives it the aura of a premium smartphone, something much more expensive than what it actually is. The fact that it measures 8.1mm in terms of thickness and weighs 130g adds to the useability aspect. The bezels below the screen seem a tad too thick, considering that the touch-sensitive navigation keys are integrated in the on-screen interface. It is also one of the few budget smartphones with a finger print scanner.
Display: A rare compact display
The 4.7-inch display has a resolution of 1280x720p. The screen does feel small, particularly because we have become used to big 5.5-inch phones. However, for those who still prefer something compact, don’t worry that the display of the phone will get affected. The colours look rich, which makes watching movies or reading enjoyable. The display has a slightly warmer tint, which could mean there is less strain on the eyes. Visibility from wide angles is good, but poor under direct sunlight due to the reflective nature of the screen. The display supports two-way screen orientation even when used in the portrait mode. While we have seen this in the landscape mode, this is the first instance when a screen can flip upside down. This allows users to start using the phone whichever way they pick it up. The moment you try to make a call, it switches back to the default orientation.
Software: Altered interface
The phone runs Android 5.1 (Lollipop) out of the box with very unique custom interface. On the surface, it looks a bit different and even offers a few customisation options, but deep down it has more similarities with plain Android. What is different is that you can restrict the size of the app drawer to half the screen. While this sort of feature comes in handy for a big screen phone, in this case it doesn’t make a lot of sense as the screen is anyway small. You can also arrange the apps in the order you like. The settings and multi-tasking window look just like the plain Android which makes it familiar and easy to use.
Performance: Can handle most tasks well
Powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 410 quad core processor paired with 2GB RAM, the Eluga Arc is capable of running most basic tasks such as web browsing, reading and social networking well. It even played games such as GT Racing 2 without any hiccups, and even more surprisingly so, without any heating detected on the back panel. However, we noticed a slight sluggishness while switching between apps, which could also be because of the custom interface which may require more optimization. It supports 4G networks and offers 16 GB internal storage which is expandable with a microSD card. The battery back-up is average, as the 1,800mAh battery barely lasted a whole day on a single charge.
Camera: Good in daylight
The 8-megapixel camera delivers good results under bright natural light. It captures colours well, but lacks crispness overall in terms of recreating the finer details. When viewed on a bigger screen, one can see the noise clearly. Low light results are mostly blurry. The camera is quick and can record full HD videos too. The number of modes is also limited. Smile capture, Beauty and Nightshot are a few interesting modes in the camera.
Verdict
The Eluga Arc is not just another budget Android phone. It is a stunning looking phone and in terms of performance, it is at par with most rivals. If performance is your only criteria while buying a phone, the Moto G Turbo (Rs.12,499) is a lot more powerful, and has water and dust resistant body, besides running the latest version of Android.
