The Lenovo VIBE K5 Plus is an affordable phone done right
The Lenovo VIBE K5 Plus is an affordable phone done right
Lenovo unveiled an entry-level Android smartphone at MWC 2016 and it's drawing plenty of attention to its appearance and specifications - it's not shabby looking, and it comes with decent hardware.
The Lenovo VIBE K5 Plus is built as a lifestyle device for music and entertainment. It has a 5.0-inch Full HD (1,920 x 1,080 pixels resolution) display at 440 PPI, with a beastly battery capacity of 2,750mAh. It's no flagship, but those are promising specifications for an entry-level smartphone.
On its surface, the Lenovo VIBE K5 Plus sports an aluminum look. It doesn't look cheap - in fact, the hybrid plastic and aluminum finish makes it look sleeker than expected. Under the hood is a 1.5GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 616 SoC - that's the same processor found within the Xiaomi Redmi 3. It runs on 2GB RAM, and has a modest 16GB internal storage with the option to expand it with a 32GB with a MicroSD card. The Lenovo VIBE K5 Plus has a 13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash, and a fixed-focus 5-megapixel front camera. This is also a dual-SIM phone, and it accepts two Micro SIM cards.
As a lifestyle phone, it also touts Dolby Atmos audio technology and dual rear speakers for its audio capabilities, and the camera is supported by built-in social apps like SHAREit, SNAPit, and Guvera Music. The phone also comes pre-loaded with a comprehensive Google apps suite (Maps, Hangouts, YouTube, Gmail etc.) since it runs on Android 5.1 OS (Lollipop). That's a pity, since phones new and old have started moving to Android 6.0 OS (Marshmallow).
Connectivity-wise, the entry-level smartphone supports LTE, 3G, and 2G. It also supports Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and Wi-Fi hotspot. For your wireless devices, it connects using the power efficient Bluetooth 4.1 Low Energy profile.
The Lenovo VIBE K5 Plus will be retailing at US$149 (S$208.71~), in March 2016, although there's no word on local availability yet. It will be available in Platinum Silver, Champagne Gold, and Graphite Gray.