[Android General] azeemzuhair:
Excellent Battery & GPS Performance

Coming from Nokia 3210, Moto Razr V3x, Nokia E61, Samsung P780, HTC HD2, iPhone 4, LeMoto S890, LeMoto P780, Alcatel Idol X, LeMoto K910, Huawei Honor 3C, ZTE Blade S6, ASUS Zenfone 2 ZE550ML, Xiaomi Mi4i, Ulephone Be Touch 2, Meizu M2 Note and current favourite daily-driver, ZTE Nubia Z7 Max.

Bought the Elephone P4000 16GB from Lazada with RM100 discount at RM399 (SRP =RM499 on 15 August 2015). I have been using it for 7 days now.

It's rooted Lollipop 5.1.0 under Elephone-AOSP Stock ROM v20150725.

Here are my comments about this device:

A = Android = Pure stock Lollipop is not easy to get at this price range. Zero junk apps out of the box with minimum Google Services pre-installed. More OEMs should follow this trend.

B = Body-Built = Elephone manages to make the polycarbonate feels 'acceptable' and extremely comfortable to hold. The device is slippery to hold if your palm is dry. Advisable to get TPU casing and an oleophobic tempered-glass protector for better feel. Buttons are placed nicely with decent tactile feedback. Capacitive touch buttons are available but only the home key is back-lit with blue color tone. Size and weight ratio is perfect. There is no screen protection for the 5" display but out-of-the-box there is good quality plastic screen guard. Display quality for 720P resolution during daylight usage is average.

C = Call quality = Average but not to challenge my daily-driver ZTE Nubia Z7 Max. You cannot get reception when inside elevator or basement one.

D = Data = LTE modules for both macro-SIM 1 and macro-SIM 2 are stable. Bluetooth 4.0 is stable too but not strong compared to Xiaomi Mi4i (Bluetooth 4.1). No NFC and infra-red terminals.

E = Email = Email client is comparable to other Android-based phones. It works as intended but you should install 3rd party email client for better experience.

F = Free-apps = None. Elephone really makes the stock ROM as light as possible. Minimum Google services are included out of the box.

G = Games = Heavy titles produce drop-frames frequently. The internal combo are 64-bit MediaTek MT6735P @ 1.0GHz + Mali-T720MP2 GPU + 2GB LPDDR3 RAM + 16GB flash (11GB free after first boot). Fortunately, no over-heating issue even after 30 minutes of intense gaming. Just ordinary warm to the touch.

H = Hangouts = Video call for Skype, Google Hangouts, Tango etc. is superb for 2MP front facing camera. There is a flash for the front camera for dark or pitch black scene however don't expect too much from the front flash quality.

I = Internet = AOSP built-in web browser is good. Slight checker-board effect on heavy websites. 3rd party browser is encouraged for better experience.

J = Juice = 4420mAh sealed lithium-ion polymer cell = "HYPER-EXCELLENT!". Claimed talk-time, stand-by time, etc. are achievable for dual-standby-macro-SIM LTE phone. Power consumption during 12-hour idle state is only 2% from (i.e.10pm to 10am). Heavy usage of 3 hours GPS & endless web browsing & YouTubes will end up at 12 hrs Screen-On-Time. Even my previous LeMoto P780 can only managed to get 8 hours SOT of similar usage pattern. There's quick-charged feature (compatible to Qualcomm Quick-Charge 2.0 charger too) is available which requires 2 hours to completely finish charging from 0% to 100% for 4420mAh capacity.

K = Kamasutra ;) = Phone vibrates with notification/ringtone. Vibrating sensation is mild. Laddies may not use it for other satisfying purpose(s)... LOL...

L = Loudspeaker = Very loud for back-firing speaker. However, & as usual, maximum volume will distort the sound. Bass is below average level.

M = Music = Built-in Music app with the use of high end headphones/earphones does not produce satisfaction due to lack of clarity and quality.

N = Navigation = Working as expected and accurate too. Lock to satellites within 10 seconds. Waze, Google Maps and HERE Maps are working normally, even indoors.

3 hours navigation just consumes 6% battery juice. No other smartphones can beat this battery usage. In fact, surprisingly the device does not feel hot (just luke warm) after 3 hours navigation.

O = One-hand Operation = I have "big" hands and "long" fingers ;) No further comments. To somebody, the 5" screen with average bezel width may also be pleasing enough to handle this 168gm device with one-hand. This award still belongs to ZTE Blade S6.

P = Picture = 13MP Samsung f/2.2 CMOS sensor is acceptable accompanied by single tone LED flash. Auto mode camera snapshot is reliable. Macro shots are acceptable. Low light image is average for budget smartphone class.

Q = Quirks = Processing power & sound quality. The SoC MediaTek MT6735P clocked at 1.0GHz is not sufficient to handle heavy game titles and heavy websites. GPS navigation and video streaming is reliable though. Elephone should have adopted MT6753 instead, like the P8000 model.

R = Rooting = To-date, using SP Flash Tool method to flash SuperSU v2.49. However, to get OTA updates after rooting requires detail attention in order to avoid bootloop issue during the update.

S = Screen = The 5" IPS panel is adequate for daily usage. Viewing angle has slight shadow effect. Direct sunlight visibility is average at 100% brightness. Overall, the screen is soothing to the eyes even when you stare at it constantly for prolong period of time.

T = Texting = stock AOSP keyboard is provided. You may need to install 3rd party keyboard apps as you will get the best typing/swiping experience on the 5" screen. Get yourself oleophobic tempered glass screen protector and you can glide your fingers on the 3rd party keyboard happily, even when using it single handed.

U = User-Interface = Stock AOSP UI simple and good enough for daily use.

However, rooting will get more flexibility for better experience for sure.

V = Video = Capturing up to 720P video is acceptable. 1080P is not supported. Tap-to-focus is fast and sharp enough. Digital/electronic image stabilisation is available too.

Overall, it's better to install 3rd party camera app for more satisfying output.

W = WiFi = Above average. Having only 2.4GHz a/b/g/n is expected on budget smartphone. Same like most other phones, it only manages to get 3 bars in my basement floor test. My current ZTE Nubia Z7 Max captures 5 full bars without fail. Huawei Honor 3C gets 4 bars. iPhone 4 only 3 bars.

X = X-factors = BATTERY LIFE - period! For dual-macro-SIMs LTE phone (both SIM 1 & 2 supports LTE) with 2GB RAM supported by 16GB onboard storage (expandable up to 32GB) is worth every penny. Compatible to Qualcomm Quick-Charge charger too. Average voice/data/Wi-Fi reception is not in favour for those who live in the outskirts or camping sites. Heavy gamers won't like this unit. But heavy GPS users will be more than happy to own this unit.

Y = YouTube = The 5" IPS screen at 720P resolution accompanied by reliable LTE connection is a mixed experience. This is merely due to sound quality even though when wearing your favorite earphone/headphone.

Z = Zero-figure. Based price at Malaysia Ringgit RM499-point-zero-zero is a smart investment with current 64-bit chip plus Android Lollipop 5.1 out-of-the-box. But if you get this unit at RM499, better top-up a bit more to opt for other options such as ASUS Zenfone 2, or even the Huawei/Honor portfolios.

Xiaomi Redmi 2 can be of similar budget options. Don't forget the best budget smartphone of 2015 - the LeMoto K3 Note (way cheaper).

But if you are looking for the BEST battery life & GPS experience, look no further.

CONCLUSION : Buy it if you are looking for back-up phone or budget phone that has dual-macro-SIMs LTE support (both SIMs) with excellent 4420mAh battery capacity and reliable GPS performance. 64-bit MediaTek MT6735P SoC at below RM500 is affordable with the Lollipop 5.1 engine out-of-the-box. The Elephone P4000 definitely cannot replace my current ZTE Nubia Z7 Max (RM1,149 on September 2014), which is my trust-able and excellent ala-flagship smart gadget for the past 12 months. In the end, the Elephone P4000 has managed to capture my attention for their upcoming models in the future. Even now, their P8000 model has been touted to be the best-buy item in 2015.