Lenovo does fantastically well in the Far East with its smartphone and tablet ranges, but when will it start to gain some mobile device traction in the west? HEXUS already published a video from MWC 2015 showing hands-on demos with the Lenovo Tab 2 A10 and A8 Android tablets (powered by MediaTek processors) and the new IdeaPad Miix 300 Windows tablet. Now let's have a look at two interesting new smartphones the world's largest PC maker has introduced; the Lenovo Vibe Shot and A7000.
Lenovo Vibe Shot
This new smartphone offers a rather distinctive design with camera-styling on the back to carry forward the photographic 'Shot' theme. This 5-inch full HD screened smartphone packs the following key hardware components:
- 5.0-inch wide-view Full HD display
- 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 processor
- 3GB of RAM and 32GB of built-in storage plus microSD slot
- 16MP rear camera with 6-piece modular lens, optical anti-shake & full-frame 16:9 low-light sensor, infrared focus, tricolour flash, advanced camera software, a physical shutter button helps complete the overall feel, 8MP selfie cam
- 4G (LTE) twin nano SIM card slots, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.1 LE, GPS
- 2,900mAh non-removable battery
- 7.3mm thick, aluminium casing
- Android 5.0 Lollipop
While a headlining 16MP camera doesn't sound very high-end on a smartphone nowadays Lenovo has sought to kit out Vibe Shot with good quality imaging hardware components and software - and we all know megapixels definitely aren't a great metric for comparing camera quality. The Lenovo Vibe Shot will be priced around $349 and be available from June. The Lenovo UK page marks it: "*This product is not sold in UK," unfortunately.
Lenovo A7000
Now we have a mid-range/budget offering from Lenovo in the form of the 5.5-inch A7000. Despite its lower market destiny Lenovo has furnished this smartphone with an interesting USP in the form of Dolby ATMOS cinematic surround sound.
The key specs of the Lenovo A7000 are as follows:
- Large, vibrant 5.5-inch wide-view HD display
- 1.5GHz MediaTek 4G LTE True8Core processor
- 2GB RAM, 8GB stornage plus micmroSD
- Dual 8MP and 5MP cameras
- Immersive Dolby Atmos Cinematic Moving Audio
- OTG charging support to power up on the go, 2,900mAh battery
- Dual SIM card slots, LTE connectivity
- Weighs 140g
- Android 5.0 Lollipop plus signature Lenovo DOit apps
Again this smartphone won't be launched in the UK but will be made available in Lenovo's current markets for around $170 later this month.
