Swipe Elite Note – Noteworthy budget smartphone – Review
Swipe Elite Note is a phablet from the Indian mobile company Swipe Technologies. Swipe is continuing to impress with its sensible lineup of mobile devices, unlike certain Indian brands who keep introducing mobile models in bulk and just for the sake of it. Swipe Elite series of mobiles have been well received in the market and the FreedomOS contributes to its popularity. It is priced at Rs 7999 and that puts this mobile in a very competitive segment in the market. Can it survive its fierce competition and is the device worth considering to buy?
Design
The Mobile is a 5.5 inch device. It has a soft texture matte finish at the back and smooth rounded corners just like the other Elite mobiles we have reviewed. The mobile is a phablet and which means has a large frame and display. But the smooth back and the rounded corners make it very comfortable to hold. Single handed operation is ruled out. The material used for construction is primarily plastic. There is a thin metal rim running along the frame edge. The metal edges adds to the aesthetics but not to the sturdiness. The mobile is 8.4mm thick and it weighs 194 grams. It is not the thinnest we have seen, but definitely one of the heaviest we have had. Though it does not feel like holding a cheap mobile, it does not feel premium either. Swipe has to improve the quality of plastic used in the construction.
The back panel is removable and though it is flimsy, when it is fitted back in the mobile, it fits snugly. The right side has volume and power button made of metal. The top has the 3.5mm audio socket, microUSB socket and IR blaster port. The mic is at the bottom. The 13 MP camera is at the back assisted by a single LED flash. The 5.5 inch display takes over most of the front apart from the 5MP selfie camera, sensors, earpiece and non-backlit android keys. The display is protected by dragontrail glass and it has very thin bezels. With every Elite, I can see a massive jump in the quality and design. Swipe Elite Note, continues to impress with its minimal design language and simple aesthetics.
Display
Elite Note has a 5.5 inch IPS display which supports 720p HD resolution. It is protected by dragontrail glass and that is a massive upgrade. The display glass has 2.5 D curves along the edges and that looks impressive. The display has Vi-Di technology and that makes it vivid and bright. It has optimal brightness, saturation and color reproduction. The viewing angles are good and has good sunlight legibility. The text and graphics are crisp on the display. I was pleasantly surprised about the quality of display on the sub Rs 8k mobile.
Hardware
MediaTek 6735 is turning out to the be most preferred choice among the mobile in this segment. The Elite Note is no exception. It runs on the quad-core MediaTek processor clocked at 1.3 Ghz. It has 3 GB of RAM and Mali T720 GPU. It has an internal storage of 16 GB and expandable by upto 32 GB with microSD card. It supports USB OTG. It has a 13 MP camera at the back and a 5 MP camera on the front. It has WiFi and supports dual SIM cards. When it comes to performance, the tried and tested MT6735 proved to be a great choice of hardware. The device handles UI smoothly and there was no issue with apps and games as well. The benchmark scores were decent as well as the device performed well in real life as well. There was a bit of heating issue. The mobile heated up beyond 44 degree celsius after around 20 minutes of intense gaming. The mobile shutdown on its own after a warning, when this over heating occurred. Otherwise, there was no heating issues on regular usage.
Swipe Elite Note
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Swipe Technologies, India’s leading Mobile Internet Player, is all set to change the rules of the game in India’s mobile phones industry. Following months of anticipation, Swipe revealed Elite Note today – a bigger, bolder& better smartphone that promises to provide a genuinely enjoyable and powerful experience– without making a dent on pockets. Elite Note will be exclusively launched on Flipkart on 26thApril. Elite Note boasts of superior design, premium build quality and powerful hardware at a disruptive price point.
Launching the new smartphone, Mr. Shripal Gandhi, Founder & CEO of Swipe Technologies said “We’ve carefully listened to our users’ feedback and incorporated suggestions in crafting Elite Note, not only in terms of hardware but software too. We chose premium materials, highest performing components, out of the box software features to make this an unparalleled & holistic user experience. With its compelling features, attractive styling and pricing, we are all set to make a mark and disrupt India’s mobile phone market. The #PowerOfBig is for user to see and feel with Elite Note.“
Mr. Anil Goteti, VP – Business, Flipkart said, “We are happy to announce the exclusive launch of Swipe Elite Note on Flipkart. The new-age features of this new device will be a big hit amongst the young smartphone users.”
The Elite Note is powered by high-speed Quadcore processor and 3GB RAM that offers a fluid & lightening quick user experience. A 3000 mAh marathon battery powers the Elite Note for more than a full day of use.Today’s premium devices deliver immersive experiences through high-speed connectivity. Keeping that in mind, we have ensured that the Elite Note supports 4G LTE and advanced multimedia without compromising performance or battery life.
The all-new Elite Note comes with a vibrant 5.5” HD IPS display with Vi-Di technology that brings a brighter, bolder, bigger world right in front of your eyes. Elite Note has premium appeal as it has the finest sandstone back cover that ensures a comfortable touch in hands. A visually-stunning, incredibly tough Dragontrail Glass – a lightweight, flexible and scratch-resistant glass with extraordinary strength – comes as a protective cover glass for the very stylish Elite Note, which not only enhances the phone’s style quotient but also offers exceptional resistance to scratches and bumps of everyday use.
What gives Elite Note its wings is its incredible power. With its massive 3GB RAM and ample 16GB internal memory (expandable up to 32GB) – matched perfectly with 1.3 Ghz 64-bit Quad-Core processor, Elite Note can move as quickly as user’s imagination. With enhanced processing power, an Elite Note user can enjoy apps and games to their full potential. It supports the latest 4G LTE networks as well as Wi-Fi so that the user can stay in touch with friends, family and the rest of the world in real-time.
Elite Note’s Freedom OS, based on Android 5.0 Lollipop, gives it truly amazing power. Based on the enhanced version of Android 5.0 OS, it enjoys the top-level speed and unwavering app execution. Due to a unique feature of changing android functions according to user’s behavior and style, FreedomOS offers an extremely personalized experience
What good is a smartphone without an exception photo-taking experience? To capture special moments and create everlasting memories, Elite Note comes with a 13MP rear camera with an f1/3.2 aperture with flash that can capture every moment easily in exceeding clarity. Its 5MP front camera comes with a wide 88 degrees 4P lens which allow for more light to enter the camera to help the user take a clear Selfie even in less than ideal lighting conditions.
Elite Note also supports outstanding Remote Technology that is effortless to pick-up & use, due to inbuilt IR sensor. It gives a user complete and overall control for multiple electronic appliances like Air-conditioner, Television, Set-Top boxes,etc
The stunningly beautiful and incredibly powerful new Swipe Elite Note comes at an attractive price point. A price tag of Rs 7,999 makes this object of desire truly affordable for the aspiring youth. Swipe’s new offering will be available exclusively on Flipkart from 26thApril 2016.
Specs
General
| Price | 7,999 INR |
| Announced | 25 April, 2016 |
| Released | 26 April, 2016 |
| Status | Available |
Display
| Display Type <strong>Display Technology => </strong> A number of display technologies and types used in mobile phones => TFT (Thin Film Transistor), IPS (In-Place Switching), OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode), AMOLED (Active-Matrix Organic Light-Emitting Diode), Super AMOLED (an even advanced version of AMOLED), Resistive Touchscreen (Resistive touchscreens contain two layer of conductive material with a very small gap between them which acts as a resistance), Capacitive Touchsceen (Capacitive touchscreen technology consists of a layer of glass coated with a transparent conductor) | IPS |
| Size | 5.5 |
| Resolution | 1280 x 720 |
| Pixel Density <strong>Pixel Density (PPI)</strong> is refers to the concentration of pixels on a particular display, measured in pixels per inch (ppi). Pixel density is calculated by dividing the diagonal pixel resolution of a display by its diagonal size, higher pixel density better display quality. | 267 ppi |
| Display Protection <strong>Display Protection => </strong> Gorilla Glass is a special alkali-aluminosilicate glass shield with exceptional damage resistance that helps protect mobile displays from scratches, drops, and bumps of everyday use, It is always better to go for a smartphone with Gorilla Glass for that added protection and peace of mind. | Dragontrail glass |
Hardware
| Chipset <strong>Chipset</strong> is a group of integrated circuits designed to perform one or a more dedicated functions, often with real time computing constraints, Popular smartphones are equipped with more advanced embedded chipsets that can do many different tasks depending on their programming. | MediaTek MTK6735 |
| CPU <strong>CPU</strong> (Central Processing Unit) mostly known as processors, CPU processes instructions in order to carry out certain functions that make your device operate properly. Processors are often described as the brain of computers, smartphones and tablets, Smartphones and tablets rely on processors to carry out their every task, Processors are an incredibly important factor in selecting any type of computing device, including your smartphone. | 1.3GHz Quad core |
| GPU <strong>GPU</strong> (Graphics Processing Unit) is a single-chip processor designed to rapidly manipulate and alter memory to accelerate the creation of images in a frame buffer intended for output to a display, This includes things such as lighting effects, object transformations, and 3D motion. | Mali-T720 |
| RAM (Memory) <strong>RAM</strong> (Random Access Memory) is a type of computer memory that can be accessed randomly, any byte of memory can be accessed without touching the preceding bytes that allows information to be stored and accessed quickly from random locations. RAM is the most common type of memory found in computer systems, smartphones, tablets and other electronic devices. | 3GB |
| Internal Storage <strong>Internal Storage</strong> is a data storage space (flash memory) mostly used in smartphones, tablets and other electronic devices where operating system, apps, music, photos, videos, files and other user data Is stored. | 16GB |
| Card Slot <strong>Memory Card Slot</strong> is a special slot for inserting a memory card. Memory cards allow you to expand the phone's built-in memory, A memory card (sometimes called a flash memory card or a storage card) is a small storage medium used to store data such as text, pictures, audio, and video, for use on small, portable or remote computing devices such as mobile phones, mp3 players, digital cameras. | Yes, up to 32GB |
| Sensors <strong>Sensors</strong> are electronic components that detects and responds to some type of input from the physical environment. The specific input could be light, heat, motion, moisture, pressure and location, The output is generally a signal that is converted to use in computing systems, a location sensor, such as a GPS receiver is able to detect current location of your electronic device. | Accelerometer, Proximity Sensor, Light Sensor, G-Sensor |
Battery
| Battery Type <strong>Battery Type => </strong> Cell phones run on various kinds of batteries depending on the manufacturer, phone size or shape and features. There are basically four types of cell phone batteries => Lithium Polymer, Lithium Ion, Nickel Metal Hydride and Nickel Cadmium. | Li-Ion (Lithium Ion) |
| Capacity <strong>Battery Capacity</strong> is a measure (typically in Amp-hr) of the charge stored by the battery, and is determined by the mass of active material contained in the battery. The battery capacity represents the maximum amount of energy that can be extracted from the battery under certain conditions. | 3000mAh |
| Standby <strong>Standby Time</strong> is the total amount of time that you can leave your is fully charged, turned on and ready to send and receive calls or data transmissions before completely discharging the battery. | 300 hours |
| Talk Time <strong>Talk Time</strong> is the longest time that a single battery charge will last when you are constantly talking on the phone under perfect conditions, Ambient temperature and highly dependent on the cellular network environment such as the distance to the closest cell network tower. | 12 hours |
| Fast Charging | No |
| Wireless Charging <strong>Wireless Charging</strong> (Inductive Charging) uses an electromagnetic field to transfer energy between two objects. This is usually done with a charging station. Energy is sent through an inductive coupling to an electrical device, which can then use that energy to charge batteries or run the device. | No |
Camera
| Primary <strong>Camera</strong> is able to capture photographs and usually videos, The most important characteristics of a camera are the resolution (measured in megapixels), lens focus type (fixed or automatic), higher megapixel cameras are known to capture higher quality photos, but not always a good measurement of the photos quality. | 13mp |
| Camera Features | Auto Focus, Continuous Shot, Smile Shot, Face Detection |
| Secondary | 5mp |
| Video | 720p |
| Flash <strong>Flash Light => </strong> There is commonly two types of flash lights are used in camera mobile phones, LED Flash (LED flash offers lower power consumption with drive circuitry that takes up very little room, LEDs can be strobed faster than any other light source), Xenon Flash (xenon flash produces an extremely intense full-spectrum white light for a very short duration) | LED |
Design
| Type <strong>Design Type</strong> called form factor refers to a mobile phone's size, shape, and style as well as the layout and position of major components of phone. There are three major form factors seen in mobile phones => bar phones, folding phones and sliding phones. | Bar |
| Dimensions | 77.1x154x8.4 mm |
| Weight | 194 grams |
Network
| SIM <strong>SIM</strong> (Subscriber Identity Module) is a small card that contains mobile network subscriber's account information. This allows the phone using the card to attach to a mobile network. The SIM card is most commonly associated with GSM and UMTS mobile networks. Moving a SIM card from one phone to another allows a subscriber to switch mobile phones without having to contact their mobile network carrier. SIM cards can also be used by a phone to store limited amounts of data, such as phone numbers and text messages. | Micro SIM |
| Dual SIM | Yes |
| 2G Network | Yes |
| 3G Network | Yes |
| 4G Network | Yes |
Software
| Operating System <strong>OS => </strong> Every computer system run on a base software called Operating System (OS). Operating System controls all basic operations of the computer (such as smartphone, PDAs, tablet computers and other handheld devices). The Operating System allows the user to install and run third party applications (apps), apps are used to add new functionality to the device. | Android 5.1 |
| User Interface <strong>UI</strong> or user interface of a device is the look and feel of the on-screen menu system. How it works, its color scheme, how it responds to button presses, all of these things are part of the user interface. | Freedom OS |
Connectivity
| Bluetooth <strong>Bluetooth</strong> is a wireless communications technology for exchanging data between mobile phones, headsets, computers and other network devices over short distances without wires, Bluetooth technology was primarily designed to support simple wireless networking of personal consumer devices. | v4 |
| Infrared <strong>Infrared</strong> connectivity is an old wireless technology used to connect two electronic devices. It uses a beam of infrared light to transmit information and so requires direct line of sight and operates only at close range. | |
| Wi-fi <strong>Wi-Fi</strong> is a popular wireless networking technology using radio waves to provide high-speed network connections that allows devices to communicate without cords or cables, Wi-Fi is increasingly becoming the preferred mode of internet connectivity all over the world. | 802.11b/g/n |
| USB | v2 |
| GPS <strong>GPS</strong> The Global Positioning System is a satellite-based radio navigation system, GPS permits users to determine their position, velocity and the time 24 hours a day, in all weather, anywhere in the world, In order to locate your position, your device or GPS receiver must have a clear view of the sky. | Yes |
| NFC <strong>NFC</strong> (Near field communication) is a set of standards for smartphones and similar devices to establish peer-to-peer radio communications with each other by touching them together or bringing them into proximity, usually no more than a few inches. |
Benchmarks
| Antutu | 24145 |
| Geekbench 3 Multicore | 1306 |
| Geekbench 3 Single Core | 472 |
| Velamo Metal | 885 |
| Velamo Multicore | 1125 |
Reviews
Telephony calls had no issues, but the quality of incoming voice was a bit tinny. The sound out of the speakers are not loud enough, but it was clear. The audio quality on the in-ear headphones were decent, though the build quality was cheap. The infra-red on the top works like a charm. With the included IR app, I could configure my TV and Tata Sky without any hiccup.
Camera
Swipe Elite Note has got a massive upgrade in terms of the camera hardware. It has a 13 Mp sony sensor at the back and 5 MP selfie camera. The camera is also capable of recording video at 1080p resolution with 30 fps. The image quality from the rear facing camera is decent. The color reproduction is natural. The focusing is slow and dodgy. Elite Note camera can focus track on moving subjects. The images are good on ample daylight. But the camera is almost useless on low light. The flash is not of much help either. The HDR shots are good, but bit over sharpened and the exposure interlacing in uneven. Again, the HDR images come handy only on ample light conditions. The front facing camera is decent for fairly pleasing self portraits. The camera application is straight forward and is easy to use. It is the stock android UI and a bit laggy at times. It is not a fast snapper. The camera performance is average. Considering the price point and the target audience, the camera in the Elite Note would meet most requirements, but with a little compromise.
Check out some sample images from the camera at various conditions.
Software
Swipe Elite Note runs on Android 5.1 with Freedom OS UI skinned on top. The Freedom OS is rightly optimized for a basic mobile like the Elite 2. The UI is snappy and provides a bunch of handy features. The pure Android experience is still retained. Freedom OS rightly compliments the Swipe Elite Note. The Freedom OS offers quite a bunch of customization options. Freedom OS also offers a huge list of gesture based controls. The UI is minimal and yet and highly functional. I feel that it has so many options that the user will have fun just by fiddling with the settings. Also the overall experience is still pure Android. The features that have been added by Freedom OS, sits on top and functions parallel to native android applications, without hampering the experience in any way. It comes preloaded with a few apps like the Apus launcher, Newshunt, Magzter, Flipkart and Bobble. I wish Swipe had kept away from pre-loaded apps. Swipe has its own app store with a list of curated app, both paid and free. It also has cloud storage app called the Swipe Cloud. Omni Swipe is an interesting app that sits on a corner of your screen. When invoked with a swipe gesture, it bring out a list of customizable shortcuts. If you are a person, who don’t like to customize, you still have your traditional pure Android in the mobile.
Freedom OS had a lot of native features initially and now it is dependent on embedded 3rd party applications for features. The problem with 3rd party applications are advertisements and they pop up between many screens in the UI. I also noticed ads, every-time I unlocked the mobile. Freedom OS has got the potential and also a lot of room for improvement.
Battery
The mobile is powered by a 3000 mAh battery and it comes with a regular 1000 mA charger. The battery is removable. It gets charged from 10 to 100% in less than 2 hours. On 4G network and normal usage, the mobile lasts for little over 26-32 hours. All the while during my review period I was on 4G network and I check whatsapp and Facebook frequently. I clicked a few pictures now and then and listen to FM radio from the mobile, on speaker while commuting to office. Even with such heavy usage, the device lasted for more than a day on a single charge. Battery performance is impressive on the Swipe Elite Note.
Verdict
The Swipe Elite Note is a great phablet in the Sub 10k segment. In this price band, the Elite Note is comparable to Asus Zenfone Laser 2, Lenovo Vibe K5 plus and the Honor Holly 2 plus. Zenfone Laser 2 has got a great camera and build quality, but you will have to spend Rs 1000 more than the Elite Note. The Honor Holly 2 plus has got a super long battery life, but the UI is a laggy. The Vibe K5 has got a fantastic design and a stable UI, but has a smaller battery. All these 3 mobiles have 2 GB of RAM while the Elite Note has 3 GB of RAM. If not better, the Elite Note has got comparable performance on an affordable price tag. Swipe has got a good service network and I personally experienced a good experience while getting my Elite battery replaced in a service center in Madurai. For Rs 7999, you get a sensible design, great display, impressive battery life and a decent hardware specification.
Thanks for the review. It would have helped more if you had mentioned the frequency covered by phone, especially on 4g.