Gionee Elife E7 is the Chinese OEM’s flagship device, but it’s not new. It’s been around since late 2013, but we just got a review unit, right after we told you Konga was launching the phone in the Nigerian market.
We thought we should put that out there before we move on.
The first thing you’ll notice about the Elife E7 immediately you rescue it from the biblesque packaging is that, it doesn’t look anything like a phone forged in the internet stone age.
It doesn’t have the bells and whistles that now come with premium devices, but when you get under the hood to find a 3GB RAM, a 32GB of internal money and a 2.3 GHz Quad Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor in the Elife E7, you’ll agree even more that old boy still got game. Maybe not so much game to warrant a cloud high price, but more on that later.
Meanwhile, In the Box:
A whole lot of stuff. These are everything you’ll find in the box:
- Gionee Elife E7 smartphone
- Flip Cover
- User Guide
- Warranty Card
- Screen protector
- Earbud pods
- SIM tool
- NFC tags
- USB cable
- USB OTG cable
- 2-pin Charger
- Vacuum Clip-on stand
The NFC and the USB OTG stand out. With the Near field communication (NFC), the Elife E7 can establish radio communication with other smartphones by simply touching them together or bringing them into proximity. The USB OTG (On The Go function) makes it possible for you to use the phone as a power bank for your other phones. Awesome, huh?
The Specs
- Display Size: 5.5 inch IPS LCD capacitive touch screen with 1920 x 1080 HD resolution with 441 pixel density
- Processor: 2.3 GHz Quad Core Qualcomm MSM8274 Snapdragon 800
- GPU: Adreno 330
- RAM: 3 GB
- Software Version: Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean) OS
- Camera: 16 MP AF rear camera and 8 MP AF front camera
- Internal Storage: 32 GB
- Battery: 2500 mAh battery Lithium Ion
- Connectivity: 3G, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n,
- Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP, aGPS, 3.5mm audio jack, FM Radio
- Others: OTG Support – Yes, Dual SIM – No, SIM Slot: Micro SIM, LED Indicator –Yes
- Sensors: Accelerometer, gyro, proximity
First Impressions
Our review sample came in a glossy dark blue colour, with a white flip cover. A rather unusual colour combo. That the phone has a glossy finish also means that you’ll most likely leave fingerprints on the back and sides. Phone case to the rescue.
Most phones tend to come with nondetachable batteries these days – this phone does too, with its unibody design.
The phone has a Corning Gorilla cover glass.
With 16 MP rear and 8 MP front camera, the phone’s camera is quite impressive, which I found out while doing a minor test drive. But you won’t be seeing the pictures just yet.
While the phone won’t win any awards for the slimmest smartphone, it’s not heavy, the 5.5 incher still has a bulky look nonetheless.
The power lock/unlock button and is located at the top of the phone. There’s the earphone jack beside it.
When I powered up the phone, there was no noticeable lag, and that’s no surprise, you don’t have a 3GB RAM and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor just for photo ops. We’ll see how this holds when we put the phone through its paces.
AMIGO OS
There’s no app drawer. Then again, it seems like phones these days don’t have app drawers. Maybe the Elife E7 manufacturers are trying to go for the iPhone UI.
The phone’s USB charging port is located at the bottom part of the phone.
To the left of the phone is SIM card slot.
While to the right are the volume buttons.
The Gionee Elife E7 normally will set you back by about N75, 000, but the exclusive deal with the retailer, Konga, will see it sell for N53, 000 on Konga. Konga is bearing the discount.
The full review will be out soon, in the meantime, I’ll be putting the ELIFE E7 through its paces to see how it performs.
