The Lava Iris X1 is one of the new-age low-end smartphones. The phone has a look and form factor reminiscent of the Iris Pro 30. It is has been hailed as competition to the Moto E and the Micromax Unite 2. This is the first phone from the Lava X series touted to be Lava’s low-end smartphone series. It runs with Android KitKat on board. But it surely needs to have something else on offer to fight the competition. At the very least I can say that it is one of the best Android phones in its price range and I am glad that this market finally heating up with quality phones, not compromised phones.
At the very least, one thing is appreciable about Lava – it has taken up a good phone and built on the foundation it laid.The Iris Pro 30 design and form factor complete with a rare double LED flash is quite appreciable in this price range,
Will this signature ‘Moto E killer’ live up to the hype or will it be just another low-end smartphone? Let’s find out.
Lava Iris X1 specs:
- 4.5 inch display
- 854 x 480 pixels resolution
- 1.2 GHz quad core Broadcom BCM23550 processor
- Videocore IV GPU
- 1 GB RAM
- 4 GB internal memory
- 8 MP primary camera
- 2 MP front facing camera
- Google Android v4.4.2 KitKat
- 1800 mAh battery
Hardware
The Lava Iris X1, on the first look will remind you of the Iris Pro 30. In fact, you will hardly feel the difference between the two, if you happen to have used it or looked at it in the past, you will get the subtle point Lava is trying to make – it is trying to deliver the same experience at a lower price point.
In fact, you might mistake it for the iPhone 4S from a distance. The build quality is generally good.
The Lava Iris X1 is pretty sleek even though you might not necessarily agree with the thickness. The back of the handset is so smooth that you would like to run your fingers over it again and again. The front is a mixed bad of goodies. It is mostly covered by the display. At the bottom rest three capacitive touch buttons, while at the top rests a speaker, a front cam and an IR blaster. To its advantage, the Lava Iris X1 has a front cam, unlike some other devices in the price range. It just felt that the charisma of the phone did not translate to the capacitive buttons, but you can complain too much about the little things.
The back looks pretty great too. The back looks pretty great with the little transcriptions of the Lava and Iris X1 logos. The speaker looks pretty great at the bottom. I do not totally agree with the placement of the rear camera its etching towards the left side, but not entirely on the edge. Ideally, it should be located in the middle or towards the side.
The power button is located on the right side, while the volume rocker is located on the other side. The buttons are a little thick for comfort.
Other than that, I found most of the phone pretty great.
Display
This is not a high-spec display, yet Lava has optimized it to the right level. The 4.5-inch 854 x 480p display has the right viewing angles, is pretty bright and vibrant, yet is not painful to look at.
As you move on to the menu, the icons are pretty vibrant. The sunlight visibility is pretty great too.
The display is simple and easy to use.
Software
The fact that it comes with Android 4.4.2 is the highlight of the Lava Iris X1. This mostly makes it easy to use. But, I think Lava could have utilized it in a better way and have added some innovative apps. But that is not too much to complain about.
As far as the UI is concerned, I mostly liked it. The phone also comes with Microsoft OfficeSuite 7.
Camera
The Lava Iris X1 has the same 8-megapixel snapper at the back as the Iris Pro 30. It comes with a dual-LED flash at the back. The camera has mostly impressed me with its performance. The only problem I had with it was that it was not too sensitive to light. When you look at the price tag and look back at the camera performance, you will be nothing short of impressed.
I would say with confidence that the Lava Iris X1 has a camera that might defeat all others in this price range. Not only that, it might be one of the reasons you might prefer it to others in this price range.
Performance and Battery Life
The Lava Iris X1 comes with 1 GB RAM and 1.2-GHz quad-core Broadcom processor. It does mostly well. The battery life is good, thanks to the 1800 mAh battery. The gaming worked mostly well.
The performance is good. The phone works pretty fast thanks to
Another thing worth talking about is the innovation Lava has done with the SIM slots – the phone can use both full size SIMs and MicroSIMs at the same time. It does this pretty well and we had no problems when it came to connectivity, in the little time I had with it.
Verdict
The Lava Iris Pro X1 is a mixed bag of goodies. It has an amazing camera, great form factor and Android 4.4.2. in tow. It has some nicks and bruises on the side.
But in totality, it is a stylish phone and something that has an amazing amount of grace for its price tag.
