Monday, November 28, 2011

G14 (Dual SIM with 3G support)

Introduction

I have been a little busy lately, testing a new MT6573 based smartphone... and this time the review will focus on the G14, a clone of HTC Sensation.



Specifications

Chipset

Name:MediaTek MT6573
CPU:650 MHz ARM11™
GPU:PowerVR™ SGX 531
Instruction set:ARMv6

Software environment

Embedded:OS: Android 2.3.4 (Gingerbread)

Body

Dimensions
(width x height x depth):
126 x 65.4 x 11.3 millimetres
Weigth:148 grams
Color:Black

Battery

Capacity: 1500 mAh

Memory

RAM:capacity:512 MB
ROM-capacity:512 MB
Expansion slot:microSD memory card, supporting up to 32 GB

Network support

Primary phone:GSM850, GSM900, GSM1800, GSM1900, UMTS900, UMTS2100
Secondary phone:GSM850, GSM900, GSM1800, GSM1900
Data links:GPRS, EDGE, HSDPA, HSUPA

Display

Type:Sharp LCD capacitive touchscreen
Size:4.3 inches, WVGA resolution (480 x 800 pixels)

Camera

Main (rear):8 megapixels (interpolated) with autofocus and dual LED flash
Secondary (front):1.3 megapixels

Interfaces

Bluetooth (802.15):Bluetooth 2.1 + Enhanced Data Rate
Wireless LAN / Wi-Fi (802.11):  IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g
USB:USB 2.0 Client, Hi-Speed (480 Mbit/s)
USB Series Micro-B (Micro-USB) connector

Satellite navigation

Built-in GPS module:MT6620 chipset
GPS antenna:Internal
Complementary GPS services:  A-GPS (Assisted GPS), MediaTek EPO (Extended Prediction Orbit)

Additional features

Sensors:
Gravity, Proximity and Light sensors
Analog Radio:FM radio (87.5-108 MHz) with RDS radio receiver

Design and construction

The size of G14 is a little bit larger than other smartphones, in that it comes in at 11,3 mm thick - noticeably thicker than HD9, but still feeling comfortable in the hand.



The phone itself is encased in toughened plastic and aluminium (which feels more like plastic) through the stripe in the centre - the whole back of the phones pulls away from the main device, with the antenna and suchlike pumped into the chassis rather than on the phone itself.


The 3,5 mm headset jack and dedicated power button are located on the top edge. You'll also find an extra-large volume rocker on the left side, as you would on the G11i Pro.



The micro-USB port is located on the left edge. I usually prefer to have it at the top or bottom so that I can use the phone -while in charge- without having the cable get in the way.


The four Android buttons on the bottom are visible at all times (even when the phone display is off). On some handsets they become invisible, to make the phone “look better” and to save on backlight power consumption.



On the back side, we find the 8 megapixels autofocus camera sat next to a dual LED flash and a single loudspeaker grille.



Getting the back of the phone off through the little catch at the bottom is much harder than it looks, with the fingers needed to prise it apart almost holding it in place at the same time - wiggling and shaking is needed to get to the battery and microSD card slot.



The two SIM slots can only be accessed after removing the battery, but the microSD slot is accessible even with battery in place.

Display quality

This phone features a new LCD from Sharp. At first glance, it can be noticed a great definition.



The only thing I can point to this display is that colours don't seem too vivid, although it may be only a matter of setting the contrast (if that's possible).

Functionality

After my previous tests with the newest version of HD9, I thought that all MT6573 phones shared the same framework (which meant that in terms of features it was pretty much the same as when compared with G11i Pro features). I was happily surprised to see that G14 has a little bit different framework. 



This new framework includes some nice CyanogenMod features, such as enhanced notification widgets.


There's a new entry on the normal settings menu, that provides access to extra settings.


Under the dual SIM management menu, the user can edit the name of each SIM and also set the associated background color that will appear in call log as well as in the notification bar (behind the network strength bars). Other than that, also in the same menu, the user has the possibility to set a default card to establish all outgoing calls or set it to always ask, thus enabling the pop up that can be seen some images above showing the dialer (with the options of which SIM card should initiate the call). The same thing can be set for messaging and data connection purposes. In addition, given that G14 supports 3G networks, the option of video calls can also be noticed.


The extra settings menu includes advanced options related with application, display, input, interface and ringtones. Within extra display settings, screen-off and screen-off animations can be configured. Amazing animations, in my opinion, which imitate the CRT screen effect.



Lots of widgets can be added to the notification panel...


During the past few weeks, I noticed that battery performance is pretty good, taking into consideration the large screen size. With moderate use, I can get the battery to last 2 to 3 days, before putting it into charge.

Final thoughts

This is a good phone for people looking for an alternative to HD9. In terms of stability, speed, call quality, it is not different than the other MT65x3 clones, which means that MediaTek really did a great job.

Highs:
  • Based on Android 2.3 (Gingerbread)
  • Beautiful and renewed Dual SIM user interface
  • Good battery life
  • Dual SIM with 3G support
Lows:
  • Display colours are not too vivid

10 comments:

  1. From reliable sources, it seems that MediaTek lacks a very important feature. While downloading contents from the internet or 3G data is active on SIM 1, calls are not able to come in on SIM 2. Is this true? Mediatek phones in my country is very limited.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. yes, this is because the device is dual chip standby, so they share the only one antenna the phone has. the device keeps changing one another to seem the 2 are active. But when you make/receive a call in one SIM, automatically the other becomes unavaillable. the same goes for data.

      Delete
    2. Well, not quite true. In the latest stock ROMs (based on Android 2.3.5) for at least A60, HD7 and G11i Pro, SIM2 is reachable even when an active data connection is established on SIM1. The download is stopped when the call from SIM2 comes in and is immediately resumed after call is terminated.

      Delete
  2. Hey hey

    Just a question, between G11i pro, and this one, witch one you choose?

    I pass the day texting and sometimes playng...

    Cumps tugas

    ReplyDelete
  3. In my humble opinion, G11i Pro is still "the one".

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi,
    I've buy this one... do you know where I can find custom rom.. I'm french and i'd like to remove chinese apps and other stuff i did not use...
    Thanks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. hi, i'm in the same conditions (italian) could you kindly answer? thanks

      Delete
  5. can I use SIM1 for data and at the same time use sim2 for calls ?

    does the browser support flash 10 ?

    can the OS be upgraded ? does the company has an official update server on the internet ?
    do you have the usb driver for windows xp / 7 ?

    thank you very much for your reviews

    ReplyDelete
  6. I bought a G14 from China with ICS4_0_1. FM Radio does not work at all and bluetooth pairs but does not connect. Can anyone here help me and provide me with a link of a working ROM with which to flash G14?

    I want to be sure that dual SIM, and other features will continue to function, Help is appreciated. The chinese website efox.com.pt from where I bought the phone, does not respond.

    It seems HTC and clones of HTC have problems with bluetooth,

    ReplyDelete