[youtube width=”576″ height=”384″]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9j99lO7ej7g[/youtube]
The most awaited review of Cherry Mobile Flare is here! With its amazing price, powerful Dual Core capability by Qualcomm and Android’s Ice Cream Sandwich Operating System, I can say that this phone is an iPhone 4 (or even 4s) alternative. Here’s our review of the Cherry Mobile Flare.
SPECS
- OS: Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
- Processor: 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon
- Display: 4-inch IPS capacitive touch display, 480×800 resolution
- Camera: 5MP rear camera, VGA secondary front-facing camera
- Memory: 512MB RAM, 4GB internal memory, microSD expandable up to 32GB
- Connectivity: WiFi, Bluetooth, EDGE, HSDPA, GPS
- Battery: 1500mAh Li-ion
- Feature: Dual-SIM, dual-standby
THE FORM
The Cherry Mobile Flare has a 4-inch IPS (In-Plane Switching) Capacitive touch panel. Definitely, I believe that this has way lower ppi compared to more expensive phones. As for its size, the Flare is a 123 mm x 62.5 mm x 11.8 mm device.
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The device is also very light. For the record, its light build did not make me think that I’m holding a cheap re-branded phone. It is like putting your hand on a Php15,000 to Php18,000 priced phone, thanks to its back plate’s rubber finish and elegant IPS display.
You can find 4 capacitive switches below the screen: Home, Options, Back and Search; Volume rockers and the micro USB port on the left side; 3.5 mm headphone jack and the on/off switch on top; and microphone at the bottom side of the phone.
THE SOFTWARE
The Cherry Mobile Flare runs on Android Ice Cream Sandwich (ver 4.0.4). With its 1.2 GHz Dual Core Snapdragon Processor, you can navigate its OS fluidly. In my experience, it felt like it was running on Jellybean. I
Obviously, Google Play is preinstalled on this device, thereby opening the user to multitude of applications built for the Android echosysten. All you have to do is login your account in Google Play and start downloading! However, the flaw that I discovered while using this device is that it downloads slower compared to Cherry Mobile Titan. Google Chrome also does not work properly and it takes more time to load games like Dead Trigger and Asphalt 7. It is good to note though that the latter games can be played with minimal lags and lesser 3D-rendering/details on this device.
PERFORMANCE, BATTERY and CAMERA
With almost a week of usage, my experience on the Cherry Mobile Flare is outstanding. Better than its older brother – the Cherry Mobile Titan – Flare scored 2,932 on Quadrant Benchmark, making it faster than Motorola Atrix 4G and Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1. Please note though that benchmark scores are relative scores as benchmark applications consider the current state of devices. It is possible for Flare to have a different score after a week or two.
As for its battery, being a moderate user, the phone can only last up to a day. However, you may want to lower your expectations on this aspect since the Flare only has 1500mAh Li-ion Battery. With heavy usage (Wifi and 3G on), I would think that this phone would last not more than 4 hours. I still have yet to it in that regard.
Cherry Mobile Flare has 5 megapixel camera at the back and VGA camera at the front. Pictures taken on low light environment looks dull while ones on well lighted places look crispier and clearer. I’m not much of a camera guy, but in this case, the Titan’s Camera is subpar compared to Flare’s.
MY RECOMMENDATION
Cherry Mobile once again shocked us with this phone. The Cherry Mobile Flare is the cheapest Android ICS phone with Snapdragon processor you can ever find in the market. You can buy this phone for as low as Php 3,999 in all Cherry Mobile outlets starting 2nd week of November. CM did not give any definite date though as – in my opinion – they are probably sustaining the momentum of their CM Titan sales. Had they offered CM Flare much earlier, their CM Titan sales would not have been good.
If you are thinking of buying your very first Android phone, I highly recommend the Cherry Mobile Flare. It’s one powerful and affordable smartphone you can buy without even ripping your wallet to shreds.
I may have missed some pertinent details on this review. So, please don’t hesitate to hit the comment below.
*UPDATES:
1. Multitouch points: 2
2. Google+ Hangout and Skype work flawlessly.
3. Battery included in the retail box is 1500 mAh, not 1600 mAh.
Gianfranco is the co-founder of gadgetpilipinas.net. He graduated from Far Eastern University. A Psychology student turned tech-savvy. He's currently the HR Supervisor of Blip Media and one of the content producers of Gadget Pilipinas. He enjoys playing competitive video games and binge-watch American TV series.
