Xolo has quietly introduced two new Android smartphones – Xolo Q600s and Xolo Q1200. Both the smartphones are available on e-commerce website Snapdeal for Rs. 7,499 and Rs. 14,999 respectively.
First up is the Xolo Q600s. It supports dual-SIM (GSM GSM) and has a 4.5-inch qHD OGS IPS display. The smartphone sports a 5MP rear camera and a VGA front-facing camera. It comes with 4GB built-in storage, expandable up to 64GB.
The Xolo Q600s runs Android 4.4 KitKat and is powered by a 1.2 GHz quad-core Broadcom processor along with 1GB of RAM. Connectivity options include GPRS, 2G, 3G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. It is powered by a 2000 mAh battery. You can check out the Xolo Q600s listing here.
The Xolo Q1200 has a 5-inch IPS display with 960 x 540 pixels resolution. It runs Android 4.2 upgradable to v4.4 KitKat and is powered by a 1.3 GHz Quad Core Processor along with 1GB of RAM.
It has an 8MP rear camera with Dual LED Flash, Sony Exmor R sensor and a 2MP front-facing camera. The smartphone comes with 8GB of built-in storage, expandable up to 32GB via microSD. Connectivity options include 3G, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, USB OTG. A 2000 mAh battery powers the device.
A high-end Android phone with a 10x optical zoom camera, the Galaxy K Zoom hopes to send your compact to the scrapheap.
If you regularly leave home laden with a phone and a camera, the Galaxy K Zoom demands your attention.
This mash-up of a smartphone and snapper combines the high-end specs and build quality of the Samsung Galaxy series with a retractable 10x optical zoom lens. In return though, it demands a lot more space in your pocket.
So is it the perfect phone for the photo-crazy, or just another example of convergence gone mad?
THE BIG PICTURE
Your first impressions of the K Zoom will be dominated by its size. We're used to large screens, and the dimensions of the 4.8in display are no problem at all. It's the thickness of the phone that's striking.
With the lens fully retracted it's 20.2mm from front to back, which is about two and half times thicker than a Galaxy S5. While we were out and about taking some test photos a passer-by commented "Wow! Is that a phone?"
It's also heavy: 200g, compared to the 145g mass of an S5. The increase in size and weight is all down to the camera lens of course, and once you've seen how far it extends at full zoom, you'll end up impressed by how well it manages to squash back down into the main body.
QUALITY CONTROL
The good news is that the camera is impressive - for a phone. You could pick up a very capable, very small compact camera with a 10x optical zoom for about £130, so we tested the Galaxy K Zoom's snapper directly against the Nikon Coolpix S6700. It turned out to be a very close contest. The Nikon sometimes found more detail where the Samsung was inclined to fill pixels with noise and smudges, but the Samsung was generally faster to focus and shoot. Then again, the Nikon was quicker to start up.
The dedicated controls of the Nikon make it a lot easier to use. Because of the touchscreen and Android softkeys on the Samsung, it's easy to accidentally turn it on, off, exit the camera app or launch some other app when all you want to do is shoot. At the risk of running out of hypothetical extremities, on the other hand, the Samsung's connected nature makes it incredibly easy to edit and share photos directly from the phone. So purely as a camera, the Nikon wins, but of course the Samsung is a lot more than just a camera.
HOW MANY TIMES IS 10X?
That zoom is very useful, especially if you're taking pictures outdoors or at large events, or if you want more control over depth-of-field effects. The difference between what you can frame at the wideangle setting and at 10x zoom is major. Check out this side-by-side example to get an idea of how much closer it gets you.
Controlling the zoom is done either by an onscreen pinch or slider, which feels quite precarious when you're trying to frame a shot, or with the hardware volume controls on the side of the phone. This allows you to keep a firm grip, although the midpoint of the rocker switch isn't well defined, so it can be a little unresponsive. There's also a dedicated shutter button below your right index finger which can be used as an alternative to the onscreen icon.
