Can Lenovo’s colourful RocStar outsmart Obi’s Fox?

Kenya’s smartphone market is becoming more competitive with the entry of new players. Obi Mobiles, co-founded by JohnSculley, ex-CEO of Pepsi Co and Apple, is the new entrant in the Kenyan smartphone market with its eight smartphone models, which are starting to attract attention in the market. On the other hand, the well known global brand, Lenovo, has been in Kenyan market for a while with its impressive range of smartphone models. As part of our daily reviews, we have picked up Lenovo’s RocStar A319 and Obi’s Fox S453 to see how they compare with each other.

We start with the design of the two smartphone models. Both the devices have a similar concept with a bar design and a three touch keys on the bottom. While Obi’s Fox is available only in white colour, Lenovo’s RocStar comes in red, white and black variants. Furthermore,  Lenovo’s RocStar gives a broader feel with 123.5x63.8x10.2mm dimensions, but Obi’s Fox with 131.7x64x9.0mm dimensions has a bit longish and sleeker look. However, the main difference lies in the display screen size which is 4.5inches in case of Obi’s Fox and 4inches in case of Lenovo’s RocStar. Both the devices have a capacitive touch screen. Needless to say that a larger screen is always a plus from the point of view of viewing experience. It particularly acquires more significance for the youth where video viewing on the smartphone is becoming everyday part of their lives.

Both the devices are powered by MediaTek MT6572 dual core processor, however, Obi’s Fox is 1GHz and Lenovo’s RocStar is 1.3GHz. However, Fox’s OS Android 4.4.2 KitKat is slightly improved version over RocStar’s OS Android 4.4 KitKat. Both the devices have internal storage space of 4GB that can be expanded up to 32GB using a MicroSD card. However, the major difference between the two is RAM where Lenovo’s RocStar comes with 512MB RAM and Obi’s Fox is just double 1GB RAM. Extra RAM helps apps run smoother with reduced time lags, but when coupled with a better processor, it enhances overall quality of user interface and experience.

Obi’s Fox has a leg up on the battery front too. With 1600 mAh battery size Fox gives 6 hours of talk time and 180 hours of standby time while, on the other hand, Lenovo’s RocStar has 1500 mAh battery that gives 3 hours of talk time and 240 hours of standby time. Furthermore, both the devices have 5 megapixel rear cameras with flash with flash and 2 megapixel front cameras with a fixed focus. The cameras of the two devices are moderate considering the price range. As far as connectivity is concerned both the devices have Wi-Fi with 802.11 b/g/n standards supported. Both the devices also have a dual sim card slots, however, Obi’s Fox supports 3G on both SIM slots whereas Lenovo’s RocStar supports 3G in primary sim and 2G on the other. Both the devices have Bluetooth, GPS, 3.5 mm audio jack and FM receiver.

The price difference between the two is rather small. In the Kenyan market, while Obi’s Fox is priced at around KSh 9000, Lenovo’s RocStar is at around KSh 7500. Slightly higher price in case of Obi’s Fox seems justified on account of three major advantages over Lenovo’s RocStar, which include a lager display screen, larger battery life and, most of all, double RAM contributes towards enhancing the viewing experience. However, in every other respect the two models are comparable, with Lenovo’s RocStar having the advantage of three colour variants.

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Can Obi’s Crane fly higher than Tecno’s Phantom in Kenya?

The new player to enter the smartphone market in Kenya is Obi Mobiles, co-founded by John Sculley, ex-CEO of Pepsico and Apple. Obi has recently launched their eight smartphone-models named after various animals that could pose competition to existing smartphone players in the Kenyan market. One of the leading smartphone players in the Kenyan market is called Tecno Mobile. In this review, we are comparing Tecno Mobile’s PhantomA+ Mini with Obi Mobiles’ Crane S 550, which are a very close match, but with some price and design variations. 

We start with similarities. Both, Obi’s Crane S 550 and Tecno’s Phantom A+ Mini are dual-SIM (GSM+GSM) smartphones and support a regular SIM and a Micro-SIM with 3G support for each. Obi’s Crane runs on the recent Android 4.4.2 KitKat and comes with a 5.5inch (540x960 pixels) qHD TFT IPS display. The Phantom A+ Mini too runs on the Android 4.4.2 KitKat but has a 4.5inch IPS display (540x906 pixels). This offers Obi’s Crane an edge over Tecno’s Phantom, as a larger display is always a plus to have.

Both the Crane and the Phantom A+ Mini are powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek (MT6582) processor coupled with 1GB of RAM and with 8GB of inbuilt storage, which is further expandable via a microSD card (up to 32GB). Furthermore, if Obi’s Crane sports an 8 megapixel rear autofocus camera with LED flash and a secondary 5-megapixel front-facing camera, so does Tecno’s Phantom A+ with a flash and features like geo tagging and auto focus. But it is the quality of photos that distinguishes the camera in the two smartphones. The secondary camera in Crane gives you good output in low light, while the photos clicked through Phantom’s secondary camera come a bit grainy in the low light. However, on these indicators the two models are more or less comparable.

The two smartphones features the same Bluetooth 4.0 and WiFi options, however, there is an important difference on the connectivity front. While Obi’s Crane S550 offers 3G, GPRS/ EDGE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Micro-USB and Bluetooth options, Tecno’s Phantom comes with 2G GSM: 900 / 1800 MHz 3G WCDMA: 2100MHz GPRS: up to 48kbps. Another significant front where Obi’s Crane takes an edge is the battery, as it packs a 2400mAh battery rated to deliver up to 6 hours of talk time and up to 180 hours of standby time. Tecno’s Phantom A+ Mini, on the other hand, comes with an 1800 mAh battery that is much lower, especially considering the price.

Besides the price advantage which may be rather small - Obi’s Crane S 550 at KSh 14,399 and Tecno’s Phantom A+ Mini at KSh15,799 – Obi’s Crane has three significant differences, which include a larger display (5.5inch), large battery (2400mAh) and 3G connectivity.  In addition, we suggest you also look out for the design and the feel that Obi models boast about, which is basically a matter of personal choice. However, the buzz is that Obi Mobiles likes to focus on exceptional designs as the distinguishing marks of their products. 

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Alligator S454, Obi's smartphone has a lot to impress

Obi Mobiles founded by John Sculley launched its first range of smartphones named after animal in India in 2014. Over a period of few months, Obi Mobiles has moved to Middle East and recently entered Africa. Considering the smartphone options available in the market to choose from, the Silicon Valley lineage provides Obi devices an edge. In this article, we particularly look at the model called Alligator S454.

Obi’s Alligator comes with superior features as well as surprisingly friendly price tag. Our curiosity to explore different aspects of this model has generated this review that we are happy to share with those who may be considering a move from a feature phone to a smartphone. Alligator S454 runs Android 4.4.2 KitKat and offers dual-SIM support (regular SIM + Micro-SIM). It features a 4.5-inch qHD (540x960 pixels) IPS screen. The device is powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek (MT6582) processor with Mali 400 MP2 graphics, with 1GB of RAM. A lot of technical stuff out there, right? Wait till we break it down for you.

Isn’t it all about the looks? Alligator comes in a candy bar form. The device has a sturdy build and looks compact. The device is available in black and white variants. The back of the device is nicely textured and looks glossy with the brand logo, speaker grille and primary camera giving it a complete look. The phone has a good design that you can carry with all the elegance. Obi with the promise to give us stylish smartphones has not disappointed with the Alligator.

It gotta feel great, no? The phone comes in dimensions of 133mm x 66.6mm x 8.2mm. At 120 grams weight, the smartphone is surely light to carry, in your pocket and in your hands. Alligator flaunts a 4.5inch (11.43cm) display with TFT IPS Screen with Capacitive Touch. The phone claims to have superior graphics that you are able to see when you switch to watching movies or surfing videos. The viewing angles are decent and throw nice looking colors across the angles, a feature of the IPS screens.

Hey, how does it capture the mood? Well, when it comes to recording and clicking all your special moments, Alligator with its 8MP, auto focus rear camera serves the purpose with ease. The LED Flash fills your photos, shot in night with light. The 2MP front camera is good but could have been better but again at such a price isn’t a bad deal to go with. The camera comes with digital/optical zoom that serves you well.

It must last too. The Alligator has a removable Li-Ion 1600 mAh battery type (removable) that can make you think twice before going for it if you use a lot of battery draining apps on your phone. Battery life is one of the cons of the Alligator with a talk time of 8 hrs. Furthermore, for all your storage needs the phone supports 8GB of inbuilt storage that is expandable via micro SD card (up to 32GB), which is great for the price tag.

But, it must ensure good connectivity. Obi’s Alligator is 4.0 Bluetooth enabled and comes with GPRS, EDGE and WiFi features. The dual sim feature of the phone though comes with a catch. The Sim 1 supports 3G but the Sim 2 is only 2G enabled which shall be a bit of a block if you are really keen of having a strong connectivity on both your connections. The Alligator comes with built-in applications like Google Talk, Twitter, Facebook chat, Yahoo!, YouTube, Gmail, Google Search, Google+ and WhatsApp.

The Obi Alligator has a good combination of hardware and software that gives it a slight edge at the price that it comes. If you have just started to venture into the smartphone category of phone moving out from your feature phones, Obi Alligator S454 might just impress you. Go for it if you are looking for more in less.

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