The evidence is everywhere. Walk into any gadget store and you’ll be quick to realise that in recent months, the
$46-billion Chinese device maker Lenovo has been literally carpet-bombing the Indian market with a slew of high-quality offerings— personal computers, laptops, tablets, convertibles and smartphones. So much so the world’s No. 1 PC player has emerged as the 4th largest smartphone brand by volume in India, according to IDC’s Asia Pacific Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, Q3, 2015, with a market share of 9.5%. While the Indian market is flooded with several smartphone brands, Lenovo has consistently offered reliable and efficient handsets based on superior technology at the right value.
The huge potential in the smartphone market in India and a tremendous response to Lenovo-branded smartphones has prompted the company to start local manufacturing too. Its K3 Note is currently being manufactured in the company’s manufacturing facility in Sriperambudur, Chennai. Recently, two of Lenovo’s newly-launched devices came to us for a product review. These are the Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 tablet, which delivers a great multimedia experience and the Vibe P1 smartphone, powered by a hugely long-lasting battery. Here are our impressions about the two devices.
Yoga Tab 3 Pro
We have seen many tablets at our end, but the Yoga Tab 3 Pro offers you what no other tablet will; a projector. Okay, it’s a pico projector, not a full 1080p projector, but for a tablet with a price of R16,999, this unique feature makes it the right device for watching video with family and friends. Then, most tablets don a slate-like design, but the Yoga Tab 3 Pro deviates from this norm with a cylindrical spine on the bottom edge, which also happens to house the battery. Designed as the ultimate video tablet, the Yoga Tab 3 offers a very good multimedia experience while retaining its signature multimode design (hold, hang, tilt, stand). It delivers a whole new level of visual and auditory entertainment experience for users on the go and at home alike.
The 10.1-inch Yoga Tab 3 offers a whooping 20 hours of battery life with Dolby Atmos sound and super-fast 4G-LTE connectivity. It allows greater flexibility to access 3G and 4G for on-demand content anytime and anywhere.
Switched on, the tablet provides an immersive sound and a crisp HD screen; in other words, watching movies and streaming videos is pure delight on the Yoga Tab 3. It has a 180 degree rotating camera for users to take great selfies and pictures at cool angles and unique perspectives. Built-in gesture control also makes capturing the perfect shot easier than ever before. With a convenient kickstand for multimode use, the Yoga Tab 3 is a genuine portable entertainment companion. What’s more, it comes with Lenovo’s AnyPen technology, which gives the flexibility to use a pencil, a stick or even a fork—as a stylus.
Performance-wise, the Yoga Tab 3 Pro is pretty swift when surfing the Web, streaming video and playing games. I watched a lot of videos on YouTube and the tablet is a speedy performer with great audio and a crystal clear screen. Its screen has a 2,560 x 1,600-pixel resolution which displays accurate colours in crisp detail. Apps do not take much time to launch too, a typical problem faced in most Android tablets. I also checked out the tablet’s pico projector, which is bright and sharp and almost comparable to a normal projector. I feel there are many people like me who simply love to watch movies or stream endless amounts of YouTube videos. Take my word, the Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 Pro lets you enjoy all of this like no other tablet.
Truly, the best Android tablet for watching video!
** Estimated street price: Rs 16,999
Vibe P1
Fueled by a massive 5000mAh battery, the Lenovo Vibe P1 is the ideal phone for your hyper-active lifestyle. Whether you are big on social media, an avid gamer, a film buff, or simply enjoy chatting, this device won’t slow you down.
When the phone eventually runs out of juice, its quick charge feature gives you a few hours of talk time with just a 5-minute charge. In addition, a single flick of the power saver switch extends battery life. And with USB on-the-go, you can recharge other devices and share data too.
The 5.5-inch Full HD (1920 x 1080) display lets you enjoy images, gaming, and video at their finest. It also offers nearly 180 degree of wide-angle viewing—perfect for sharing with friends. And made from specialised toughened glass, the phone is designed to resist scratches and cracks too.
The Lenovo Vibe P1’s 13 MP rear camera, with super fast auto focusing and dual-colour LED flash, enables you to capture precious moments night or day. What’s more, the 5 MP front camera lets you enjoy clear video chats. Enhanced audio technology delivers crisper voice calls, while a sealed sound chamber offers better resonance and deeper bass.
The 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon processor delivers the optimal balance of performance and power. Together with 2 GB of RAM, the Vibe P1 is able to take the fastest data connectivity, the latest Android OS, and pro-style camera features in its stride. Its Android Lollipop operating system includes a host of new features, a visual overhaul and numerous under-the-hood improvements to make it faster, more efficient and lighter on your battery.
The Vibe P1 supports high-speed LTE (4G) networks for the fastest data connectivity—enabling you to enjoy websites, apps, and games at their best. It also has Wi-Fi Boost that delivers quicker, more reliable WiFi. With a microSD card, you can expand the internal storage by a further 128 GB—more than enough space for all your photos, videos, and music.
A user can also do more with preloaded apps like SHAREit with CLONEit, which lets you rapidly share files wirelessly across smartphone and other devices without network charges or a Wi-Fi connection. You can also be more productive on the go with apps such as Evernote and Kingsoft Office.
The Vibe P1 retails for Rs 15,999. All in all, a nice and good looking phone with decent specs.
** Estimated street price: Rs 15,999
