Since 2015 is expected to be the year in which India finally hits the 4G super highway, all smartphone manufacturers are going to pump the market with all kinds of devices that work on these high speed bands. However, as with smartphones these days, a bulk of the volumes will be in the entry range priced under R10,000. We have already seen Xiaomi launch the Redmi Note 4G, only to be countered by the Yu Yureka from the founder of Micromax.
How is the Yu Yureka different? The big difference with the Yu Yureka is that it runs Cyanogen OS 11 and not stock Android. The phone offers its users much more customisation than Android, maybe a bit too much for the price bracket. I can only hope that the Indian users have become mature enough to understand Cyanogen OS 11, which I would otherwise associate with power users. Even Cyanogen has tweaked its operating system a bit for Yu and you have a couple of themes exclusive to the brand. This is undoubtedly the biggest differentiator for the Yureka.
The other interesting feature has to be the 13 MP camera, which is quite rare in a sub-R10,000 phone. The camera is good, but by no means exceptional. So, while you are getting more megapixels than others, you can’t really convert that into performance. I, however, liked the low light capabilities of the phone.
I used the phone for over a week and extensively during a week-long trip to the US to cover the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). I did not face any issues with the phone, except for the fact that it was not compatible with the 4G LTE that T-mobile was offering there. So I ended up using the phone in 2G most of the time. I did not notice any lag and the battery held up for most of the day. The phone has a good design that is good enough to be accepted by the tech savvy crowds that frequent Vegas in the first couple of weeks every January. In fact, a couple of US accessory manufacturers were quite impressed by the look of the phone, and the fact that it is priced at about $150.
Are there any flaws? No. The phone works well and ticks all the boxes when you look at what you are paying for it in the end. While some of you might have been expecting more from the phone, the fact remains that it is a good value for money budget phone that has found itself at a lower price band due to some divine intervention.
Should you buy it? Certainly, if you are in one of the cities where 4G is already available. Others can look at this as a different
option in comparison to the Xiaomi Redmi Note and maybe even the Moto E, though this is slightly more expensive. You are definitely getting a bit more bang for your buck with this phone and the Cyanogen OS 11 gets you more bragging rights than other Android users.
SPECIFICATIONS
* Display: 5.5-inch 720p HD display
* Processor: 1.5 GHz octa-core 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 CPU
* Operating system: Cyanogen OS 11, built on Android 4.4.4 OS
* Storage & memory: 2 GB DDR3 RAM, 16 GB internal memory
* Camera: 13 MP (rear); 5 MP front camera
* Connectivity: GSM, GPRS, WCDMA and LTE networks
* Battery: 2,500 mAh removable battery
Estimated street price: R8,990
