Lenovo Vibe K5 Review
Now Lenovo has decided to introduce two more variants of the K5 series. One is the premium K5 Note and the other is the budget Vibe K5. It is clear from the name of K5 Note that it will be a handset with slightly premium features and looks. On the other hand, Vibe K5 is a cheaper phone for those users who want to spend less money.
Look and Design
The new Lenovo Vibe K5 looks very similar to the Vibe K5 Plus. Its style also matches perfectly and like the Vibe K5 Plus, it is available in silver, gold and gray color variants. We have no complaints with this as we liked its design. This is not a very slim phone, but it does not give the feeling of being cheap.
Most of the body is plastic, except for a thin metal plate in the middle of the rear. With its help, the phone feels sturdy and in a way it justifies its price. We are a little apprehensive that the golden chrome on the edges of the phone will come off, but it can be saved by using a cover.
The grip is very good and it is easy to use with one hand. The Vibe K5 has slightly curved back edges. Sadly, the Android navigation buttons at the bottom of the screen aren’t backlit. Micro-USB and 3.5mm port are at the top. The power and volume buttons are on the right side. An LED light indicating status is present above the screen at the top right. It blinks when a notification comes.
Apart from the camera and flash, you will see two speaker grills and Dolby logo on the rear panel of the phone. Vibe K5 has stereo speakers, which is something new for this price segment. Its battery can be taken out. On removing the rear cover, you will be able to see two micro SIM card slots and a microSD card slot.
Specifications and Software
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 415 chipset used in this phone is a huge reduction compared to the Snapdragon 616 processor of the Vibe K5 Plus. The screen resolution is now 720 pixels. However, Vibe K5 also comes with 2 GB RAM and 16 GB storage. You will be able to use 4G SIM card in both the SIM slots. Apart from this, Wi-Fi B/G/N and Bluetooth 4.1 features are provided. The rear camera has a 13-megapixel sensor and the front camera is 5-megapixel.
Battery capacity is 2750 mAh. It is expected to last a little longer due to its less powerful processor and HD resolution display. We told you in the review of Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus that it did not provide flagship features like fingerprint sensor or infrared emitter. These features are not provided in this model also.
It uses Lenovo’s Vibe UI based on Android 5.1.1, which is not much different from stock Android. You won’t have trouble finding most functions and features. A separate app drawer is also provided in this phone. It is possible that Lenovo has added this feature after receiving feedback.
performance
For a common user, this smartphone will do its job well, but we found the Vibe K5 to be a bit slow. At times, there was a delay in launching some apps and opening menus. The viewing angles of the display are poor. Brightness and color are appropriate. You will not have any complaints with the 720×1280 pixel resolution in this screen size. The rear speakers are capable of producing quite loud sound.
This is the first phone in a long time where our HD video sample files did not play smoothly. We found its performance satisfactory while playing some 3D games. The good thing is that the Vibe K5 did not get too hot during use.
We wouldn’t want to use this phone for more than a little social networking and web surfing. It is clear that this model has been launched keeping in mind the entry-level users for whom the Vibe K5 Plus is a bit expensive. This can be an important reason for buying this phone.
The benchmark scores of the phone are not too encouraging. Don’t expect it to play games or run apps that require a lot of resources.
The rear camera isn’t bad at all, if you’re willing to stop and take pictures. Focus doesn’t lock instantly, but it’s reliable. The picture came with details of trees and metallic objects. Even in overcast outdoor conditions. We were able to get some great depth-of-field. The difficulty lies in taking pictures of a moving object like a car. Photographs taken at night rely heavily on artificial light.
The performance of cameras of expensive phones cannot be expected from its camera, but workable pictures should be taken in the light of street lamp. The video output was decent and selfies taken from the front camera also will not disappoint you.
Its battery life surprised us. In the video loop test it lasted for 8 hours 33 minutes. It’s not spectacular, but it does point to the less powerful processor and HD resolution screen. In normal use, we were able to use this phone for about one and a half days without charging.
our decision
The more money, the more product. The disadvantage of the low price of this phone is in the form of performance. If you are willing to spend a little more money, you will get a better product. But it’s clear that Lenovo has identified the customers. If your budget is low then Vibe K5 is the right decision.
The good thing is that there are a lot of things to like about the Lenovo Vibe K5. Even though it’s a little slow, it covers all the departments well and is worth using. The software is easy to use. Battery life is good and it would not be wrong to say the same about camera quality. There is no major drawback in this which will disappoint you. It looks great and you will never feel like using a cheap phone.
