| Pros | Cons |
| · Nice build quality | · Sluggish performance |
| · Decent battery life | · Poor viewing angles and average resolution of display |
| · Good camera setup |
Lenovo wants to establish its Vibe series as its signature product line for budget smartphones while leaving the Moto brand for premium devices, but until now it hasn’t had the success that it needs to do so with any of its Vibe smartphones. Recently it launched two new devices under the line dubbed Vibe K5 Plus and Vibe K5. While the ‘Plus’ version is a slightly more expensive device, today we train our focus on the lighter non-plus version. Is it a nice option to pick in the budget smartphone segment? We try to figure out in our review.
Vibe K5 has been designed with exactly same design philosophy as that of its big bro, Vibe K5 Plus – there’s no difference except for that of size. The device isn’t anywhere near the slickest and lightest ones, and it’s built of plastic, but it feels sturdy in your hand. What they have got absolutely right are the colors: the three color options – silver, grey and golden have been wisely chosen and done well. Each one gives you the look of a high end mobile phone.
Though identical from the outside, Lenovo Vibe K5 and K5 Plus have differences hidden underneath. Our review device is equipped with a Snapdragon 415 processor and 5-inch HD display, both of which are a step behind from the offerings in K5 Plus (Snapdragon 616 and Full-HD). However, there are quite a few similarities as well: 2GB of RAM, 16GB of memory with SD card slot, 4G, 13MP primary camera and 5MP secondary camera. The phone has also got dual stereo speakers on its back. And finally, it comes with Android 5.1 out of the box. The configuration isn’t bad for a budget smartphone, but it’s not too good either.
The 5-inch HD display of this device, while good at first glance due to its fine brightness and colors, has got one unfortunate thing associated with it – the viewing angles aren’t good! It’s also not a display meant for those who’ve been playing with Full-HD devices for a long time as they will find it worse than it actually is. Besides that, however, it’s a fine display.
This is perhaps the most disappointing part about the Lenovo Vibe K5: it’s sluggish. While it usually runs fine for everyday tasks, when you’ve more than 4-5 apps open in the background it starts getting sluggish. Menus take a few seconds (2-3) to appear, and apps take slightly longer than that to launch.
The sound blasted from the dual-stereo speakers comes out loud, but without a lot of distortion, which is a good thing. That gives little satisfaction though, because HD video files played on the device run with video and audio out of sync. Unfortunately, this is NOT a device for serious multimedia consumption and gaming.
The rear-facing 13 MP camera of Vibe K5 isn’t a bad one, especially if you’re willing to be a bit patient. Though it can’t focus on people and objects instantly, it can do so reliably if you hold the device steady for a while. Videos come alright, and selfies from the front camera also look good. The camera (primary one) does a good job even under poor lighting conditions, depending on the amount and source of light, as with any other camera out in the market. It struggles a bit with objects in motion, but for all other things it works fine.
Fortunately, the downgrading of display and processor have provided one noteworthy advantage to the phone: long battery life. On moderate usage, this phone can easily survive over a day. Even in case of heavy use (streaming videos on 4G), it can easily last around 8-9 hrs, which is superb for a budget device.
In the end all we’d like to say is that this is a fine budget smartphone from a well-known brand, with some disadvantages that decrease its appeal. It’d have been one of the best smartphones in the segment with its looks and configuration, but Lenovo decided to leave those things with its big bro Vibe K5 Plus. Do note: The Plus option is not dearer by only 1k. If you are ready to shell out a thousand more, then go for Plus. Else, at Rs.6,999, the Lenovo Vibe K5 is an excellent smartphone: total value for money.
I can almost say that during our reviews, this must be the best smartphone at this price point!
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