Infocus has managed to produce some popular models for Indian smartphone market starting with Infocus M2 followed by other models such as Infocus M535, M370, M680 and their flagship M812. Today we are reviewing their latest entry-level 4G smartphone i.e Infocus Bingo 21 M430 (unboxing here). It is available exclusively at Snapdeal and for entry-level consumers inclined to use 4G too even on a budget or entry-level smartphone . We have used Infocus Bingo M430 for almost a week and this review is based on that experience.
Technical Specs:
- Display : 4.5 inch FWVGA (Resolution of 480 x 854 pixels)
- CPU : 1.5 GHz quad-core Spreadtrum Shark L (SC9830) processor
- GPU : Mali 400 MP
- RAM : 2 GB
- Camera : 8 MP Rear, Auto Focus, LED Flash + 5 MP with LED Flash & Self Timer
- ROM : 8 GB (Expandable)
- OS : Android 5.1 Lollipop
- Battery : 2,300 mAh
- SIM: Dual SIM
- Weight : 152 gms
- Dimensions : 136.8 x 67 x 10.95 mm
Infocus Bingo 21 M430 Gallery
[flickr_set id=”72157662354319174″]
Design, Hardware and Build Quality
In terms of design and build quality,it gives a decent look thanks to the colorful plastic body yet it does look like a entry-level budget phone with no premium look. The plastic back cover comes with a vertical lines texture which helps you hold it better, but yet come with a fine finish. It is a compact device that fits into your hand easily, but feels a bit heavy and thick. The device is 10.95 mm thick which is much more than most conventional smartphones these days. The back cover can be opened and you get access to two Sim card slots and the microsd card slot. The battery is removable and not embedded. The speakers are placed at back bottom and micro USB port & 3.5 mm audio jack.
The volume rocker buttons are placed at one side with the Power button (tiny circular one) placed at the same side. The Power button design may be an issue for many as the tiny circular button is often hard to reach and instead you press one of the volume rockers buttons.
It comes with on-screen navigation menu buttons instead of physical buttons which makes the screen look a bit smaller.
The InFocus Bingo 21 M430 sports a 4.5 inch FWVGA (resolution of 480 x 854 pixels) display and is powered by 1.5 GHz quad-core Spreadtrum Shark L (SC9830) processor with Mali-400 MP2 GPU with 2 GB of RAM. The Antututu Benchmark though reports SC7731 chipset instead of SC9830. We got no idea why it does that. The display is just decent enough and not so good. Yu Yunique which is priced almost similar comes with a 720 display. It appears decent enough in normal lighting but under direct sunlight it’s not that good. It does come with automatic brightness mode which works great under most lighting conditions except direct sunlight.The viewing angles on the display though is good and we didn’t face any issues in viewing the display under normal usage.
In terms of storage, it comes with 8 GB of internal memory along with micro SD card support. The end-user though get just 3.5 GB of free storage and rest is used by the operating system & pre-installed apps. It supports 4G LTE, FM Radio. It doesn’t support USB OTG and you can only use the microsd card for expansion. It comes with sensors such as proximity, light, acceleration sensor and gyroscope.
It does give you an option to install apps or games on SD card if you are running short of storage on phone memory.
Performance, Gaming and Benchmarks
The device fared better than what we expected. We played graphics intensive games such as Asphalt 8 continuously for 15-30 minutes. The game played well & we did encounter some random frame drops but no lags, but most consumers won’t notice them. The graphics and color reproduction during the game play was decent, but not as good as those with a HD display.
In terms of heating, we were surprised as the Infocus Bingo 21 M430 didnt heat up much. Even after playing games such as Asphalt 8 for 15-20 minutes, there was only a temperature increase We also checked out if the of 4-5 degrees which is quite good. Usually most smartphone heat up for at least 10-15 degrees during that.
Coming to benchmarks, it gave us a Antutu benchmark score of 25,00+. Considering the price, it is a more than good enough score as most devices under Rs. 10,000 produce similar scores and this one just priced ~Rs. 5,500.
Camera
Infocus Bingo 21 M430 comes with a main rear 8 MP Rear camera with auto focus & LED Flash, is located at the top middle and 5 MP front camera with LED flash. Presence of LED flash for the front camera in a budget smartphone is a great addition and a nice feature for many selfie lovers.
We used the camera to click pictures in different lighting conditions. THe main rear camera shutter is not fast though and you need to hold the camera steady for better shots. The camera is a decent one and you should not expect to perform as those of expensive ones. It shot few good pics in normal light conditions, but went bad under low light. The front camera did shot some good selfies and can even shot in low light conditions thanks to presence of flash with the front camera.
The camera app is bare minimum simple one with just the photo, video and panorama mode. It also comes with HDR mode though for photo mode. But you wont feel much difference even with HDR mode.
Check out some of the camera samples below under different conditions.
Infocus Bingo 21 M430 Camera Samples
[flickr_set id=”72157664892822275″]
Operating System and UI
It operates on Android 5.1 lollipop operating system. In terms of customizations, it comes with some customizations including an option to record the voice calls that you make. The option is disabled by default and you need to enable it to use it. The OS is more closer to stock android but comes with themes, different icons etc. It doe come pre-installed with some apps that you can call it bloat, but they are not too many.. It also comes with some motion features which lets you do many things like rejecting calls just by turning over the phone or answering a call directly when you move the phone near your ear. But we still prefer a stock Android without any bloat that often comes with every OEM device.The pre-installed include WPS Office, Safebox, OLX etc.
Infocus Bingo 21 M430 Screenshots
[flickr_set id=”72157662551589683″]
Battery
The InFocus Bingo 21 M430 is powered by 2,300 mAh battery which is good for a budget smartphone with not a HD display. It did last full day without any issue but drains fast if you play games such as Asphalt 8 for long periods of time.Under normal usage or even a bit of moderate usage, it lasted for more than a day. Under heavy usage, it was able to last till evening quite easily and you can charge it before sleep.
Conclusion
The InFocus Bingo 21 M430 is a great entry-level budget 4G smartphone at Rs 5,499. There are not many options available at this price range, though we will YU Yunique is a better option. InFocus Bingo 21 M430 performs great, comes with an average camera and a better front camera with LED flash, which is rare in entry-level devices. The device though did feel a bit heavy and thick, but everything else seem decent for an entry-level 4G device.
