Affordable smartphones with specs that don't just scratch the spec sheet surface - those have been getting quite popular, and Lenovo is keen on being a part of it with the Vibe K5 Plus.
A 5-inch Full-HD screen, last year's top-selling midrange chipset rehashed for 2016, 2GB of RAM, a 13MP camera, dual-SIM connectivity, and a dedicated microSD slot sound like Lenovo's been paying attention to what's in demand. Certainly not going to shake up the Galaxy S7, but at around $130, it's a whole different piece of the pie the Vibe K5 Plus is after.
First things first though - that name call for a little clarification. The K5 family consists of three models so far, the plain Vibe K5, the Vibe K5 Plus we have here, and the Vibe K5 Note. While some makers use the Plus to identify a larger screen, here it denotes the Full-HD resolution as opposed to the regular K5's 720p, and a Snapdragon 616 instead of a Snapdragon 415. And that's the entire list of differences.
It's the Vibe K5 Note that stands out, being the phablet of the bunch. A 5.5-inch Full-HD screen, Helio P10 chipset and a fingerprint sensor, an 8MP selfie camera and a larger battery clearly put the Note a notch above its siblings. It's a whole different matter why Lenovo has the K4 Note and the K5 Note both at the same time with only marginal differences in specs.
Back to the task at hand - the Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus.
Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus key features
- Dual-SIM support
- 5.0-inch LCD IPS 1,080 x 1,920px resolution, 441ppi
- Snapdragon 616 chipset: Quad-core 1.5 GHz Cortex-A53 & quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A53, Adreno 405 GPU, 2GB of RAM
- Android 5.1 Lollipop
- 13MP rear-camera, f/2.2, autofocus, single-LED flash, 1080p@30fps video
- 5MP front-facing camera, f/2.8
- 16GB of storage, expandable by up to 32GB via microSD [dedicated slot]
- LTE Cat.4 150 Mbps, Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac, GPS/GLONASS, Bluetooth 4.0, FM radio
- Removable 2,750mAh Li-Ion battery
- Noise canceling dedicated secondary microphone, rear-firing stereo speakers, FM radio
Main shortcomings
- Limited regional availability
- No Marshmallow
- Effectively 48GB of maximum storage
For $130 that's a very long list of features, and the disadvantages are far from deal-breakers. Perhaps the Android version is the one that stands out. With budget phones rarely getting updates, Lollipop is likely what the Vibe K5 Plus will spend its entire life with.
The limited availability is more like the reason for the Vibe K5 Plus' existence, rather than an issue with the phone itself - after all, it was made to compete in emerging markets where price is a decider. The storage cap is but a minor hassle that is having to swap 32GB microSD cards, but we're not seeing it as a major turn-off.
Now, all that remains to be done is to find out if the spec sheet makes up a good smartphone experience. Joins us on the next page for the hardware overview.
We’re getting plenty of good vibes from Lenovo’s latest mid-range phone. With a metal body and a price that’s even lower than the Moto G, what’s not to like?
With the Motorola name being folded into Lenovo and the Moto team concentrating on the Moto G and Moto X, Lenovo’s got a good thing going on at the entry-level. There’s still room for something a little further up the chain without stepping on Moto’s toes though – that’s where the K5 Vibe Plus fits in.
We got to try it out on Lenovo’s booth at MWC, to see if there’s any substance underneath the cool metal body.
Style icon
That’s right, it’s another iPhone look-a-like. Right down to the choice of colours, the K5 Plus does its best to ape Apple’s handset.
There are hints of the 5S, mixed with more modern touches from the 6S, and Android’s familiar touch-sensitive buttons, so it does look fairly attractive in the flesh.
The power and volume keys don’t quite feel up to the same standard as the rest of the phone, but at least they sit in a sensible position for your fingers and thumb.
Don’t believe the hype over the Dolby Atmos stereo speakers on the back, though. We couldn’t give them a full test on the crowded show floor, but there’s no way they’ll be able to match an actual Atmos home cinema system.
Sleeper cell
You might not expect a mid-ranger like this to have killer specs, but the K5 Plus is surprisingly potent.
You’ve got a 5in, 1080p screen on the front, a 13MP camera sensor on the back, and a Snapdragon 615 running the show with 2GB of RAM. 16GB of storage is fairly standard for a phone so cheap, but at least you can slap in a microSD card for extra capacity when you need it.
That screen isn’t half bad, either. The pixels are jammed in tight enough that everything looks sharp, it’s bright enough to see clearly even under strong lights, and the colours look reasonably accurate.
The bad news is that the K5 Plus runs Android 5.1, rather than Marshmallow. For a phone that’s not going to launch for a while [Lenovo won’t even set a vague date yet] it really should have the latest version of Android.
You have to put up with Lenovo’s custom skin, too. It’s admittedly been toned down slightly from previous years, but you still lose out on an app drawer in favour of iPhone-style multiple homescreens for all your apps. Pretty much everything has a custom icon, too, so it can be tricky to find the one you want on the first try.
Baby brother
The K5 Plus isn’t going to cost the earth at $150, but Lenovo’s still found a way to squeeze every penny and reduce that price down even further.
The result is the K5, a virtually identical phone that swaps the 1080p display for a 720p panel and the Snapdragon 616 for a slower 415.
Don’t need speed or pixels, but want style and a camera that won’t crap out on you? The K5 fits the bill.
Early verdict
Like a lot of so-called premium mid-range phones, the Vibe K5 Plus is built to a price. That means the metal doesn’t feel quite as nice as on a real flagship phone, the screen isn’t as sharp and it’s not quite as snappy as we’d like.
It’s still got good looks, though, and that 13MP camera could be quite potent in the daylight.
The big question is whether the K5 Plus will actually make it around the world, or if it’ll stay in Asia. There’s no official word on an expanded release, but if the crowd reception here at MWC is positive, Lenovo could decide to roll it out globally later in the year.