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MiPhone A3 – hands on with the Android powered iPhone super clone

Performance & Ergonomics

Miphonea3p

The phone is nice to the touch, solid, and with no worrying flexing of screen or body. The screen as I’ve said is top class, and programs work well, including the inbuilt browser, music player and email programs. For some reason Opera Mini decides to give up the ghost after a day’s use, can’t be bothered to re-install and see if that fixes it.

The camera? Forget it. With current incarnation of software/firmware, it’s all but useless. The images are completely over-blown. The video is better although a little jerky in the frame rate dept, and there are no controls to improve things at all on the phone. It’s like they dropped a camera lens in there by mistake and forgot about the software completely. Shame, because I suspect that with a software upgrade it might be pretty good.

Miphonecam3

Battery life seems solid. Smashing around with WiFi, GPS and lots of web access doesn’t seem to kill the battery too fast, no more than you would expect from this class of smartphone at least. You should get your day’s worth of use out of a battery, and since you’ve got two to play with, you’ll be set for those times when you’re into heavy use. Web browsing with WiFi or 3G data is crisp and satisfying. Meatier processors really do help!

Miphonea3g

One thing, keep an eye on those running apps, they can clog up the memory fast, so I regularly unload them with ATK. The other point to mention is the fact that navigation around the phone is actually very good. The combination of soft keys and the single button work well to move you forward and back. I suspect that the layout will cause compatibility problems with some programs (and indeed there are some which didn’t even load on the system) but this fragmentation of UI seems to be an Android feature at the moment, it will probably go away in future iterations.

Finally, the USB file transfer works a treat. You have the same top menu bar as with all Android handsets, just pull that down when the phone is connected to a PC USB port, mount the phone as a drive and you’re set to move files from PC to phone and back with ease. Lovely.

Conclusion

So, is it worth it, this hybrid Chinese clone phone? Well, I think the answer is a qualified maybe. The hardware itself is surprisingly good from this first impression. Solid, well built, no obviously loose or flimsy bits at all. In fact the only slightly worrying thing is the fact that the microSD slot spring looks to be a little weak, which means you have to manually pull out the card after unlatching it with a fingernail. The charging dock port for the USB cable appears to be very sturdy (much more so than the T-Mobile Pulse port which has a record of dislodging after constant use) which is reassuring.

Miphonea3e

Qualified because the software definitely needs an update, seriously. The camera is all but unusable, the glitches with the roaming icons and the slightly dodgy battery charge meter are indicative of a bunch of little things which need fixing to bring this up to real smartphone standards. Which makes this phone a puzzle.

It’s got solid power and performance, a great feature set, good build quality and an excellent price, and in normal circumstances I would be raving about it. The weird thing is that despite its flaws, I like it, it’s a nice handset and works better than I expected, which is not bad for a phone which at $245.50/£165.39 unlocked, ranks amongst the cheapest of the cheap.

I’ll talk more to the manufacturers about the issues and if a software update arrives I’ll update this post.

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21 Comments

  • There are zircons, then there are diamonds. iPhones are diamonds. Why buy a fake?

    • Because your "diamond" has a closed and repressive app store, controlled by two megalomaniacs (Steve-o and AT&T).

    • Just wait until early June when the new iPhone is released. Wonders will never cease.
      You just go ahead and get your fake crap.

    • Unless you're implying that during the June release Apple's going to announce the ability to run any app obtained outside the appstore, or that they'll back down on the draconian rules they impose on developers, or that they'll codify the rules of the currently highly cryptic approval process [In which case I'd say you're highly delusional, or have a terminal case of optimism]; your reply did not really address my objection.

      I understand that some people like living in gilded cages (remember how long it took for the iPhone to get Copy-Paste?), but don't befuddlement when some people proclaim their preference for living free.

    • That last sentence was supposed to say "don't claim befuddlement when some people proclaim their preference for living free."

    • This has a good in it. Users less likely get a fake app contain spywares that blow out of the proportion risking our security.

  • What version of Android?

    Is there a reason why you couldn't go to the official Android Market instead of AndroidLib?

    Finally, on the manufacturer website, it says its for CDMA (sprint, verizon, etc), but here it uses a sim (GSM).. do they have both??

  • Like i spot in Vkamobi

  • So, over a quarter of a million app developers are blowing smoke?? No they're making money from being able to write apps that don't screw up the phone.

    • See, you're still deflecting. Nowhere did I say that app developers were "blowing smoke" (whatever the heck that means). I said that Apple treats them like their personal masochistic b*tches. The developers let themselves get subjugated exactly for the reason that you stated: they get paid. That doesn't make the way Apple treats them, or the iron-handed grip they have and what should be the USER's phone, right or defensable.

    • Case in point: http://shiftyjelly.wordpress.com/2010/06/01/sente

  • Hi,
    Really good review! I bought the "updated 800mhz" version of the phone from Mobino1.com but I got the version you reviewed. Really annoying, the shippment was fast but the service after when I told them that I got the wrong phone was awful.
    Like they didn't care at all, and that pissed me off. They just said, we made a mistake, sorry for that. Hope you understand. That's all when I told how do we fix this.
    After that I've tried to reason with them, I know that if I tried to send it back, it would take me forever, and the phone is actually pretty good. Instead of that, I tried to get them to send me the ROM for the firmware, but no luck there either. Now they just ignoring me, after a few. Thanks for all, have a nice day. When I tried to talk with them over msn. Anyway, the reason I write this comment, is first I really like this blog, and second if someone know were I can find the ROM for the phone.

    Cheers!

    • Bought from Mobino1 myself, terrible customer service and a nightmare t deal with. Would not recommend.

  • Thanks for the great review. I am so use to reading disparaging comments about smart phones intended for the Chinese market it is refreshing to read something that is fair and balanced. Remember, all you people who want to sneer at 'fakes', this is intended for Chinese consumers with Chinese income levels. For the price I think that this phone offers amazing performance and hardware and as the reviewer wrote it would only take a firmware upgrade to make it something really great. The Chinese are learning fast and it is only a matter of time before we see the world conquering Chinese smartphone.

    Can someone provide the URL for the manufacturer's website?

    • Bought this phone and it is rubbish, carera is very poor, speaker is very poor also. Build quality is sub-par. Software is not complete. I could go on and on and on…….. Eventually I paid about 10% more for a proper smartphone by a major manufacturer and could not be happier. Also be aware you will probably have to pay customs tax if buying in USA or Europe so the price differential is nothing. GET A PROPER PHONE!

  • Hey guys,

    we are starting a new website where we reviews chinese phones and suppliers (wholesellers).

    It would be great if you guys can give your opinions about it and maybe even become members on our forum.

    The URL is http://www.chinamobileseurope.com
    Thank you in advance!

    John Dekenz

  • Anyone know if the screen on the A3 is solid, as opposed to the soft creaky LCD screens you get on some Chinese 'touch screen' mobiles (e.g. Miphone M89)?

    Also, whether Android allows synchronisation with Microsoft Outlook (calendar and contacts) like Windows phones do? Thanks.

  • Miphon A3 do not advise anyone. Bought and is very sorry about this – do not spend money you do not get the fact that the stated

  • It's great to see reviews of reasonably priced phones. There's a market for decent phones (not apple fakes) with good software for those of us not interested in the apple hype & restrictions.

    It would also be good to see recommendations for legitimate stores selling stuff like this – ie good products, fair price, good service

  • How can i unlock my mi A300 phone?

  • It looks like iphone

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