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Lenovo K3 Note review exposes excellent all-rounder

by on08 August 2015

Index

Lenovo K3 Note Specs and Performance

What sets the Lenovo K3 Note apart from most of the competition is the well balanced spec. Instead of integrating gimmicks, Lenovo decided to keep it simple and focus its efforts on what really matters.

As a result, the K3 Note ended up with a 1080p IPS panel, although most of its potential competitors rock 720p panels. 4G is on board as well, but there aren’t that many bells and whistles. Still, you do get a lot for your money, including a good battery and camera.

Lenovo K3 Note specs:

  • SoC: MediaTek MT6752, 28nm HPM
  • CPU: Eight 64-bit Cortex-A53 cores clocked at up to 1.7GHz
  • GPU: ARM Mali-T760 MP2 at up to 700MHz
  • RAM: 2GB
  • Storage: 16GB internal storage (single partition), microSD slot up to 64GB
  • Display: 5.5-inch 1080p IPS panel
  • OS: Android 5.0 w/ Vibe UI on top
  • Rear camera: 13-megapixel sensor
  • Front facing camera: 5-megapixel sensor
  • Battery: 3000mAh lithium ion, user-replaceable
  • Dimensions: 15.2 x 76 x 7.9mm
  • Weight: 145g
  • WiFi and Bluetooth: 802.11b/g/n WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0
  • Sensors: ambient light, direction, accelerometer, compass, proximity, GPS, A-GPS
  • SIM card: dual SIM (micro SIM), dual standby
  • Network support:
  • 2G: GSM 900/1800/1900MHz
  • 3G: WCDMA 850/900/1900/2100MHz
  • 4G: FDD-LTE 1800/2100/2600MHz (Make sure to check regional compatibility prior to making a purchase)

Eagle-eyed camera geeks may have noticed that we did not specify what sort of camera sensor Lenovo decided to use. The company merely states that the main camera has an f2.0 aperture, but we are not entirely certain whether we are looking at a Sony, Samsung, or Omnivision sensor. The same goes for the front camera, but we will talk about that it detail in the next section.

The phone does not support NFC, but like most Asian phones, it has an FM radio.

We also like the fact that the storage is not partitioned, you get 16GB in one go. You can also use the microSD slot to beef up your music collection, and the phone can accommodate two SIM cards and a memory card at the same time, which is not the case on some dual-SIM phones with card tray designs.

sim slots

Now, it’s time for some bench scores (spoiler alert – they are quite good).

Antutu chart

Antutu comes in just shy of 46,000, which is an excellent score for this sort of device.

3dmark unlimited

In 3D Mark Ice Storm Unlimited, the Lenovo K3 Note manages to outpace the competition based on the same MT6752 processor, and Qualcom’s Snapdragon 615.

basemark chart

Basemark OS results aren’t as impressive, but they’re still ok.

As you can see, the K3 Note punches well above its weight. The MediaTek MT6752 is a good performer, so it has no trouble handling a 1080p display. Of course, it’s still not close to flagship devices in terms of overall performance, especially in the GPU department.

Still, considering the price and target audience, these scores aren’t just adequate, they are excellent. What’s more, the responsiveness of the UI and Lenovo’s applications (namely the camera), is impressive for such a cheap device.


Last modified on 09 August 2015
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