Redefining flagships

Last year, flagships meant Rs 50,000-plus phones, but this year the trend seems to be of providing flagship performance at mid-range prices. A look at two phones which provide solid performance withou

The OnePlus 3 looks quite different from its predecessors. Its metal and glass construction looks premium, but reassuringly, some things like the notification slider, remain the same.

OnePlus is known for the kind of customisation it offers and this one's no different. The OxygenOS, based on Android Marshmallow, is virtually bloat-free. Swiping to the right, one accesses the Shelf, which displays the weather, recent apps and your choice of widget. Also, all settings are highly customisable, such as tapping to unlock the screen. But some apps take their time opening.

The OnePlus 3 has 6GB of RAM on board, so I downloaded Asphalt 8: Airborne and Need For Speed Most Wanted, two resource-hungry games. The phone heated up while downloading apps or games. Downloads done, I fired up the browser with five tabs, logged into WhatsApp and Facebook and started playing. There was absolutely no lag! But the phone started getting very hot. Shutting background apps did help, but it was still warm after a 15-minute session.

The solution, however, was simple: The review unit came with five different back covers. I selected the bamboo one and didn't feel any heat thereafter.

The OnePlus 3 sports a 16-megapixel primary camera with optical image stabilisation (OIS). Outdoor photos were excellent and those in low light were good, too, but not as much as the Galaxy S7 edge.

The phone's battery is good for a day's use and unlike others, doesn't heat up while charging.

The OnePlus 3, at Rs 27,999. is pricier than its predecessors but ticks all the boxes for a flagship and doesn't require invites. A simple patch should take care of the heating issue.

OnePlus 3
Price: Rs 27,999
Weight: 158 g
Display: 5.5-inch AMOLED
Processor: Snapdragon 820
RAM: 6GB
Storage: 64GB, non-expandable
Camera (rear/front): 16MP/8MP
Battery: 3,000 mAh

The first thing I noticed about the LeEco Le Max 2 (Rs 29,999 for 64GB) was its size; it looked considerably slimmer than the Le Max.

The screen looks vibrant and is great even under direct sunlight. The phone runs LeEco's EUI 5.6 on top of Android 6. The UI is highly customised and may not appeal to those who prefer stock Android. On the flip side, one gets 5TB cloud storage if one registers with LeEco; and a free one-year subscription to content worth Rs 4,999. Despite the customisation, the performance is blazing fast.

While it takes time to register one's fingerprint, it is well worth the effort. This is the only phone I've encountered where the fingerprint scanner works, even with wet fingers. I loved shooting panoramas with the primary 21-megapixel (MP) camera; also, the HDR mode is excellent. Surprisingly, the 8MP selfie-cam lacks depth.

Playing Asphalt 8: Airborne, there was no lag even with several apps running in the background due to its 6GB of RAM; but it did heat up a bit.

LeEco has got rid of the headphones socket on the Le Max 2; instead it uses a proprietary format to transmit music over the USB Type-C port. While this is no FiiO, the technology does a good job with high-resolution tracks, but one may not notice any improvement while regular listening. That said, if you're an audiophile, you'd like to listen to music using your favourite cans. The battery lasts more than a day with regular use.

The LeEco Le Max 2 is a delight if you want to consume multimedia and don't mind investing in new headphones.


LeEco Le Max 2
Price: Rs 29,999
Weight: 185 g
Display: 5.7-inch IPS LCD
Processor: Snapdragon 820
RAM: 6GB
Storage: 64GB, non-expandable
Camera (rear/front): 21MP/8MP
Battery: 3,100 mAh