This phone is the only serious competition to Galaxy Note 3!

At Rs 30,000 for 32GB and 3GB RAM, 16MP rear camera and 8MP front camera, a 2.5GHz process, Gionee Elife E7 is giving competition some tough time, says Shruti Puri.

Smartphones these days are serving the purpose of a feature-rich camera as well. Gionee Elife E7 is one such flagship that brings to you this combination in the best possible manner.

Basically, with this handset the company is trying to enter the bigger race and has provided it with some very innovative features and its very awesome Amigo 2.0 camera interface.

This handset is made for shooting and if you are a dedicated shutterbug, you are simply going to love this masterpiece of technology.

What we like

• Affordable Pricing at Rs 30,000 (32GB with 3GB RAM) and Rs 27,000 (16GB with 2GB RAM)
• Amigo 2.0 camera interface with Professional and Normal options
• Huge RAM with 2GB and 3GB, thus resulting in long hour multi-tasking and high-end gaming

What we don't like

• No memory card slot
• Image stabilisation feature missing from video features.
• Single SIM
• Design and display

The curvy ergonomic design makes it feel very comfortable and provides you with a concrete grasp of your hand. Its 5.5-inch touchscreen offers 1080 x 1920 pixel-resolution and a pixel density of ~401ppi (pixels per inch) and simply aims to provide you a perfect on-screen view so that you enjoy your reading, playing or watching time to the fullest.

The third generation Corning Gorilla Glass has been used over the display to offer extra protection.

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Processor and OS

The company has shipped this handset with world's strongest processor, that is, Qualcomm MSM8274 quad-core Snapdragon 800 and is available in two variants -- one with 2.2GHz clock cycle which is used in the 3G variant and the other that offers 2.5GHz clock speed will be available in the 4G variant.

Talking of the operating system, this handset employs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean with a topping of AMIGO 2.0 UI for camera that gifts the handset the most amazing user experience.

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Camera

The main USP of E7 is its camera and hence is given the title, 'E7 -- Perfect for Shooting'. It features a 16MP rear camera with 1.34μm pixel, 1/2.3-inch sensor, Largan M8 lens made of Sapphire Glass with AR protective film.

The front facing camera stands perfect at 8MP Auto Focus sensor with 1.4 micropixels for better low light images. Such a front-facing camera allows you to go for perfect video calling and selfies as well.

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Camera features

The Elife E7's camera module is made up of a 1/2.3-inch Omnivision sensor, a f2.2 aperture, Largan M8 lens, accompanied by a single LED flash, powerful camera motors and a secondary microphone.

Moreover, with AR protective film, the Sapphire lens glass becomes three times as hard compared to ordinary glasses.

Along with all the solid design of its Amigo 2.0 camera, Elife E7 is also equipped with many built-in functions and features so that you can enhance your shots according to your taste.

SR Auto Mode: It offers 7 Auto-Intelligent Scene Recognition function namely automatic, portrait, close-up, night, night portrait, backlight and backlight portrait and all these work so accurately that you end up clicking the moment exactly the way it is.

Auto Beauty & Auto Makeup Levels: The Amigo 2.0 camera interface offers 12 levels of Auto Beauty and 12 levels of auto makeup mode that will give a completely new look to your image.

Also it has Color Mode, wherein there is an automatic adjustment of saturation and colour. Macro mode produces great depth in the shots due to the f2.2 aperture and 4.88mm focal length and even video recording is amazing with an extraordinary sound clarity.

Meeting Memo Mode: Converts captured images in PDF files, thus a useful tool in making business presentations. There are nine filters as well that will help in giving a desired look to your picture.

Also there are two special features, called V-shot and 'Smile shot' that will click a picture only when the person in focus will show a peace sign.

Camera Interface: Elife E7 holds two interfaces -- Professional and Normal. Selecting the normal interface will auto-change the settings, depending on the scenario. The professional interface, on the other hand, adds minutest details to the picture, giving it a unique touch.

Video Recording: Video player formats are avi, 3gp and mp4 and video recording can be done at less than 30fps (frames per second). 4x digital zoom, 1x optical zoom, Auto-Focus, Smile Shutter, Image Editor and ISO Sensitivity ranging from 100 to 1600.

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Memory and battery

Gionee Elife E7 is available in two memory variants of 16GB and 32GB with 2GB and 3GB of RAM, respectively.

No microSD card slot has been provided to this smartphone, so no chance of expanding the external storage. In terms of processing speed, RAM of 2GB and 3GB are extraordinary figures and surely provide a huge edge in terms of multi-tasking and high-end gaming.

To support all such heavy features and functionalities, Elife E7 is fuelled by a powerful non-removable Li-Po 2,500mAh battery.

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Additional features

The capable three mic noise reduction system will eliminate any background noise and records the clearest audio for you. Basic connectivity features like GPRS, EDGE, 2G, 3G, 4G (optional), Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi Hotspot, Bluetooth v4.0, NFC, microUSB v2.0 and USB on-the-go are supported by the handset.

In addition, to wake up the screen, you just need to perform a double tap and with the Black Screen Gesture feature, you can simply draw the gestures on the black screen which then goes directly into the customised corresponding procedures.

Competitors

Gionee Elife E7 is very much appreciated in the market for the balance in all its features and functions and has proved to be a major rival for Micromax Canvas Knight, Samsung Galaxy Grand 2, Samsung Galaxy Note 3, Nexus 4, Nexus 5, Moto X, Lenovo Vibe X, etc.

Reader Invite

Are you a gadget/gaming wizard/afficianado? Would you like to write on gadgets, gaming, the Internet, software technologies, OSs and the works for us? Send us a sample of your writing to gadgetsandgaming@rediffmail.com with the subject as 'I'm a tech wizard/afficianado' and we will get in touch with you.

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