Huawei Ideos X5 Review

Welcome to the 2011 Huawei Ideos X5 review page. The Ideos X5 has been around for a little while now but we only recently had a chance to try it out last week. The Ideso X5 was released in various markets but only arrived here recently.  It has a low outright price of under $300 and combined with decent hardware specifications makes it a must try for those wanting a good value Android based smart phone.

The X5 is easy to use as any other Android phone. The X5 does not have any OS modifications that we could tell so very easy to customise with numerous theme apps and icon sets.  We only wished it came out with version 2.3 of the software rather than 2.2 which is looking dated. Everything worked quickly with minimal lag although it could do with a faster CPU or additional GPU to make games work better.

If you have a Gmail address the you can Sync everything with your account including phone numbers and calender entries. The big question is whether you trust Google with your personal data. Thankfully you can turn off the Google accounts Sync process and use MS Exchange or Outlook.

The best bits of the Ideos X5 is the very large screen for its price at 3.8 inches with the standard resolution of 480 x 800.  There is no special screen technology so the image quality is very good for the price category. Apart from that the construction is good although missing a dedicated camera button for photos or movies. The location of the camera lens does help those taking movies. However there is the bonus of exchangeable batteries. The X5 only has the 900/2100Mhz 3G band so it will work with most networks but not Telstra.

Overall we are running out of interesting things to say about Android phones – after all they can do everything you want. If it doesn’t have the function than you can simply go to the App store for a download.

A word of caution with the Apps on the store though. Some Android Apps require excessive permissions which any reasonable person would be shocked. A simple wallpaper or game that wants your phone number and access to your system log is not worth having. Since the privacy policies or promises by the developer essentially means no accountability – Beware – read the permissions before downloading. Likewise for Apps from iTunes and iPhone, since their hidden it is even scarier! Your personal and credit card details are worth more than a throw away App.

Overall you can forgive almost any problem with the Ideos X5 because it is now priced very well. That said that is nothing intrinsically wrong or exceptional about the phone.  The X5 is also the logical step up from the Ideos X3 and X1 and Sonic. However the main question that potential owners will need to consider is whether other even cheaper Android based phones such as numerous HTC and Samsung models and others priced the same of even cheaper (with network locked pre-paid) with the same level of features. Our advise is to see which one looks and feels best before purchase.

Specifications

• Huawei Ideos X5 (U8800)
• Network
  Quad-band GSM 850/900/1800/1900
  Dual-band 3G 900/2100
  HSDPA 7.2 Mbits data speed (download)
• Design
  Touch screen
• L120 x W62 x D11.6 mm
  Weight 136 grams
• Display/s
  External 3.8 Inch TFT 480 x 800
• Camera
  5MP
  LED Flash
• Video Camera
  HD 720P 30 FPS
• Connectivity
  Wi-Fi
  Bluetooth V2.1
• CPU
  800Mhz
• Memory
  Up to 8Gig available to user
  MicroSD up to 32Gig
• Ring tones
  MIDI, MP3, Video, vibration and others
• Features
  A-GPS
  Proximity
  Accelerometer (G-Sensor)
  Light Sensor
  Music and Media player
  Organiser/Calender
  SMS, MMS, IM, Email
  Speaker Phone/Hands free
  Li-Po 15000mAh battery
• Price history
  Under $280 AUS 2011 (Outright)