Okay, so the recently revealed Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 might not be the first locally branded octa core smartphone, but it is the first one to come with a Full HD screen. And with an impressively affordable Php12,999 price tag, it’s expected to be one of the most sought-after local smartphones in the months to come.
However, there are some questions that need to be answered before deciding to go out and actually buy the Cosmos Z2. Is “octa core” really worth all the hype? Just how much better is the Cosmos Z2 compared to anything else we’ve seen before? Fortunately, I was able to get some hands on time with it so read on to find out if the Cosmos Z2 is the phone for you in this quick hands on preview.
Build Quality and Design
The Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 is one of the sleekest phones I’ve ever seen from the local brand. The O+ Imagine has a better-looking finish because of its scratch-proof glass on both sides of the phone, but the Cosmos Z2 is thinner, measuring a svelte 7.5mm thick. Also, the matte finish of the plastic gives it an understated elegance that doesn’t easily smudge from fingerprints.
The Screen
The Cosmos Z2 features a 5 inch Full HD IPS display with a pixel density of 441ppi. That puts the screen at par with the best flagship phones that international brands have to offer, if at least for the next few months.
The color reproduction is spot on and viewing angles are comfortably wide that you could probably watch movies with a small group of friends and still be able to appreciate the image quality.
Performance
The Cosmos Z2 is equipped with a 1.7GHz octa core MediaTek MT6592 processor coupled with a Mali 450 GPU. There’s also an extra generous 2GB RAM for enhanced multi-tasking. Of course, this is probably what you’ve been itching to learn more about. Do octa core phones really perform so much better than the quad core phones that we already have? The MT6592-equipped Cosmos Z2 certainly does, at least, according to Antutu. We managed to run the popular benchmarking app on the Cosmos Z2 and here’s the result.
It set a score of 26,521, which is about the same score as an HTC One. While this is just based on a synthetic benchmark and actual performance in real life might be slightly different, the Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 performs as well as a phone that retails for 3 times as much as its Php12,999 selling price. I’m pretty sure this will run games like NOVA 3 and Real Racing 3 very smoothly.
Battery Life
The Cosmos Z2 is powered by a 2,000mAh battery. That’s about the norm for quad core phones with HD screens, but the Cosmos Z2 has an octa core processor and a Full HD screen. The general assumption is that the Cosmos Z2’s battery life will be worse because more cores and a higher resolution screen will suck a battery dry faster than a processor with fewer cores and a lower resolution screen.
However according to this video, MediaTek’s MT6592 octa core solution can actually provide a 42% power-savings versus their competitor’s quad core solution. Again, this is based on synthetic benchmarks, but if that’s the case, the power-savings will be able to compensate for the increased power draw from the higher resolution Full HD screen and provide close the same battery life we’re accustomed to from our local quad core smartphones.
Still, it would have been nice if the Z2 had a larger capacity battery. It’s already quite thin at 7.5mm. I’m sure they could have spared a bit more space to accommodate a larger battery.
Impressions
Cherry Mobile really wowed us with the Cosmos Z2. It’s the next logical step forward in terms of specs and performance with local phones, but Cherry Mobile managed to take that step while keeping the price under Starmobile’s own octa core offering. I’ll be saving up to buy this one, not necessarily to review it, but just because I want a local phone that will finally run Real Racing 3 and NOVA 3 smoothly enough for me to enjoy them.
Cherry Mobile Cosmos Z2 Specs
- 5″ Full HD IPS display (1080 x 1920 resolution, 441ppi)
- 1.7GHz octa core MediaTek MT6592 processor
- Mali 450 GPU
- Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, planned upgrade to 4.4 KitKat in March 2014
- 2GB RAM
- 16GB internal storage
- 18mp BSI rear-facing autofocus camera with LED flash
- 8mp front camera
- 3.5G/HSPA+
- WiFi b/g/n
- Bluetooth 4.0
- GPS with A-GPS
- 2,000mAh battery
- Dimensions: 145 x 69.8 x 7.5mm
- Price: Php12,999
thumbs up for cherry mobile! =)