The Lenovo A7000 might not be the most popular sub-Php10k smartphone out there, but it’s certainly among the top choices. Not only does it pack bang for buck specs that make it a steal for its price point, it’s also from a reputable manufacturer with a reliable after-sales infrastructure. Dolby Atmos on a smartphone isn’t quite what I was expecting though, but we’ll get more into that in my hands-on review of the Lenovo A7000.
The Design
The Lenovo A7000 looks just like any other touchscreen smartphone. There isn’t even an accent strip to give it any character. Thankfully, the power/lock button and volume rocker have a silver finish at least, so it’s not completely nondescript.
The Hardware
Of course, don’t let the generic appearance fool you. The Lenovo A7000 packs a 5.5 inch HD IPS display with a pixel density of 267ppi. It’s worth noting that it’s protected by Asahi Dragontrail glass, which is more resistant to scratches and impact. Under the hood is a 1.5GHz MediaTek MT6752m octa-core processor with 2GB RAM. It only comes with 8GB of internal storage though, which is disappointing, although it can still be expanded via microSD. The 8mp rear shooter is also a bit disappointing, even if it does come with a dual LED flash. Still, it’s made up for thanks to 4G/LTE support and a massive 2,900mAh battery.
The Software
The A7000 runs Android 5.0 Lollipop out of the box with Lenovo’s own Vibe UI 3.0 on top. The custom Vibe UI is one of those launchers that doesn’t have an app drawer, which is common in the Chinese smartphone market. The UI can also be tweaked through a neat theming system, although admittedly, I’m not too fond about not having an app drawer. Thankfully, that can easily be remedied with a 3rd party launcher.
The Lenovo A7000’s real claim to fame though is that it comes with Doly Atmos support and is only one of four devices to currently have it. However, if you’re familiar with the Dolby Atmos in cinemas, this is far from the same thing. What it comes down to is really just an equalizer tool that lets you play around with sound frequencies depending on the content you’re playing. Sure, you can achieve a sense of space with a few tweaks and it’s a nice feature to have, but the difference isn’t anything to write home about.
My Impressions
Sure, the internal storage and quality of the rear camera is a bit disappointing, but for the money, you can easily let those small issues slip past. Dolby Atmos, which was being hyped quite a bit, wasn’t what I was hoping for it to be though. It’s nice to have, but many audio and media playing apps tend to have their own ways to tweak the equalizer, so it’s a bit redundant. All in all, the Lenovo A7000 is a solid mid-ranger that will perform like last year’s flagships. If you’re interested in picking one up, Lazada sells it for Php7,499 when they have it on stock. If you’re not willing to wait, they now have it in offline retailers as well at Php7,999.
Lenovo A7000 Specs
- 5.5″ HD IPS display (720 x 1280 resolution, 267ppi) protected by Asahi Dragontrail Glass
- 1.5GHz MediaTek MT6752m octa-core processor
- Mali T760 GPU
- Android 5.0 Lollipop with Vibe UI 3.0
- 2GB RAM
- 8GB internal storage, expandable via microSD
- 8mp autofocus rear-facing camera with dual LED flash
- 5mp front camera
- 4G/LTE
- WiFi
- Bluetooth
- GPS
- 2,900mAh battery
