Indian manufacturer Intex, known for affordable computer peripherals, is trying to make a mark in the smartphone market with its Aqua range. One of the new phones in this line-up is Aqua Wonder, which costs Rs 9,990 in the market. This device is placed in the price band of the popular Micromax Canvas 2 as well as Karbonn S1 Titanium, the cheapest quad-core phone in the country. But don't expect this phone to be capable of handling these strong rivals and give a top of the line user experience in its category. Read on to know why... Hardware and design Intex Aqua Wonder features a 4.5-inch IPS screen that boasts of 960x540p resolution and 244ppi pixel density. The device is powered by a 1GHz dual-core Mediatek processor coupled with 512MB RAM and offers 4GB inbuilt storage (2GB user accessible) and 32GB microSD card support. For connectivity, the device has 2G, 3G, Wi-Fi, microUSB 2.0 and Bluetooth 4.0. The rear sports an 8MP snapper with dual-LED flash, whereas the front has a 1.3MP unit.
The design theme followed by Intex in Aqua Wonder smartphone is pleasing to the eye and reminds of Samsung Galaxy devices due to the curved edges. This phone is available in black as well as white colours and looks good, with its thin profile being a strong point. The device has waistline of 8.9mm, weighs just 125gram and fits in the palm easily.
Aqua Wonder has the standard three-key-layout of Android devices below the display, while the regular sensors and front camera are above it. On the left is the volume rocker, while the Power/Lock key is on the right. MicroUSB port and earphone jack are placed on top, whereas the bottom has no slots or ports. An 8MP camera, dual-LED flash, speaker grille as well as the company's branding are on the phone's back.
Software Intex Aqua Wonder is powered by Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) and, thus, enjoys Google's Project Butter optimisations that ensure a trouble-free user experience. There are no major customisations in the operating system of this phone, except one-touch widgets in Notification Bar and easy access to messaging, dialler, home screen and camera from the Lock Screen. Some of the apps preloaded in this phone are Facebook, WhatsApp, Nimbuzz, Skype etc. Overall, the OS is not heavy and can handle regular tasks easily.
Performance The Aqua Wonder smartphone - powered by a 1GHz dual-core processor - is certainly no powerhouse. It secured a score of 7589 on Antutu benchmark test, thus showing that it does not have much raw computing power. 512MB RAM is a common feature in this price band, so we will not crib much about that.
Fortunately, the device runs on Android 4.1 and is smooth to use. We faced no problems while accessing commonly used apps like messaging, dialler, camera, WhatsApp, email etc. However, a few graphic intensive games stressed the device as we observed intermittent lag quite a few times. We found ourselves killing tasks every few minutes in order to conserve resources in this phone.
The touchscreen is good as we did not experience any major problems when it came to the display. The IPS panel renders vibrant colours, provides wide viewing angles and offers decent sunlight legibility.
The camera on the back of Intex Aqua Wonder is not up to the task as images it took were overexposed and colours were off. You will lose a lot of details in photographs due to this camera. The front camera is also strictly meant for video calls and does not boast of any features. Overall, the camera was a disappointment, especially since rival smartphones at same price do a much better job.
Another gripe we have with Aqua Wonder is its poor battery life. With approximately an hour each of calling, internet usage and video playback, we saw the 1,800mAh battery of the phone being drained out in less than half a day. Battery life being one of the most important aspects of smartphones today, we would have liked to get some more juice from this device.
Rivals Intex Aqua Wonder's two chief rivals are Micromax Canvas 2 and Karbonn S1 Titanium. The former is quite popular as it capitalises on Indian buyers' fascination with a 5-inch screen, which happens to be its differentiating factor in this price bracket. Ironically, the big screen of Micromax Canvas 2 has poor resolution of 854x540p, which means that Intex Aqua Wonder scores a point in the display race. Rest of the specifications remain largely same in the two phones.
The better option here is Karbonn S1 Titanium, the cheapest phone in India with a quad-core processor. The beefier CPU and 1GB RAM give this phone a distinct advantage over Intex Aqua Wonder, whereas the screen is the same in both the devices. Therefore, the Karbonn phone is the better option though it costs Rs 300-400 more.
Verdict Intex Aqua Wonder has a lot of things going in its favour at the price point of Rs 9,990. Its appealing design, good screen and smooth interface pleased us, but we just cannot recommend this phone due to poor battery life. Otherwise, the phone is acceptable and does all tasks reasonably. If you are looking for a phone in the range of Rs 10,000, then Karbonn S1 Titanium is a better bet.
What we like Good display Smooth user interface Appealing looks
What we don't like Poor battery life Below par image quality
Price: Rs 9,990
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