MyPhone Agua Cyclone Review: Simple But Powerful qHD Smartphone

MyPhone Agua Cyclone Review: Simple But Powerful qHD Smartphone

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It might be plain looking, but don’t let that fool you

Smartphones have inevitably become fashion accessories these days. And much like fashion accessories, they come in all shapes and sizes. Some are particularly glitzy with faux metal accents loud colors. Some are simple, yet elegant devices – almost plain looking things that are valued more for their utility than their style. The MyPhone Agua Cyclone slots neatly in the latter category, and while it’s not a homely looking device, its main selling point is simplicity over style, which ironically, gives it a style of its own.

MyPhone Agua Cyclone specs:

  • 1.3GHz Quad Core MediaTek 6582M processor
  • Mali 400 graphics
  • 1GB RAM
  • 4GB internal storage expandable via MircoSD up to 32GB
  • 5-inch qHD IPS LCD display (960 x 540 pixels)
  • 8 megapixel rear facing camera with autofocus and flash
  • 2 megapixel front facing camera
  • HSPA+, WiFi, WiFi hotspot, Bluetooth, USB On-The-Go (OTG)
  • Dual SIM, Dual standby
  • GPS, A-GPS
  • 2,000 mAh battery
  • Android 4.2 Jellybean
  • SRP: Php 6,998

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Design and build quality

Just like what we’ve said earlier, simplicity is the phone’s main selling point. It’s overall design doesn’t make you go wow from the get go. It’s not available in gaudy colors and is only available in black and white. The back of the device doesn’t have intricate patterns that bend with the light – there’s only a simple checkered design at the back, along with the surprisingly subdued MyPhone logo near the bottom.

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The phone is surprisingly lightweight and is easy to hold. The MyPhone Agua Cyclone has a strong resemblance to the company’s former flagship phone, the MyPhone A919i. Like most of MyPhone’s other product offerings, its build quality is pretty solid.

Display

We noted in our initial unboxing that we were impressed by the MyPhone Agua Cyclone’s qHD display, and after using it for a while, our opinion of it has not changed. Despite its qHD resolution stretched on a 5-inch screen, the display is vibrant and vivid. Color reproduction is pretty accurate, and the 5-inch display of the MyPhone Agua Cyclone has excellent viewing angles. We did encounter a bit of glare while using the device under direct sunlight.

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Software and performance

While using the MyPhone Agua Cyclone, we noticed that everything was nice and fluid, thanks mainly to the 1.3GHz quad-core Mediatek processor under the hood. We ran our usual games like Dead Trigger 2 and Plants vs Zombies 2 on the device and found that gameplay is generally smooth, although we did notice that games take some time to load on rare occasions.

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The MyPhone Agua Cyclone managed to get a score of 17,271 using Antutu, which is pretty high. We also liked the customization that MyPhone did to the phone’s lock screen which allowed us to jump directly to our social networking apps, camera, search and more.

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Camera

We were quite impressed with the 8 megapixel camera in the MyPhone Agua Cyclone. Autofocus is quick and the device takes pictures in a jiffy. Although it lacks BSI (back side illumination), the camera is able to take good pictures when there’s plenty of light. In low light situations, the flash gives the right amount of light without overexposing the photo.

Internet and Connectivity

During our tests, WiFi, Bluetooth and mobile data all ran without a hitch. We also noticed that the MyPhone Agua Cyclone’s WiFi reception is slightly better than phones that we previously reviewed. Our WiFi router at home is located on the second floor of the house and we usually don’t get any kind of WiFi reception in the kitchen. That was not the case with the MyPhone Agua Cyclone, as we managed to get two bars of WiFi in the kitchen.

As far as 3G goes, all is well with the MyPhone Agua Cyclone. Both SIM slots are 3G capable.

Battery

The MyPhone Agua Cyclone’s battery life is average, at best. During our test, we found that the MyPhone Agua Cyclone is only able to last for around 7 hours with heavy use. With light to moderate use, we managed to stretch that to almost 10 hours. Like most things related to battery life, your mileage may vary.

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Verdict

The MyPhone Agua Cyclone may have a relatively simple design, but don’t let that fool you. It has a great mix of hardware, has a great camera, decent battery life and a beautiful display for only Php 6,998. If you can go over how plain it looks, we’d recommend that you grab one for yourself.

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