We go hands-on with the Lenovo Vibe Shot!
Yesterday Lenovo Philippines officially launched their bang for the buck A7000, but Lenovo’s top man in the PH, Mobile Country Head Dino Romano, couldn’t resist pulling out their next big phone – the Vibe Shot. We first saw the Vibe Shot in Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain back in March and we’re more than happy to spend a little bit more time with Lenovo’s latest phone.
Lenovo Vibe Shot specs
- 1.7Ghz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 processor
- 3GB of RAM
- 5-inch full HD display, Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection, 1920 x 1080 resolution
- 32GB of storage, expandable via microSD up to 128GB
- 16-megapixel rear camera with OIS, IR laser AF, triple LED flash
- 8-megapixel front facing camera
- Dual-SIM
- 3G, LTE
- WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, A-GPS
- Android 5.0 Lollipop
- 2900mAh battery
Initial Impressions: Feels more like a camera than a phone
One of the first things you’ll notice with the Vibe Show when you see it in the flesh for the first time is how much it actually looks like a camera, specifically, Sony’s old TX series of point and shoots. That’s not a coincidence – the Vibe Shot is a phone that has been engineered with photography in mind, and it shows in the design of the device.
In keeping with the photography focus of the device, the Vibe Shot has a 2-stage shutter release that’s akin to the ones found in point and shoots. A half press allows the autofocus to do its job, while pressing all the way takes a photo with the 16-megapixel rear camera. There’s also a switch on the side that allows you to quickly switch from smart mode (automatic) to pro mode. Pro mode allows you to control a lot variables in the shot, including ISO level, white balance, exposure and more.
The 16-megapixel rear sensor on the Vibe Shot may not impress many, but Lenovo’s thrown in a bunch of features that make the camera better than most of the shooters on the market. For one, the rear camera has optical image stabilization (OIS) to make shots less blurry with low light. There’s also a tri-color flash, though to be honest we hoped that Lenovo put in a Xenon one instead. The camera also uses an IR laser focus system similar to LG’s G3 to ensure quick focus every time you need to take a shot.
On the hardware side, the Vibe Shot sports a 5-inch full HD display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 processor, 32GB of storage. Android 5.0 and LTE. Lenovo’s pegged the Vibe Shot to launch in the PH by June or July, though they haven’t mentioned a price range yet.
