Smartphone review Highscreen Omega Prime S - a new color every day

    The Russian brand Highscreen has in its arsenal a large number of models for every taste and budget, no matter how stereotyped it sounds. The device that we will talk about today refers to the budget segment (7-8 thousand rubles). At the same time, it has a nice thin case (6.9 mm) and a complete set of four multi-colored covers. The 4.7-inch device was the logical complement to the Highscreen Omega Prime Mini SE - also a "chameleon", but with a 4.3-inch display.



    Contents of delivery


    Omega Prime S is packaged in a classic Highscreen recycled cardboard box.



    The Highscreen Omega Prime S, like its predecessor, the Omega Prime Mini, comes with interchangeable sockets in the kit. True, instead of five of them it became 4. A pity. Also in the box, in addition to the phone itself, you will find simple earphones-headset, USB-cable and memory, warranty card and brief instructions.



    Design


    The device, in my opinion, turned out to be pretty. In general, the latest Highscreen models are made in the same style and are quite recognizable. Not to say that the pipes are "torn" from different Chinese factories. Highscreen Omega Prime S is similar to Omega Prime mini, except that the screen has become larger and the device itself is thinner (case 6.9 mm versus 7.8 mm). Before us is definitely one of the thinnest smartphones in the budget class.



    The weight of the device is only 100 grams: when you first take it in your hands, you are immediately struck by the lightness. This is not a “shovel” - the streamlined Highscreen Omega Prime S case is convenient to hold and use with one hand, it does not interfere in the pockets of clothes.



    The highlight of the device is given by four interchangeable sockets. According to the mood, you can make the phone a classic white or black (matte panels), and if you want to add colors, juicy yellow and red covers (glossy) are available. You can change according to your mood, or you can change it as you wear out (no one is safe from unpleasant accidents). The panels are pleasant to the touch, do not slip in the palm of your hand. I was pleased that fingerprints are almost invisible on glossy covers. It is also worth noting that the side keys are built into removable panels, that is, their color also changes.



    The front panel collects fingerprints with a bang. And all because of the lack of oleophobic coating. Screen protector - plastic. There is no question of Gorilla Glass, however, the material is resistant to scratches - for a month the test did not appear noticeable. By the way, initially on the display there is a protective film. When the screen is off, the frame is almost invisible.

    The assembly of the Highscreen Omega Prime S is beyond praise - no creaks and backlashes. Even the periodic change of panels did not affect this.

    Let's look at the phone from all sides. Above the display is a front camera, light and proximity sensors, a speaker. Below it is the round touch key Home (similar to that of Meizu) and “back” with a “menu” in the form of dots (at first you get confused, because it is not clear where). The backlight is comfortable, it does not blind at night.



    On the left side there is a “rocker” for volume control, on the right there is a lock button. The keys are located well, a little taut, but the move is clear.





    The cable connector is located at the top, next to the audio output. This is not very convenient if you need to talk on the phone connected to the charge.



    The back panel is easy to remove (just pry a special groove with your fingernail), and is mounted on a variety of latches. Under it you will see a battery, two slots for microSIM cards (as usual, only one slot works with 3G networks) and a slot for a memory card.





    Screen


    Highscreen displays are usually not economical. So Prime S has a very decent matrix. The diagonal is 4.7 inches, the resolution is HD 1280x720 pixels. The picture is clear, we are not talking about any graininess. The matrix is ​​IPS, without an air gap, which means a lively and juicy picture. Of the shortcomings - a weak black depth, not high enough screen brightness, which also falls when viewed from an angle. The image fades in the sun.



    Camera


    The main camera is 8 megapixels. For a state employee, the photo quality is more than decent. Autofocus works clearly and relatively quickly, the macro mode is also good. In low light, frames are acceptable, although digital noise is noticeable. Moving objects are often “smeared”. There is an HDR mode. I think the undemanding user of the Prime S camera will be more than enough for everyday photography. The front camera is 2 megapixel: the quality of photos and videos is average - for an ordinary “selfie” it will do (chatting on Skype too). But as for the video - here, like the predecessor Prime mini, there are problems. Autofocus is constantly trying to tune in, because of this the image is blurry, when moving the lens the picture “beats” into squares, the sound is not the best. Video resolution - HD 720p at 30 frames per second.







    The application interface for shooting is standard.



    Battery


    Highscreen Omega Prime S is equipped with a 1 750 mAh lithium-ion battery. By modern standards, this is not enough. Especially when you consider not the most economical processor from Qualcomm. But what can you do - the slim body requires sacrifice.

    During the test, one charge was enough for me for about a working day. That is, you get up at about 8 a.m., during the day for a total of two hours you go online via 3G, about an hour via Wi-Fi, listen to music for about an hour (watch videos, work with programs or games), talk for 20-40 minutes, take a few photos , sometimes you launch GPS to determine the position and build a route. Well, that's it, on the way home (at about 7 p.m.), the Prime S is almost empty. If you go online less actively, then for a day the phone is enough. In any case, it is best to always carry an external battery with you.

    Hardware


    Highscreen Omega Prime S runs on the 4-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 MSM8212 platform with ARM Cortex-A7 processor cores (28 nm manufacturing process, frequency 1.2 GHz). The graphics accelerator is Adreno 302. The chipset, although budget-friendly, is modern.

    The amount of RAM is 1 GB, flash memory is 8 GB (the user has about 4 GB available, for installing programs - no more than 2 GB). The situation is saved by a slot for microSD memory cards with support for cards up to 32 GB. For interest, we tried to “feed” the device to a 64 GB card - he did not “see it”.



    The device turned out very nimble. The software “flies” and there are no “lags” of the interface even for complex tasks in the background (for example, installing several applications, downloading a large amount of data, copying files). There are also no complaints about the launch and operation of “heavy” three-dimensional games (in particular, Asphalt 8, Real Racing 3, Dead Trigger 2, Modern Combat 5), which is perhaps not surprising, because they adapt to Qualcomm chips. Yes, the schedule will not be maximum, but still - without “brakes”. There is still one complaint about the chip - video in HD resolution can be played back with “artifacts,” I’m generally silent about FullHD.





    Among other characteristics of the smartphone - Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 3.0, GPS / GLONASS (determines the position as quickly as possible, even “sees” several satellites in the room). The device works in modem and removable disk mode. There is no USB On-The-Go support.

    The sound quality of the smartphone is good, the volume level in the headphones is high. The ringtone is also quite loud, however, at the maximum level, the sound "wheezes". When the phone lies face down on the table, the volume of the ringtone decreases markedly. The spoken speaker let us down - the volume margin is not enough in a noisy environment. Voice quality is excellent.

    Software part


    Highscreen Omega Prime S runs on Google Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean). Not the latest version, but it seems to be not so critical. There is no data on a possible software update to KitKat.



    Android here is almost “bare”, there are only minor “tweaks” of the interface.





    Pre-installed software is not very much. The first thing that caught my eye was the program from Qualcomm BatteryGuru, which allows you to extend the battery life on a single charge. A huge number of settings are available in it, in particular, even the timing of updating specific programs.



    There is a 4sync cloud service client. By registering on a Highscreen smartphone, you will get 32 ​​GB of disk space instead of the standard 15 GB, then you can configure automatic upload of your photos and videos to the "cloud".

    Also available are a file manager, voice recorder, FM radio (with the ability to record broadcasts), an equalizer Snapdragon Audio + (many presets, bass and 3D), a simple video player, a flashlight, a clock (a convenient program for using your smartphone as a desktop clock with special night mode) , an application for searching on the phone or on the network, a utility for updating firmware “over the air”.



    The interface is “tuned” to work with two SIMs. If two “SIM cards” are installed, then on the lock screen and in the status line the names of two operators will be indicated, there will be two indicators of network reception, in the SMS application and call lists the numbers of their SIM are marked large. In the call log you can see calls from only one SIM. Each “sim card” can be assigned its own ringtone.



    Before making a call, the phone always wonders which network to use. Or in the settings you can set the SIM by default. I note that the radio module of the phone is one (something else is rare in the market). That is, both SIM cards are active in standby mode, and when talking on one of them, the second one will be unavailable. Also, do not forget that only the SIM that is installed in the second slot will work with 3G networks.

    conclusions


    The official cost of Highscreen Omega Prime S is 7,990 rubles (if you wish, you can find cheaper offers). For such little money you will get an elegant, lightweight, thin smartphone, the color of which can be changed at least every day. Bonuses to this are a high-quality HD-resolution screen, a rather powerful hardware platform from Qualcomm (mainly the "Chinese" work on the basis of MTK), good photo quality and an ideal assembly for the "budget employee". Doubtful moments are poor video quality, problems playing HD and Full HD movies, and a quiet speaker. A definite minus is the low battery capacity.



    In general, the Highscreen Omega Prime S is a rather interesting smartphone. The device is inexpensive, nimble, stable, assembled efficiently and has a “killer feature” in the form of interchangeable panels, which allows it to stand out among many competitors.

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