Gadgets & Gizmos: Lenovo's Zuk Z1

The tech-savvy phone users have sat up to take notice of Lenovo's ZUK Z1, a device offering what used to be flagship specs a while ago, at a mere Rs 13,499. However, design is not the biggest draw for this 5.5-inch phone. It has a metal frame and a plastic back and looks well built and sturdy, but not pretty. And that may be fine for its intended consumer because on the ZUK Z1, you have Cyanogen 12.1 OS based on Android 5.1. Cyanogen is the geek's system of choice because it allows for the user to take total control of the phone, 'flash' different ROMs, put in customisations and include features that are not available on the standard Android.

The processor on this device is the Snapdragon 801 which is by no means new. This has caused many to rudely call it old wine in an old bottle. That may be true but the fact is one has never got that old wine at this price. So, it's still a powerful processor, though not 64-bit. The phone both benchmarks and works fine, with its 3GB RAM and 64GB internal storage (and no micro SD card slot). I did find my unit heating up a bit especially when downloading and using the camera intensively.

ZUK Z1 has a fingerprint sensor built into the Home button and it registers your print without any fuss.

There's only so much you can expect from a camera on a budget phone, but the ZUK Z1's 13-megapixel primary camera, built on Sony's IMX 214 sensor, actually does quite well. It has optical image stabilisation and a dual-LED flash. The front camera is an 8-megapixel and also pretty good. The camera app used here Cyanogen's Camera Next, which is enjoyable to use, especially the modes that can be swiped on to the screen.

Overall, the ZUK Z1's performance, the Cyanogen OS, the better than average camera and the price all make this phone one to consider.