Review: Itel A70, Best 5G Smartphone Under Rs 10,000?
The world of smartphones is going through a revolution at the moment. We are not only witnessing innovative technologies being integrated into smartphones, we are also seeing new form factors coming up in the mainstream. Itel, the smartphone brand owned by Transsion, has launched the A70, its 5G offering in the below Rs 10,000 segment.
The phone tried to look like the iPhone with three lenses stacked at the back at the top left corner of the device in a pattern that looks very similar to the iPhone except for the fact that the third camera is not a camera. Instead, it is a flashlight. The presence of the flashlight completes the iPhone illusion.
Despite the Apple iPhone-like looks, the phone will immediately feel like a copycat once you hold it. The plastic back panel looks great, though. With the iPhone 15 Pro Max-like camera unit, shimmery pattern and the ‘AWESOME by itel’ motif on the bottom-left make the back panel an interesting sight. The overall build quality, however, isn't a red flag. The phone does feel light in weight but covers a lot of area.
The phone is powered by the Unisoc T603 octa-core CPU. Despite being octa-core, expecting high-end computing power from this chipset would be unwise. The processor does what it is supposed to do, which is, to get the smartphone running and make sure it is capable of doing what the users ask of it. It handles basic tasks like web browsing, social media and YouTube smoothly. Simply put, the processor isn’t made for compute-heavy tasks.
The phone comes with Android 13 operating system which is based Android Go. Android Go is essentially a lighter version of the regular software. Simply put, the operating system has been optimised for lower-performing processor in order make the overall experience better.
The itel A70 cannot run high-end games and games that require a lot of computing power. It can, however, run casual games such as Clash Royale, Ludo King, Nuts and Bolt and Bubble Pop. You can forget about a pleasant BGMI gameplay session, though.
Having a good camera is a feature that is now a requisite in a smartphone at every price point. The dual camera setup is quite impressive. The photos are way better than I expected. There is no optical zoom and the AI processing is also decent at best. Videos are also the same when it comes to quality. The 13MP primary sensor takes good-quality videos given the price.
What’s a Dynamic Bar? Well, following the footsteps of Apple’s dynamic Island, the dynamic Bar is essentially giving users a feel of the latter without actually giving its functionality. The feature works for notifications and offers something ‘new’, especially to users who have no clue what it is.
What’s Good?
What’s Bad?
Price advantage
For a smartphone under INR 10,000, the itel A70 is probably one of the best offerings out there in this price range. The inclusion of 5G capabilities is also an element that makes this smartphone a great option for people who want a camera device with all the popular features in a price range that doesn’t burn a hole in their pockets.
If we take the popular saying that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, the itel A70 makes a good case for itself. The phone uses a similar camera layout, a similar body and even a similar user interface to offer an iPhone-ish experience to users who cannot afford one.
You get what you pay for
If you’re looking for an affordable and pocket-friendly smartphone that has all the daily-need features like WhatsApp, Google Pay, Paytm, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube, this is the phone for you. The camera is not that bad. Daytime photographs and videos are more than decent while low-light photography and videography are not a forte for sure.
Value for money
Given the price tag, there is no scope left for any complaints. The iPhone imitation can be viewed as a bold move and given the target audience of the product, this shouldn’t be a big deal. The consumers in this category will instead like to own a smartphone that looks like an iPhone even though it lacks all the features that the flagship device is known for. itel’s playful and, might I add, bold take in the budget smartphone segment ought to be admired.
India is still a huge market for feature phones primarily because of the prices. This price-sensitive market of the country is valued at USD 2.2 billion and is projected to keep growing at a CAGR of 4.86 per cent (2024 to 2028). Now that smartphone companies like itel are offering phones such as the A70, P55 and the P55+, it will truly be interesting to see how the consumer responds.
The road isn’t easy either. With competition from companies like Samsung, Redmi and Poco in play at a similar price point, the consumers will have plenty of options to choose from.
The 4GB + 64GB variant retails for INR 6,299.
The 4GB + 128GB variant retails for INR 6,799.
The 4GB + 256GB retails for INR 7,499.
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