GADGET GIZMO REVIEW.... Infocus M530

GADGET GIZMO  REVIEW

Infocus M530

InFocus may not be well known in smartphone circles yet but they plan to make some serious inroads with affordably priced devices that pack a punch. The American company is well respected in projection and display technologies though. The M530 is the topend smartphone offering from the company , after the entry-level M2 and mid-range M330. Even though it is the current flagship and offers better specs than the others, the price is quite reasonable too.

There's pretty much everything you could ask for at this price. It's smart looking (though not exceptional or eye-catching) & has good build quality with metal frame. The matte finish back panel is removable and features a removable battery too. Of 16GB built in storage, about 12GB is available after a hard reset.

The interface allows for a lot of customisation. For instance, you can choose between the standard or the EZ Launcher (large tiles and simplified interface).There are a bunch of gestures which you can configure individually plus a range of pre-defined motions (turn over to reject call, reduce ring volume on pick up, shake for next music track etc) that you can enable. An interesting feature called HotKnot is built in -it is a sort of cheaper alternative to NFC for pairing smart devices to exchange information. SugarSync (cloud storagesharing) is integrated and some of the other pre-installed apps include Snapdeal, WPS Office, MeituPic (image editing) and Dropbox.

Coming to the cameras (touted as the highlight of this phone) the M530 will surely surprise you with some excellent results. For starters, you get dual 13MP cameras front and rear. The rear camera has a dual LED flash and built in optical image stabilisation -a first at this price point. The front camera has a single LED flash too. All the usual options are present: multiple scene modes, panorama, HDR, beauty face and fast motion. What's strange is that zero shutter delay is something you have to enable from settings -it makes the camera faster. It also has a built in time lapse mode. The M530 consistently delivered great photos, especially macro shots.

There's not much to complain about honestly , especially considering the price. It's got good performance, a bright screen with great viewing angles and easily lasts a full day on a full charge. Probably the only major downside will be limited aftermarket accessory support. You can also consider Xiaomi's Redmi Note 4G or the Yu Yureka.

hitesh.bhagat

ET8JUL15