With an intent to penetrate the budget smartphone segment, Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC recently launched Desire 526G+ Dual Sim, a new octa-core processor-powered device.
While the phone signifies HTC’s ongoing attempts to raise the bar when it comes to budget smartphones, it remains to be seen if it’s able to beat the likes of Xiaomi and Micromax who have a strong offering in the segment.
We pit the Desire 526G+ against Xioami Redmi Note 4G and Micromax YU Yureka to find out if it’s really worth your money…
While the phone signifies HTC’s ongoing attempts to raise the bar when it comes to budget smartphones, it remains to be seen if it’s able to beat the likes of Xiaomi and Micromax who have a strong offering in the segment.
We pit the Desire 526G+ against Xioami Redmi Note 4G and Micromax YU Yureka to find out if it’s really worth your money…
First and foremost, Desire 526G+ is a compact smartphone sporting a 4.7-inch display, while YU Yureka and Redmi Note 4G are phablets with 5.5-inch displays. Made of plastic, all the three phones come with a removable back cover.
We prefer Yureka’s matte-finish back to the other two phones’ glossy back panels. Desire 526G+ follows the same design language that we’ve seen in some of its bigger siblings from HTC, featuring two front grilles (a speaker and an earpiece) with a more curvy form factor and a coloured frame targeting young users.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G is our device of choice when it comes to build quality although it sports a simplistic design.
HTC Desire 526G+ sports a 4.7-inch qHD display (960x540p), while the other two phones come with 5.5-inch 720p displays and Gorilla Glass protection. Although, there’s not much visible pixelation on Desire 526G+’s display as the screen size is small, we still feel HTC should have put at least 720p HD display. Of the three phones, Redmi Note 4G has the best display.
We prefer Yureka’s matte-finish back to the other two phones’ glossy back panels. Desire 526G+ follows the same design language that we’ve seen in some of its bigger siblings from HTC, featuring two front grilles (a speaker and an earpiece) with a more curvy form factor and a coloured frame targeting young users.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G is our device of choice when it comes to build quality although it sports a simplistic design.
HTC Desire 526G+ sports a 4.7-inch qHD display (960x540p), while the other two phones come with 5.5-inch 720p displays and Gorilla Glass protection. Although, there’s not much visible pixelation on Desire 526G+’s display as the screen size is small, we still feel HTC should have put at least 720p HD display. Of the three phones, Redmi Note 4G has the best display.
HTC Desire 526G+ is powered by a 1.7GHz MediaTek MT6592 octa-core processor and 1GB RAM, and the phone also has an external storage slot that supports memory cards of up to 32GB capacity. It comes in 8GB and 16GB storage variants.
Micromax YU Yureka is powered by a 64 bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 octa core chip with 1.5GHz processor cores, Adreno 405 graphics and 2GB DDR3 RAM. It has 16GB storage and a microSD card slot.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G is powered by a 1.6GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 quad core processor and has 2GB RAM. It also offers its users 8GB of internal storage and can hold microSD cards of up to 32GB.
In terms of connectivity, Desire 526G+ offers dual-sim support with 3G data in addition to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, but has no 4G for high-speed internet access. The other two phones support 4G networks. Redmi Note 4G is a single sim device.
YU Yureka sports the best hardware specifications and offers maximum connectivity options. In our tests, we found the phone to be the fastest and smoothest to use, and even the multimedia and gaming experience was great.
Micromax YU Yureka is powered by a 64 bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 octa core chip with 1.5GHz processor cores, Adreno 405 graphics and 2GB DDR3 RAM. It has 16GB storage and a microSD card slot.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G is powered by a 1.6GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 quad core processor and has 2GB RAM. It also offers its users 8GB of internal storage and can hold microSD cards of up to 32GB.
In terms of connectivity, Desire 526G+ offers dual-sim support with 3G data in addition to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, but has no 4G for high-speed internet access. The other two phones support 4G networks. Redmi Note 4G is a single sim device.
YU Yureka sports the best hardware specifications and offers maximum connectivity options. In our tests, we found the phone to be the fastest and smoothest to use, and even the multimedia and gaming experience was great.
HTC Desire 526G+ runs Android 4.4.2 KitKat with a stripped down version of HTC’s Sense UI. It comes with HTC BlinkFeed home screen that offers customized streams to deliver news and social updates.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G runs MIUI, a heavily customized version of Android 4.4 KitKat that resembles Apple’s iOS in design and navigation and doesn’t come with a separate app drawer.
YU Yureka comes with Cyanogen OS, a custom after-market version of Android 4.4 KitKat developed by Cyanogen and the interface is extremely close to Stock Android.
CyanogenMod is known for its customisability, enhanced security and additional features, while MIUI focuses on ease of use in addition to offering enhanced native apps, better notifications and things like call recording and call blocking.
Both operating systems support themes and let users customize all UI elements. Of the two, Xiaomi’s MIUI content store has richer themes and wallpapers.
We prefer YU Yureka’s Cyanogen OS (when it comes to software interface) and its implementation.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G runs MIUI, a heavily customized version of Android 4.4 KitKat that resembles Apple’s iOS in design and navigation and doesn’t come with a separate app drawer.
YU Yureka comes with Cyanogen OS, a custom after-market version of Android 4.4 KitKat developed by Cyanogen and the interface is extremely close to Stock Android.
CyanogenMod is known for its customisability, enhanced security and additional features, while MIUI focuses on ease of use in addition to offering enhanced native apps, better notifications and things like call recording and call blocking.
Both operating systems support themes and let users customize all UI elements. Of the two, Xiaomi’s MIUI content store has richer themes and wallpapers.
We prefer YU Yureka’s Cyanogen OS (when it comes to software interface) and its implementation.
HTC Desire 526G+ features an 8MP rear camera with LED flash for capturing pictures and a 2MP front camera for selfies.
YU Yureka features a 13MP rear camera (f2.2 aperture, capable of 1080p video capture) with Sony EXMOR CMOS sensor and a 5MP front camera with 71 degree field of view. Xiaomi Redmi Note sports a 13MP rear camera accompanied by an LED flash and a 5MP front-facing camera.
Of the three, YU Yureka offers the most feature-rich camera experience and our tests show that even the image quality is better.
YU Yureka features a 13MP rear camera (f2.2 aperture, capable of 1080p video capture) with Sony EXMOR CMOS sensor and a 5MP front camera with 71 degree field of view. Xiaomi Redmi Note sports a 13MP rear camera accompanied by an LED flash and a 5MP front-facing camera.
Of the three, YU Yureka offers the most feature-rich camera experience and our tests show that even the image quality is better.
The 8GB storage variant of HTC Desire 526G+ is sold exclusively on online marketplace Snapdeal at Rs 10,400, while the 16GB version is available across all retail stores at Rs 11,400.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G has been priced at Rs 9,999, while YU Yureka retails at Rs 8,999. Redmi Note 4G and YU Yureka are sold exclusively on Flipkart and Amazon respectively through weekly flash sales. Both the phones are difficult to acquire and you’ll need to go through the hassle of trying your luck in the flash sale to get your hands on one.
Of the three phones, YU Yureka offers the best bang for your buck and packs in high-end hardware specifications, a good camera and customisable software at an affordable price.
HTC handset offers better after-sales support and is a premium brand compared to Micromax and Xiaomi but fails to match the feature-to-price ratio offered by the other two. Perhaps, the pricing is intentional given that HTC positions itself as a premium brand and keeps higher margins.
Also, the way the company operates is different from the likes of Xiaomi which keep wafer-thin margins from hardware and make money from accessories and themes. Yet, it’s difficult to recommend Desire 526G+ over the other two.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G has been priced at Rs 9,999, while YU Yureka retails at Rs 8,999. Redmi Note 4G and YU Yureka are sold exclusively on Flipkart and Amazon respectively through weekly flash sales. Both the phones are difficult to acquire and you’ll need to go through the hassle of trying your luck in the flash sale to get your hands on one.
Of the three phones, YU Yureka offers the best bang for your buck and packs in high-end hardware specifications, a good camera and customisable software at an affordable price.
HTC handset offers better after-sales support and is a premium brand compared to Micromax and Xiaomi but fails to match the feature-to-price ratio offered by the other two. Perhaps, the pricing is intentional given that HTC positions itself as a premium brand and keeps higher margins.
Also, the way the company operates is different from the likes of Xiaomi which keep wafer-thin margins from hardware and make money from accessories and themes. Yet, it’s difficult to recommend Desire 526G+ over the other two.
Post a Comment