Infinix Zero 2 (X509) Review: Premium Touch at a Budget

The Infinix Zero 2 (X509) is the new device from Infinix to enter the Kenyan market. The phone was launched in the Kenyan market last month and is currently available exclusively on Jumia. If you are interested in this phone, you can get it from Jumia by clicking here.

Infinix refers to this phone as the ‘Flagship Killer’ and having spent some time with it, it definitely deserves that name. Considering its price of just Ksh 18,900 on Jumia, this phone performs better than other devices within this range and even better than some smartphones that cost slightly more.

In this review, I will be looking at the Design, Hardware, Software, performance, specs, camera and the battery of the Infinix Zero 2 and in the end tell you if this phone is worth your money. Let’s get started.

What’s in The Box?

The Infinix Zero 2 comes with the following items in the box:

1. Earphones
2. USB/Power cable Charger
3. User Guide

Infinix Zero 2 (X509) Packaging

All these three are tucked up nicely inside the box giving out premium feel. All these components and the phone itself are arranged neatly and this is just shows you that Infinix did not leave anything to chance with this phone.

Hardware and Design

Picking up for the first time, you will feel how premium this phone is. I got the gold version that looks really good and will definitely turn heads anywhere you go.

One thing you will notice with this phone the first time you pick it up is how light it is. It weighs only 118g which is very light. Being light is very good as it is very easy to carry around. The Infinix Zero 2 measures 6.7 mm in thickness which makes it feel less bulky when carrying around.

The Infinix Zero 2 has an aluminum body frame and a Kevlar back cover. Both these materials are responsible for its light weight but also make it look and feel good when carrying around. According to Infinix, the Kevlar back cover is very tough, flexible and resistant to high temperatures.

Infinix Zero 2 lower Panel

Overall, the design of the Infinix Zero 2 is very good, it has that premium touch that we are not used on Smartphones within this price range.

Performance and Specs

The Infinix Zero 2 has some amazing specs and features considering its price of Ksh 19,999. It is powered by a 2 GHz Octacore MediaTek 6529 processor that did not give me any issues. This is combined with 2GB of RAM that makes the experience really good. Opening apps is very fast and switching through different apps is also as fast. I did not experience any lagging when opening or switching through different apps. Also included in this phone is the Mali 450-MP4 graphic chipset.

A combination of the processor, RAM and Graphics Chipset makes for an even better experience when playing games. This phone proved reliable in handling graphics intensive games such as Asphalt 8 with no issues at all.

On the memory side, I got the 32GB model with room for a MicroSD card. 32GB is quite enough for me for a new phone and the inclusion of a MicroSD card slot makes it even better. One issue I had with this phone is the bloatware it comes with. There are a ton of apps that I never really used and ended up uninstalling some of them. Infinix should try to keep the bloatware at a minimum as some of the apps are irrelevant. For example, there is the WPS Office app that does the same thing as the Microsoft Office Mobile app. In my case, I uninstalled the WPS Office app and installed the Microsoft Office Mobile app as it’s something I have used for long and it makes my work easier.

Read More: Infinix Zero 2 X509 Specifications Overview and Price in Kenya

Display

The Infinix Zero 2 has a 5 inch HD Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 720 X 1280 pixels giving it a pixel density of 294 ppi. The screen is very clear as I noticed during the review period, Images appear real and reading through the screen is very easy even under direct sunlight.

The screen has Gorilla Glass 3 that protects it from any damages when you drop it or from scratches. Viewing from the angles does not distort the images on the screen and the display is very responsive. One issue I had with the screen is the amount of fingerprints it is filled with after using it. Infinix should consider using oleophobic coating to solve this.

Infinix Zero 2 (X509) Front view

This phone has on screen navigation buttons that should have been pushed down slightly as they take so much space giving the screen a small size.

Software

The Infinix Zero 2 (X509) is powered by Android 4.4.2 Kitkat that will probably be upgraded to Android 5.1 Lollipop considering that Infinix is planning to upgrade both the Infinix X507 and Infinix X551 to Android Lollipop. On top of this, you get the new Infinix user interface version 2.0. According to Infinix, “This New & improved ICON design resonates with mobile design & style to emphasize minimalistic beauty.”

Read More: You can now update your Infinix Hot Note (X551) or Infinix Hot (X507) With Android 5.1 Lollipop

Camera

The Infinix Zero 2 has a 13MP main camera and a 5MP front facing camera. Both these cameras take really good photos when the lighting is good but you will get mixed results in dark rooms or at night. This is especially so if you do not use flash, you end up with photos that are not so bad but still not so good. Both cameras attempt to correct the colors in low lit rooms but in most situations, you end up with photos that look slightly washed out.

In well lit environments, the photos are really good and I was not disappointed. Video recording is also good for both the front and rear cameras. Check out some image samples below (scroll left/right using the arrows):

[image_thumbs]
[image_slider link=”https://www.techarena.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/IMG_20150803_111931.jpg” source=”https://www.techarena.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/IMG_20150803_111931.jpg”]Image Sample 1 [/image_slider]
[image_slider link=”https://www.techarena.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/IMG_20150803_112029.jpg” source=”https://www.techarena.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/IMG_20150803_112029.jpg”] Image Sample 2[/image_slider]
[image_slider link=”https://www.techarena.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/IMG_20150803_111951.jpg” source=”https://www.techarena.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/IMG_20150803_111951.jpg”] Image Sample 3[/image_slider]

[image_slider link=”https://www.techarena.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/IMG_20150803_114733.jpg” source=”https://www.techarena.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/IMG_20150803_114733.jpg”] Image Sample 4[/image_slider]

[image_slider link=”https://www.techarena.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/IMG_20150803_231032.jpg” source=”https://www.techarena.co.ke/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/IMG_20150803_231032.jpg”] Image Sample 5 (taken ay night) [/image_slider]

[/image_thumbs]

Battery Performance

The Infinix Zero 2 has a 2,300 mAh battery that can last for a whole day with light usage. If you are a heavy user, you will have to charge at some point during the day. If you are a very light user on the other hand, you can get more than a day of usage, three days in some cases. Note that the Infinix Zero 2 has a non-removable battery so you may have some issues when it’s damaged.

Infinix zero 2 Battery performance

Conclusion

The Infinix Zero 2 (X509) is a premium smartphone at a budget. It is good for anyone who is looking for a reliable Android experience without breaking the bank. During my review period, I had a very good experience with this phone and I would recommend it to anyone.

The phone has a few drawbacks such as Camera performance in low light situations or the onscreen key boards that make the screen slightly smaller or even the bloatware included in it. All these are just small issues that do not affect my recommendation of this phone. I will still recommend it for those who want a premium touch and feel at a budget. If I were to describe this phone I would say: ‘It provides a Premium Touch at a Budget.’

The phone is available exclusively on Jumia for Only Ksh 19,999. Get it right now by clicking here.