Ringing on all three lines

THE PERFECT 4G smartphone for anyone with three telephone numbers thanks to its tri-micro SIM slot, the new Acer Liquid X2 will also appeal to shutterbugs as it boasts 13-megapixel resolution for both its front-facing and rear cameras.

Powered by MediaTek MT6735 octa-core processor running at 1.3 GHz, the smartphone uses Mali-T720 GPU for handling graphic tasks.

The X2 comes with three gigabytes of working memory or RAM, ensuring that multitasking is smooth. It has 32 gigabytes of internal storage, expandable with the microSD card slot on top of the first SIM slot, and runs on Android 5.1 operating system.

The phone comes with a 5.5-inch IPS LCD panel with 720x1280 pixel resolution and the display uses Zero Air Gap technology to reduce frustrating reflections by removing the air during the panel attachment process. The technology heightens contrast and brightness as well as readability in the sunlight.

The X2 supports 4G LTE connection of 800/1800/2100/2600 MHz. I tried it on TrueMove H's LTE network and was pleased with the speed. My snapshots were backed up to my Microsoft OneDrive cloud storage in no time.

Using Ookla speedtest app, I measured the download speed at 57.01 Mbps and upload speed at 21.46 Mbps.

Although the X2 uses the low-cost MediaTek CPU, the X2 did not suffer from sluggish performance during the test. The touchscreen and menus were responsive and games ran fast and smooth.

Best of all, X2 could play high-resolution audio of FLAC 24bit/192kHz format smoothly. I tested it with Sony MDR-1ABT phones and found the music quality excellent with good details of instrument and powerful bass. The music quality is further enhanced with the DTS Premium Sound effect.

The X2 has good quality cameras at both front and rear. Both cameras use fast f/1.8 aperture lens, allowing them to have good performance even in low-light environments.

I found the picture quality for both front and rear cameras pleasing for a mobile phone.

The camera supports voice commands too. For example, you can say “selfie” to switch to the front camera and take a picture in a three-second countdown. You can also switch shooting modes just by saying the mode names, including HDR or Bright Magic. The Bright Magic is useful when you shoot in low-light environments as it uses a high ISO, long exposure time and de-noise function. 

Dual Shot mode is also useful if you want to superimpose your picture captured with the front camera onto the shots taken by the rear camera.

Acer Liquid X2 is available in black and gold for Bt9,990.

 

Key Specs

Networks: LTE: 800/ 1800 / 2100 /2600 MHz, HSPA+/WCDMA: 900/1900/2100 MHz, GSM/GPRS/EDGE: 850MHz / 900MHz / 1800MHz / 1900MHz

OS: Android 5.1 Acer Liquid UI

Processor: MT6753 64-bit octa-core 1.3 GHz processor

Memory: 3GB RAM

Storage: 32 GB

Display: 5.5-inch IPS panel with 1280x720 pixels

Main camera: 13 MP, Auto Focus, F1.8 with flashlight LED, 1080p video recording

Front camera: 13MP, Auto Focus, F1.8 with Torch LED, 720p video recording

Connectivity: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS/AGPS, microSD slot, micro USB, 3.5mm jack

Sensors: G Sensor, |E-Compass, Proximity Sensor, Light Sensor, Hall Sensor

SIM: Tri-micro SIM slots

Dimension: |153.7x78.8x8.5mm

Weight: 166g