ET Review: Gionee Elife E3

Price: Rs 14,999

With so many me-too budget Android phones flooding the market, it’s hard to find something that truly stands out. When we first heard about Gionee’s Elife E3, it too was initially dismissed as being part of the same category. But what the specifications on paper don’t tell you is exactly how gorgeous the screen will be, how amazing it feels in the hand and how good the build quality will be.

If you only saw the 4.7-inch screen first, you could be forgiven for thinking it’s from a Rs 20 or 25k phone. The truth is that while the E3 may be overlooked by many because of the unheard of brand, your opinion will instantly change when you hold it and use it for a few minutes. It’s available in four colours: white, black, pink and blue.

A hard plastic case and two screen protectors are included in the box. The back cover is removable and this is also the first dual SIM phone we’ve seen which has one micro SIM and one full size SIM slot — could be useful in certain scenarios. It has the standard 3.5mm, micro USB, power and volume rocker buttons. Gionee has pre-loaded a handy selection of apps including a theme changer (with pre-loaded themes) — it can change the entire look of the phone. We preferred the stock Android theme.

Performance, call quality and signal strength are all good — it even has respectable benchmark scores (13,000 with AnTuTu) so gaming will be good. The camera is probably the only weak link. While there are lots of effects and filters, the final image is too noisy. Overall, the Gionee E3 is a great little phone and offers high value for money. Anyone with a budget of less than Rs 15,000 should seriously consider it before buying a bigger brand with worse specs.