ET Review: Intex Aqua 5.0

Intex Aqua 5.0


PRICE Rs 9,990

NEW DELHI: Most budget ' phablets' now look alike: a fat, rectangular shape, large 5-inch screen and rounded edges. The Intex Aqua 5.0 seems no different but its 5-inch screen looks slightly wider compared to the others. The build quality of the phone is impressive, but it is quite heavy to hold at 198 grams (heavier than Galaxy Note II, which is 183 grams).

As with many others, Intex Aqua also has an 800 x 480 pixel resolution on a 5-inch display. However a bigger issue is the highly reflective screen which makes it hard to view anything outdoors. Getting a matte screen protector is an option, but even that won't solve the brightness issue.

The phone runs Android 4.0 on a dual core 1Ghz processor with 512MB RAM. Even with just 512MB RAM, Intex has tweaked the user interface for a smoother and snappy experience. The phone does get sluggish with multiple apps running, but the navigation among menus remains quick.

Multimedia is another weak point for the phone. The 5MP rear camera is disappointing (lots of noise). The camera interface is quite sluggish too (third-party camera apps can be used though).



Audio output from the loudspeaker is also low; good enough only for personal listening. A saving grace is that the phone played HD videos without any hiccups after we installed the MX Player app.

At Rs 9,999, the Intex Aqua falls short on multiple account compared to Micromax's A110 Canvas 2. The A110 has a better camera, less reflective display, louder audio output and is lighter at about 168 grams.