Phone Review: Infinix Hot 4

Infinix is one of the most popular pocket friendly smartphones in the Kenyan market due to the impressive ability to offer a high functioning smartphone at an affordable price. Infinix phones look just like the high-end phones and offer a lot considering the price tag, all while not compromising on long battery life which is a staple of affordable phones and something most high-end phones fail in.

Infinix launched the Infinix Hot 4 which is part of the Hot series. It’s a series that’s a lot more affordable than the rest of their offering.

What’s in the box?

The box is standard and compact and comes with the phone, USB cable, power adapter and earphones.

Design and Display

It’s heavier than it looks and could easily be mistaken for the Hot Note. It boasts a 5.5-inch touchscreen with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels which is quite decent. The screen also reads well in sunlight thanks to 12 ultrabright backlight LEDs, which is especially important to me as my eyes don’t do too well in sunlight. The back is 3D textured to aid in grip and is also quite stylish. The curved design that is present in previous version of Infinix phones is missing though I don’t really mind that. The phone comes in an array of colours that include Scarlet Red, Sandstone Black, Turquoise Dream, Luxurious Gold and Sapphire Blue.

One of the best things about this phone is the fingerprint scanner. I already have so many passwords to remember that it was a relief to have this option. Also, it’s a solid security measure as anyone accessing the phone without your permission becomes more difficult. There are still backup options available to access the phone as you can set a backup password as well as a security question in case you forget it. I must admit that I got so used to the ease of a fingerprint scanner that I completely forgot my password and had to use the security question option when I gave away the phone. Basically, it’s a good idea to stick to one or the other.

Sim Card

As with most phones in this range, it’s a dual sim. It is worth noting that the sim is a micro sim.

Memory and OS

The Infinix HOT 4 runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow + XOS operating system and comes with a Quad-core Cortex 1.3GHz processor. I didn’t have any problems running multiple tabs on the phone and could comfortably play games and check out social media without the phone hanging.

For memory, it comes with 2GB RAM and 16GB internal storage that is expandable to 32GB via MicroSD.

Camera

For this price range, the camera is great. The back camera is 8MP with a 5MP front camera, an improvement from previous Hot models.

Connectivity

The phone can access both 2G and 3G. It also has the option of Wi-Fi. I didn’t experience any issues as far as connectivity was concerned.

Battery

The battery is a non-removable 4000 mAh power and is probable the reason the phone is heavier than previous editions which featured 2200 mAh batteries. A bigger battery means that the battery lasts for a day with heavy use and up to 3 days with moderate use. I can’t get over how convenient that is and enjoyed not having to worry about my battery running out after a few hours.

Price

The phone is retailing at a very affordable Ksh 9,699. This is as pocket friendly as smartphones come.

Where is it available?

The Hot 4 is available on Jumia. As with any online purchase, it’s best to order early to avoid any delays.

Verdict

Good design, fantastic battery life and decent smartphone capabilities at a pocket-friendly price makes the Infinix Hot 4 a definite winner.