Frameless sharp. Sharp has created the world's first completely frameless smartphone

Sharp S2 - the grace of technology

Ergonomic and stylish design to delight

The compact case made of high-quality metal and polycarbonate is decorated with a dual camera, a frameless screen with a modern drop-shaped cutout for the front photomodule and a fingerprint scanner on the front panel. It is simply impossible not to admire such a handsome man.

Amazing display quality

The 5.5-inch IGZO-panel demonstrates not only natural color reproduction, but also stunning brightness and contrast, a huge diagonal resolution of 2040x1080 pixels, which provides fantastic picture detail.

Uncompromising performance specifications

The excellent Snapdragon 630 processor, together with 4GB of RAM rare for the price segment and the Adreno 508 video adapter, will give the buyer not only the smooth Android Oreo interface, but also the wonderful work of resource-intensive games and applications that can be stored on 64GB of ROM and MicroSD cards.

Feel like a photographer

The main 12 and 8-megapixel sensors from Samsung surpass those of most opponents of the gadget from Sharp, guaranteeing the detail of the pictures and the absence of noise even in mediocre lighting. "Front camera" in eight megapixels is also worthy of compliments.

Technology in every detail

NFC (contactless payments) and the fast charging function of a capacious 2700mAh battery make the device the best choice for your money.

Review version for Mobile-Review.com.

Losers and lazy people can watch the video version of my review:

Hello friends!

To start writing this review, I confess honestly, it was excruciatingly painful, and for several reasons at once. Firstly, quite unexpectedly, our goddaughter was offered to ride tomorrow afternoon on the Black Sea practically for free. To refuse such an opportunity would be the height of stupidity, all the more so for a long time it was required to spit on everything and stupidly change the situation. And secondly, looking ahead and actually revealing all the cards, I can admit that as a result the device turned out to be quite interesting both externally and functionally. And now, when the smartphone is already in my hands, it is extremely unpleasant to admit it, given all my mocking censures directed at the AQUOS S2 before.

It is worth recognizing that the newly minted owners withstood the intrigue to the last, not refuting, but not at least indirectly confirming what all fans of the brand expected from the "new" Sharp, even taking into account the fact that the Japanese company, once up to its ears, is now more than half owned by Foxconn.

Phablet Sharp AQUOS Tab SH-06F vs. Sharp AQUOS S2

...vs. Samsung Galaxy X cover 3

More than once, in the blackest colors, I have expressed my disappointment regarding the "full-screen" AQUOS S2, in which everyone initially believed so much. The bummer, which eventually awaited the fans of the brand, can only be compared with indignation at the very fact of the purchase of the Japanese giant by the Chinese. However, many have even come to terms with this reality. As for the "full-screen case", then the iPhone X presented not so long ago fits this definition, rather, by the way.

iPhone X

A controversial moment for me is the fact that the world has begun to offer fashion for frameless only now. Let me remind you that at the beginning of 2014, the then Japanese Sharp was the first to introduce its revolutionary solution - EDGEST technology, which was used to produce several subsequent generations of flagship smartphones with three narrow frames on the sides and top. The pioneer in this direction was the Sharp AQUOS Zeta SH-04F model. The hitherto unbeaten record of frameless (not full-screen) smartphones of the CRYSTAL series (Sharp AQUOS Crystal 305SH, AQUOS Crystal X 402SH and AQUOS Crystal 2 403SH) became the peak of perfection.

Sharp AQUOS Crystal X403SH

Specifications

On the technical side, the new Sharp AQUOS S2 looks worthy against the background of most current competitors. Do not forget that the smartphone was developed in parallel with the Essential Phone, in the creation of which Andy Rubin himself participated. Externally, the devices are very similar. Yes, in principle, about the same can be said about most similar devices: Xiaomi Mi Mix / Mix2, Doogee Mix, Elephone S8, etc. And, if you pay attention, in this format (equally narrow frames on the sides and top ) it is Chinese manufacturers that work. None of the market legislators from other continents offers such solutions. Something I again slipped into appearance ...

Operating system: OS Android 7.1.1 Nougat, shell Smile UX

Standards support: GSM, 3G, LTE

Support for 2 SIM cards: Yes

Processor: 2.2GHz/1.8GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 630/660

ROM: 64Gb/128Gb

Display: 5.5", FullHD+, 2040x1080 pix, FFD, 420ppi, 2.5D, 16 million colors

Main camera: 12+8 Mpix, CMOS, dual optics, 4K video recording, autofocus , dual color LED flash

Front camera: 8 Mpix, CMOS, fullHD video recording

Memory card support: microSDXC up to 128 Gb

The fingerprint scanner

WiFi a/b/g/n/ac

Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 fast charging feature

All-aluminum frame

Battery: Li-Ion, 3020 mAh

Dimensions: 141.8x72x7.9mm

Having many years of experience in creating and manufacturing completely different smartphones, Foxconn-Sharp, as it seemed to him, put all the best and most advanced into his offspring - a "unique" appearance and top-end hardware. In addition, Chinese marketers offer the buyer a choice of two versions of AQUOS S2 - with 4Gb RAM / 64Gb ROM with an 8-core SDM 630 A53 processor and 6Gb RAM / 128Gb ROM with an 8-core SDM 660 Kyro, respectively. But don't rush, that's not all. In addition to technical subtleties, designers offer to pervert with the color and material of the case. The device with a rubberized body will receive 4 colors: black, white, blue and turquoise. The company logo on the back will be applied with regular paint. This, so-called standard version, was not on sale at the time of writing this review.

In terms of performance Sharp AQUOS S2 is able to satisfy the needs of any pervert. A powerful processor, a lot of memory, a huge 5.5-inch display and a 3020 mAh battery will delight the most sophisticated user of flagship toys. On this little thing, you can easily run and play any modern 3D games comfortably, overload it with a bunch of simultaneously running applications or tryndet for hours on the phone. It will endure everything, bastard.

In my usual mode (a lot of writing in social networks, phone and Skype calls, mail, Excel spreadsheets), the phone holds a charge for at least 2-2.5 days, alternately using mobile and Wi-Fi Internet. The device supports Quick Charge 3.0 fast charging.

Given that Foxconn is a Chinese company, it would be foolish not to equip the smartphone with a slot for 2 SIM cards. They work at the same time. Traditionally, instead of one SIM card, you can use a memory card with a maximum memory capacity of 128Gb. Unfortunately, I did not have a card with a large capacity to test its undocumented capabilities, but something tells me that he will swallow it with pleasure, so as a result, it will be possible to spoil the total memory with all sorts of photos and videos for a very long time.

Equipment

Unlike Japanese mobile operators, who actually entered into a criminal conspiracy with manufacturers, Chinese businessmen have never skimped on a rich scattering of accessories, especially when it comes to flagships.

So, complete with the phone we find:

Network adapter

USB Type C cable

Audio adapter USB-Type C-minijack

Needle for SIM tray

Hard translucent bumper cover

Instructions and warranty card printed on the cheapest paper

Like most manufacturers, Foxconn is gradually equipping its devices with a USB Type-C connector. This, of course, often comes with some limitations, such as the lack of a traditional 3.5mm headphone jack. A tribute to fashion, you ask? I think it's more of a technical need.

First impressions. Design

And this is where my cognitive dissonance begins. Thinking that the "new" AQUOS S2 is already a long time ago for me, given again my more than rich experience with Japanese frameless Sharp smartphones, I understand that the sensations of its presence in the palm of your hand are really new and, what is important, pleasant. It is incredibly light and compact. What I'm used to seeing in third-party photos and what I hold in my hand are completely different things. And I really like this thing. 140 grams do not correspond at all with the dimensions, which, it would seem, with their not small indicators, also pleasantly surprise. A 5.5-inch display, enclosed, albeit in such a "frame" frameless case, does not seem large. And here I come across the idea that it turns out that I have not used frameless smartphones for a long time. It is incredibly convenient and this is definitely the very near future.

And here it is, yet another disappointment. As it turns out, you have to use not the case, but the display. And as soon as you start moving your finger across the screen, you immediately realize that an ordinary housewife like me has too much of it. It would be time to build up fingers in order to enjoy just such diagonals, but, apparently, it is not destined. That is why displays no larger than 5 inches remain the ultimate dream for me.

For some reason, this time Sharp decided not to use the IGZO matrix. As for the quality of the picture, I personally had no questions about it. The resolution of 2040x1080p is quite natural with a non-standard aspect ratio of 17:9. The display itself is covered with Corning Gorilla Glass, however, which generation is not indicated. The glass has 2.5D rounded edges and an oleophobic coating that removes dirt and fingerprints from the first pass of a cloth. Those who complain about the change in color when viewed from an angle, then here I wash my hands. In this case, answer the question for yourself: under what conditions do you look at the screen at an angle of 30 degrees? Well, that's what I'm talking about...

In the sun, the screen works great. Everything, down to small texts, is read perfectly. In sunglasses, the screen is also read without problems. I decided to mention this fact, because. faced with the opposite situation on my current Samsung Galaxy Xcover 3 - it is simply impossible to see anything in the sun without turning on the special checkbox "Outdoors". In sunglasses, the screen is just black. I have to take it off every time to answer a call or write a message. Well, this is a topic for a completely different review.

The AQUOS S2 feels comfortable in the hand, but its soapy forms can easily play tricks on you. The glossy surface and cold metal frame with smooth edges are traditionally the best excuse to drop the phone from your hand. To prevent this from happening, Sharp offered to put the phone in a hard matte case with sharp edges. In my opinion, this symbiosis looks poor and cheap. All meaning is lost in the framelessness. It's like buying a red phone because you like it and sticking it in a black case. Stupid!

On the matte cover, all the greasy prints of your hands also successfully remain.

One of the frequent and logical questions that arise when looking at the facade of the AQUOS S2, as well as the Essential Phone, is the radical placement of the front camera inside the screen. The lens simply divides the top edge into two parts. Immediately upon closer inspection, you can see all the standard sensors above the lens. The solution is really non-standard. Why, in the minds of Xiaomi engineers and other companies, the decision was made to place the front camera in the beard under the screen remains a mystery. And if you look at frameless Sharp smartphones from the past, we will see exactly the same camera arrangement under the screen. Whether Foxconn's idea can be considered a kind of experiment in the field of technologies that allow you to give the display absolutely any shape, the future will show. At least Sharp has already made it clear that this is technically possible. It is likely that in the face of AQUOS S2 and Essential Phone we see the first commercial samples using such technologies.

Does this stain catch your eye when using a smartphone? Definitely not. You stop paying attention to it almost as soon as you start using the phone. It only becomes interesting to observe in which applications and under what circumstances the lens "crashes" into the image, and under which it is a harmonious part of the curtain with on-duty information or part of the black bar, given that the screen has an aspect ratio of 17:9. I will give a few examples below.

Lock screen saver

Fully opened curtain with functional icons

Camera operation in video recording mode

Camera in photo mode with screen width resolution

View photos in the gallery. Photos in 4:3 aspect ratio are displayed with black borders around the edges,

but when you zoom in, the camera "crashes" into the image

Widescreen video playback with a black bar around the camera

The narrowest HOME button, with an integrated fingerprint scanner. For some reason, marketers decided to make this one of the features of the smartphone. The functionality of the scanner is standard and does not differ in originality from competitors. The settings allow you to touch the button to go back a level, and pressing the button throws the user to the desktop. This functionality is optional.

In the corner between the upper part of the metal end and the display, a barely noticeable ear speaker is very elegantly integrated, covered with a perforated grille.

To the right of it, a light indicator is no less aesthetically pleasing.

Hidden on the left side is a hybrid SIM/memory card slot. Sharp AQUOS S2 works out of the box with any telecom operators around the world. To do this, the system supports a bunch of ranges. No additional unlocks required. As soon as the device catches a cellular signal, the mobile Internet and MMS profile is automatically configured. There is no need to manually configure this menu item, as is the case with most Japanese counterparts. The smartphone uses nano SIM cards.

The case of the smartphone is not protected from water or dust. So be careful with liquids. At the bottom, behind grilles that are symmetrical with respect to the USB connector, there is a microphone and a speaker.

The chrome-plated on/off and volume buttons are partially painted in the body color. Looks pretty.

Bitterness and resentment! I personally and I am sure that many people are upset by such anti-elegant elements of the exterior of phones as camera lenses that impractically protrude from the body. The AQUOS S2 has an incredible amount of that. It seems that this artifact was emphasized on purpose. Yes, I agree that the thickness of the smartphone tends to record thin, but what decision was made regarding a pair of lenses, plunges me into despondency.

The way and what the body of the smartphone rests on when it lies on its back indicates the imminent erasure of the place of contact. After all, sooner or later, small scratches and scuffs will begin to appear on the case from nowhere. It's unavoidable.

The glass surface covers both lenses without tearing, i.e. the bulge of the chamber is a monolithic part of the rear wall. Looks unusual. A kind of pimple on a smooth body.

As I said, the back surface has a glossy finish and gets very dirty. You'll have to get used to it or put all this beauty in a case.

The SHARP logo is etched into the glass. Whether it looks expensive or not, I’m not sure, but anyway, it didn’t cause me any special feelings, although it is presented as a feature that was awarded to the expensive version of AQUOS S2.

Camera

In order not to describe in detail one of the best cameras in the history of smartphones by Sharp, including the period of its stay in the hands of Chinese owners, I’d better point out the cons right away. The main disadvantage I found was the lack of any stabilization. If in the process of photographing you can still somehow fix your hands, then during video shooting it is extremely difficult to do this. Below, using the example of 4K video, you can clearly see why at least optical stabilization is needed, and even more so in flagship models.

I carefully searched all the camera settings menus, but I did not find anything related to image stabilization.

It's still not clear to me how to resize the photo. The highest resolution is set by default. There are three image formats: full screen, standard and square. No other changes can be made to the image size. At least I did not find even such an item. In any case, if there is an urgent need, all these shortcomings can be eliminated by installing a suitable third-party camera application.

As for the quality of photos and videos, here I personally saw a huge leap forward, even compared to the current flagships released for the Japanese operator market. Firstly, it is a more realistic color rendering. Unfortunately, I have not yet had the opportunity to compare the results of the AQUOS S2 cameras and the most up-to-date AQUOS R for Japan at the moment. Therefore, I will not recklessly declare the victory of the Chinese Sharp.

The maximum photo resolution on the AQUOS S2 is 4032x3024p. The maximum video resolution is 4K (3840x2160p) at 30 fps, with stereo sound (96 kbps). MP4 file extension.

The second lens is needed only to blur the background (Bokeh level). Sample photos below. The LED flash can work as a flashlight. The corresponding button is in the set of icons in the top curtain.

For the first time, Sharp was one of the very first to release a frameless smartphone three years ago, but since then all its mobile devices with this feature have not been very popular among buyers. However, as Sharp CEO Luo Zhongsheng announced today, things will change at the very beginning of 2018, as the company has created a completely frameless smartphone, which will be the first in the world. It is noted that the novelty will receive the highest ratio of screen area to space on the front.

Thus, as it became known today from an official source, which is the CEO of Sharp, this manufacturer will soon present the world with the first absolutely frameless phone, a photo of which is also already available. As you can easily see in the picture, the future novelty from the Aquos line really has a display without side frames, but in its upper part in the very center there is a small cutout in which the front camera is located.

Information about the technical equipment of the novelty is not yet available, however, according to the company's management, all data on the world's first absolutely frameless smartphone from Sharp will be disclosed as part of the MWC 2018 exhibition (Mobile World Congress), which will be held from February 26 to March 1 next of the year. The entire event will be held in Barcelona, ​​that is, in the very center of Europe, thanks to which journalists from all over the world will be able to personally get acquainted with the novelty.

In addition, it is already known that in addition to the absolutely frameless smartphone created this year, Sharp intends to bring to this exhibition other mobile devices with slightly less interesting technical equipment. One of the novelties will be a phone with the model name Sharp FS8018, which was spotted in the Geekbench benchmark a few weeks ago, thanks to which its technical characteristics became known.

The Sharp FS8018 smartphone is credited with an 8-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 630 processor, 6 GB of RAM and 64 GB of permanent flash memory, a USB Type-C connector, and the Android 7.1 Nougat operating system that was installed on it at the time of testing. By the time of the announcement at the MWC 2018 exhibition at the end of February, all Sharp smartphones should already work on Android 8.1 Oreo, which Google did not so long ago.

The main question is how much a completely frameless Sharp smartphone will cost. As a rule, unfortunately, the cost of mobile devices with such features often turns out to be indecently high, so it may well turn out that the new product will cost even more than $1,500 (90,000 rubles).

Having bought a large part of Sharp Corporation, the Chinese giant Foxconn began to think about what to do with its mobile division. First, under the Japanese brand, InFocus smartphones began to appear, and last year timid attempts began to release something more interesting. They started with the Aquos S2, a device that tries to replicate and rethink the almost legendary EDGEST design concept. This spring, Sharp Aquos S2 appeared on the shelves of cross-border trade stores with a very tasty price tag - about ten thousand rubles. We could not resist and ordered a smartphone, and now we are telling you about it.

Specifications Sharp Aquos S2:

• Network: GSM (900/1800/1900 MHz), CDMA (800 MHz), WCDMA (850/900/1900/2100 MHz), TD-SCDMA (Band 34, 39), FDD-LTE (Band 1, 3, 4 , 5, 7, 8, 12, 17, 28), TDD-LTE (Band 34, 38, 39, 40, 41)
• Platform: Android 7.1.1 Nougat with Smile UX skin
• Display: 5.5", 2040x1080 pixels, 420 ppi, LCD
• Camera: dual, 12 MP + 8 MP, phase detection autofocus, 6 lenses, f/1.75, 1.4 micron pixels
• Front camera: 8 MP, 5 lenses, f/2.0, 1.4 micron pixels
• Processor: 8 cores, up to 2.2 GHz, 64 bits, Qualcomm Snapdragon 630/660
• RAM: 4/6 GB
• Internal memory: 64/128 GB
• Memory card: microSD (up to 128 GB)
• A-GPS, GLONASS
• Bluetooth 4.2
• Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n/ac), 2.4/5 GHz
• The fingerprint scanner
• Battery: 3020 mAh
• Dimensions: 141.8x72.04x7.9 mm
• Weight: 140 g

Equipment and design

The fact that this is not a real Japanese Sharp, but a Chinese Foxconn product, becomes clear as soon as you open the box. No, no, nothing bad appears to the buyer's eyes - on the contrary, in an unusually arranged red and white box, everything is very neatly laid out and there are a lot of all sorts of accessories, although the Japanese prefer to put only documentation and a SIM needle in the smartphone kit (a couple of years ago even flagships were sold with this set). Right there, in addition to the Japanese standard, there is also a 3.5 mm -> Type-C adapter, a USB cable, a 10-W charger with a Chinese plug, and a plastic case.

The case protects all the ends, and the protruding camera, and, thanks to the sides, the front panel. There is only one problem: the sides are made rather rough. Because of this, using the phone with a complete case is not very pleasant.

The smartphone is available in four colors: blue, white, green and black. There is also a top version with a glass back in three colors (black, white, blue) and more powerful hardware. For some reason, it is much more expensive than usual, and the differences are clearly not worth such an overpayment. In the normal version, the back panel of the smartphone is plastic, and it is glossy plastic. Despite this, the panel looks very interesting: a layer of unevenly colored plastic is hidden under a completely transparent layer, giving the visual feeling of a glass backdrop. I especially like the Sharp logo, which is applied over a transparent layer and casts a shadow on the paint - a small thing, but it looks very cool.

No less curious - but what is there, much more curious - the front panel is framed. As I already wrote, Foxconn tried to repeat the design of EDGEST, only this time without sacrificing the location of the front camera. For her, they organized a small cutout in the screen. You can’t call him an eyebrow, rather, a nipple. In order for the screen to fit closer to the edges of the case, which would not be too angular, the manufacturer decided to cut off the corners of the display. Not to round, but to cut off - and this is perhaps the most unfortunate decision of the Aquos S2 designers. Fortunately, there is a program in the Play Store that allows you to round the slices (bevels physically remain, but software rounding appears).

Finally, at the bottom of the screen, in the best traditions of EDGEST, there is a rather big chin. A fingerprint scanner fit in there (it doesn’t work very fast, sometimes it asks to hold your finger longer, but it recognizes even dirty fingers) and another Sharp logo. This chin is very annoying for many, but somehow I did not pay much attention. But what you pay attention to when using the Aquos S2 is ergonomics. The smartphone, despite the 5.5 "display, feels compact. It is very convenient to use it with one hand. All the buttons on the ends are located in convenient places and are easy to find, you don't have to reach for anything. The phone does not slip out of your hands, for which I must say thank you The absence of an oleophobic coating on the back makes it difficult to maintain the phone in its salable condition, but ergonomics are perhaps more important.

The 5.5" screen of Sharp Aquos S2 is made using LCD technology and has a resolution of 2040x1080 pixels (17:9, as in the first Xiaomi Mi Mix). The screen is good. The clarity is high, the brightness range is wide, the color reproduction is accurate, although a little oversaturated. White color quite white, but the black lacks depth - it is much lighter than the frame around it.However, within the limits of LCD technology, it is difficult to do anything about this.

Software

Sharp Aquos S2 came to us with Chinese firmware, which has Russian language, but no Google services. However, it is very easy to upgrade to normal software, we published the instructions. The offered firmware is even GMS-certified! As is often the case with Chinese smartphones, the “green robot” is not given in its purest form, instead Smile UX firmware is offered. Chinese firmware does not often leave a positive impression, but I liked this one. I'll tell you a little more about her.

All application icons are on desktops, there is no separate application menu. However, it is still possible and even easy to get into the full list of programs: when you open any folder of shortcuts, you can scroll left and right, getting into other folders, and the leftmost folder is always "All", which, in fact, is the same menu applications. In the launcher, you can change the grid (4x5 or 5x5), block the movement of shortcuts or press them to the bottom of the screen (handy if the phone still seems big to you). HiBoard can be configured as the leftmost desktop - search by application names, contacts and SMS texts. A swipe from above opens a completely ordinary curtain, and you can swipe from anywhere on the screen. Among the switches you can find a button to capture video from the screen.

The multitasking menu deserves special mention. He has two modes here. In the traditional one, it occupies the entire screen, and at the same time one and a half application previews are visible. In compact mode, four thumbnails are visible at once, and most of the screen on which you opened the menu remains visible. This menu seemed to me much more convenient than the usual one, although this is a matter of taste, of course.

Standard applications are really standard, there is nothing to talk about them. There is a "Themes" app, but it constantly complains about poor Internet (apparently having difficulty connecting to servers in China), and therefore it is impossible to use it. Of the interesting features in the “Settings”, one can note the selection of display parameters, the ability to put a graphic key on applications, useless gesture control chips, the S Boost accelerator (it can defragment the disk!), the function of changing the places of the navigation panel buttons, the shutdown button of the RoboS smart assistant and others little things. You can customize how full-screen apps work at 17:9 - stretch or leave a black cutout bar. Non-fullscreen applications start right below this bar, and the status bar looks very wide and ugly with them.

The firmware is not fully translated, but overall not bad. Many points are missing explanations. For example, I never found any traces of RoboS, because nowhere is it explained what it is at all. Having enabled HiBoard in the launcher settings, I looked for it for quite a long time, thinking that it was a keyboard - if I hadn’t accidentally swiped to the left on the left desktop, I would have written in the review that this thing does not work at all. In the status bar parameters, you can turn off some kind of indicator, but something like that is not explained anywhere. Etc. But even without these mysterious options, Smile UX has enough interesting things. Foxconn was able to make cool firmware. After the terrible software InFocus M810T, I am very surprised by this.

cameras

The main camera of Sharp Aquos S2 is double. The second module is based on an 8-megapixel sensor, but is only needed to blur the background. The main one is more interesting: a 12-megapixel sensor with 1.4 micron pixels, six-lens optics with f / 1.75 aperture. There is a flash: two-diode two-color. The camera app has a professional mode with manual frame settings. There is also a built-in timelapse tool.

But first about the photos. They at Sharp Aquos S2 turn out differently depending on what you shoot. Close-ups and macros come out great. But there are some problems with long-range plans - the noise reduction starts to turn the image into a watercolor, and the sharper unnaturally highlights all sorts of wires and borders. At the same time, sharpening from Sharp definitely works after noise reduction - sometimes it highlights the boundaries of watercolor strokes. But, however, all this is not too striking. If you don't look too closely, you'll like the pictures. Well, I can’t help but note the very fast autofocus - I just pointed at the object, and it is already in focus. It is also worth adding that enthusiasts will be able to squeeze a lot more out of the camera when using Google Camera.

The front camera has a resolution of 8 megapixels and somehow does not stand out at all. The camera, like a camera, takes quite tolerable self-portraits, although it is not easy to get into the focus area with your face. Sharp Aquos S2 cannot be attributed to selfies. It doesn’t justify its cutout in any way - it could have been more interesting to fit the camera into a nipple / pimple / well of this size.

Very fast autofocus pleases even during video shooting, but somehow nothing else pleases. The sound is recorded not too naturally, there is no stabilization. But you can write 4K. Timelapse acceleration is not configurable in any way, but by default it is an acceptable 30x.

Performance and Benchmarks

The basis of the regular version of Sharp Aquos S2 is the Snapdragon 630 chipset, it is accompanied by 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of ROM. The amount of free RAM after a reboot is approximately 2.5 GB. If the built-in memory is not enough, you can insert a microSD memory card up to 128 GB, however, it will take one of the two nano-SIM slots. Let's return, however, to productivity. Benchmarks:

The Snapdragon 630 is a fairly powerful chipset, especially in terms of graphics. Many even demanding games (Injustice 2, Unkilled, Asphalt Extreme, World of Tanks) run on Sharp Aquos S2 flawlessly with the maximum available graphics settings. Jamming happens in rare cases - for example, in Injustice 2 at the first launch, when it seems to be caching something. More demanding games can lag, but there are very few of them and only flagships can handle them.

Sharp Aquos S2 gets hot. It gets hot sometimes. I tried to play Air Attack 2 while World of Tanks downloaded and decompressed its cache and it was quite difficult. The back panel is plastic, it does not heat up too much - but because of it, all the heat output falls on the metal frame, which you don’t want to hold on to at all. But, curiously, there is practically no throttling. AnTuTu did not notice any performance change at all, GFXBench recorded a drop of about 12% 15-20 minutes after the start of the long-term test.

The battery capacity is 3020 mAh. There is a USB Type-C port for charging. The specifications say support for Quick Charge 3.0, but the bundled charger is only 10 watts. With normal use, the smartphone is enough for a day, but no more. Every night Sharp Aquos S2 will spend on charging. The results in our traditional tests: a full discharge when showing a video - 6 hours 45 minutes, a discharge per hour in Asphalt Extreme - 19%. GFXBench predicts 268.5 minutes of play time on a single charge, which is more optimistic than our test results.

The smartphone supports LTE, including many Russian bands. On the forums, many users complain about problems with the quality of communication and find their solutions, but I have not even come across them. (Update: as we were told in the comments, those who upgraded to Oreo have communication problems, which you should not do.) There is NFC, which is still an infrequent guest in Chinese low-end smartphones, can be used for shopping.

After all, only there you can buy the device, which will be discussed today. Everything went fine, the package reached me and today we will look at the Sharp Aquos S2. The model is very popular among those who like to order gadgets from China. Yes, the brand is Japanese, well known to everyone, but these devices are manufactured, as usual, in China. Among the mass of modern smartphones, Aquos S2 really stands out, he is like that alien who flew in from another planet to make a rustle and show what a smartphone for one and a half hundred dollars should be like.

EQUIPMENT

In the kit we get:
- protective plastic bumper
- paper clip for the tray
- c / a for 5V and 2A
- USB-C cable
- adapter from USB-C to 3.5 mm jack.

FIRMWARE

From China SHARP Aquos S2 comes with Chinese firmware. It has a Russian language, but no Google services, and a bunch of Chinese software is preinstalled. It is desirable to reflash the smartphone to the official international firmware. The process of flashing Sharp Aquos S2 is so primitive and simple that even a child can handle it. The international firmware itself can be downloaded on the w3bsit3-dns.com forum>>. When you turn it on for the first time, do not activate WiFi, otherwise the smart will automatically start downloading updates, but we do not need it. Download the firmware in the form of an archive and upload it to the smartphone's memory, directly to the root of the disk. Next, open the dialer on your smartphone and enter the combination *#*#874#*#* and after that, the smartphone will automatically detect the firmware and begin the process of reinstalling the software. Everything!

But if you have already connected to WiFi before and updated the Chinese firmware, then the smartphone will display a message stating that the firmware archive was not found. That is, he simply will not see the new firmware, because its number will match the number of the current firmware. This is not a problem either. We just need to rename the archive with the firmware, replacing the number in it. For example, if we install the 35th international firmware, and we have the 35th already installed, but Chinese, we change the number 35 to 36 in the name of the archive, thereby prompting the smartphone, they say, here it is, a more recent firmware. Again we dial the above combination *#*#874#*#* and the smartphone will successfully start flashing. After installing the new software, it is recommended to do a factory reset.

DESIGN AND DIMENSIONS

The first thing that makes the Aquos S2 stand out in the smartphone market is its size. Due to the very narrow side and top bezels of the screen, it offers relatively modest dimensions: 142 mm x 72 mm, besides, it is thin - its thickness does not exceed 7.5 mm (excluding the protruding camera), and its weight is small - about 140 g. See how much smaller it is than modern shovels:

In terms of dimensions, Aquos S2 is comparable to 5-inch smartphones, despite the fact that it has a 5.5-inch screen.

Yes, the glossy back panel is a minus for practicality, so if you want to keep it presentable for longer, you will have to protect the back of your smartphone with a bumper or case. By the way, the older version has a glass back, not plastic.

The ends are metal, the power and volume buttons too. The tray is made of plastic, it is combined - either two nanoSIMs or 1 SIM + memory card. Assembly without remarks. In addition to the blue color, the smartphone is offered in black and there is a cool white color with longitudinal gray stripes.

Yes, some hate this design. But that's the value of this device, that it is not like most others. And would it be cool if Aquos S2 became another clone? No. And do not forget that it was Sharp who set the fashion for this design, which later became known as frameless. And then other brands picked up this trend. If the protrusion at the top of the screen is annoying, on which the front camera and light and proximity sensors are sheltered, you can hide it with dark wallpapers. When watching videos and playing games, this protrusion does not interfere at all - the screen is simply cut off without reaching the protrusion. In addition, everything is at your discretion - in the screen settings you can set the native aspect ratio for this display to 17:9 and then the picture will be stretched to full screen. The choice is up to the user.

On the upper narrow frame, the manufacturer managed to place a classic hearing speaker and even found a place for an event indication LED. The top corners of the screen are beveled - again, this looks unusual. But if such bevels do not suit you, there are many applications with which the corners of the display can be made rounded.

To control the smartphone under the screen there is a touch button, it is multifunctional: a single touch is “back”, with a long touch we go to the desktop and a slow swipe to the side launches the menu of background applications. Also in the settings you can activate the on-screen buttons. And it is not difficult to guess that the fingerprint scanner is built into the multifunctional button: it is accurate, and its response speed is good.

DISPLAY

For the first time you turn on the smartphone and understand - the screen is gorgeous. He's the kind of guy that's hard to get a hold of. FullHD+ resolution, a comfortable brightness range, a responsive 10-touch touchscreen and a beautiful rich picture. Sometimes there was even a feeling that it was an AMOLED display - it is so juicy and contrasty. But the matrix, of course, IPS. The color rendition is correct, I don’t want to reconfigure it, but just in case, there are three presets in the screen settings - you can make the picture warmer or, on the contrary, colder. There is an oleophobic coating on 2.5D glass and it is of good quality.

HARDWARE

We are talking about the younger version of Aquos S2, which means we get the Snapdragon 630, which is essentially an improved version of the successful 625 “dragon”: all the same 8 Cortex-A53 cores, but with a maximum frequency of 2.2 GHz + Adreno 508 graphics. 4 GB of memory and this is dual-channel LPDDR 4 memory. A 64 GB drive, of which about 47 GB is free. The older, more expensive version will get you a higher-end Snapdragon 660 processor, 6GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage.

Iron for this price is just excellent. In games, it also shows itself worthy, incl. in the most demanding. Tanks (WOT BLITZ) in many locations can be played even at maximum graphics. But on some cards there are FPS drawdowns, so it would be ideal to set the average graphics or cut down the maximum.
Mobile PUBG set low graphics at launch. Everything is playable, there are no critical lags. In games, the smartphone heats up, but does not overheat. The maximum temperature recorded on the cores was 48 degrees.

SOFTWARE AND FUNCTIONALITY

The international firmware is based on Android 7.1.1, the shell is not standard, but quite convenient. The firmware is being updated, I have the latest version 1-35F, released in March of this year. If there are any other questions, something is not clear or something suddenly does not work as you would like - you will find all the answers in the topic of this smartphone on the w3bsit3-dns.com forum - the model is very popular, has gathered a large community around itself, with this no problem. And during my communication with the smartphone, I did not have any questions.

Hearing during conversations is quite normal. As for LTE frequencies, the main bands for us are supported. I mean first of all the 3rd and 7th band. Band 20, as far as I understand, is not supported.

The Sharp Aquos S2 is perfect for navigation – the connection with the sky is good, there is GLONASS support. WiFi is dual-band, OTG works, there is no hardware radio. Sensors above the roof, including a gyroscope, a magnetic sensor, etc. But in our time, NFC is important to many, and this module is also present here, unlike the vast majority of smartphones in this price category. Google Pay on your smartphone launches and allows you to add a card. Judging by the feedback from other users, wireless payment works correctly.

Sound is not a strong point of the smartphone. The speaker here is not bad and in terms of the quality of the sound itself, it can be compared with the Redmi 4 Pro speaker. The sound through the headphones is the most ordinary, without any frills. The downside is that there is no audio jack, so we connect wired headphones via the USB-C port, using an adapter from USB-C to an audio jack. By the way, not all such adapters are suitable, so the native cord must be protected. And no one canceled wireless headphones.

CAMERAS

The camera is dual, 12 + 8 MP, with phase detection autofocus, f / 1.8 aperture, which sensors are used - I don’t have exact information. There are full manual settings, there are various color filters, etc. If you get confused, you can also put a Google camera here, thereby improving the results. In the video version of the review (presented below), you can find a detailed test of the cameras, in the same place I compared the Aquos s2 camera with the camera. With good lighting everything is fine. I am sure that for most users this quality is enough. At night, everything is also more or less worthy - it is clear that the sensor is decent and the optics are not the cheapest, of course there are noises, but there are not so many of them and they do not annoy the eyes.

It is possible to shoot video not only in FullHD quality, but also in 4K. The frame rate is stable - 30 FPS and with a lack of light, the frame rate does not drop. Detailing is not bad, one thing is missing - electronic stabilization. In addition to the lack of a stub, the video mode has another drawback - the quality of the sound recording.
The sound on the video is recorded without low frequencies, which makes it seem somehow plastic and not saturated.

The front camera is 8 megapixels, f / 2.0 aperture, decent quality, but there is a software flaw - the front camera takes overly saturated photos by default. This issue can be fixed through manual settings.

AUTONOMY

Battery capacity 3020 mA. Yes, with a FullHD + display and with such a capacity, Aquos S2 does not impress with autonomy, but I can’t call it a wimp in this regard. Saves energy efficient processor. As a result, we get just normal autonomy, which is enough for the whole day with moderate use of the smartphone. For 3 hours of playing Youtube video over WiFi in 720p quality, 32% of the charge was taken, which is equal to about 11% per hour. This is about the same result as or . The smartphone “sleeps” well, the battery does not die in standby mode. The native charger charges 64% in 1 hour and fully in 2 hours 25 minutes. But the smartphone supports QuickCharge 3.0 fast charging, and if you have the appropriate adapter on the farm, you can reduce the charging time.

VERDICT

So, if you look at the price of about $ 160 (at the time of the publication of the review) and if you compare it with competitors, then I conclude that we have one of the best options. And for those who don’t need a big shovel, this is probably a no-alternative smart. Yes, it is not ideal, I have not yet seen ideal smartphones in this price category. The disadvantages include the lack of an audio jack, an impractical glossy panel on the back with a protruding camera, and I would like better sound when recording video. To whom all this is critical - we pass by. But the rest of the smartphone is cool. It does not look like competitors, its appearance is original, it is convenient due to its size, it has a gorgeous screen, the processor gives decent performance, there is a lot of memory, and the camera did not let us down. And many will pay attention to it due to the presence of the NFC module. And for those who think its appearance is somehow awkward, there is a huge selection of the same type of smartphones.

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