Spice launched the Stellar Pinnacle Mi-530 few days back which is aimed at users who are looking for a big screen device with a lot of features but do not want to splurge much in handsets of bigger brands like LG, Sony or Samsung.
Look and Feel
In the past Spice had launched quite a few devices decorated with bronze colour finish but following that Spice moved away to primary colors like white and blacks for devices. But now again Spice has diverted its attention towards bronze and has decorated the Spice Stellar Pinnacle Mi-530 in the same but in a darker shade that makes it appropriate for use by both the sexes.
The Stellar Pinnacle Mi-530 is big but has a thinner bezel that makes the device look sleek. It has rounded edges and the display window has a slight tapering on the protective surface that adds a touch of comfort for the user’s ears too. The front of the device features a clean button-less finish that looks great on the device. Along with that the earpiece is accented with a Chrome mesh that breaks the monotony of the otherwise flat front of the device.
The top placement of the power/standby key really makes it easy to use for those who are upgrading from older smartphones as smaller smartphones has such a key too. The right hand side houses the volume rocker which is a great plus for a bigger device but the designers could have placed the power key on the sides for easier access especially considering the bigger 5.3 inch display.
The overall build quality of the device if good; it’s sturdy and it can handle accidental falls quite well. The company has also provided a free flip case cum protector in the box that is a sure shot asset and protects the device in every way during a fall. Overall we are quite happy with the way device has been designed as well as with its build quality.
Display and Touch
The IPS (In Plane Switching) display of the Spice Stellar Pinnacle Mi-530 has great contrast as well as colour vibrancy. The maximum brightness supported by the display makes it a perfect device to be used even in bright sunlight as well. The native Resolution supported by the device is 960 x 540 pixels. Its 5.2 inch display, with this resolution, makes it a great device to watch HD movies as well as to play HD games.
The colour reproduction and the black levels are good and the picture quality offered by the display is sharp and vibrant. Although in comparison to Samsung Galaxy SIII, it pales down a bit but doesn’t disappoint.
The smartphone’s display not only responds well to even slightest touches but also supports multi point inputs. Moreover, the Stellar Pinnacle supports gestures too that can be employed by users to unlock the device and to do other tasks.
Processor and Display engine
The Spice Stellar Pinnacle Mi-530 utilises a faster dual core 1.2 GHz Chipset that has back up from a dedicated graphic processor as well. Although it’s not the fastest chip that has been used on a smartphone but the processor works well with the 1 GB RAM that has been added to the device.
The phone is capable of doing justice to most games, even the HD ones, to an extent. The phone has 16 GB of internal storage which can be further upped by another 32 GB with the help of an external micro SD data card.
The device works smoothly with applications and games alike but HD games tend to strain up the process that slows down the device a bit but only in the longer run and due to heating up of the processor.
Performance and usage
The Spice Stellar Pinnacle Mi-530 offers excellent all round performance that makes usage of this device fun and easy too. During the course of the review, the device underwent a lot of application testing and stressing but the device never hung or froze. The 5.3 inch display is a major plus point of this device even the touch sensitivity of the device is very accurate and all the gestures are very accurately registered by the device.
The call performance of this device is also another major plus point for the device. The calls are received and made without any issue. The earpiece and loudspeaker volume is abundant and the microphone also makes sure the receiver gets to hear every word loud and clear.
One issue is although there in the device and that is when the device is functioning on a memory intensive application such as a game and if you receive a call the microphone behaves strangely and the voice is not delivered clearly to the receiver.
Camera and Multimedia
The 8 Megapixel camera on the Spice Stellar Pinnacle Mi-530 offers average image quality but can record HD 720p videos at 30 frames per second. The camera although features an auto focus lens, gets crooked at times. The camera is supplemented with a dual LED flash that provides ample illumination for image capture under low lights.
The image quality of the camera is good outdoors while indoor mode photography is better to be avoided. The LED flash comes in to play wherever needed but is only effective for close objects and it tends to give the subjects a yellowish hue too.
Another major plus for the Spice Stellar Pinnacle Mi-530 is its 5 megapixel front facing camera that features an Autofocus lens as well. The 5 megapixel camera is the highest ever front facing camera to have been used for any low cost device or for that matter even the costlier devices as well.
On multimedia front, this device features support for all generic formats. One can also download music applications from the Google Play Store to play music and video files in other formats. The loudspeaker however is a bit of a downer for the device. The sound although is average but it gets distorted at high levels for sure.
Battery backup
It is yet another plus for the Spice Stellar Pinnacle Mi-530. The device can lasts for 1.5 day between charges easily and even longer for light users. The device manages power usage quite brilliantly and offers superior performance on demand as well. Overall the battery backup of this big screen device is good. The added weight of the bigger battery tends to make the device a bit heavier but with the added talk time, one should not mind the added bulk.
Conclusion
The Spice Stellar Pinnacle Mi-530 is a great performance oriented affordable Android smartphone that impresses with its features and its performance. Spice has done a number of customisations like the automatic call when the phone is placed next to ear and the video pop out feature as well.
But ultimately the question comes down to whether this is a good device for the price? Well in our opinion the Spice Stellar Pinnacle Mi-530 offers good performance, best in class features and an excellent battery life. Although the camera is a bit of a downer for but with so many plusses, one minus really does not bothers us.