Huawei Ascend Y200: Challenger at under Php6k

Had lunch with the folks from Huawei Philippines when they handed me this new Android phone, an Ascend Y200. Although they already have that Netphone 501 with Smart, they’re also releasing this other entry-level smartphone at a very competitive price.

The Ascend Y200 will probably compete with other entry-level Android phones like the Galaxy Pocket (and the old Galaxy Y) as well as the LG Optimus L3.

Like its big brother, the Huawei Honor, the Ascend Y200 also features a fast boot up time of 5 seconds.

The biggest selling feature of this entry-level phone is the 3.5-inch IPS LCD panel which is among the largest in its price category.

Huawei Ascend Y200 specs:
3.5″ IPS LCD @ 320×480 pixels, 165ppi
Qualcomm MSM7225A 800MHz
Adreno 200 graphics
256MB RAM
512MB ROM
HSDPA 14.4Mbps
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
3.2MP camera
GPS w/ aGPS support
Bluetooth 2.1
Android 2.3 Gingerbread
1250mAh Li-Ion battery

The handset will be available in the market this week in some stores and could be nationwide by next week. Suggested retail price for this handset is Php5,490 (I actually suggested this SRP during our discussion and was surprised they were serious when they said they’ll go for that figure).

The is pretty good for an entry level unit. The IPS display looks really great and the Emotion UI is clean and neat. Huawei may have a winner here. Watch out for our full review soon.