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The Best of 2014: Top 5 Phablets

It’s often said that there are “different strokes for different folks”. Some like it big, while some prefer stuff that are adequate in size. If you belong to the former group, then here‘s our list of phablets that, in our opinion, made it BIG in the local scene last year.

* All devices listed below were available in the Philippines in 2014.
* The device should have a minimum display size of 6 inches.
* The devices were arranged in descending order based on its SRP

Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro

Whenever we shell out thirty grand on a smartphone, we expect nothing less but the best. Luckily the Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro doesn’t disappoint with its crisp 6-inch display that’s packed with 2560 x 1440 pixels, not to mention a flagship-caliber engine setup comprising of a 2.5Ghz Snapdragon 801 quad-core processor with 3GB of RAM and support for 4G/LTE connectivity.

Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro (K920) specs:
6-inch QHD (2560 x 1440) IPS display, 490ppi
Corning Gorilla Glass 3
2.5GHz Snapdragon 801 MSM8974AC quad-core CPU
Adreno 330 GPU
3GB RAM
32GB internal storage
16MP BSI OIS rear camera w/ dual-LED flash
4K video recording
5MP front camera
Dual-SIM support
4G LTE, HSPA+
WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n ac
Bluetooth 4.0
NFC
USB OTG
GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS
Android 4.4 KitKat w/ Vibe UI 2.0
4,000mAh Li-Po battery
156 x 81.3 x 7.7mm
179 g
Price: Php29,999

Huawei Ascend Mate7

Though not as insanely-spec’d as the Vibe Z2 Pro, the Ascend Mate7 from Huawei is still an interesting proposition because it has a few aces up its sleeves that the Vibe Z2 Pro doesn’t have. These include two SIM card slots that support LTE connectivity, option to expand storage via Micro-SD, and a slightly beefier battery pack.

Huawei Ascend Mate7 specs:
6-inch Full HD IPS display, 368ppi
Corning Gorilla Glass 3
HiSilicon Kirin 925 octa-core CPU (4 × 1.8GHz Cortex A15 + 4 × 1.3GHz Cortex A7 + 1 x 230MHz big.LITTLE)
Mali-T628 GPU
3GB RAM
32GB internal storage
up to 64GB via microSD
Dual-SIM, Dual-Standby (Nano-SIM + Micro-SIM)
Dual-LTE Cat 6
13MP rear camera, f/2.0, LED flash
5MP front camera
WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n
Bluetooth 4.0
NFC
microUSB
Fingerprint Sensor
GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS
Android 4.4 KitKat w/ Emotion UI 3.0
Li-Po 4,100mAh battery
157 x 81 x 7.9 mm (dimensions)
185 grams (weight)
Price: Php27,890

Starmobile Diamond X1

Surprisingly, even though the local players flood the market with smartphones of all shapes and sizes, there’s not a lot decent 6-inchers to choose from. The Starmobile Diamond X1 is actually one of the very few phablets that has a pretty decent specs but doesn’t cost an arm and a leg.

Starmobile Diamond X1 specs:
6-inch IPS LCD display @ 1280×720 pixels, 245ppi
Scratch-resistant coating
MediaTek MT6592 1.7GHz Octa-core processor
Mali 450MP4 GPU
2GB RAM
8GB internal storage
up to 64GB via microSD card
3G/HSPA+
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth 3.0
18MP BSI auto focus camera with LED Flash
8MP BSI front-facing camera
Dual-SIM, dual standby
GPS w/ aGPS support
FM Radio tuner
2 x Yamaha 1420 speakers, 1.2watts
Li-Ion 2,400mAh
Android 4.2.2 Jellybean
SRP: Php13,990

ASUS Zenfone 6

Although the ZenFone 5 is, undoubtedly, the most popular handset among the three ZenFones that was launched last year, but users who wanted a bigger screen real estate and don’t mind shelling out extra for it, the ZenFone 6 was a perfect fit.

ASUS ZenFone 6 specs:
6-inch IPS display, 1280 x 720 @247ppi
Corning Gorilla Glass 3
Intel Atom Z2560 1.6GHz dual-core processor with HyperThreading Technology
PowerVR SGX 544 MP2
2GB RAM
16GB internal storage
64GB via microSD
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
3G/HSPA+
Bluetooth
13MP BSI rear camera w/ LED flash
1080p video recording @30fps
2MP front-facing camera
Dual-SIM
3300mAh battery
Android 4.3
166.9 x 84.3 x 9.9mm
200g
Price: Php11,995

O+ Grande

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Unlike the four candidates, the O+ Grande is not going to take home any awards as far as its specs are concerned, though it still made our list because of the combination of its enticing price tag and acceptable configuration.

O+ Grande specs:
6-inch HD IPS display, 312ppi
1.2GHz quad-core CPU
1GB RAM
Expandable 4GB internal storage
up to 32GB via microSD
5 megapixel AF rear camera w/ LED flash
2 megapixel front camera
HSPA+, 3G
Dual-SIM, Dual-Standby
WiFi
Bluetooth 3.0
GPS, A-GPS
2,700mAh battery
Android 4.4 KitKat
SRP: Php5,995

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Avatar for Ronnie Bulaong

This article was written by Ronnie Bulaong, a special features contributor and correspondent for YugaTech. Follow him on Twitter @turonbulaong.

20 Responses

  1. Avatar for rick rick says:

    How come wala si Lumia 1520? Its 6 inch phablet o baka puro android phone lng ito?

  2. Avatar for henny henny says:

    maganda sana ang Starmobile, kaso basic lang ang ginagamit nilang anroid version…siguro dapat maglagat din sila ng UI katulad ng ASUS Zen UI…at ska matibay rin nmn ang Starmobile…kahit papaano bcoz i have one Starmobile Play, madalas ko syang nababagsak minsam nga sobrang taas ng pinagbagsak, pero nung kinuha ko sya s sahig, wla nmn syang damages and take note ha nka turn on p rin sya at nsa app p rin sya kung saan huli ko syang hawak bago malaglag…

  3. Avatar for lex lex says:

    For me, Asus Z6 tops this list. It has good specs and even cheaper than the SM Diamond.

  4. Avatar for Jepoy Jepoy says:

    * All devices listed below were available in the Philippines in 2014.
    * The device should have a minimum display size of 6 inches.
    * The devices were arranged in descending order based on its SRP

    IT PAYS TO READ AND UNDERSTAND THE ARTICLE FIRST BEFORE REACTING. DON’T JUST READ THE TITLE OF THE ARTICLE.

    • Avatar for Arsie Organo Arsie Organo says:

      I agree! Although most of the brands here are not really popular – my personal opinion though.

  5. Avatar for Don Don says:

    So no Nexus 6? It’s 6 inches

    • Avatar for Rye de Jesus Rye de Jesus says:

      Dude you’re not reading. At the top there are three asterisks; it says in there that all phones are available in the Philippines in the year 2014. Nexus 6 hasn’t officially landed the country yet. Also, Nexus 6 doesn’t have a 6 inch display but so close to that. FYI Nexus 6 has a 5.96 inches display.

  6. Avatar for stoic stoic says:

    “As stated on the post, the devices on this list have a display that is at least 6-inch size.”

    The entire article should have been titled accordingly, if you wish to point out 6 inchers..

    A 5.5 and 5.7 inch phone is still well within the bounds of what normal average users in the world would consider as “phablet” and to actually get ticked-off by a sly comment on “nabayaran et. al” could have been avoided, thus professionalism and reputation could have been upheld.

    Like they say, it’s better to be silent and be thought a fool than open one’s mouth and remove all doubt..

  7. Avatar for Don Don says:

    how come walang note 4 at iphone 6 plus at lg g pro 2?

    • Avatar for Ronnie Bulaong Ronnie Bulaong says:

      As stated on the post, the devices on this list have a display that is at least 6-inch size.

  8. Avatar for uyyy uyyy says:

    yun nabayaran nanaman ang yuga para isama ang sm knight at O+ Grande haha
    talo pa mga yan ng Honor 6 ah tsk

    • Avatar for Carl Lamiel Carl Lamiel says:

      Not a paid post. Also, Diamond X1 and not Knight X. :))

    • Avatar for Ronnie Bulaong Ronnie Bulaong says:

      Nice observation bro! You totally know how we do business here. Keep it up.

    • Avatar for Tony Tony says:

      Honor 6 is not a 6 inch phone. Even xiaomi, sa pagkakaalam ko wala din ang xiaomi. Halatang walang alam to. !

    • Avatar for pinoy pinoy says:

      meron akong x1. hindi mabili ang x1 and I think lipas na ang generation na ito para magbayad pa ang starmobile for a paid post.

      pero for the previous gen, maganda diamond x1. not in the league of cheapy CM stuff. ok ang build, magaad, ganda ng display. average lng ang camera, pero wala namang local phone na maganda cam e. 1 year na sakin next month, and mukhang ok na ok pa sya

    • Avatar for Karen Karen says:

      So inaamin niyo na you do “business” with various companies?

    • Avatar for Carl Lamiel Carl Lamiel says:

      Sarcasm, dear. I already said it was not a paid post. Geez.

    • Avatar for Mitch Mitch says:

      There will be no improvement here as long as Yuga employs sycophants and apologists like these two. The dropping readership should be a warning to Yuga that the quality is dropping.

    • Avatar for Tony Tony says:

      Meron pang isa na di nakaintindi.. ????
      At may isa pa din sa ibaba na isiningit ang nexus six. Sabi nga nila, the less you know, the more you believe.

    • Avatar for Pat Pat says:

      Ang kakapal ng muka mag paratang ng mga ungoy na to. Everytime na may mention ng local brands kailangan bayad ang yuga, nawawala sa tech ang pinag uusapan. More power yuga please continue whatever you are doing.

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