The Filipino company ARC Mobile is set to launch a new line of Android phones that will feature some of the lowest prices possible in today’s market but also promises to provide consumers with the technology and performance that we have come to expect from our multitasking devices.
Jordan Ng, ARC Mobile’s Product Manager, presided over a media launch last May 17, 2013. During the launch, Ng presented tech bloggers and online journalists with the company’s entire product line so far, including a couple of prototypes which were not set to hit the market until June or July this year.
ARC has prepared four product lines - Basic phones, Prime Android phones, Nitro Android phones, and a line of tablets, simply named Tab.
The Basic phones are just that - pretty basic. They’re the same touchpad phones that you give to your preschooler or your driver just to be able to get in touch with them in an emergency, with no internet connectivity.
But they’re not the breaking story here. The scoop is the three remaining lines, made up by seven new items.
The Prime and Nitro phones feature a sleeker look, a touch screen interface, and run on either Gingerbread or Jellybean, respectively. Both lines have dual SIM slots and WiFi connectivity, as well as being loaded with a pretty sweet camera. Prices begin at P2,600 for the simplest Android phone of the bunch, the Prime 350. This gets you a phone that runs on Android Gingerbread 2.3.5 straight out of the box, with a 3.5 inch HGVA multi-touch capacitive screen, 1 Ghz single core processor, a 2000 mAh Li-on battery, 256MB RAM and 512MB ROM, boosted by an included 4GB Transcend MicroSD card. Not bad.
At the top of the line, we have the Nitro 450QD, sporting all the bells and whistles. It runs on Android Jellybean 4.2.1, has a 1.2 GHz Quad Core A7 processor, features PowerVR SGX544MP GPU, a 1800 mAh Li-on battery, and a 4.5 inch qHD screen and 512MB RAM, 4GB ROM. Almost unbelievably, you get all that for under P6,000.
This writer didn’t get to handle the Tab prototype at the launch, but the specs look decent, while the prices are more realistic – they begin at just under P4,000 and end in the vicinity of P5,000.
Ng says that the company aims to place technology in the hands of every Filipino, making it possible for every Pinoy to own a smart phone. And not just any smart phone, mind you, but one that won’t break or need to be replaced under a year of use, designed by Filipinos, for Filipinos… ironically produced in China, but that’s beside the point.
It’s a pretty noble goal, and we were lucky enough to test drive Arc Mobile’s mid-range phone, the Nitro 400D. Running Android 4.1.2 (Jellybean), this nifty gadget comes with a set or earphones, a data cable and a charger adapter. With a 4 inch capacitive multi-touch screen, it’s a little smaller than my other phone, a Samsung Note I. It’s a few grams lighter, too, and is deceptively light for its size.
The ARC Mobile Nitro 400D has a pretty good range of specs – a dual core 1GHz processor, 3G connectivity, Quadband GSM, and an expandable memory that goes up to 32GB via microSD.
It has all the features we have come to want in our phones, too. It has a dual camera with a flash (5MP in the back, with digital zoom, and 2MP in the front), WiFi connectivity, an FM radio, mp3 and video player, and a Bluetooth function.
It’s a great bargain, offering excellent value for its price. What sets it apart, though, is that the ARC Mobile team claims that their product is quite durable, and that they are able to provide both software and hardware support for their buyers.
Out of the box, it’s pretty responsive. It’s a good phone for someone who needs a secondary device – not as powerful as my Note (yes, I am a Samsung fangirl), but more than capable as a backup. The more powerful Nitro phones would probably be good enough as primary devices.
I’d recommend the Prime350 or the Nitro 400D to someone who makes use of their phone for business or for keeping in touch with friends and family through social networks, but aren’t too reliant on it. The camera’s good enough in a pinch, for evidence and such, but not for blogging or scrapbooking, or other hobbies that require good sharing photos.
Is this the beginning of a Pinoy phone dynasty? Maybe so. As of now, my Nitro 400D has shown to be durable (the cats got it), easy to tuck away in a pocket, and have a pretty good battery life. It also has a quick camera shutter, though the recovery time could use some improvement. The sound is a little tinny, but that’s fixed with proper headphones.
All in all, a great buy, and a good indication of great things to come from ARC Mobile.