Jio Phone cannot be placed in any particular category. It looks like a feature phone but it has many smart features due to which the phone gets a different identity. All Jio apps work in this feature phone. You will be able to watch movies and also stream songs. Along with this, free data is also being given in the tariff plan, so that you can use these services. These claims sound good, but how is the experience of using Jio Phone? Let us tell you…
Reliance Jio Phone design and build
The Jio Phone is similar in design and feel to any regular feature phone. It comes with a small screen and a numeric keypad. Everything is made of plastic and we would say that the quality is good. It is not too heavy and fits comfortably in the hand. The curved edges make the phone grip well. It does not feel thick or bulky.
The screen is 2.4 inches and has a resolution of 240×320 pixels. Viewing angles are quite poor, but for the price it is decent. Below the display are two function buttons, D-pad, call and disconnect button and number pad. Above the screen is the VGA camera next to the earpiece. There is adequate distance between each button and they are easy to reach. The buttons feel sturdy when pressed.
There is nothing on the back of the phone except the 2 megapixel primary camera and loudspeaker. The back cover can be removed. And the 2000 mAh battery also comes out. Jio is a single SIM device and has a nano SIM slot. You will get a separate slot for microSD card. There is a headphone socket along with a microUSB port at the bottom. There is an LED torch at the top. It can be activated by long pressing the up button on the D pad.
In the retail box, you will get a charger and a micro-USB cable along with the Jio phone. The phone will already have a Jio SIM. It needs to be activated before use. We used an old Jio SIM with the phone. And it worked without any problem. As expected, Airtel SIM did not work in it.
Reliance Jio Phone specifications and software
Jio Phone It is a feature phone but the specifications are worth mentioning. It has a dual core processor and 512 MB RAM. The inbuilt storage is 4 GB. Out of this, 1 GB is available for the user. 1 GB is reserved for apps and the rest of the storage will be used for software updates and app cache. Storage is not a concern as you will be able to use a microSD card up to 128 GB. You will be able to transfer files from your phone to a personal computer via USB cable, just enable the USB mode.
For connectivity, Jio Phone has Bluetooth and WiFi. With the help of Bluetooth, you will be able to transfer files to other phones. We were able to access the Internet through a Wi-Fi router without any problem. You do not get these connectivity features in feature phones. Because of this, Jio Phone is ahead of others in the race. There is 4G VoLTE support. The phone connects to the Jio network quickly. There is no hotspot feature, which means those who want to consume the free data they get every day from another device will be disappointed.
We have received many questions about the operating system of JioPhone. For your information, let us tell you that Jio Phone runs on KaiOS. This is a customized version of Firefox OS. It seems that Reliance has worked on improving the software. Because the Firefox OS provided in Intex Cloud FX had many shortcomings. The user interface is simple and easy to understand. There is a grid style menu. Apps are easily identified by their names and icons. You cannot decorate these icons as per your choice. But you can definitely keep the favorite on top. Jio Phone has an app store named JioStore, but here you will not find anything except Jio’s own apps.
The four buttons on the dpad on the home screen also act as shortcuts to launch apps. You can access the Settings app, Camera, Messages and the built-in music player using these buttons. We were unable to use these buttons for the apps we wanted. Alerts are in one place. They can be accessed via the function button on the left. The settings menu is well laid out and the options are easy to find. Software updates are supported and OTA updates are available, which is not common for feature phones. We hope Reliance Jio continues to add new features to the Jio Phone through this.
The feature phone has geolocation which determines location through GPS and Wi-Fi data. This is used for the SOS emergency function. If the user presses the number 5 button for a long time, the phone will send an SOS message with location coordinates. NFC is also provided in Jio Phone for payments, but it is not available right now. It is possible that it will be enabled through an OTA update.
The software has some useful features. Contact names are automatically suggested when you type to dial a number. You can also make a video call by long pressing the call button. Navigation is a little slow though. Don’t expect smartphone level functionality from it. We noticed that the keypad beeps a little late while dialing or typing a number. This spoils the experience, though in reality there is no lag in the keypad. We were able to type faster after muting the phone.
Many Jio apps are pre-installed. You will find Jio apps like Jio Cinema, JioChat, JioMusic. Basic calculator, unit conversion, notes, FM radio, video player and gallery app are also provided. We were able to stream songs on Jio Music, watch television serials on JioTV and enjoy movies on JioMovies, that too without any hassle. This subscription is currently free for Jio Phone buyers, which is a good thing.
Streaming videos play in landscape mode in Jio apps. But the ones on the microSD card only play in portrait mode. In both cases, the video viewing experience was very poor. In such a situation, the TV cable accessory provided will prove to be useful. Controlling the volume level is not easy, as there are no physical buttons. This shortcoming will bother you while playing media or using the phone in general.
The phone also has a voice assistant called HelloJio. It can be activated by long pressing the D-pad button. It understands basic commands like making a call by calling the name or opening an app. But it is slow. This is for those who are unaware of this technology.
Popular social media apps like Facebook and WhatsApp are not available on Jio Phone right now. It is reported that the company is working on this. You will get a web browser through which you will be able to take advantage of Facebook and other services. During the review, we were able to use the Telegram messaging app on the Jio Phone’s web browser. We also used YouTube in a similar way and the experience was fine. However, Hotstar and Amazon Prime Video were not usable on the Jio Phone browser.
Reliance Jio Phone performance, camera and battery life
Despite the simple hardware and KaiOS partnership, you cannot expect the speed of a cheap smartphone. Apps will take time to load, but you will not be disappointed because of this. But the hardware is powerful enough to play full-HD videos. You will be able to run only one app at a time. We also played some games on JioGames. Even though these games are very basic, they did not seem bad. The performance of Jio apps depends on internet connectivity. During the review, our phone got good 4G coverage. Therefore, we had to wait only for a few seconds for streaming songs or movies. But the situation may change in the coming time when millions of Jio phone users come.
The phone has a 2-megapixel camera without flash on the back. The VGA camera is on the front panel. Dual cameras are a welcome addition at this price point. We don’t have much expectations from these cameras. The camera app is pretty basic. You only get photos, videos and a self-timer mode.
Images taken with the 2-megapixel rear camera have a resolution of 1600×1200 pixels. Landscape shots lack detail and have too much noise. Close-up shots are better in comparison. Motion blurs the images every time. The camera performance is average at night. You need a steady hand to take good shots. Subjects are visible only when there is adequate light. They are hardly visible in low light. Photos look much better on the handset screen than on a computer screen. You can choose the resolution of your videos. A good quality video will have a resolution of 720×480 pixels. The quality is not too bad. It is usable. But don’t expect much detail.
The resolution of the selfie is 640×480 pixels. In this too you will get the noise of the rear camera. It would be wrong to compare Jio Phone with today’s smartphones. Due to lack of sufficient light or even a slight shake of the hand, the pictures come out blurry. The maximum video resolution of the selfie camera is 352×288 pixels. This is of no use to you.
We were curious to know how long the Jio Phone battery would last in normal use. As per a feature phone, it comes with a big battery of 2000 mAh. But it has features like Bluetooth, 4G, Wi-Fi and GPS which are known to consume battery. After normal use, we found that 80 percent of the battery remains even after 24 hours. The phone lasts for about 4 days without charging.
We noticed a 2 percent battery drain after 15 minutes of continuous talk time and 5 percent after 30 minutes of talk time. This is good performance considering the 4G data connection. We also streamed a TV serial on the phone and found that the battery drained by 7 percent after watching a 30-minute episode. The same test over a Wi-Fi connection showed a 6 percent drop. The battery drained by just 3 percent after not touching the phone for about 12 hours. You also get a power saving mode that switches off everything to reduce power consumption.
Our verdict
Jio Phone is not made for smartphone users. It is for users who want to upgrade from feature phones, but without spending too much money. Apart from this, it is made to connect people of tier 2 and tier 3 cities to the Internet. Will Jio Phone achieve the company’s goal? We would say that it has the potential. The hardware is competent. The experience of using the software is also good.
The free subscription to Jio apps makes this deal even better. The OTA update capability suggests that more features may be available in the future. However, you should carefully read the ‘Terms and Conditions’ section on Jio’s website. Here are the details related to the tariff plan and the conditions for returning the phone and getting a refund. Apart from this, the phone is not easy to buy. Also, how will its performance be after a long time? And how reliable is it? All these questions cannot be answered right now.
For users who want to spend very little to upgrade their phones, let us tell you that Jio Phone is much better than its competitors. Looking at its features, it can be called a smart feature phone. If you have been successful in booking it, then you will not be disappointed.