Adding to the product line started by its predecessors HOT7 and HOT7Pro, Infinix, has recently launched HOT 8, the latest device in its much appreciated HOT series. Originally priced at INR 7999/-, HOT8 will be available at a special price of just INR 6999/- till 30th October’19. I spent considerable time with the device and here is my review of this phone
Infinix HOT8 offers a lot of useful features for a first-time user moving into the world of smartphones, which are a great value add given the aggressive pricing of the phone. HOT 8 picks up where its precursors left, packing enough features, battery power and quirky add-ons that gives an immersive, engaging and intuitive smartphone experience. The smartphone will be available on Flipkart in the colors of Quetzal Cyan and Cosmic Purple.
The Infinix Hot 8 smartphone with a large enough drop notch display looks like any other budget smartphone at first glance. The device is made of plastic, and has a simple and practical design. The rear side is where the brand has added some jazzy feels with gradient paint jobs. The phone comes in four color options – Quetzal Cyan, Cosmic Purple, Shark Grey and Midnight Black. We got a Quetzal Cyan review unit that looks nice. There is also an equally jazzy back cover with a very contemporary design that comes in the box.
Buyers in the sub 10k segment will definitely appreciate that the phone has the multi-card slot, which includes dedicated slots for SIM cards and a microSD card. Infinix has added a micro-USB port at the bottom. That is par for the course at this price. The big display gives you an immersive experience. The rear mounted fingerprint scanner and the side buttons are all very well placed and easy to use on a daily basis.
Given that the phone costs Rs 6,999, that fact that it offers a 6.5-inch screen with 20:9 aspect ratio, is definitely something which a lot of people will love. The phone hits a sweet and impressive screen-to-body ratio of over 90.3 percent. The key point here is that no other brand is offering such a big display phone at the same price. The color reproduction on the display is decent, but remember that this is panel with HD+ resolution, so don’t expect the display to be the sharpest around. The panel has a peak brightness of 450 nits, which is more than enough for a practical entry level usage and sunlight legibility is pretty decent too. It includes narrow bezels and tapered edges for easy one-hand operation, while the 2.5D in front and a dual gradient design in the back gives a premium feel. The HOT 8 only weighs only 179 grams and is extremely convenient to handle.
The phone is powered by a MediaTek Helio P22 chipset, which in line with any other phone at this price point. The company is offering the phone in 4GB RAM option. It has an adequate 64GB internal storage, which is more than adequate for an entry-level phone as well as impressive given the price point. Moreover, you can expand that further via the microSD slot. That makes it very practical and useful.
The phone handles multi-tasking to the level that you would expect at this price point and there was absolutely no noticeable stutter or lag in my review experience. There is was also no sign of heating during heavy usage.
Coming to the camera, the brand has introduced thoughtful and nifty features such as 13 MP f1.8 AI-enabled Triple Rear Camera and 8 MP Front Camera with a dedicated LED Selfie Flash to enhance the quality of selfies and video-calls. The rear camera framework is equipped with a 2MP depth and low light sensor with QUAD LED Flash and Auto Scene Detection in 8 modes. To add an extra bit of fun and quirk to conversations with friends, the device also offers motion detecting AR Shots and a Wide Selfie mode to ensure every group picture captures every mood, every moment and everyone!
Here are some pictures that I took with the phone
Battery is one of the key features that buyers are looking for in a phone and several brands are now offering phones with a huge 5,000mAh battery. The Infinix Hot 8 also packs the same cell under the hood. The key thing to note here is the fact that it is the only device under the Rs 7,000 price bracket to offer a 5,000mAh unit. With this phone, I was able to get get nearly two days of battery life with my average daily usage, including very light gaming, messaging, calling and binge-watching. In my books, the battery life on Infinix’s new smartphone is impressive given the bracket that the phone is in as far as price is concerned.
Infinix HOT 8 comes with XOS 5.0 running on top of Android 9 Pie. There is a bunch of unnecessary apps that come pre-installed with the phone, like PHX Browser, PalmStore, Opera browser, ShareChat and more. The good thing is that you can uninstall some of the apps from the phone. As an OS skin, XOS does pretty well and does not come in your way when you are trying to get things done with your phone. It would have been great if it was a tad bit lighter, but I am not complaining at all. There was no major issue with it.
Verdict
At an introductory price of Rs 6999/- there isn’t anything to complain about this phone. In fact, I feel that Infinix have upped the ante with this one and given the upcoming festive season, this one will do well. With this phone, a buyer will get a heavy duty 5,000mAh battery. There is also a very decent 6.5-inch display as well as 4GB RAM + 64GB combo at a price point that is very aggressive.
