A new brand from China seems wants to follow the footsteps
of Xiaomi and OnePlus. Named Smartisan, this startup actually has been running
since 2013, but its first smartphone had just been released last year.
In 2015, this startup introduces a new smartphone called
Smartisan U1. But unlike the OnePlus 2 which wants to 'kill' the flagship
smartphones, Smartisan U1 is intended for middle-class consumers.
Smartisan U1 design is so minimalist. The white color
surrounds the 5.5-inch 1080p screen in front of this smartphone, while the back
cover has a soft texture and is layered with cheerful pastel colors. If seen
from the design, it's clear that the smartphone is targeting the young
generation.
Smartisan U1 is supported by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 615
chipset with 1.5 GHz octa-core processor, 2 GB RAM and two options of internal
storage: 16 or 32 GB. The battery unit has a capacity of 2,900mAh, and this
smartphone is also packed with dual SIM card slot and LTE network support. A 13
megapixel camera is pinned at the rear of this smartphone, plus a 5 megapixel
camera on the front; both are accompanied with f/2.2 lens.
About the operating system, Smartisan U1 runs its own
operating system called Smartisan OS. It looks very different from Stock
Android, where the applications will be displayed in the form of tile rather
than using the app drawer. Unfortunately there is no description of what
version of Android OS that's used as a base.
Just like Xiaomi and OnePlus smartphones, the most
interesting thing of Smartisan U1 is its price. The 16 GB variant is priced at
899 Yuan (about $ 140) and the 32 GB variant is offered at 999 Yuan ($ 156).
Unfortunately there is no information whether Smartisan U1 will be released in
other countries besides China.