[BLOG] #CES2015: A Smartphone with a four-day battery life? What's the catch?

[CrimsonShade]

This is a blog post. To read the original post, please click here »


One of the problems with modern smart phones is that all their modern capabilities comes at a price: they're MASSIVE power hogs. Unless you have an external battery pack or a spare battery to swap in at those key moments, you will probably find yourself charging them incredibly often, perhaps even in the middle of a day. If statistics released from Blu Products are to be believed, however, we may just see a model that bucks that trend. Included within a range of new Android-powered smart phones - revealed by the company today at CES - is the Studio Energy, a 5-incher that claims to be capable of four day's "standard" use, which in realistic terms means even a moderately heavy user might find it enough to get through the weekend without plugging in.


Part of this longevity comes from its whopping 5,000mAh battery pack, which is even capable of charging other devices by plugging them straight into the phone if you're so inclined. The other contributing factor is the phone's hardware itself, which sadly fails to impress: the low-end 1.3GHz MediaTek processor may be an efficient, low-power piece of chippery, but it's also not the fastest or most capable processor out there; and combined with just 1GB of RAM the result may disappoint those looking for performance. Meanwhile, the display is only capable of Enhanced Definition 720p resolution rather than full HD; and with just 8GB of storage, HSPA+ data and 8-megapixel rear / 2-megapixel front cameras, many others are likely to walk away disappointed too. The budget phone specs however do give this model a budget phone price - the Studio Energy is expected to retail at just $179 (roughly £118) unlocked when it ships in late January, which may make it a decent choice for the budget-conscious smartphone purchaser; or as a backup phone for the outdoors man likely to spend long periods away from a mains socket.