malware/adware? After couple weeks of use and no-one complaining, then will be a good phone.
bryanhaines399
6 Oct 17#2
Is no-one complaining a thing?
AstroGibbon
6 Oct 17#3
Does this have NFC?
Joe90_guy
6 Oct 17#4
Says it has OIS, something even the Mi A1 doesn't have (I think). Not for me (too big) but looks a pretty good spec for £140.
noirnaranja
6 Oct 17#5
Vernee seems to be an up and coming manufacturer and these specs are very good for the price. At least it's a 1080 screen...
steelmen1886
6 Oct 17#6
What is OIS? If not Apple.
t002236 to steelmen1886
6 Oct 17#8
Optical Image Stabilization
AgentDaleCooper to steelmen1886
7 Oct 17#23
Apple iOS (IOS licenced from Cisco along with the stolen name iPhone)
bogrole
6 Oct 17#7
The Vernee Thor was fantastic, amazing performer for the price! Having owned one for well over a year, I would trust this seller again! Time for an upgrade maybe. B20 is essential for 02, Tesco etc. Unusual to find this support on a budget Chinese Phone.
bogrole to bogrole
6 Oct 17#9
Well I just took the plunge!
popoyaya
6 Oct 17#10
LeEco Le Max 2 has OIS (21mp camera, Snapdragon 820, 2K screen) for about this price.
escortboy to popoyaya
6 Oct 17#11
Would prefer the SD processor to MTK if the same price..
popoyaya to escortboy
6 Oct 17#14
The Max 2 32GB (with Band 20!) variant has been as low as £130 recently
Yes, but it is one of the ugliest looking phones you will ever see.
sam_of_london to popoyaya
7 Oct 17#44
And built in spyware especially for you .
Rastafari
6 Oct 17#12
No band 20.
sam_of_london to Rastafari
7 Oct 17#45
Did you read the description ?
vant09
6 Oct 17#13
I'm tempted to pre order....
MagazineBrian
7 Oct 17#15
I had the vernee Mars not a bad handset but never got any updates. Using the Maze Alpha now and I like it.
louiselouise
7 Oct 17#16
Looks interesting, decent camera for once (hopefully) kimovil.com/en/…258 and has MicroSD capability. Yet to be convinced that there's a jack of all trades Chinese model, so will watch with interest...I wouldn't have the balls to order sight-unseen (unreviewed :stuck_out_tongue: )
No1_VIPER to louiselouise
7 Oct 17#18
This is what I'm thinking at the moment. I don't even need a new either. I've got the Lenovo P2, and it's great. Just fancy having a go of one of these 'bezel-less' phones to see what all the fuss about really.
Kensirstagwaff to louiselouise
7 Oct 17#29
If you're looking for a good camera in this price range , check this , then kimovil for price , as the link in this video gave a stupid price . The phone looks great , but can't help feeling Meizu might be a bit late to the SD625 party , Xiaomi will probably be along with the 660 soon , but the camera on this ..
dz1 to Kensirstagwaff
7 Oct 17#32
Be careful of that reviewer Smartphone Wars. He is one of the reviewers who exaggerates how good a phone is. The meizu phone looks good but he flat out lied about the elephone s8 claiming the screen was bright when the true maximum screen brightness of elephone s8 is only about 260 nits when it was measured, which is woeful. Not one of the honest reviewers that one and definitely do not reward him by buying from his affiliate links. He is also another reviewer who didn't point out that battery life was less than stellar on elephone s8.
Kensirstagwaff to dz1
8 Oct 17#46
Hello , I am going to guess you're dtz1000? It's funny , but I think he comes across as quite sincere and down to earth in terms of ignoring the specs and judging a phone on his experience - realistically assessing a device in relation to its price ,as opposed to measuring it against costlier products , in the same way Damir Franc does .He admits he loves Meizu and Flyme so no surprise he rated this device . Regarding the Elephone S8 , he qualifies the battery performance saying it's decent considering the size of screen and the fact it's 2k . There was a side by side comparison of the screen next to a super amoled panel ,and it's comparable ,but no mention of specs ,i.e. nits . As for putting our trust completely in any other review site , devicespecifications confirms that the Elephone S8 has a 3.5mm headphone jack - and we know that's inaccurate . Yes , we can agree on Mrwhosetheboss , seems like a nice ,well-spoken individual , but reviews are somewhat superficial . Quite like Chris on Techtablets , but he has become dismissive of mediatek phones in the budget sector as if he is bored of them and they're not worthy of his consideration . A few reviewers are getting like this , so if you want to know about certain phones , there's no alternative but to watch those who review them . Anyway my money's safe , I only look out of interest , I'm too tight to buy anything , and if I were looking I would probably max out at £120 !
louiselouise to Kensirstagwaff
7 Oct 17#35
Reviews look good, the 32GB/3GB RAM version is £166.19 at Geekbuying at the moment geekbuying.com/ite…tml Not sure if the camera has OIS, can't see it mentioned anywhere. 3.5mm headphone jack, alas no Band 20 with this seller.
Looks good. I hope battery life is not rubbish like it is on elephone s8, but it probably will be since it doesnt have a snapdragon.
BIGUSHEADUS to dz1
7 Oct 17#22
I heard the Elephone s8 was supposed to have a great battery?
crazy_kalz to BIGUSHEADUS
7 Oct 17#24
I have the Xiaomi mi6 and the battery is lasting me 2 full days. I had a Samsung s6 previously and it only lasted me a day max! Will never look back at getting any other phone apart from Xiaomi
BIGUSHEADUS to crazy_kalz
7 Oct 17#25
I was looking at the G6 or the newer v30 line from LG but the batteries are the only thing stopping me from ordering; it's pointless having a phone if you have to carry a power brick around with you all the time.
crazy_kalz to BIGUSHEADUS
7 Oct 17#28
Well I have the Xiaomi Mi6 ceramic 128GB and its a beast of a phone. Battery life is absolutely amazing and it really puts the big brands like apple and Samsung to shame.
dz1 to BIGUSHEADUS
7 Oct 17#30
Where did you get that idea from? Was it a youtube reviewer like Mrwhosetheboss who spends almost no time with the phones he reviews and gets commision when you buy from links in the description?
I got my info from a written review where they actually bothered to measure the battery life. The redmi note 4, which has a battery of about the same size, lasted over two times longer than the elephone s8. The doogee mix lasted 50% longer than elephone s8 while watching video. I would not call that a good battery life as these youtube reviewers claim.
BIGUSHEADUS to dz1
7 Oct 17#34
As a matter of fact it was, I haven't bought a phone for myself since my S4 so I am pretty lost when it comes to who to trust. I usually stick to text based reviews for: PC, and general electronics but with phones I had no idea where to start. Saying that it is worrying that he posts 1 new video every day, quality must be cut to shreds when it comes to reviews thinking about it.
Could you recommend me any good written review sites?
dz1 to BIGUSHEADUS
7 Oct 17#36
Best, most honest site i have found for smartphone reviews is devicespecifications.com. That is the site that uncovered the lies about the elephone s8 both from the manufacturer and from other reviewers. Techtablets.com is good too.
BIGUSHEADUS to dz1
7 Oct 17#40
Wow, that devicespecifications is quite a website, it looks like the anandtech of the phone world. It's absolutely brilliant, exactly what I was looking for, thanks dz1!
thedvdmonster
7 Oct 17#26
Where are all the fandroids bleating about this copying other companies technology and idea or are Apple the only ones not allowed to have similar ideas
ro888
7 Oct 17#27
Won't buy a phone on paper release only, can't find any in-depth review yet.
Bogami
7 Oct 17#31
Never heard of this brand. How do I tell if the ROM is safe and not hacked?
GAVINLEWISHUKD to Bogami
7 Oct 17#33
You can't. Vernee phone reviews from the past don't suggest an issue. The best way to keep it as clean as possible is to ask for it factory sealed. But with that you will get it in Chinese (easy to change following YouTube video) and you may have to install the Google apps yourself (some phones have them some don't).
Most malware is detectable and removable (if you know how). The real worry is malware put in the microcode of the SoC. It's unlikely you can detect it or remove it. You will be safe with off the shelf SoC's like Qualcomm or MTK it is in-house designs that are at most risk. So thats Apple, Samsung (Exynos) and Huawei (Kirin). If those are or not scraping data nobody is sure. If it bothers you or not only you can decide but they are not stealing you bank details but sensor data (GPS data as an example). Most Chinese malware is paid revenue malware (advertising) and not keylogger or ransomware.
But I generally don't buy pre release phones, so might be best wait for reviews.
Malware can be good for some reasons, you can grab a bargain. I had (still have) a Star N9500 clone (Alps H9500) that I picked up for £20 after it hit the national press. Removed all the malware and had a good phone for next to no money (and it still works).
But wait for it to hit the wild and have a look on forums (most issues hit the Chinese and Russian forums first) but the mainstream ones usually find out within weeks. Then you can make a better choice.
jomay to GAVINLEWISHUKD
8 Oct 17#52
Malware in the microcode of the SoC - have you got any link for that? Are you sure you don't mean malware in the device drivers (or android HAL) of the SoC? That can happen with ANY non-stock android distro or stock android if the manufacturer is evil.
In other words, it depends on the reputation of the manufacturer: Apple, Samsung and Huawei phones are very unlikely to damage their reputation by compiling malware into the kernel compared to a Chinese no-name brand. (I do have a China phone btw).
I'd say it is extremely unlikely if not impossible that the microcode of the SoC (CPU, network chip etc) implements malware. It'd be very difficult to detect an "important" opcode or network packet. Besides that, if they are using malware you can always check the network traffic to find "odd" packets.
louiselouise
7 Oct 17#37
Oh well, not sure what works with HUKD and Aliexpress vendors - tried to add the Meizu as a Deal twice (even the official Meizu store) but neither are allowed :worried:
No1_VIPER to louiselouise
7 Oct 17#38
Try this one: https://gearbest.app.link/25EyX4te3G
louiselouise to No1_VIPER
7 Oct 17#39
HUKD accepted the official Meizu store one - after it being in a queue for ages.
The 4GB/64GB can be had for £206.82 on Aliexpress, as mentioned on my thread and in the post above aliexpress.com/ite…tml
ganon
7 Oct 17#41
So I ordered their previous model the Mars pro and after 1 month of not having shipped, I cancelled it.
mackashworth
7 Oct 17#42
Looking for the best phone with an 820/821 for running the Pixel's camera app... Any suggestions?
No1_VIPER to mackashworth
7 Oct 17#43
Probably the Zuk Z2.
The.Ghostbuster
8 Oct 17#47
Well I got suckered in and purchased it been looking at alot of these cheap bezel less phone lately going to give this one a go if I don't like it I can flop it on
robertfrancis1975
8 Oct 17#48
This seems to be one of the few budget phones with OIS on the camera. Will be interesting to see how much of a difference it makes.
crazy_kalz to robertfrancis1975
8 Oct 17#49
What's ois?
robertfrancis1975
8 Oct 17#50
Optical Image Stabilization.
robertfrancis1975
8 Oct 17#51
Should mean better pics.
deaglecat
8 Oct 17#53
No ROM support likely. I made the mistake of buying an elephone with a hacked ROM (no google setup yet play services installed) and that was from the manufacturer.
Best stick to vendors who actually support their phones e.g. Xiaomi
k500zm
8 Oct 17#54
Anyone know how likely it will be for a dev to make lineageOs for a phone with this spec ? [ ie non snapdragon ]
No1_VIPER to k500zm
8 Oct 17#55
Pretty unlikely.
k500zm
8 Oct 17#56
Um actually from having a brief search many Vernee phones have had lineage compiled for them - so I think I'm going to give it a go. I know it's a gamble but this phone is a stunner and I think/hope it's going to be popular enough to get the support. I did have an Elephone S8 on order but after hearing REALLY bad actual user experiences on receiving the phone ie. 3.5gb of 4gb of memory being used out of the box, pathetic battery life & terrible build quality I cancelled.
t1nt1n
8 Oct 17#57
Ordered, gonna give it a go.
Edit: Now £126.08
No1_VIPER to t1nt1n
8 Oct 17#59
Had to order one at this price... It would be rude not too. Even though I don't need it, as I've already got the fantastic battery beast that is the Lenovo P2 :sunglasses: :raised_hand:
k500zm
8 Oct 17#58
t1nt1n - Yeah I just noticed that - glad I was faffing about thinking of which delivery method to chose or I would have paid £141 :smile: :sunglasses:
MagazineBrian
8 Oct 17#60
I bought the Maze Alpha 2 weeks ago for £120 might get this..... I had the Vernee Mars and the fingerprint scanner stopped working appt from that great little handset.
glorfybe176
8 Oct 17#61
Well I'm enjoying my Doogee Mix, so why not? Extra £15 off pushed it over.
vant09
9 Oct 17#62
Which delivery method did you go for?
[quote=k500zm]t1nt1n - Yeah I just noticed that - glad I was faffing about thinking of which delivery method to chose or I would have paid £141happycool[/quote]
k500zm
9 Oct 17#63
Express British - its quick free and you might avoid customs charges. If you go for dhl or paid courier apparently you will always get customs charges. Always buy the insurance though -so if the delivery has problems you get sent another or reimbursed the full cost. Otherwise without you only get half of the price refund. Also pay with paypal for extra protection - if it screws up you can file a complaint.
Here's the real winner though - sign up for this with paypal - paypal.com/web…rue --------- Activate this service for free and we'll cover up to £15 of return
shipping costs for up to 12 eligible PayPal purchases worldwide until 31
December 2017. [in case you need to return it for any reason]
Have Fun :wink:
Kensirstagwaff to k500zm
9 Oct 17#64
just for info , i got a FULL refund from Paypal for a phone which according to tracking got as far as the distribution centre (think it was Oneworld ) but not to me . I also got a full refund for a phone which i returned before it was actually received by Gearbest - apparently the courier has to make an appointment to deliver to them so if they don't ,or Gearbest ( in this case ) don't or won't agree a date , the item just stalls . Don't know if it's an evasion method ,but from PayPal's viewpoint i had done everything required of me so i got the refund . Sadly this was before PayPal started to cover return costs . Anyway ,my point is that as far as i am concerned PayPal IS my insurance , so i don't buy it - have i simply been lucky with refunds , or am i overestimating the protection provided by PayPal ?
k500zm
9 Oct 17#65
Kensirstagwaff- well for only £3 as extra protection - I'm quite happy to pay it - but as you say paypal is good insurance also so always use that. Also their insurance means you dont have to wait for a paypal resolution for them to send out another one.
No1_VIPER
9 Oct 17#66
Here's the latest video from Vernee:
robertfrancis1975
9 Oct 17#67
Do you think this would be a good upgrade from my LG G2?
I love the camera on my G2. How do you think this will compare? Difficult to judge as theres no review of this phone as of yet.
Bogami to karl100100
9 Oct 17#70
I used to have an LG G4. I didn't think the camera was anything special especially versus the equivalent Sony and Samsung phones then. What does the camera on the G2 give you?
sbirsen
10 Oct 17#71
I'm really tempted to buy this phone, but after the recent disaster with a Tomtop dashcam, I'm concerned that what we will receive is either not going to be as described, or it'll have quality issues....
No1_VIPER to sbirsen
10 Oct 17#72
Vernee tend to make pretty good quality phones in general.
![Fresh Breakfast Meat Box (Using code) @ Campbells Meat [Haggis / Lorne Sausage / Bacon / Black Pudding & More]](/images/topics/208684_1.jpg)
![[Xbox One] Q. u. b. e: Director's Cut on Deals with Gold](/images/topics/208716_1.jpg)
Opening post
One of the stand out features with this is the OIS. As far as I know this is the first budget Chinese phone to have it.
Here's the full specs:
devicespecifications.com/en/…5eb
All comments (72)
kimovil.com/en/…x-2
Yes , we can agree on Mrwhosetheboss , seems like a nice ,well-spoken individual , but reviews are somewhat superficial . Quite like Chris on Techtablets , but he has become dismissive of mediatek phones in the budget sector as if he is bored of them and they're not worthy of his consideration . A few reviewers are getting like this , so if you want to know about certain phones , there's no alternative but to watch those who review them .
Anyway my money's safe , I only look out of interest , I'm too tight to buy anything , and if I were looking I would probably max out at £120 !
Edit: Cheapest I can see this so far is 3GB/32GB Silver £153.37 aliexpress.com/ite…tml
Gold 3GB/32GB £154.72 (with glass film) aliexpress.com/ite…tml
4GB/64GB version Gold £209.13 "standard with gifts" aliexpress.com/ite…tml
4GB/64GB Silver £206.82 aliexpress.com/ite…tml
However, not sure if these have Global ROMs on them and would need flashed with Google Play etc on arrival?
*Tried submitting one as a Deal, though HUKD didn't like the vendor, sigh.
I got my info from a written review where they actually bothered to measure the battery life. The redmi note 4, which has a battery of about the same size, lasted over two times longer than the elephone s8. The doogee mix lasted 50% longer than elephone s8 while watching video. I would not call that a good battery life as these youtube reviewers claim.
Could you recommend me any good written review sites?
Most malware is detectable and removable (if you know how). The real worry is malware put in the microcode of the SoC. It's unlikely you can detect it or remove it. You will be safe with off the shelf SoC's like Qualcomm or MTK it is in-house designs that are at most risk. So thats Apple, Samsung (Exynos) and Huawei (Kirin). If those are or not scraping data nobody is sure. If it bothers you or not only you can decide but they are not stealing you bank details but sensor data (GPS data as an example).
Most Chinese malware is paid revenue malware (advertising) and not keylogger or ransomware.
But I generally don't buy pre release phones, so might be best wait for reviews.
Malware can be good for some reasons, you can grab a bargain. I had (still have) a Star N9500 clone (Alps H9500) that I picked up for £20 after it hit the national press. Removed all the malware and had a good phone for next to no money (and it still works).
But wait for it to hit the wild and have a look on forums (most issues hit the Chinese and Russian forums first) but the mainstream ones usually find out within weeks. Then you can make a better choice.
Are you sure you don't mean malware in the device drivers (or android HAL) of the SoC? That can happen with ANY non-stock android distro or stock android if the manufacturer is evil.
In other words, it depends on the reputation of the manufacturer: Apple, Samsung and Huawei phones are very unlikely to damage their reputation by compiling malware into the kernel compared to a Chinese no-name brand. (I do have a China phone btw).
I'd say it is extremely unlikely if not impossible that the microcode of the SoC (CPU, network chip etc) implements malware. It'd be very difficult to detect an "important" opcode or network packet. Besides that, if they are using malware you can always check the network traffic to find "odd" packets.
https://gearbest.app.link/25EyX4te3G
The 4GB/64GB can be had for £206.82 on Aliexpress, as mentioned on my thread and in the post above aliexpress.com/ite…tml
Best stick to vendors who actually support their phones e.g. Xiaomi
Edit: Now £126.08
[quote=k500zm]t1nt1n - Yeah I just noticed that - glad I was faffing about thinking of which delivery method to chose or I would have paid £141happycool[/quote]
Here's the real winner though - sign up for this with paypal - paypal.com/web…rue --------- Activate this service for free and we'll cover up to £15 of return shipping costs for up to 12 eligible PayPal purchases worldwide until 31 December 2017. [in case you need to return it for any reason]
Have Fun :wink:
robertfrancis1975 - Yes Definately