Not long ago we published a review of the Motorola RAZR D3, one of the first representatives of a category of smartphones dual-chip “premium” that combine affordable price, the convenience of two lines on the same device and features normally found in much models more expensive.
Gran Duos Samsung Galaxy
Samsung Galaxy Gran Duos is another representative of this category, and it pleased me greatly. Although a bit more expensive than the competitor of Motorola it is even more sophisticated: not only looks like a Galaxy Note II, the design and size, but also has some of the same features at half the price.
Hardware and design
Galaxy Gran Duos dry the same design developed for the Galaxy S III and adopted in other devices like the Galaxy S III Mini, Galaxy Note and Galaxy S II 4. In fact, glancing is almost impossible to distinguish it from a Galaxy Note II, and the main difference for the Galaxy S 4 is that this is less than the Gran Duos, something that you will only notice with both devices side-by- side.
The front is dominated by 5-inch screen, the same size as the Galaxy S 4. However the resolution is lower, only 480 x 800 pixels, the same devices like the Galaxy S II Lite (which has a 4-inch screen). With fewer pixels occupying the same physical space, their density is lower which results in lower “sharpness” in the image, especially in text.
you tell which one is the Gran Duos? It is the right, the left is a Galaxy S4
But that does not mean that the screen is bad, on the contrary: it is perfectly suited for use in day-to-day, with good colors and great viewing angle, although the visibility under direct sunlight is weak. Not as impressive as the Super AMOLED screen of a smartphone top of the line, but it makes ugly.
back cover, made of plastic and flexible as other handsets from Samsung, is removable, and underneath it you will find the battery (with capacity of 2100 mAh), slots for SIM cards (one in the upper left another in bottom right, both of normal size) and a microSD card slot which can take up to 64 GB capacity.
According to the datasheet of the device, the USB port on the bottom has MHL support, which means that in theory it is possible to connect an adapter (sold separately) to it and gain an HDMI output to connect the unit to a TV. Unfortunately tehho an adapter on hand to test this feature.
rear view Galaxy Gran Duos, highlighting the
slots for SIM Cards (red) and the microSD card (in blue)
Inside the Galaxy Gran Duos is a dual-core 1.2 GHz, 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of memory (4 GB user available). The rear camera is 8 MP and flash, and there is a 2 MP front camera for video calls. There is support for Wi-Fi networks in all major standards in use (802.11 a / b / g / n), 3G and HSDPA (“3G +” on some carriers), Bluetooth 4.0 and GPS. There is also FM radio.
Camera
I was pleasantly surprised with the camera of Galaxy Gran Duos. She has some of the features of the cameras more sophisticated devices such as capture sequence (“Burst Mode”) or HDR, but what matters most, the image quality, it was pleasing indeed.
daytime Photo taken with the Galaxy Gran Duos. Click to enlarge
daytime photos are very good, as is to be expected from the cameras of Samsung’s handsets. But the night was the highlight, with noise level below normal, and good sensitivity to light, as can be seen in the night scenery below.
night Photo taken with the Galaxy Gran Duos. Click to enlarge
At the time of shooting, it can record video in Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) at 30 frames per second feature normally found only in more expensive devices.
Software
operating system Galaxy Gran Duos is Android 4.1 “Jelly Bean”, with traditional modifications of Samsung, as the TouchWiz interface. I was surprised to find some features of much more expensive smartphones such as the Galaxy Note II: including the “Stay Awake”, which keeps the screen on while you are watching her, MultiView mode, which allows you to run two applications simultaneously (dividing the screen in half) and Notepad S-Note, which allows drawings and freehand annotations and has features such as handwriting recognition. Since you do not mind “paint” and write with your fingers, because the Gran Duos does not have a stylus like the Galaxy Note II.
Support Dual-SIM
support Dual-SIM in the Galaxy Gran Duos is fairly complete and flexible. You can define the settings screen, exactly how the device will behave when a call or using the data connection.
By default it behaves as a unit “Dual Standby”, ie, the two lines are on standby to receive calls, but when one is in use, either during a call or while using the 3G connection, any Calls to the other line will be routed to voicemail.
Enabling the option “Receive calls while using data” behavior change: you can have active data connection in a row and will still receive calls in another. It is the best option for those who have a chip to take a data plan more affordable and one that is the main line for telephony.
You can choose how the two SIM cards will behave
I did a test with a download via 3G on a chip while a call to another. The download was paused during the call, and automatically resume once it has ended.
And there is also the option “2 chips always active”, which is the best for those using the two lines intensely for telephony. With it, you can receive a call on a line while attending to another and switch between calls by tapping an icon on the screen. And if one of the lines is out of area calls for it will be automatically forwarded to another.
As the Motorola RAZR D3, there is a configuration menu that lets you assign names and icons to each of the lines (eg “Personal” and “Work”) to facilitate identification and to define which line standard for the data connection. Furthermore, both the dialer and the messaging app has two buttons “send”, one for each line.
Performance and battery life
Galaxy Gran Duos is equipped with a dual-core processor, Broadcom BCM28155, running at 1.2 GHz In our performance tests he reached the mark of 6,979 points, which puts it a little behind competitors in the same category Motorola RAZR as the D3 (also equipped with a dual-core 1.2 GHz, the MediaTek MT6577), which reached 7,629 points.
But
benchmarks only tell part of the story. In day-to-day, whether browsing the web, listening to music or interacting on social networks, Gran Duos not left to be desired in no time. I also got to play HD video (a. MP4 in resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels) without any problem. Incidentally, it is worth noting that the device Media Player supports the subtitle format. SRT.
And Gran Duos surpasses RAZR D3 on an important point: 3D graphics, something that directly affects the performance in games. The Samsung has no problem running more casual games, such as Temple Run 2, but also is not shy in front of heavier games, like Need for Speed: Most Wanted. The 4 GB of internal memory available to user help at this point, since some games “do not fit” in 2.33 GB handset from Motorola.
Results Galaxy Gran Duos in AnTuTu
battery life also very pleased. In our video playback test, which is done with the screen brightness at 50% and the device in airplane mode, I got a battery life of about 9 hours, a number of very good.
In the typical use was not uncommon to get to the end of a work day, about 13 hours unplugged with 25% charge remaining even with two SIM cards installed on the device, which again is very good. This test includes about 2 hours of web browsing via 3G, some pictures, some short calls and text messages and constant e-mails and social networks in the background, with the unit connected to a Wi-Fi in most of the day.
Verdict
Galaxy Gran Duos is more expensive than competitors in the same category as the RAZR D3 (R $ 799), but we have to take into account that it has a larger screen, more internal memory and supports two more chips versatile.
And we consider ergonomics: like the Galaxy Note II it can be “too big” for those who have small hands, and if you have questions at this point my suggestion is to go to a store and check out in person before buying.
Overall, for R $ 1,149 (average market price without operator subsidies) Galaxy Gran Duos offers a cost-effective, with a powerful processor, a great camera and excellent battery life. Just like that the screen resolution had somewhat higher, although it is not, in any way, a reason to dismiss the purchase.
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