The ecosystem content and membership that made the Le 1S Eco famous is also being offered with the Le 2 smartphone. However, this phone is a little more expensive and has a feature that will attract potential customers. Today we will review this new smartphone from Leico and know its pros and cons.
Look and Design
The review unit of the Le 2 we received was in Rose Gold colour variant and it definitely appeals to the users. Gold, Silver and Grey colour variants of the smartphone are also available on LeEco’s website. You can choose any colour of your choice. The front of the phone is made of glass and there are coloured panels above and below the screen. The sides and rear of the phone have a metal finish except for the shiny polished metal. Surprisingly, this phone uses the old LeTV logo on the rear, while the Le Max 2 (Review), which was launched alongside this phone, had a new logo.
The phone has power and volume buttons on the right side and a tray for two nano SIM cards on the left side. There is an infrared emitter on the top of the phone. There is a USB Type-C port between two grills on the bottom side, but only the right grill is the speaker. The most important thing is that the phone does not have a 3.5mm audio socket.
Compared to the Le 1s generation, the biggest changes will be seen on the rear of the Le 2. The camera module in the phone is now larger than before and is slightly raised compared to the rest of the body. The fingerprint sensor is square but its mirror finish is still intact.
The Le 2 is a very easy smartphone to hold and use. However, you may find the edges a bit sharp. LeEco comes with a flexible clear case which makes it easier to grip. The Le 2 is also lighter in weight at 153 grams as compared to the Le 1s’ 169 grams. The thin edges also make it easier to use the phone with one hand.
Specifications and software
LeEco has opted for the Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 processor for this smartphone, which is good considering its price, especially when compared to the Vivo V3Max which has similar specifications but costs almost twice as much. The Le 2 phone has 3GB of RAM. The inbuilt storage is 32GB but the lack of expandable storage is disappointing. The smartphone supports a variety of 4G bands, including Band 3 and 40 used in India. 4G can be used on both SIM cards but only on one SIM at a time.
Like the previous smartphone, Le 2 has a 5.5 inch screen and its resolution is 1080×1920 pixels. The colors on the screen look quite good but not as deep as we expected. We did not have any complaints about the brightness of the screen even in sunlight. The phone has a 16 megapixel rear camera with dual-tone LED flash and an 8 megapixel front camera. The phone’s rear camera can record videos in 4K resolution.
Now talking about the feature of Le 2 which makes it different from other phones, this phone does not have a 3.5mm audio port. It seems that the company has taken this step after reports that Apple will not provide headphone jack in the upcoming iPhones this year. Perhaps this has been done with the aim of reducing Apple’s dominance all over the world and LeEco is presenting itself as the first company in the world that has not provided headphone jack in its smartphone. But the real question is what does this mean for the user?
Leico has eliminated the audio port and claimed that the company has developed its own standards for digital audio delivery via USB Type-C port. The standards created by the company are different from the industry standards and will not be supported worldwide. Leico has also launched its in-ear headphones and the company says that with these headphones, much higher quality audio can be enjoyed than standard analog connection. The price of this headphone is Rs 1,990.
The Le2 isn’t much thinner than its predecessor, nor does it have a bigger battery. Eliminating a connector doesn’t save much space either. Buyers will also be inconvenienced by having to carry an extra adapter. Also, headphones can’t be used while the phone is charging.
Performance
Thanks to the powerful hardware, we had no issues while using the Le 2. Apps load quickly and easily. The performance of the phone will satisfy most users and 3D games like Asphalt 8: Airborne run smoothly. We were pleased to see that the phone doesn’t heat up while playing games.
We encountered some difficulty with the phone’s fingerprint reader, which often takes two tries to accurately recognize a fingerprint. The fingerprint sensor works in standby mode as well, but there is a delay of a second or two before the screen becomes active, which is annoying. Apart from this, the sensor can also be used while taking selfies. We found the phone’s volume buttons easy to use. The infrared emitters work with LeEco’s own remote control app.
In the benchmarking test, we got great results from the Le 2 smartphone. The battery of the phone lasted for 12 hours and 8 minutes in the video loop test, which is good. On a single charge, we were able to use the phone for a full day on 4G network and with some gaming.
Leica’s camera app is very good and all the necessary settings are easily accessible in the app. There are a few scene modes and controls like balance, exposure and ISO in the camera app.
The camera performance on the phone is mostly excellent. Zoomed in photos look great but if you look closely, the texture lacks detail. The camera is quite fast in focusing and some good effects can be achieved. Taking good photos in low light is a bit difficult, especially when the subject is not completely still. The 4K video recording on the phone is good, although it is not very bright or vibrant. Photos taken with the front camera are also soft.
Our verdict
At a price of Rs 12,000, LeEco has presented a powerful package. Le 2 has many things that make it great, especially its look and design, which makes the user feel that the phone is twice as expensive. The phone has powerful hardware. If audio and video are very important to you, then this phone is even more important to you. Talking about the shortcomings, Android and camera performance disappoint us. Apart from this, the phone will be available only through online flash sale, so it may be a bit difficult to buy it.
If you want to show off, you can go for this phone. Also, at this price, there are more capable smartphones than the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (32GB) (Review) or the Moto G4 Plus (Review). LeEco has done a good job with this upgraded smartphone and the Le 2 will surely replace its predecessor in the sub-Rs 15,000 segment.
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