The new Micromax Canvas 6 has the same specifications as the Canvas 6 Pro but it is completely different in terms of design, look and other features. So as per the name, this phone is not at all like the Canvas Pro. But does this phone have what it takes to bring back the golden days of Micromax? Find out the pros and cons of this smartphone in our detailed review.
Look and design
The biggest feature of the Micromax Canvas 6 is its metal body which looks extremely beautiful especially in Champagne Gold. The build and finish of the phone is very good and the chamfered edges make it look classy. The design of the phone itself is not very special and one could easily mistake it for a Gionee or Honor smartphone if it were not for the logo on the rear.
Sharp lines are given on the phone along the edges. The phone is comfortable to hold but the metal body makes it a bit heavy. The edges of the phone are quite thick for a good grip but there is a fear of the phone slipping from the hand due to its smooth texture. The back of the phone has a hole, so the phone does not feel like a block when held in the hand.
The 5.5-inch IPS display on the smartphone has a full-HD resolution which means images look sharp. The phone is easily readable even in sunlight. There is no Gorilla Glass for protection which has probably been removed due to the metal body being expensive. There is an 8-megapixel front camera on the top and there is no notification LED.
The hybrid SIM tray is on the left side, which means either two nano-SIMs or a single SIM and a microSD card can be used at once. On the right side are the volume and power buttons which are easy to operate. At the bottom is the micro-USB port and speaker grille while at the top is the headphone socket.
On the rear, there is a 13-megapixel camera with LED flash and fingerprint sensor. The sensor is not very fast in recognizing fingerprints but it works fine. We had some trouble using the fingerprint sensor but there was no major problem.
When you buy the Micromax Canvas 6, you will get a 7.5W charger, data cable, screen guard, SIM tray ejector tool and an in-ear headset. Overall, the Canvas 6 looks good and manages to compete with today’s smartphones. Micromax’s lack of an important feature like Gorilla Glass in this smartphone is definitely disappointing.
Specifications and software
Since Canvas 6 has been designed keeping lifestyle in mind, not much attention has been paid to its specifications. This Micromax smartphone has MediaTek (MT6753T) octa-core processor and 3 GB RAM. The phone has 32 GB inbuilt storage which can be expanded up to 128 GB via microSD card. For connectivity, the phone has standard features like Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi b / g / n, USB OTG, GPS, FM radio and 4G LTE on both SIMs.
Talking about the software, the phone has a close-to-stock version of Android Lil’ Pop with custom icon pack and other features. Swiping right on the home screen takes the user to Micromax’s Around Service, which gives access to services that are partnered with Micromax. These include food ordering, cab booking, flight booking and services like mobile, data and DTH. Apart from this, Micromax Canvas 6 also gives the user Micromax’s cloud backup feature, through which the user can create a backup of his contacts, call logs, SMS and other data on the cloud. Apart from this, many free apps and games are also available, information about which we gave in the review of Canvas 6 Pro.
Performance
Looking at the overall size of the phone, it can be said that the phone is comfortable to use but its sharp edges do not feel very pleasant after a certain time. Apart from the metal body, we did not see any overheating problem in the phone. The phone also heats up as expected while charging and playing games for a long time.
The app performance of the phone is decent. In our benchmarking tests, we got better results for the Canvas 6 than the Canvas 6 Pro.
The Gaana app is provided in this phone for streaming and playing local music files. The mono speaker gives good audio quality and the included headset gives decent sound quality. Full-HD videos can be played from the video player. The video can also be looped or trimmed in the player itself.
Talking about the camera, the PDAF (phase detection autofocus) and focus speed are quite good. However, the camera has a shutter problem which gets worse in low light. The detailing in landscape photos is not bad but the photos look dull even in daylight. The HDR mode solves this problem to a great extent and also makes the photos a bit sharper. Macro photos come with good detailing. Photos in low light are of below average quality.
The front camera takes decent selfies. The camera app is not much different from other budget smartphones from Micromax. The shooting modes are listed on the left side of the app which includes features like Face Beauty, Panorama, Multi-Angle View, Motion Track and Live Photo. The shortcut at the top toggles between HDR, Smile Shutter and Flash. A swipe up will let you apply a number of other filters.
Features like face detection, voice capture, anti shake, zero shutter delay, EIS (stabilization) can be tweaked in the camera and video settings. Apart from this, exposure and white balance can be set manually but there is no ‘Pro’ mode. Videos can be recorded up to 1080 pixels but the quality is decent.
battery life
The 3,000mAh battery on the Micromax Canvas 6 lasted 8 hours and 37 minutes in our video loop test. With normal usage, we were able to use the phone for more than a day on a single full charge.
Our verdict
Micromax’s policy of offering two smartphones at the same price to attract users from different regions is understandable. But, the company has not been able to implement this policy properly. After seeing both the phones, the user will definitely choose Canvas 6. If Micromax had given better CPU and camera in the Pro variant, then it would have been difficult to choose one of the two phones. At present, Canvas 6 is a better option. This phone has better build (metal body), fingerprint sensor, double onboard storage and better battery life.
Micromax could have made this phone even better. We did not understand why the company did not provide Gorilla Glass in this phone. Nowadays people demand this feature the most while buying a phone. Apart from this, the camera could also have been better. VoLTE support or faster Wi-Fi could also have been provided.
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