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By TechnoMag Staff
Gtel yesterday unveiled their new flagship smartphone, the Gtel A760 SL5.5 Xtra, a predecessor to their SL 5.5 as the local mobile firm seeks to increase its visibility in the market.

The company has retained the back glass but has completely removed the plastic feel making it an executive phone which looks and feels very expensive.

Speaking during the official unveiling of the phone the founder of Gtel, Mr Chamunorwa Shumba, said he was confident that the new gadget will hold its own against big brands like Samsung and Apple.

“We have done our best to come up with a high quality device that is better that other local offerings but has a lower price and has local warranty,” he said

Design

Gtel’s new offering is bold on design and has grooved sides for easy grip. The casing on the A760 SL5.5 Xtra is a matte finish. Gtel worked hard to make the phones as compact as possible. Its screen is perfect for browsing the internet or watching movies.

Display

– 5.2-inch Super AMOLED LCD screen

– 1920 * 1080 pixels

– 359 pixels per square inch

Camera

– 13 -MP rear camera

– 8-MP front camera

The A760 SL5.5 Xtra improves on the A760 SL5.5 in both rear and front cameras. The A760 SL5.5 Xtra has an 8MP which is good for both selfies and Skype calls.

But the biggest improvement is on the 13-megapixel snapper at the rear. It lets you take 4,128 x 3,096 resolution photos and 1080p Full-HD videos with a higher resolution.

Software

Android 5.0

Gtel has retained all its great hits and have come up with a flatter, cleaner, physical design look that comes with Android 5.0. Now, I was plenty (and surprisingly) fond of Theme Park’s style the moment I fired up these phones, and also the switch keyboard were you can choose from about 15 different themes if you’re itching for something else.

Using the Edge

This is where you might expect the A760 SL5.5 Xtra to shine. Tapping chameleon app causes an array of colored bubbles to drift into view. You can assign up to five people their own specific colour, so that when they contact you, the phone will spring to life with their assigned hue. It’s a neat trick, but it has some shortcomings. To start, why the limit on five people and colours? If the Gtel that lights up happens to be pointing away from you, it’s easier to just flip the phone over and see is phoning instead of turning it around to see what color is throbbing.

Performance and battery life

– 2GB RAM

– 16GB internal memory

– octa-core processor @ 1.7GHz

– Battery 2700 mAH

It is an octa-core processor clocked at 1.7GHz. The A760 SL5.5 Xtra has 2GB of RAM, and 16GB of internal memory but the sad thing is only 10GB is usable and it has no room for expansion. The A760 SL5.5 Xtra has a 2,700mAh battery. Gtel’s new processors are designed to deliver more horsepower at greater efficiency, which allow for 14 to 15 hours of continuous use.

Wrap-up

I’ve never been a big fan of Gtel phones. The A760 SL5.5 is a well thought-out and complete product. Calling it “perfect” would be irresponsible and inaccurate, but the A760 SL5.5 Xtra is the closest Gtel has come to perfection.

Yes, there are still some elements that prevent it from being the perfect phone this is Gtel after all, a brand that likes to cram as much into the phone as it can get away with.

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