Lenovo recently presented K8 Plus as a successor to K6 Power, a popular K-series phone from last year that was big on battery. At the same time, the Lenovo K8 Plus might very well be considered as a comparatively smaller sibling of the recently launched K8 Note. It passes on the same dual-camera privilege and big battery promise of the K8 Note to a more affordable price point.
So, if you are looking for a compact phone priced around 11,000 INR, is K8 Plus the best option to buy? Let’s try and answer that in our full review.
Key Specifications of Lenovo K8 Plus:
| Model | Lenovo K8 Plus |
| Display | 5.2 inch full HD IPS 2.5D curved glass display |
| Processor | 2.6 GHz Octa Core MediaTek Helio P25 16nm processor |
| Camera | 13 MP and 5 MP rear and 8 MP front camera |
| Battery | 4000mAh |
| RAM | 4GB |
| ROM | 32GB |
| Software | Android 7.1.1 Nougat OS |
| Dual SIM | Yes |
| Price | 10,999 INR |
Design and Build
It’s not every day that we come by a compact phone these days. With a 5.2-inch screen, the K6 Power is a lot more manageable than a regular 5.5-inch phone, and that’s what primarily plays to its advantage. It’s not exactly a slim phone, but the compact form factor and the assurance of a 4000mAh battery inside more than make up for that extra millimeter of waistline.
The K8 Plus feels quite solid and durable. It has metal on the rear and 2.5D Gorilla glass 3 on the front. The edges are curved to facilitate a firm grip. The phone is quite ergonomic, and all hardware buttons and the fingerprint sensor are within easy reach.
Lenovo has also added a dedicated ‘Music Key’ on the left edge, one that can be used to control music playback or customize to fire other apps and actions.
Display
The 5.2-inch full HD display on the K8 Note is very sharp and bright. Color calibration is acceptable in this price range, though there definitely is room for slight improvement. Viewing angles are wide and colors are punchy. The touch is responsive and outdoor visibility is pretty good too.
Camera and Imaging
The K8 Plus employs two cameras on the rear. The primary 13MP camera can shoot great outdoor shots with rich details and the second depth-sensing camera can be used to determine what lies in the foreground and what lies in the background. The information is then used to blur out the background, for replacing it, or for adding other effects.
The dual camera works reasonably good, but it’s far from perfect as of now. At the same time, we can expect the dual camera to get better with the next few software updates.
The front 8MP selfie camera is assisted by LED flash and can shoot good images when the lighting is adequate. Indoor selfies have some noise, though. Overall, the camera performance of K8 Plus is very good for its price.
Performance and Software
The K8 Note is powered by entry grade Snapdragon 430 processor paired with 4GB RAM and 32GB storage. Lenovo has provided with a dedicated microSD card slot and thus the storage space shouldn’t be a problem in the long run.
The phone runs light and pure stock Android software and is also guaranteed to get Android 8.0 Oreo update. The software on the phone is one of its key strengths, simply because it won’t bog the performance down and can be upgraded without much hazel.
The Helio P25 chipset powering the phone is similar to Snapdragon 625 in terms of performance and battery efficiency. The phone doesn’t heat up very often either. We didn’t face any performance issue with normal day-to-day usage or with heavy gaming. The bottom line is, with the stock software and powerful chipset, the K8 Plus is well suited for heavy users who need to use many apps on their phones on a regular basis.
Battery, Price, and Verdict
The 4000mAh battery on the K8 Plus can easily last for one and a half day of moderate to heavy usage. The battery backup is impressive, and the phone also supports quick charging.
Priced at 10,999 INR, the Lenovo K8 Plus has a powerful chipset, long lasting battery and a good set of cameras playing to its advantage. There just aren’t many compact phones available for around 10K, and If you are looking for one, the K8 Plus is definitely worth considering.
