ChinaDroid review - VKWorld Mix Plus

It's been ages since I last did a good ol' written review, so eh, why the hell not!

The VKWorld Mix Plus is a clone, specifically of the Xiaomi Mix. Both Mix(es) boast a 90% screen-to-body ratio, with nearly no bezel on the top, right and left sides.

On top, squeezed in the little space between the top of the screen and the top of the phone is the earpiece. Calls made with the mobile were good, but they definitively pale in comparaison to HD Voice. Then again that's not a slag on this perticular mobile, all of the ChinaDroids I own are not the best when it comes to sound quality.

The screen is 720p, which is a bit disappointing. It is pretty good and clear, and I don't see jagged pixels, so fair dinkum.

The back, like the front, is Gorilla Glass. I have to admit, I am not terribly fond of that -- sure, it looks good, but it is the biggest fingerprint magnet I have ever seen and it quickly gets covered with them. This is one instance in which I put on the rubber case that came in the box.

Camera is 8MP on the back, and 2MP on the front. I was a bit surprised that this is the case, usually ChinaDroids use 13MP and 5MP cameras. It also can capture 720p video pretty well, I filmed a banter from the BSS RPG and the end result was clear and well-detailed. Of course it doesn't hold a candle to my 1520 which does 4K video, but again, considering the rock-bottom price, fair dinkum.

The Mix Plus has 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage, which is expandable, and it supports microSDXC, so it can be expanded by 32, 64, 128 or 256GB. I have no real need for it, though I may end up buying an extra microSD because my main 16GB is in my Lumia 1520 and getting to it without removing the armored case is a pain in the arse so fuck it, I'll just get the Mix Plus it's own microSD.

CPU is a MTK6737, quad-core. It is an older MTK processor, but it runs Android 7.0 pretty smoothly. I had no issues playing Minecraft Pocket or Carmageddon either. Again, fair dinkum.

Inside is a 2850mAh battery. I got through a day of normal use, and had about 25% left when I went to sleep. This pales in comparaison to my Lumia 1520 which can last two days of normal use since it runs on a 3200mAH. I get it -- 2850mAh battery is cheaper to buy, but this mobile should have packed at least 3000mAh.

On the signal front -- In my neck of the woods, 2G is on both 850 and 1900MHz, 3G is on 850MHz, and LTE is on 2600MHz, and there is partial support for 2100MHz as well. Concretely, I get good 2G coverage, 3G generally works well but there are some weak spots. LTE 2600MHz is not widely available so I get rather sporadic LTE coverage, but 3G is more than adequate for my mobile data needs.

Just to be clear: Used on an European, or Asian mobile network, the mobile would get significantly better signal than what I get in North America. Partial network compatibility is common to most ChinaDroids, and it's never been a major issue for me. Well, except for no 3G on the Oukitel K10000 because of a Gearbest screw up about it having 850 and 1900MHz when it doesn't.


On the software front, it is still on Android 7.0. ChinaDroids have always been plagued by late, or lack of updates, though the modding community has gotten really comprehensive, if a ChinaDroid model sells well, it is pretty much guaranteed to have modding options like custom recovery (be it TeamWin or ClockworkMod) and custom ROMs, mostly based on CyanogenMod. An Android 8 ROM will pop up at some point, I am sure.

Bottom line -- considering the rock-bottom price point, the VKWorld Mix Plus is a more than adequate piece of hardware. It feels, and is well-built, the materials are quality. This doesn't feel like a budget mobile like the Cubot Note S, for example. Some things about the mobile are a step down from the other mobiles I rotate around, but it does the job just fine for my needs and it's definitively earned it's place in the few mobiles I regularly use.

Here is my rating, by category:

Overall: 3.8/5

Reception: 2.5/5 (NOTE: This reflects my experience on North American networks, it will work much better on an European/Asian network, so take that into account)

Battery life: 3/5 -- Could be better

Hardware quality: 4/5 -- Definitively does not feel like a budget mobile. Weighty, well-built, feels good in the hand.

Screen: 4/5 -- 720p is fine, but I would have prefered 1080p.

General performance: 4/5 -- Android runs smoothly and handles multi-tasking pretty well

Audio volume: 4/5 -- No complaints there

Camera performance: 3.8/5 -- No reason why it shouldn't have been a 13MP sensor instead of an 8MP.

It is currently available for 109 Yank bucks on several Chinese online retailers like GearBest. Here is a link to the page.

https://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_658918.html