Smartphone Prestigio Muze B5 - advantages and disadvantages

Smartphones from Prestigio have been bought since 2012 and at the moment the manufacturer is firmly holding the leading position in the market of inexpensive and mid-priced devices. Phones are sold in 70 countries of the world, but they are most demanded in Eastern Europe, in the Russian Federation, as well.

Popular models from the Chinese manufacturer run on MediaTek and Spreadtrum platforms with 4 or 8 core processors. Dual-sim function in 2018 is a necessity and a common occurrence for any phone. Over the past year, the manufacturer has released new items, among them Prestigio Muze B5. The phone belongs to inexpensive models, and the average price ranges from 5000-6000 rubles. Where it is profitable to buy, in a store or on the Internet, everyone decides for himself.

The device has a colorful screen, an improved 13 megapixel camera with auto focus, 1 gigabyte of RAM, and a feature - a fingerprint sensor. Runs Android 7.0 Nougat. Let's dwell on the device in more detail.

What a smartphone looks like and what's included

The design of the proposed device is standard for a modern phone. Almost the entire front side is occupied by an excellent 5.2-inch display. The screen is curved and covered with 2.5D glass, the corners are rounded. Thin frames on the sides look very stylish and add solidity to the device.

Buttons and connectors are located as standard. An audio jack for a headset or headphones and a charging hole are located on the top edge. On the right are the volume control and unlock buttons. On the front side, above the screen, we see a proximity sensor, an earpiece and a 5 MP front camera. On the back, at the top, there is a rear 13 megapixel camera, and immediately below it is an LED flash and a fingerprint sensor. At the bottom of the cover are external speaker holes.

The device's battery is removable and can be seen by removing the back cover. Above the battery there are 2 slots for SIM cards and for a memory card.

The body is made of high quality matte plastic. The build quality is good. When using, there are no squeaks, backlashes. The model can be purchased in black or gold. The dimensions of the device make it possible to operate it with one hand. The smartphone has the following dimensions: length - 15 cm, width - 7.45 cm, thickness - 0.88 cm.The weight of the device is 161 g.

The device is packed in a typical Prestigio white and red box with a brief indication of the main features of the model. The smartphone belongs to budget models, so the package bundle is modest:

• telephone;
• battery;
• charger unit;
• cable for PC and in combination for charging. Cord length 60 cm;
• instructions and accompanying materials.

All additional accessories, as in other inexpensive models from Prestigio, must be purchased independently.

Specifications

Screen

One of the main advantages of the Muze B5 (5520) is its excellent bright 5.2-inch screen. The matrix, made with IPS technology, provides excellent viewing angles. Visibility is good in the sun. The screen resolution is 1280: 720, which is the minimum norm for a smartphone in 2018. The PPI number is 283. Multi-touch supports five touches simultaneously. The screen looks great.

How to take pictures and videos of the Prestigio 5520

The manufacturer has equipped this device with a 13 megapixel camera, standard for mid-range smartphones, with autofocus and LED flash. Compared to its sister models Muze B3 and Muze B7, this is the best offer from Prestigio in the lineup. Photos taken in the sun are of very good quality, in the dark time the quality is not lost too much thanks to the flash. The stabilizer maintains sharpness at a height.

Videos can be recorded in maximum quality 1920 * 1080 pixels.

The 5 megapixel front camera for video calls or selfies also has autofocus, but there is no stabilization. The cameras have the ability to manually adjust the settings. When taking pictures, sometimes photos come out with a rich red tone.

Example of a photo during the day:

And this is how he takes pictures at night, using a flash:

Smartphone capabilities

One of the weakest points of the Prestigio Muze B5 smartphone is the processor. The model uses the updated in 2016 MediaTek MT6580A, in which 4 cores with Cortex A7 architecture, 1300 MHz frequency and a Mali-400 MP2 graphics chip. One gigabyte of RAM, of which 380 MB is available to the user, is also frustrating. For a 2018 smartphone, this is weak. This is enough for browsing the Internet, for average games, for working with social networks.

For active and heavy games, you need to set the minimum or medium settings. Even not very demanding gamers at medium settings will see the graphics flaws. Unfortunately, the phone cannot be called nimble. With prolonged use, surfing the Internet or playing games, the phone heats up noticeably. It is important not to overheat.

Although reviews and comparisons with the main competitor Snapdragon 425 clearly point to the advantage of the latter, the excellent screen and fingerprint sensor partially counterbalance this disadvantage. And a processor from a competitor will be more expensive in price.

The memory of the smartphone itself is 16 gigabytes, of which 11 are available to the user. But the ability to increase the volume by installing a memory card up to 32 GB is an undoubted advantage.

Software

The smartphone runs Android 7.0 Nougat. The menu interface is standard. Most of the pre-installed games and programs are from partners or are of an advertising nature. Given the small amount of RAM, it is recommended to delete everything unnecessary.

Communication, communications and the Internet

Prestigio 5520 works in all communication standards from 850 to 1900 MHz. 3G support makes it possible to use high-speed Internet. But in 4G networks the device does not work. If you have a wi-fi access point, you can save operator traffic.

The phone has GPS. If there are disruptions in communication with the satellite, then you can use A-GPS, that is, determine the location using the resources of the mobile network, at the operator's rates and with less accuracy. GLONASS is not supported.

How long will the battery last.

The manufacturer installed a battery, not bad for the Muze B line, with a capacity of 2450 mA in the smartphone.Other devices in the series, for example, B3 or B7, have more modest batteries, 2000 and 2300 mA, respectively. But still, this is not enough for a modern device. Practice shows that in the average operating mode, the battery lasts for a day. It takes 4 hours to fully charge.

By manually lowering the screen brightness, you can extend the battery life. Or use the pre-installed Doze saving mode on your smartphone. This option automatically adjusts brightness and additional functions. In such cases, the phone will work longer, but no more than 2 days. To increase the autonomy of your phone, you need to purchase a portable charger or an additional battery.

Multimedia capabilities and features

Listen to music on a smartphone using an mp3 player. The sound is quite quiet, although this also depends on the quality of the track being played. You can select different equalizer modes in the player. Sound quality is average. There are no headphones in the kit, so you need to purchase them separately. They will also be an active antenna for FM radio.

The incoming ringtone sounds loud. The speaker for a conversation is quiet, in noisy conditions you need to strain your hearing to hear the interlocutor.

The undoubted highlight of the model is the fingerprint sensor, thanks to which it is easy to lock and unlock the phone. It is enough to put your finger on the scanner and it will be unlocked or vice versa. Other traditional methods are also available: by pressing a button and entering a password.

Pros and cons of a smartphone

Having examined this device from all sides, and after examining user reviews, we will highlight its advantages.

• excellent, colorful screen with IPS matrix;
• multitouch 5 touches;
• fingerprint scanner;
• improved camera compared to previous models;
• 16 gigabytes of internal memory and the ability to expand using a memory card;
• 2.5D glass.

But it was not without extremely unpleasant moments, so we will highlight such shortcomings.

• outdated processor;
• small amount of RAM;
• weak battery;
• does not work with 4G;
• heats up with intensive use;
• quiet sound of the spoken speaker and player.

Summing up

Having received full information about the new product from Prestigio, the Muze B5 smartphone, you can draw somewhat contradictory conclusions. On the one hand, the model belongs to the budget class, has modest functionality, and one should not expect high performance from it. But on the other hand, an excellent screen and fingerprint scanner will find their connoisseurs. The smartphone will perfectly serve the undemanding or novice user and will take its place in the ranking of inexpensive but high-quality devices.