Smart as you like

AS the battle for smartphone supremacy rages on between electronic giants Apple and Samsung, it’s the new kids on the block that are making the most noise by tapping into the budget market and providing cost-effective models that offer plenty of bang for your buck, writes Charlie Holding.

Huawei Ascend W1 has integrated Microsoft’s Windows 8 platform and could see both companies make a major impact.

It joins Nokia’s Lumia 620 and a whole new wave of budget Windows Phone 8 handsets that aim to knock the big boys off their perches and return Microsoft to its former glory.

To understand the signifcance of this, I need to tell you a story about when I was growing up in the 1990s and the internet was just coming into prominence.

Admittedly, it was a no frills affair back then, we had no Wi-Fi and had to rely on dial-up modems that screeched and wailed for minutes before you fnally made it online, but we were happy about it.

Leading the internet charge was Microsoft and its ground-breaking Windows platform. Soon enough, Apple came along and blew the competition out of the water with its offering.

As quickly as computers, their platforms and browsers have matured, so have mobile phones and smartphone technology is now almost indistinguishable in terms of capability and features from PCs.

While the West has a surprising amount of disposable income considering the economic downturn, emerging markets are just as keen to have smartphones and offering them at an affordable rate could be just the ticket to see some healthy competition in the smartphone market.

The Huawei Ascend W1 is a great example of this. It’s sleek, simple to use and its hardware isn’t as modest as you’d expect for the price of around BD69. It has a dual core 1.2Ghz processor,Adreno 305 graphics and a microSD card slot so you can boast the memory.

In terms of the look, the all-plastic construction looks decent and feels sturdy and comfortable in the hand. It’s a good weight for a 4-inch smartphone and the handset measures a respectable 10.1mm in depth.

It took me a while to get used to the touch-screen but after playing with it for a while, it became easier. Sending messages was a bit of a challenge at frst but soon, I was bombarding my friends with only the occasional typo!

The 5MP camera comes with autofocus and an LED fash, as well as geo-tagging, touch focus and face detection. There is a dedicated camera shutter button on the side, which you can use if you prefer, but you can also take a snap simply by touching the screen. The photo quality isn’t bad, providing you have adequate lighting, but this is an area with room for improvement, in my opinion.

Since it’s a Windows phone, it doesn’t have a standard contacts list, a refreshingly unique touch. Your contacts are grouped together in the People Hub, where you can access names, contact numbers and email address information, as well as social media updates from your contacts across services like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Predictably, this smartphone uses Microsoft’s Windows Explorer web browser. This is a fast, simple and powerful browser that is as familiar and comfortable as a pair of old slippers.

Since it’s a Microsoft package, the device boasts Mobile Offce as part of the OS so you can create, view and edit Word, Excel and PowerPoint fles right on the phone. Once you’ve signed up for a Microsoft account, there’s also easy access to the brand’s SkyDrive service so you can store and share your documents.

All in all, a funky little device that proves you do not have to spend big money to have a huge amount of fun with a smartphone.