Infinix S5 Pro: Pop-Up Camera Under 10k

With the announcement of Infinix S5 Pro, Infinix is ready to challenge the competitors in the affordable price range. Infinix is that smartphone brand that has majorly focussed on the budget segment in the Indian market. Infinix has been famous all this while for showcasing the features from mid-range devices at an unbelievable cost. With Infinix Hot 8 Pro and S5 Lite being hot-selling earlier in 2019 because of their triple-camera setup, Infinix has come back with Infinix S5 Pro, this time again with the specifications of upper segment devices.

The newly launched Infinix S5 Pro is the first device under 10k to show off a pop-up selfie camera and a minimal bezel display. Apart from this, it has an exciting design and an improved performance from the past.

Also Read: Best Smartphones under 10000

Let’s check if the smartphone is worthy enough to leave an impression on the user!

Infinix S5 Pro is launched at an attractive price of Rs. 9,999 for the 4GB/64GB model, which is the only model available. It is available exclusively on Flipkart in two colour variants – Forest Green and Violet.

The unboxing of the Infinix S5 Pro is pretty much the same as any other device in the segment. The box contents of the device include:

1. The device itself
2. Micro USB cable
3. SIM ejection tool
4. 2-pin Charging Adapter
5. User manual and documentation
6. Silicone Protective transparent case

Before we get into the device and its in-depth review, let’s have a quick look at the key specifications. Here is the list of what the device is offering in just Rs.9999: 

• Display:  6.53-inch(16.59cm) FHD+ Display, 2340 x 1080 Pixels
• Chipset: MediaTek Helio P35 (MTK6765) Processor
• RAM & ROM: 4GB/64GB
• Software: XOS 6.0 on Android 10
• Rear cameras: 48MP + 2MP + Low Light Sensor
• Selfie camera: 16MP Pop-Up selfie camera
• Battery: 4000 mAh Li-ion Polymer Battery
• Weight: 194g
• Dimensions: 162.5×76.88×8.95mm

With key specs discussed, let’s jump right into the review of the Infinix S5 Pro. 

Infinix has worked a lot on this device, and it is apparent at first looking at the design. Infinix S5 Pro flaunts an attractive design which doesn’t look inexpensive from any angle. The rear panel is made of plastic that shows a glossy finish and is a fingerprint magnet and attracts a lot of smudges. Since it has a glass-like coating on top of a plastic body, it shines bright and reflects light. The two vibrant colour options of Violet and Forest Green give it a unique look. The rear panel sports a 3D glass finish. There is a triple camera module bumping out of the back panel, which is evident when you lay it on a plane surface. The fingerprint scanner is placed in the centre of the rear panel.

On the front, we see a big minimum bezel display with a pop-up selfie mechanism. The size is too big for a single hand operation which might disturb a few people. The bezels around the chin are pretty slim and make the viewing experience great.

Infinix has provided a triple card slot on the left side for dual sim operation and an expandable memory card. The power button and volume rockers come on the right side for handy use. The bottom edge features a 3.55-mm headphone jack which a lot of users still want, a micro-USB charging jack which stands as a disappointment as in many devices in this segment as we already see the USB Type-C charging. We also get to see a bottom-firing speaker and a mouthpiece on the bottom.

One of the key selling points of the Infinix S5 Pro is it’s large 6.53-inch FHD+ Full View display which is fitted on an IPS LCD panel. The display is notch-less and provides an immersive full viewing experience to the user for watching movies or gaming. Infinix has provided a screen protector in the retail box itself, so you don’t have to worry about the scratches.

The colour output on the screen comes out vivid and sharp because of a resolution of 1080 x 2340 with 395 PPI and a 19.5:9 aspect ratio. The maximum brightness on the Infinix S5 Pro averages at 360 nits only which makes it difficult to use the device in direct sunlight even though the screen is much bright.

The Infinix S5 Pro is supported by the lowest Widevine CDM level – L3 which does not support HD streaming for any of the entertainment apps and sticks to 480p video streaming only. The Infinix S5 Pro is supported by the lowest Widevine CDM level – L3 which does not support HD streaming for any of the entertainment apps and sticks to 480p video streaming only.

Looking at the price tag, the users also don’t really expect exceptional performance in such devices due to the absence of powerful chipsets. Infinix S5 Pro is powered by a 2.3 GHz octa-core MediaTek Helio P35 processor which is the best till date by Infinix, supported by 4 GB of RAM, and 64 GB to give a decent performance. The Helio P35 chipset is an octa-core processor manufactured on the 12nm process. There is no sign of lagging while using the device for day to day usage like making calls, using WhatsApp, watching videos, browsing the web and taking a few photos. We are taken aback when it comes to extensive gaming as not all games run smooth, although basic gaming is possible, like arcade games. Even multitasking is a challenge. The plastic body of the Infinix S5 Pro heats up on excess use.

The phone runs on Infinix’s custom user interface XOS 6.0 Dolphin which is based on the latest Android 10 operating system. The XOS 6.0 is customisable and comes with many pre-installed third-party apps and a lot of interesting features which the users would definitely love, our favourite being the floating window that provides a shortcut to your most-visited applications. Adding to this, there are a lot of options for battery saving, smart panel and many customisable themes for you to choose from.

Something that we found totally disappointing was that you get to see a lot of unnecessary advertisements all across the user interface.

Infinix S5 Pro offers a 48MP AI Triple Rear Camera with Dual LED Flash, a 2MP depth sensor and a dedicated Low light sensor of 0.3MP. Considering the price tag, we found the camera performance sitting straight in front of those popular rivals in the market, such as those from Xiaomi and Realme. Daylight photography was impressive as the camera was able to provide a pretty good amount of resolved details with low to minimal noise. The colours were accurate and life-like along with decent dynamic range and contrast. 

Unlike other sub-Rs.10,000 category smartphones, the Infinix S5 Pro performed good in the night, thanks to the dedicated low light sensor. The low-light images were far better from the rivals. The shots well exposed with good colour saturation, low noise and a decent amount of detail. The portrait mode too performed well with appropriate background blur, subject separation and edge detection. 

We also get to see various Photography Modes that can detect nine types of scenes-Portrait, Night, HDR, Portrait night, Portrait HDR, Pet, Food, Flowers and Street. This helped in making every photography how it should be and truly stood impressive as far as the price is concerned. 

Coming to the front, the Infinix S5 Pro is one of the most affordable smartphones to feature a pop-up Selfie Camera. The company claims 150,000 times Lift lifecycle for its Pop-Up Camera, which means that it will work for more than eight years if opened 50 times a day. The pop-up brings in front a 16MP selfie camera with f/2.0 aperture along with screen flash. Selfie features include AI Portrait & 3D Face Beauty mode that aims at enhancing the quality of selfies. 

But unfortunately, we weren’t able to fetch as decent images as we got with the rear camera. Though the selfie camera is of 16MP, the photos came out to be pretty average as details were really very poor, making the picture look more artificial. The dynamic range isn’t great; contrast ratios are low; the dynamic range is too on the weak side. The selfie-portrait also didn’t go well with reduced accuracy in edge detection and unacceptable background blur. 

Video quality was average at both front and back as it lacks any stabilisation making the quality just okay. We can still hope to get some improvement, especially in selfies via future software updates.

The Infinix S5 Pro packs a massive 4000 mAh battery with a special AI battery saving. The juice is enough to easily give you more than a day’s worth of usage with browsing web, making calls, watching a movie, and light gaming. It is backed by a 10W charger in the box which can charge it up to 30% in just 30 minutes and almost 2 hours to be completely charged. Infinix has ditched the USB Type-C for fast charging option.

The Infinix S5 Pro sports a bottom-firing single speaker which results in loud and clear audio coming out but when the volume is maxed out, you can feel the noise. The output quality and loudness from both the speaker and the 3.55mm headphone jack is acceptable for watching movies and listening to songs.

Coming to security, the Infinix S5 Pro has the most-talked-about Pop-Up Camera mechanism for Face Detection Unlock

Pros:

• 32MP Pop-Up selfie camera
• Triple rear camera
• Latest Android 10
• 3.5mm headphone jack

Cons:

• Lacks fast charging
• No water-resistance