The Xolo Q800 sports a 4.5 inch screen with qHD resolution powered by MediaTek quad core processor with 1GB RAM and sailing on the Android Jelly Bean OS. This handset is priced at Rs. 10,499 but from local stores you can get it for as under Rs. 9,549 (try bargaining).

Xolo Q800 Box Pack
It’s the traditional plain white colored box with logo / model name written in silver. The good part is that the specifications are clearly mentioned on the rear side along with the chipset and all other details. You don’t really need to use any app to find out the specs.

Inside the box there is the 4.5 inch handset, screen guard, battery of 2100 mAh capacity, micro USB to USB cable, earphone, Power Adapter and user guide/ warranty booklet.

Design
The dual SIM dual standby by handset looks a bit dull cause of the non glossy look. The side is matte black with shiny grayish thick line and the rear side is again black color with matte finish. It’s comfortable to hold and is non-slippery.

There are 3 touch buttons on the front, the sensors, 1MP camera on the front (top)  and volume rockers / power button on the right side. The micro USB port and 3.5mm jack is placed on the top side. The rear side is simple matte black with XOLO logo, speaker out and 8MP camera with LED flash. There is light, proximity, accelerometer and magnetic sensors.

The handset is 9.6mm thick and is smaller than the Micromax A116. The built quality and finishing is very good.

xolo q800 box pack

Display, OS and Memory
The IPS touchscreen is 4.5 inch with 960×540 pixels resolution (245 ppi). The touch is smooth and responsive. Viewing angle is good. Auto brightness works best when you are indoors, but outdoors in direct sunlight you will need to manually set the brightness to max. This is the case with all MediaTek handsets I have reviewed so far.

The handset runs on Jelly Bean 4.1.2 OS. RAM is 1GB of which 677 MB is free. Of the 4GB internal storage you get 0.91 free of the 1GB for apps, and 1.7GB as internal phone storage (1.69GB free). You can however install apps on external storage.

xolo q800 review

Processor, performance and benchmark
The Xolo Q800 is powered by Quad core MTK6589 processor clocked at 1.2GHz with PowerVR SGX 544 MP GPU. The performance is very good as good as seen on the other MediaTek quad core handsets.

Benchmark scores

  • Quadrant Benchmark: 3664.
  • Antutu Benchmark: 13014.
  • Nenamark2: 53.8 fps.
  • Linpack : Single 36, Multi 94.
  • Multi Touch: 5 point.

8MP camera
The 8MP auto focus camera is with BSI sensor. The image quality is as good as the Micromax A116. The camera can record videos in full HD resolution at 30 fps. I did not find any panorama option in the camera interface. There is the HDR option though. In addition there is a front facing 1MP fixed focus camera.

Check out the sample images and video at the end of this article.  The LED flash is good for close up images in extreme low light or no light conditions.

xolo q800 8mp camera

Entertainment and Gaming
The handset can easily play 1080p (Full HD videos). But the picture quality is slightly better on MMX A116 cause of the HD resolution.

I installed the Nova 3 on the Xolo Q800 and it played really well. The game got installed on the external SD card. Sadly this is not possible on the MMX A116, for now, and hence Q800 has this advantage.

Sound and Others
I compared the A116 and the Q800 audio, the clarity is the same but the sound is little louder on the Q800. A116 with 100% equal to 90% on Q800. 3G speed is good, I have not tested 2G, but should be good enough also avoid using 2G unless you are okay with the speed and getting unlimited access.

3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS works perfectly fine.

Battery
The 2100 mAh battery I believe will get the handset going for a full day. The estimated talktime is up to 10 hours and standby time is 360 hours.

Xolo Q800 review
The looks may not impress you much but the price and the features definitely will. A good, a smaller and a cheaper alternative to the Micromax A116. Users who are not comfortable with a bigger 5 inch phone this 4.5 inch Q800 could be the best option. The qHD resolution is not as good as the HD on the A116 but for the price this is the best you can get.

Image Gallery

Sample Images

Xolo Q800 unboxing and review video

1080p raw sample video shot using the Q800 camera

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By Rajeev Rana

Founder and Chief Editor - gogi.in