The Gionee Elife S7 is another MediaTek 1.7GHz 64 bit octa core powered handset. The S7 supports dual SIM (4G + 4G) and it is running Amigo 3.0 based on Android 5.0. This handset comes with a 5.2 inch screen with FHD resolution and it is just 5.5 mm thick.

Elife S7 Unboxing
Gionee brand is really generous, you will know that when you open the box pack. Inside you will find the Elife S7, data cable, SIM tray ejector pin, OTG cable, travel charger, 4 x screen guard – 2 for front screen and 2 for the back panel, plastic case, user guide, warranty card, premium quality earphone, earphone plug caps and magnetic flip cover with view window – the cover is made of good quality artificial leather.

Design and Display
The S7 is unique, it’s slim, got a glossy finish and the side are unique. It’s using ‘U shape design with parallel metal silver lines running along the sides. The design not only provides additional strength but also give a comfortable grip. The design is inspired by rail tracks.

Gionee Elife S7 review and unboxing

S7 has got a metal frame and the rear panel is glass. Both the front screen as well as the rear panel is protected with corning gorilla glass 3. S7 is amazingly slim (5.5mm) and light weight at just about 126 grams. Dimensions are 72.65 x 149.28 x 5.59 (mm).

Gionee Elife S7 U shape design

Power and volume rocker are placed on the right side, SIM tray is on the left, micro USB port, speaker out vent and 3.5mm audio jack is placed at the bottom. The front screen and the back panel are completely flat.

S7 is using a super AMOLED screen of size 5.2 inches and supporting 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution. Touch response, viewing angle and colour reproduction are just great. There is LED notification and following sensors – accelerometer, gyro, magnetic, light, hall and proximity

This is a dual SIM slot and both slots support 4G. You need two micro SIM’s.

Gionee Elife S7 dual SIM slots (micro SIM with 4G support)

Memory, Storage and OS
S7 comes loaded with 2GB RAM and 16GB of internal storage. There is no micro SD card support. On the first boot you will get about 8.9GB free storage space and about 1GB free RAM. OTG is supported.

This handset is running Amigo 3.0 UI based on Android 5.0 Lollipop.

Gionee Elife S7 flip cover screen

Performance
The S7 houses the  MediaTek (MT6752) 64 bit cortex A53 1.7GHz octa core processor coupled with Mali T760 GPU. It is a 64 bit hardware running 64 bit software. Performance is smooth and lag free (minor occasional lag that is acceptable).

Benchmark

App Result
Quadrant 16074
Antutu (64 bit) 42625
Vellamo Metal (1156) Multi core (1923) Browser (2924)
Nenamark 2 63.4 fps
Multi Touch 10 point

Gaming
Asphalt 8 was playable in highest visual quality mode. You can install many high end games provided you have enough free storage space. Battery temperature reached to 47 degrees in 25 minutes while playing the Asphalt 8 game.

Camera
The S7 comes with a 13MP AF camera on the rear and 8MP on the front. Camera quality is above average. Interface is simple to use, there is professional mode that gives you manual control – you can even switch of auto focus and manually focus the subject.

Gionee Elife S7 13MP rear AF camera with LED flash

Rear camera can shoot FHD videos. Check the sample images and videos at the end of this review. Another interesting thing is the chameleon app. Start the app, you will get the camera mode, point at any colourful subject, the app will then select 3 colours and create a new theme based on the colours that were auto selected (check video review).

Others
Sound is very loud and clear. The handset does support 4G, 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS (instant lock) and Bluetooth. No other issues found.

Gionee Elife S7 review

Battery
Gionee Elife S7 comes with a 2700 mAh non-removable battery. Check the battery performance below.

Task Time Battery drop (%) (max temp)
Running Benchmark apps 17 minutes 5% (38)
FHD video playback with Wi-Fi on + full brightness 19 minutes 4% (37)
Asphalt 8 Game Play 25 minutes 13% (47)
Wall Charge 2 hours 34 minutes 17% to 100%

Battery performance is very good depending on your usage, you can expect about 3 to 7 hours of mixed usage. Handset heats up and battery drains faster when playing high end games.

Verdict
Elife S7 is a premium and unique looking handset powered by 64 bit octa core processor. It’s light weight and very slim. Performance is very good, camera quality is above average and battery backup also look pretty good (depending on your usage).

A good option (if you can afford / comfortable with Gionee brand) for approx Rs. 25,000; however there are other options available (but not that slim) of a much cheaper price.

Gionee Elife S7 is available on Snapdeal for approx Rs. 24,440.

Image Gallery


Rear Camera Sample


Front Camera Sample

Gionee Elife S7 video review

By Rajeev Rana

Founder and Chief Editor - gogi.in