Overview

The Allview P4 Life, launched in December 2014, marked a significant entry into the budget smartphone market. While it has since been discontinued, its features and specifications provided a compelling option for users seeking affordability without sacrificing essential functionality. This device is a reflection of Allview's dedication to delivering quality at a cost-effective price. In this article, we'll explore the key aspects of the Allview P4 Life, highlighting its design, display, performance, and other critical features.

Design and Build

The Allview P4 Life boasts a compact and practical design with dimensions of 120.9 x 57.6 x 9.3 mm, making it a suitable choice for users who prefer smaller phones that fit comfortably in one hand. Weighing 125.2 grams, it is lightweight yet feels solid. The body is designed to accommodate dual SIM cards in micro-sized formats, allowing for flexibility in network management. Available in a classic black color, the P4 Life has a simplistic and unobtrusive appearance, appealing to users who prefer a minimalist look.

Display

Sporting a 4-inch IPS LCD screen with a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels, the display on the Allview P4 Life provides satisfactory clarity and color reproduction for day-to-day usage. The 233 ppi density ensures that text and media appear reasonably sharp. Additionally, the screen is protected with scratch-resistant glass, a feature that enhances its durability and keeps it looking new even after extended use.

Performance

Under the hood, the Allview P4 Life is powered by a Mediatek MT6592 chipset with a quad-core 1.3 GHz Cortex-A7 processor, which was fairly robust for its time. The Mali-450MP4 GPU handles graphic tasks, offering smooth performance for standard applications and simple games. With 1GB of RAM, the device holds up well in handling multiple tasks, though it's primarily designed for lighter use. The phone initially runs on Android 4.4.2 KitKat but is upgradable to Android 5.0 Lollipop, offering improved performance and features through updates.

Storage

This smartphone comes with an internal storage capacity of 8GB, which is sufficient for basic apps and a moderate amount of media. It has a microSDHC card slot, allowing users to expand storage capacity further to accommodate more apps, photos, and music. This flexibility ensures that users are not constrained by the phone's internal storage alone.

Camera

The Allview P4 Life is equipped with a 5 MP main camera featuring LED flash and HDR capabilities, allowing for decent photo quality in various lighting conditions. The camera can record video at 1080p@30fps, providing good video quality for its category. The VGA front-facing camera, while not exceptional, serves adequately for video calls and basic selfies.

Battery Life

Its removable Li-Ion 1600 mAh battery provides adequate power to carry most users through a day of typical usage. The stand-by time is rated at up to 165 hours, with a talk time of approximately 7 hours and 15 minutes. While not outstanding, these battery performance figures are reasonable for a device in its class.

Connectivity

The Allview P4 Life supports GSM/HSPA technology, offering solid network coverage for calls and data. It includes Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n for wireless connectivity, and Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP and EDR for efficient data exchange over short distances. Although it lacks NFC, it features FM radio and a microUSB 2.0 port for charging and data transfer, components that are valued by users who appreciate traditional connectivity options.

Sensors and Additional Features

The phone is equipped with an accelerometer and a proximity sensor, facilitating orientation awareness and power management through efficient locking mechanisms when the device is near the user's face during calls. Although these are basic sensors, they add to the phone's functionality and user experience.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Allview P4 Life is a budget-friendly smartphone offering a balance of basic features that cater to users seeking reliability and functionality at a low price. Despite its discontinuation, it remains a noteworthy model for those interested in exploring the evolution of budget smartphones and the value they bring to the table. Its compact design, reasonable performance, and expandable storage make it an enduring example of economical smartphone design.