Gionee S6s: The Smart Choice

Lately, the smartphone market seems to be crowded with mid-range devices, and it is getting increasingly difficult to choose from. Almost all mid-range phones run on similar Meditek processors coupled with 2 or 3 GB RAM, have 16 or 32 GB storage and have similar imaging devices, battery power and overall performance. But even devices with exactly same technical specifications can perform differently in real life. Specifications alone doesn’t determine how a smartphone performs, rather it’s the well-organized arrangement of those technical parameters that translate into real-life performance. Gionee S6s is an example of such efficient combination. 

Design/Display
Gionee S6s is easily one of the best looking smartphones in its segment. The handset with uni-body metal design looks elegant and feels premium.There is a silver edge that goes all around the phone giving it a refined look. Mocha Gold and Latte Gold are the colour options available, and both look equally stylish. The phone comes with a FHD 5.5 inch 2.5D IPS LCD screen. The screen-to-body ratio is at 71.4 % and the pixel density is at 401 ppi. The display is bright and crisp, the contrast is good and multimedia consumption is very much enjoyable on the device. The screen isprotected by Corning Gorilla Glass 3. 
The navigation buttons are on the bottom and are not back-lit which could be a disappointment to some. There is a fingerprint scanner on the back of the phone that’s sits below the camera. There is a hybrid SIM tray on the left and power button and volume rockers are on the right. The design is overall good, feels well-built and sturdy. The phone, however, feels hefty and is hard to be operated by single hand. 

Performance/Software
Gionee S6s is powered by an octa-core MediaTek MT 6753 chipset clocked at 1.3GHz. The device comes with 3GB RAM and has 32GB of internal storage. The phone supports microSD card up to 256 GB with its hybrid SIM slot.The phone performs well, and there is no lag in everyday use. Multitasking is no issue either. The phone is very responsive and snappy, thanks to the 3 GB RAM. The GPU used is Mali-T720MP3 that allows for a fair gaming experience. The gaming performance is good even with high-end games, but do not expect anything exceptional in gaming department. It’s just an average phone when it comes to gaming, but general performance is more than satisfactory. The device runs on Gionee’s amigo 3.2.0 based on Android 6.0 Marshmallow. The software is quick and convenient, but it takes some getting used to as the interface is far from stock Android. Powering the device is a non-removable 2,150 mAh battery which easily lasts a day with moderate use. 
Camera
The company has marketed Gionee S6s as a selfie phone with more focus on the cameras. In our review as well, we found imaging to be the strongest features of the S6s. The phone comes with a 13 MP primary camera with f/2.0 aperture and phase detection autofocus. The photos taken from the primary camera, in our opinion, is one of the best in the price range. The photos are well saturated, detailed and with good contrast. The best thing about the images is the good depth of field. Also, the low-light performance of the rear camera is outstanding. Tweaking with the camera modes result in very good low light images. The professional mode allows an exposure of up to 12 seconds. 
The camera app itself is impressive and launches very quickly. There are numerous camera options to choose from that include HDR, night mode, panorama, slow motion, macro, time lapse, text recognition, professional, ultra-pixel and GIF among others. The secondary camera is an 8 MP snapper with f/2.2 aperture and LED flash. The photos from the front camera are pretty good and very bright. The LED flash makes taking bright selfies possible in poorly-lit conditions. The fingerprint sensor at the back makes it further convenient to take selfies. The rear camera is capable of recording videos at 1080p at 30 fps.  
Priced at Rs 25,999 Gionee S6s is a smart choice if you want an elegant phone with good display, decent performance and outstanding camera performance