Huawei Ascend Y300: Review, Unboxing and Hands-on

Huawei, this year at CES, introduced various new Android devices as well as a Windows Phone smartphone. We are excited to tell you that most of them will be launching here in Pakistan, including the gigantic Ascend Mate.

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The first device made available in Pakistan is a low end android smartphone Ascend Y300 (Single SIM version) and here we are with brief review of this device:

Hardware Specifications:

  • 4″ Capacitive TFT Touch Screen
  • Qualcomm MSM8x25 Snapdragon 1 GHz dual core processor
  • 512MB Ram and Adreno 203 GPU
  • 5 MP camera with auto-focus and 0.3 MP secondary camera
  • 4 GB internal storage, up to 32 GB microSD card support

Design:

All the devices introduced by Huawei this year come with the same generic smartphone design. Y300 is no different. It has slightly rounded corners, a plastic body with a rubbery feel and a circle around the primary camera.

Check Product: Honor 9

The phone dimensions are 124 x 63.8 x 11.2 mm. Huawei Ascen Y300 weighs around 130 grams and the rubber material allows you a comfortable hold.

notification

Huawei Ascen Y300 is equipped with a 4 inch 16M colors TFT capacitive touchscreen, having a resolution of 480×800 pixels. The screen is vivid and highly responsive but it is prone to smudges & scratches, so using a screen protector is recommended.


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Above the screen there is Battery indicator, ear speakers, light sensors and 0.3 MP front facing camera. Below the screen we have three touch sensitive keys; back, home and menu.

keys

On the top left there is the power/lock key, which is a quite an odd place for that. On the top center we have a 3.5mm headphone jack. On the right side we have the volume rocker, which is again quite odd because mostly and usually the volume rocker is placed on the left, which in Ascend Y300’s case has the microUSB port.

The microphone is located on the bottom.

top

sides

The backside of this phone has a 5MP Camera with LED flash light and an arc shape speaker just outside the Camera circle. On the bottom we have the Huawei logo embedded in the rubber material. Under the cover there are slots for Mini SIM, Battery and microSD card.

back

I had accidentally dropped this phone while taking it out of my pocket and surprisingly it didn’t take a single scratch, thanks to the rubberized plastic. Also the back cover won’t take any scratches so there is no need to add a protective case.

Overall I am very satisfied with the build quality of this phone.

inside

Operating System and UI:

The phone comes with Android Jelly Bean 4.1.1 out of box and on top of it runs a newer version of Emotion UI, Huawei’s Proprietary User Interface which was first seen on Ascend P1 in Pakistan. This UI provides an easy functionality for the new Android users.

In Emotion UI there is no app drawer, and everything is on your homescreen, you can arrange and re-arrange the apps by putting them in folders.

You can still add the widgets by pressing and holding the screen. Huawei has also included some of its own widgets, like the “Me widget” which is a collection of different widgets where you can put your contacts, clock, music, weather and gallery widgets.

software1

Emotion UI comes with different themes plus you can also download new ones. The notification area is also customized and there are many toggle buttons included for quick actions like turning on Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS and Screenshot.

This UI also has a profile app, which allows you to select or create profiles with different sound, brightness and data settings.

By default there is no stock launcher present and the Emotion UI is your only choice, but you can use any other launcher like Nova or Apex if you don’t like the UI, still you can’t get rid of some of the features of Emotional UI because it’s integration with the OS.

Keeping in view the Huawei’s tradition of releasing OS updates, there are very few chances that this device can get a Jelly Bean 4.2 upgrade in near future.

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Performance:

The phone is powered with a Dual Core 1GHz processor,  512MB of RAM and Adreno 203 GPU. Most of the devices running Jelly Bean these days have at least 1GB of RAM, but surprisingly the device works very smooth without any visible lag.

Games like Temple Run 2, Battle Monkeys 3D Multiplayer run fine on this phone. Since Huawei Ascend Y300 is a low end phone and hence you can’t compare it with phones having Quad core CPUs with whopping 2GB Ram and better GPU.

The browsing is also very smooth and fluid. Have a look some of the benchmark results:

software-2

Camera and Video:

Ascend Y300 has a 5MP auto focus camera with a single LED flash light. The sample unit we got has a yellow LED that causes strong yellow tones in the close up images, but the overall experience is satisfactory.

The images turn out bright and vivid. Sadly there is no physical button for Camera, so you have to be extra careful while taking pictures. The Camera app is very basic and there are not much settings to play with. Yes, you can’t mute the camera sound.

The secondary camera can be used for video calling, which is quite sluggish.

camera

The Camera only offers a VGA resolution for recording videos contrary to most of the phones available in market that offer at least offer a 720p video recording.

Other than that there are even less settings for video. You can turn on the LED light to record videos in the dark. There is also a standalone Torch app which uses the LED.

Here are few sample images taken by Huawei Ascend Y300 — not to mention, you can click on images to enlarge.

IMG_20130404_081255 IMG_20130404_081032 IMG_20130404_080749

Battery:

The phone packs a 1730mAh battery, which lasts for 1.5 days for an average user, but for users who love to browse over Wi-Fi, play games and multimedia, it shrinks to a single day or less – but it’s quite normal. The Battery saving mode allows you to extend the life, by disabling Wi-Fi and turning off animations.

battery

Price & Availability:

This phone is available all over Pakistan, for a price of Rs. 13,000/- with one year warranty of Airlink Communication. Currently the phone is available only in Black color but from next week the white version will also hit the stores.

Final Words:

Ascend Y300 is the best option in this price range. It has a durable design and delivers a satisfactory performance. Sharp screen and Android Jelly Bean operating system makes the deal even more attractive.

Unlike the “Rebranded” cheap smartphones, Huawei is an International brand and was one of the top 3 vendors of smartphones in Q4 2012.

Huawei is trying its best to grab the market share from companies like QMobile, HTC and even Samsung by introducing low end smartphones as well as affordable feature phones. They just need to focus on attractive advertisement campaigns, also as we mentioned earlier that adding Urdu language support, localized apps and variants of these phones with dual SIM option will attract even more customers.

start

Have a look at the unboxing and hands-on video:


  • Dude thanx a ton for the Review. Is it available in White color in Pakistani Market???

      • how can we contact huawei person? are they Airlink Person?
        when will they introduce Dual sim version?

          • AirLink Communication is selling Y-300 for 12,500 on OLX. are they authorized distributor of Huawei In Pakistan? what about service centers in Karachi?

            • Its available in sadar for 11800rs or if you can negotiate more then you can get it for less then this

                • I have visited sadar two days ago friend want to buy a phone I try my best to convince him for y300 but he end up buying y300

                  • from where came “but”?? if you convinced him and he bought then there is no but ;)

                    • He little skiptial about buying huawei phone as he never heard of this name before i think he never used PTCL DSL other wise he was very much familiar about what huawei is hahaha.. Any way i have told him is the 2nd or 3rd largest telecom network provider company and 2nd largest in China. Why he didn’t buy Y300

                      1- Sound non familial to him
                      2- Qmobile Front is logo free so no one knows which phone he was using as almost all the touch phones looks alike and market is flooded with them.
                      3- As if you are Pakistan and some thing gain fame every one will follow it no matter what they are providing you.

                      Why i am unable to convince him

                      1- I can’t remove the huawei logo from the phone :P Though the box also has a free screen protector too :P
                      2- The official person of Airlink which has a demo unit is not in sadar at that moment he told that it will take 30 min fom him to reach here.
                      3- There is no review of this phone at that time as i was giving advice i have doubt in my mind how this phone will work as compared to A8

                      Hope now you can understand what i am trying to say.

                • Retail price is 13000 butyou can get bt for 11800 in whole sale official airlink warranty

  • I am using A9 just the os is 4.0 all other features are superior then this y300..

  • how is the display of this smartphone? does it have a wide viewing angle? some website here in the philippines said it has an IPS display. but why in your blog it only have TFT display? do you have a reliable source sir? thanks

    • We have the phone, isn’t that a “Reliable Source” :) . Watch the unboxing video, the box also says TFT screen. There is another phone coming soon to Pakistani market G510, which has IPS screen, I guess you are talking about that phone?

      • Zohair. Also Make similar review of the G510 plus add a little gameplay in the video as well (e.g Temple run). Moreover can you confirm what processor in G510 is coming to Pakistan MTK or QUALCOMM?

        • Its qualcomm, I am afraid that the review of G510 is going to be delayed. Because the firmware was full of bugs. (Actually It was the firmware of Dual SIM phone). I have asked the technical team to resolve the issues and send back the device.

          • They have distributed brochure on many shops regarding this phone and its clearly says has IPS display. IPS display can vary from phone to phone if your Y300 has a same good viewing angle as compared to GD510 then i am sure it has a IPS.

            IPS
            (In panel switching) provide great view angles.

    • I haven’t check the compass and sensors thing, In G510 there is a compass application when works just fine, I will get back to you – first let me find the Y300, since morning I have lost it somewhere in my room :)

  • in my Ascend Y300 Orientation and Magnetic Field (Compass) sensors are not available. what the crap is it

  • If huawei have able to put 786mb ram in this its simply win win situation for them. At last some one is here to destroy the monopoly of Qmobile

  • Hey Zohair, how is the audio quality of this phone via handsfree? Is it loud & clear? How is the bass?

    • 11,700?
      i think its min price is 12,500
      plz tell ke from where i can get this in 11,700?
      one more thing, prices of all the smartphones increased by 1000 from today due to new taxes

      • Saddar main market go till the shops end there is two shops which also have electronic appliances he quotes me 11800rs for this phone. Now as govt. has implicated new tax scheme price should have been increased.

  • Zohair Bhai, I am going to buy my First Android Phone. I Have been in Contact with Huawei Sales Person for the Last two Days he said he Could bring me the Phone to my House from saddar, he asked me what rate i got from the market, i told him 13k (which i got from Sarena mobile Market) he said he could bring me 12.5k without any Extra, I also Pre-Ordered G510 on Facebook Few Days ago.

    I was going to Buy A9 but now i am all confused. A9 Antutu Bench Mark is Less than 6k as told us Y300 is more than that.

    I saw in Comments here that there is no Orientation and Magnetic Field (Compass) sensor, what does that mean Screen Doesn’t Rotate when i Rotate the Phone or Doesn’t Car go Left or Right when i Tilt the Phone like steering wheel (In Game).

    What should i do Wait for G510 , or take Y300 or A9. I am More of a
    gaming/Apps Person which Phone will Serve me Well. Which of the 3 are
    Better in Performance.

    And One Last thing Can you Tell us the G510 (Pakistan Version) Specification like (Chipset, GPU etc.)

    • auto rotate option of screen is available in Y300, i have checked personally, you can also do by yourself, go to Huawei Display centre in Star CIty Mall saddar, karachi. you can have hands on experience of the set. i dont know the utility of Compass function but auto-rotate of screen is there.

    • Buy it from the market, also as @danishiqbal543:disqus mentioned try it first. Accelerometer is there that means the orientation / auto rotate feature works fine. Not sure about the magnetometer, let me check.

      • Zohair Bhai you Have Y300 Does it Support 3G and can u tell me the Games it can Play,

        Like My Friend have A8 he can play Games Like Nova 3, NFS most Wanted Modern Combat 4, GTA Vice City and 3, Max Payne and Asphalt 7.

        • i dont think you need anything special to play games, as far as hardware is concerned, Y300 is superior than A8 and software is also updated. so there is no reason you cant play games on it.

  • Any one Here Checked The Sensors of Y300 Till??????????????? i am Still Waiting for the Reply @kofmzc:disqus @danishiqbal543:disqus @boyesa:disqus

  • Hello guys, i am from India

    first of all thanks for this useful post

    the price in online store in India is from 9k and this mobile has launched today

    http://www.flipkart.com/huawei-ascend-y300/p/itmdjp2sgrcyyutm?pid=MOBDJ8JQSGBKYDZH&icmpid=reco_pp_historyFooter_mobile_2

    we can get it for 8.5k from local store….i don’t know why it is so costly in Pakistan

    The reason why i came across this post is that there are no hands on review for huawei y300 till today.

    after reading this post i am surely going to buy this mobile although the only problem is that the white colour is only available and not the black one contrary to what it is in Pakistan

  • if it is available in 8.5k Indian Rupees then it is costly there in India bcoz of forex difference between the 2 countries

    • oh, i thought the currency is same and it might get lower after some days of its launch

      • No, amit, here we have got doggies which let not raise price of PKR in compare to USD…………

        • don’t know much about the politics in pak although i bought the mobile at 7600 indian rupees. the price dropped 1k and much to my amazement the box contained both black and white panel and 4gb memory card!!!

  • hey i am getting problem with my viber.. receiver can’t hear me.. can any give me a help plz…………

  • Got this phone yesterday, and pretty satisifed with the performace of this phone… as compare to Qmobile.. Phone is much better
    as far as I my concern, I am not able to VoIP via Viber.. may this would be application issue… but there are also several users who are facing this..

    No voice over Ip :(

  • i simply love this phone to use , m satisfied with this phone . only a little drawback , the battery should b more powerfull .

  • Hi Thanks for the review :) I’ve HTC Desire S. Is it a good idea to replace it with this phone?

  • And a mistake!! THERE IS a physical button for the camera!! When you have the camera open, press and hold the volume up button, it will focus and when you release it, it will take a picture! :)

  • Bought and used this phone and ma review is as under:

    Pros:

    Very Decent Battery life for an andriod phone (1 Day with med to heavy use)

    Jelly Bean with Dual Core processer just in 150$

    over all Smooth performance , minor lags can be
    ignored

    Cons:

    Below Average Camera

    Weak Speaker (low sound output on media)

    512 mb ram makes limited multitasking , 786 mb ram would have been IDEAL but most mid range andriod have 512 mb ram and it works fine with medium use

    Verdict:

    In its price range , its the king of features and performance… Go for it

  • hi Zohair, where can i buy this phone in islamabad, any idea. looking for y300 for 13000pkr

  • Hi Muhammad Zohair, I have Ascend Y300 and I am wondering if I can install JB 4.1.2 or downgrade my version to ICS, would it be helpful? because my phone is getting very slow. Secondly, Huawei team just introduced Emotion UI 1.5 can I install it on Ascend Y300?

  • Hey.. Nice review there.. Always good to see a local review. I have watched the Ascend G510 video review before watching this.. I think Y300’s UI is a bit slower when compared to the G510.. Maybe its the difference of A9 1.2 Ghz vs A5 1.0 Ghz..

    Please tell me if that’s the case..

    PS: I am upgrading from Xperia U and its performance on ICS is horrible.. So looking for an upgrade on a tight budget. Kindly tell me if spending the extra 2.5k on the G510 is worth the money. (Apart from increase in the screen size)

  • well i have to choices write now noir a8 or y300 or i have another choice of htc rhyme but it has 3.7 inch screen it sucks a8 is with 4.3 and y300 has 4.0 so i think a8 can be gud
    or
    can anyone help pls

  • which is the best between huawei y300 and g510
    plz zohair bhai answer zaroor dena

  • how do you turn the internet off? I have a prepayd phone
    so i only wanna juse wifi, can i turn off the normal internet ?

  • sir i have a problem that it doesnt detect the location itself using wi-fi and gives an error although i hav activated the location services still it does detect the location … i even heard that andoid 4.1.x is having this error due to the recent google play services update whats the issue then ?

  • Attention please : i have installed Apex-launcher in this y300. But there in not option of ‘choose the default launcher’…. How to fix this issue as when i installed n press on the apex launcher, it appears and works but when i press the home button, Huawei UI Comes again and apex disappears. i also restarted the handset but no use

  • Attention please : i have installed Apex-launcher in this y300. But there in not option of ‘choose the default launcher’…. How to fix this issue as when i installed n press on the apex launcher, it appears and works but when i press the home button, Huawei UI Comes again and apex disappears.


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