Introduction
Last year the K3 Note launched as a "big features, small price" phone and now the Lenovo Vibe K4 Note continues the legacy. It has impressive stereo speakers, a sturdy metal frame and a fingerprint reader. It's the kind of spec sheet we see from a premium mid-ranger, except this one stays under the $200 mark.
The K4 is also known Vibe X3 Lite and for a good reason - you get much of the same quality hardware and advanced features at aaalmost half the price of the Vibe X3.
Most impressive is the multimedia focus of the Lenovo Vibe K4 Note. It starts with 2x 1.5W stereo speakers around the 5.5" screen, then there's a Wolfson audio codec for high-quality playback. This chip also manages the 3-mic system and cancels acoustic echo and ambient noise in the 1080p videos shot with the phone's 13MP camera.
And Lenovo built its own VR tech called TheaterMax, but first, let's focus on the most important features.
Key features
- Dual-SIM functionality
- Metal frame and polycarbonate back
- Front stereo speakers (2x 1.5W)
- 5.5-inch LCD IPS 1,080 x 1,920px resolution, 401ppi
- MediaTek MT6753 - octa-core Cortex-A53 1.3GHz, Mali-T720MP3, 2GB/3GB of RAM (A7010/A7010 a48)
- Android 5.1.1 Lollipop
- 13MP rear-camera sensor, f/2.2, phase-detection AF, dual-LED flash
- 1080p@30fps video, 5MP front-facing camera sensor; 3 mics, advanced noise reduction
- 8GB/16GB/32GB of storage (a48 version only with 16GB), expandable up to 128GB via microSD (dedicated slot)
- LTE Cat.4 150 Mbps, Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac, GPS/GLONASS, Bluetooth 4.0, FM radio
- 3,300mAh Li-Po battery
- Fingerprint reader
- Wolfson WM8281 audio codec, Dolby Atmos, TheaterMax (ANTVR headset support)
Main disadvantages
- Limited regional availability
- No Marshmallow (yet)
- No Quick Charge support
- Can't have 3GB RAM with 32GB storage
Did you spot it? The major downgrade from the Vibe X3 to the Vibe K4 Note is the camera. Gone is the 21MP/2160p shooter, instead you get a less impressive 13MP, f/2.2 camera with 1080p video. It does use Samsung's ISOCELL tech, though. The change in chipset doesn't bode well for gaming performance either, but we'll have to double-check our intuition.
Lenovo Vibe K4 Note official images
Again we remind you of the price difference, it's quite significant. It seems that the Lenovo Vibe K4 Note is currently available in select few markets, but those lucky regions are getting a lot of bang for their buck.
We can't wait anymore to hear those speakers, so join us on the next page (wish you can
Unboxing the Lenovo Vibe K4 Note
Our test unit came in a compact white and sky blue retail box. Inside, we got the standard accessories. The charger looks bulky, but it's only a 2A, 10W unit (no Quick Charge here). Then there's a microUSB cable and a one-piece headset. The headset is not particularly impressive. If you're going to use that Wolfson codec to its full potential, we'd recommend using your own headphones.
The retail box • The clear snap-on case
There are also a few freebies inside the box - a clear snap-on case and a screen protector. Make sure you double-check what your local store lists as "inside the box" as the contents may vary from region to region.
Lenovo Vibe K4 Note 360° spin
The Vibe K4 Note measures 153.6 x 76.5 x 9.2mm and weighs 158g. That's the same size as the Vibe X3, except lighter. A Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 is about the same size too, slightly shorter and thinner, though.
Hardware
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note departs from the K3 design, in a good way. The phone is built on a metal frame that is exposed around the sides of the phone.
Lenovo Vibe K4 Note
The back is made of a soft-touch polycarbonate, which is a nice tradeoff between a premium feel and practicality. Metal dents so easily, glass is always at a risk of shattering, while polycarbonate can take a beating. The gentle texture of the material is also great at hiding fingerprints.
This back cover is removable, by the way. A warning sticker stops you from attempting to remove the battery under it (if you value your warranty), but here you can at least access the three card slots. They are technically separate slots, but due to their positioning you can't really swap SIM2 without removing the microSD card.
SIM1 is on the left, SIM2 and microSD slot are on the right • But don't take out the battery!
The K4 also manages to pull off what has eluded HTC in recent years - the bezels actually feel small, despite having both stereo speakers and capacitive keys on the front. Everything feels tightly packed, we can't point to a part of the front that's not occupied by something.
At 5.5" we think Lenovo could have considered placing the Android keys on screen. Especially since the Home key doesn't have to act as a fingerprint reader.
A bigger concern is that the capacitive keys are not backlit - in the dark you have to poke around blindly. You get used to it after a while, but still it's an odd feature to omit.
Thin bezels above and below the screen • Note that the capacitive keys are not backlit
Above the screen is the 5MP selfie camera, placed in an almost-but-not-quite central position, the proximity and ambient light sensors and the notification light are in the upper right corner.
The fingerprint reader is placed on the back, below the camera, which helps keep the front tidy. Some find this position more natural than loading the Home button with additional duties and we mostly agree. Our single complaint is that Lenovo put it too close to the camera and you may regularly smudge the lens as you unlock the phone.
The fingerprint reader doubles as a gesture area. It can snap pictures (great for selfies), but it can also get into the normal interaction with the UI - serving as a Back button or an App switcher.
The reader is always active (even when the phone is locked) and it needs under a second to detect your finger, check it and unlock the phone. Your index finger naturally rests on the reader when you hold the phone and it's equally comfortable with either hand.
The fingerprint reader, camera and flash
Next to the metal area that houses the camera and fingerprint reader is a dual-LED, dual-tone flash and there's not much else going on at the back.
The back itself has a gentle curve, going from 9.15mm at the thickest point (the centerline) to 3.8mm at the sides. The metal sides have a slight roundness to them too, making the phone quite comfortable to hold (the back cover's perimeter is a bit sharper than we would have liked, though).
The hardware buttons are on the right side of the phone. Both the Volume rocker and the Power key are narrow but protrude enough to make them comfortable to use.
Hardware keys are on the right: volume rocker and Power button
At 76.5mm the Lenovo Vibe K4 Note is not the narrowest phone, not even by 5.5" standards, though the iPhone 6s Plus is even wider. If you've ever used a phablet for a day, the size of the K4 won't surprise you.
Lenovo Vibe K4 Note in the hand
The phone's weight strikes a good balance and along with the curved back, it makes it very comfortable to hold. The matte back offers a lot of grip, something else you don't get with metal or glass backs.
Display
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note features a 5.5" IPS screen. It has 1080p resolution for a 401ppi pixel density. Lenovo promises 1,000:1 contrast and 450 nits of brightness and we can confirm these numbers.
The contrast worked out to 940:1. The black levels came out to 0.47 nits - not perfect, but really very good for the class (we've seen flagships do worse).
There's dynamic contrast enabled, though, and you can't turn it off. You can see it adjusting black and white levels as you scroll through pages with varying contrast or while watching videos.
| Display test | 100% brightness | ||
| Black, cd/m2 | White, cd/m2 | ||
| 0.47 | 442 | 940 | |
| 0.24 | 432 | 1793 | |
| 0.42 | 473 | 1108 | |
| 0.42 | 403 | 953 | |
| 0.50 | 390 | 780 | |
| 0.41 | 620 | 1520 | |
The phone tops out at 442 nits of brightness, which is also very good in this price range. The Smart Brightness mode can help sunlight legibility, not by making the screen brighter, but by processing darker parts of the images on screen to make them easier to read by brightening them up.
Without any trickery, the K4 Note display is very good for its price class, merely good in general. It's on par with the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 and better than some cheaper alternatives like the Meizu m2 note.
Sunlight contrast ratio
Lenovo did a good job of calibrating the screen on the Vibe K4 Note. We measured an average deltaE of 4.1, so it matches the iPhone 6s Plus. We found the white balance a bit off (tending towards blue), the red channel isn't quite right either.
You can try using the Custom mode to change to a warmer white balance and changing the saturation. The controls aren't very handy though, so improving the color accuracy at home is out of the question. You can improve the subjective quality, at least.
People use their phones more than they are willing to admit, even in the black of night. This is why the minimum brightness is important too so that you can use the phone without squinting.
The Vibe K4 Note managed 5 nits normally but enabling the Brightness protection mode you can get this down to mere 1.2 nits. Note that this is a software trick - it draws a semi-transparent gray overlay over apps. This can cause some compatibility issues and may not work well with all apps.
Comfort mode can reduce eye strain if you use the phone for prolonged periods. It limits blue light, which, as studies suggest, may prevent you from naturally getting sleepy in the evening (supposedly blue light equals daylight and hence sends an waking signal to the brain).
For the winter season, you can enable High sensitivity touch and use the phone with gloves on.
Connectivity
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note is a dual-SIM phone (2x microSIM) with LTE connectivity. It's only Cat. 4, in other words 150Mbps down and 50Mbps up, but that's only an issue if your carrier's network supports higher speeds (and many do not). Both TDD and FDD flavors of LTE are supported.
We skipped over the card slot situation on the previous page since it requires some explanation. SIM1 is an old-school slot with a metal door. SIM2 is just like it, except the microSD card goes immediately above it. It took some head scratching until we figured it out.
This design has two downsides - first, obviously, it locks SIM2 inside while the microSD card is in. And "in" may be generous, the card barely goes into the slot. It's not like you can knock it out accidentally, but it still doesn't feel as the best design possible.
Anyway, if you need high-speed Internet you can also lean on Wi-Fi ac if you have a fast router in range. There's also Bluetooth 4.0 with LE, NFC too.
Long before LTE, FM radio was the way to "stream" music and the Vibe K4 Note supports that too.
Wired connectivity is handled by a traditional microUSB 2.0 port. It supports USB On-The-Go to connect peripherals. The port lacks TV out functionality, though.
microUSB on the bottom • 3.5mm audio jack on top
Battery life
Lenovo didn't let vanity get in the way of battery life and the Vibe K4 Note's 9.2mm body (at its thickest) holds a decently sized 3,300mAh Li-Po battery.
Unlike the X3, though, the K4 lacks fast charging. You only get a regular 10W charger that is pretty much standard these days.
Still, you'll probably only need to charge your phone every 2-3 days if our endurance rating is something to go by. The exact rating is 73 hours with one SIM, 69 hours with two. Both web browsing and video playback drain the battery in about 9 hours, a pretty good result.
Note that we spotted the Vibe K4 Note hybernating some apps while it was in standby. This seems similar to how Doze works in Marshmallow.
The charger lacks any fast charging magic. In our tests, it managed to put 30% charge (starting from zero) in the battery in 30 minutes.
There are a few power-saving options. The default power saver limits performance and background data. The Ultimate Power Saver basically turns the Vibe K4 Note into a feature phone - you can call and text and that's it.
You can undertake a more targeted approach with the Background app management screen. Here you can block apps from auto-launching on startup and running in the background.
Another way to save battery - or perhaps just to avoid late-night annoyances - is the Scheduled power on & off option. The phone can switch off at a given time (including scheduling for specific days only) and then switch back on all by itself.
Heavily modded Android 5.1
Lenovo's Vibe OS is an extensive customization of Android, in this case Android 5.1 Lollipop. It's mostly familiar enough so that new users don't get lost, but it's different from what we saw on the K3 Note.
The Lockscreen is largely unchanged. You get the time and notifications in the middle, plus Call, Unlock and Camera shortcuts on the bottom. Using the Theme Center you can get a clearer screen, without all the notifications or shortcuts.
Familiar lockscreen can be customized with themes
Obviously, you can use the fingerprint reader to secure the phone. In fact we'd recommend it - if not for the security, then for its speed of unlocking the phone.
The reader is always active, all you need to do is place your finger on it and the phone wakes up (bypassing the lockscreen). It's accurate and fast and your index finger naturally reaches for the reader. As an added bonus, this system is ambidextrous - the Power key may be on the right, but the fingerprint reader can be used with either hand.
Fingerprint options • adding a fingerprint • fingerprint gestures
There are a few more shortcuts that speed things up. When the phone is locked, you can double tap a volume button to launch the camera and take a photo. If you just want to check the notifications, you double-tap the screen. Or you can use the fingerprint reader to take a photo (taking a selfie is much more comfortable with a rear-mounted shutter key).
The fingerprint reader does other tricks too. You can use it as a Home button or as an App switcher button when the phone is unlocked. You can even use it for both, setting one as the tap action, the other as the tap and hold action.
We mentioned themes, the Vibe K4 Note supports them, though they are fairly basic - they change wallpapers (on the Home and Lock screens), app icons and notification sounds.
Themes
From here you can also change the App switcher style - from the default Android one (3D rolodex) to an Apple-style horizontal list.
App switcher style: Android • Lenovo
The notification shade has a handy shortcut to view past notifications, in case you dismiss one but need to check it again. You can change the number of columns of quick toggles - fitting more on the screen or getting bigger tiles. Another option lets you add your agenda into the shade.
The Notification area is very customizeable
An interesting option, the Notification Assistant, keeps track of how many notifications each app has published and how many you've read. From there it allows you to quickly mute apps when they get spammy.
The Notification assistant
If the 5.5" screen is too big for you to use with one hand, you can shrink it with a gesture (draw a "C" on the screen) and use Wide Touch - a floating button, that opens a menu with several helpful shortcuts.
Micro screen • other smart features
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note may not have the latest Android Marshmallow, but like with many other Chinese-made phones, it doesn't stop it from offering the user fine-grain permission controls. You can view all apps that require a specific permissions or all permission for a single app. And, of course, you can individually disable and enable them.
Secure Zone allows you to create two virtual "zones," for example to keep your work and private life separate. Each zone can have its own selection of apps, accounts, and passwords. If a notification arrives in the currently inactive zone, it will show up with a red dot in the status bar. You need to switch zones to be able to view it (which means others can't do that without your permission, even if they have your phone).
Lenovo Secure Zone
Lenovo goes a step further - your data is protected even from the apps themselves. App data and documents are kept separate between the zones though there's an OpenUserData folder that can be accessed from both zones. Data in the Secure Zone can only be accessed by Secure Zone apps. Call logs and messages are shared between the zones so that normal phone operation is unaffected.
Performance
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note is based on a MediaTek MT6753 chipset, which combines eight Cortex-A53 cores (1.3GHz) and three Mali-T720 GPU cores. One of the model versions (the A7010) has 2GB of RAM, but our unit - the A7010a48 - has 3GB.
The chipset doesn't quite live up to its sibling, the Helio X10, largely due to the limited clock speeds. Still, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 with Helio X10 has a 2GHz CPU, but AnTuTu 6 gives it only a slightly better score. The Snapdragon 650 version does much better, though.
AnTuTu 6
Higher is better
The difference Basemark OS 2.0 shows is much more significant.
Basemark OS 2.0
Higher is better
Geekbench 3 offers further evidence - the competing Huawei Honor 5X has an octa-core processor, 4x 1.5GHz + 4x 1.2GHz, and those 0.3GHz on the fast cores barely make a difference in single-core speed.
The multi-core test shows little difference too, but somehow the Helio X10-based Redmi Note 3 roars awake. Then again the Moto X Play (S615, 4x 1.7GHz + 4x 1.0GHz) lags behind the Vibe K4 Note.
GeekBench 3 (single-core)
Higher is better
GeekBench 3 (multi-core)
Higher is better
Its graphics performance where the Lenovo Vibe K4 Note really falters. Only the Meizu m2 note (using the same chipset) does worse, just about any other phone in the K4 Note's group posts a better score. Expect to play mostly casual games on the Lenovo.
GFX 3.0 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)
Higher is better
GFX 3.0 Manhattan (onscreen)
Higher is better
GFX 3.1 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)
Higher is better
GFX 3.1 Manhattan (onscreen)
Higher is better
Basemark X
Higher is better
When you consider the price of the Lenovo Vibe K4 Note, its overall performance is quite good - the processor is zippy and there's plenty of RAM.
Lenovo has prepared a VR headset to be used with the Vibe K4 Note, but it will mostly work for virtual cinema (emulating the big screen experience on a phone). We didn't get a chance of trying it out.
elephony and loudspeaker
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note is a dual-SIM device. It's a nice touch that you can set different ringtones and message tones for each SIM. You can pick the preferred card for calling, texting and data. The data SIM will switch into 3G/4G mode while the other one will stick to 2G/EDGE.
The dialer • Call log • All contacts
The dialer is split into several tabs. It supports Yellow pages integration, but it has been moved into the More tab (this feature performs a search for local businesses and is probably best geared for the Chinese/HK market). You have a Call log that can be filtered by received/missed/outgoing calls, but not by SIM card.
The More tab also holds call and message blocking options (blacklist/whitelist by phone number). You can also enable Automatic call recording (it starts as the call connects), but keep in mind this feature isn't legal in some regions of the world.
More features: Yellow pages • Call blocking • Block list • Call recording
The stereo speakers of the Vibe K4 Note can be quite loud - as loud as the Nexus 6P - though it doesn't perform as well when it comes to music playback quality. This is why it scores a Good rating, beating the Xperia Z5 (by a lot), but trailing the Nexus due to the Pink noise/Music test.
| Speakerphone test | Voice, dB | Ringing | Overall score | |
| 65.1 | 62.3 | 66.3 | Below Average | |
| 66.2 | 61.1 | 75.3 | Average | |
| 65.8 | 65.7 | 75.7 | Average | |
| 65.7 | 66.6 | 76.5 | Good | |
| 69.8 | 66.6 | 75.7 | Good | |
| 74.7 | 66.6 | 72.3 | Good | |
| 74.7 | 77.8 | 72.1 | Very Good | |
| 75.7 | 73.5 | 80.7 | Excellent |
You can enable Pocket mode, which uses the proximity sensor to detect when the phone is in your pocket and it boosts the loudspeaker volume temporarily.
Text input
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note came with the standard Google Keyboard. It offers autocorrecting and gesture typing and you can pick different themes - dark and light in Material or Holo flavor. The keyboard can sync your custom dictionary between multiple devices for a more seamless experience.
Other apps
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note came with a richer app package than normal, perhaps anticipating use in China or similar regions where people can't rely on the Google services.
A prime example is the Route 66 navigation app, a blast from the past. You only get a free 30-day trial for voice-guided navigation and considering a license is €30, you'd probably stick with Google/Bing Maps or similar.
Route 66 navigation (30-day trial version)
You get Skype out of the box, but not the rest of Microsoft's usual Android package. Actually, you get WPS Office, a competing document editor hailing from China (and, naturally, Google Drive is preloaded).
WPS Office: Main app • Document editor • Spreadsheet • Slideshow
The Step counter app needs you to press the "Start" button before it begins keeping track of your walks, making it less useful (but perhaps more battery efficient) than the always-on apps.
Step counter
The Lenovo Companion is a mobile trouble-shooter. You can search for walk-through's for your device (in written or video form), you can check for firmware updates (with data back up included) and diagnosing all the hardware of the phone (e.g. testing the vibration or the loudspeaker).
Lenovo Companion can help you find and correct issues
The File browser makes it easy to find files of a specific type (e.g. documents or photos), it will even handle ZIPs. Of course, you can browse the full folder structure of both the internal storage and the microSD.
File Browser with built-in FTP server
A handy feature lets you wirelessly manage your files through your computer browser (as long as both the computer and phone are connected to the same network). This functionality is based on SwiFTP also available on the Play Store as FTP Server. It's better to use a proper FTP app, though, your browser offers only limited functionality.
SYNCit allows you to backup Contacts, SMS and Call log to the Lenovo cloud. If you don't want to set up an account, you can backup to the SD card.
SYNCit backup: Contacts • SMS • Logs • Other tools
Gallery
The Lenovo gallery is as simple as they come. It has three view modes - Album (that is folders), Location and Time. You can change the size of the thumbs in the Settings menu. Additionally, you get basic editing tools - crop, rotate, plus some color effects and borders.
The Gallery is simple but it has all the basics
Thanks to the Cast screen option in the notification area you can easily throw your photos up on a large (Cast-compatible) screen. The slideshow option is also a tap away.
The other option is SHAREit, but that mostly works between devices that have the same app preinstalled (so, other Lenovos).
SHAREit works, but mostly with other Lenovo devices
Video player
The video app is capable of three ways of ordering your videos - Intelligent, Date or Name. We found no explanation of just how the Intelligent mode works, but you can always fall back on the search feature if all else fails.
Picking a video • Playback • Pop-up video play
The player employs gestures - swipe sideways to scrub through the video, vertically to change the brightness. You can snap screenshots from videos and switch to a pop-up window.
Google Play Music and FM Radio
The Lenovo Vibe K4 makes big promises about sound quality (thanks to the Wolfson audio codec), so we were a little disappointed to find only Google Play Music. It's a fine app, but somehow we expected something special.
Familiar Google Play Music
Anyway, you will want to get into the settings menu where the Dolby Atmos screen holds the equalizer and other settings. You can change different modes (Movie, Music, Game, Voice, Custom), each getting its own 5-band equalizer setting. Additionally, you have automatic equalizers (Open, Rich, Focused) and things like surround virtualizer, dialogue enhancer and volume leveler.
Detailed equalizer courtesy of Dolby
The FM radio is a nice touch. Sure, you can stream with Play Music, but FM is free. The Radio app can record radio broadcasts, but lacks RDS (the feature that displays the station name and other info).
FM radio app with broadcast recording, without RDS
Audio is clear but quiet
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note showed perfect clarity in the first part of our audio quality test. When attached to an active external amplifier, the smartphone produced great scores top to bottom, but unfortunately its loudness was rather disappointing.
Damage from plugging in our standard headphones was rather modest - a moderate stereo crosstalk increase was all we saw. Once again however the volume fell seriously short of the average mark so we can’t award full points here. Still a pretty solid showing for the price range.
Here go the results so you can do your comparisons.
| Test | Frequency response | Noise level | Dynamic range | THD | IMD + Noise | Stereo crosstalk |
| Lenovo Vibe K4 Note | +0.05, -0.05 | -93.3 | 89.3 | 0.0039 | 0.012 | -93.6 |
| Lenovo Vibe K4 Note (headphones) | +0.03, -0.07 | -93.6 | 89.4 | 0.0035 | 0.015 | -60.5 |
| Huawei Honor 5X | +0.02, -0.08 | -93.4 | 90.1 | 0.0028 | 0.012 | -93.4 |
| Huawei Honor 5X (headphones) | +0.10, -0.03 | -92.9 | 89.8 | 0.0048 | 0.071 | -78.2 |
| Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) | +0.02, -0.07 | -94.3 | 92.2 | 0.0065 | 0.010 | -95.0 |
| Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) (headphones) | +0.42, -0.01 | -93.4 | 87.1 | 0.029 | 0.254 | -53.0 |
| Huawei G8 | +0.02, -0.08 | -93.4 | 90.1 | 0.0028 | 0.012 | -93.4 |
| Huawei G8 (headphones) | +0.10, -0.03 | -92.9 | 89.8 | 0.0048 | 0.071 | -78.2 |
You can learn more about the tested parameters and the whole testing process here.
Camera
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note has a 13MP camera with a couple of fancy features - Phase Detection autofocus and dual-LED, dual-tone flash. Both it and the 5MP selfie camera have f/2.2 apertures.
The camera interface is very streamlined. You get much fewer shooting modes than other phones, but we still like it - there's the standard camera mode, one with color effects and another one with Panorama - just the basics.
HDR is available, its shortcut easily accessible in the upper left corner, the flash mode toggle is in the corner below it.
The selfie camera got some special treatment. Beauty mode is, of course, available but there's also a 'fill light.' It lights up the screen (really only two strips - on top and on bottom) to give a Pink or a Chrome cast on your face (the 'chrome' looks more like bronze to us).
Simplified camera UI
The fingerprint reader can be set up as a shutter key or you can use hand gestures, but the Auto selfie mode makes even that unnecessary - you just frame your face and wait three seconds.
The main 13MP camera uses a Samsung ISOCELL sensor with Phase Detection AF. Unlike traditional contrast focus (which this phone also has), phase detection tends to be both faster and more accurate.
Photos from the Lenovo Vibe K4 Note are rich in detail though they have plenty of noise too. That's a trade-off we can live with easily. Colors are pleasingly accurate.
We found the dynamic range to besomewhat limited and you should be careful with the tap to focus feature - it also adjusts the exposure and it either blows out the highlights or produces very dark shadows.
Lenovo Vibe K4 Note: Camera samples
Lenovo Vibe K4 Note: Camera samples
HDR mode is available, but it creates an exaggerated, oversharpened image, the kind that gives HDR a bad name.
HDR: Off • On • Off • On
We tried the Panorama mode and were pleasantly surprised by the resolution - we got 1,800px vertical resolution. Stitching is mostly accurate, but it has issues with ghosting. Some objectsget a translucent double along the way, which can make them look blurry. This isn't limited to just moving objects either, handshake can really exasperate the issue.
Lenovo Vibe K4 Note: Panorama
The selfie camera did not impress. Photos often appear soft, the fixed focus lens doesn't seem focused at an arm's length as you would expect. The selfies are usable if you won't be viewing them at the full 5MP resolution.
Lenovo Vibe K4 Note: Selfies
The 13MP resolution is quite common in the Vibe K4 Note's price segment. Even some flagships are reverting to the 12-13 megapixel range, so it's easy to see in our Photo quality comparison tool that image quality is what's important, not pixel count.
Lenovo Vibe K4 Note photo quality comparison
Video
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note car record 1080p @ 30fps with both its front and its back cameras. There are no 60fps or slo-mo options here.
The sound recording is pretty advanced, though. Lenovo has a three microphone system, which does wideband noise reduction, stereo ambient noise cancelation, acoustic echo cancelation, speech enhancement and more.
The videos are recorded in mp4 files with 17Mbps bitrate (the most common number) and stereo sound (128Kbps, 48kHz).
The quality isn't as good as the still photos - detail is okay, but the noise reduction is noticeably stronger. The contrast is boosted too much, which also affects the colors.
The three microphone system failed to eliminate wind noise, yet at times it was too aggressive and the sound felt 'muted.' When it works well, though, the audio quality is actually pretty nice. We hope Lenovo will issue an update to fine tune the noise reduction.
You can also download this short sample - 30.9MB, 15 seconds.
And here it is against other 1080p-shooting mid-rangers in our Video quality comparison tool.
Lenovo Vibe K4 Note video quality comparison
Conclusion
At the end of or journey with the Lenovo Vibe K4 Note, we're quite impressed by what the company managed to achieve on a shoestring budget. The mainstream makers have nothing competitive in this price range, not even Lenovo-owned Motorola.
The phone never felt 'cheap,' it definitely punches high above its actual price point. The metal frame is a great touch and we like that the phone doesn't have an all-metal exterior. Metal looks great, but polycarbonate is the more practical choice. The fingerprint reader is also a great perk.
The stereo speakers on reasonably narrow bezels are quite impressive - Sony has been doing okay in this department, HTC has not. We were a little bugged by the lack of backlighting for the capacitive keys, though.
The camera performs admirably for this class. We liked the main camera better than the selfie cam; we liked the stills better than the videos, but hey, the flaws were nothing major in this price range.
Lenovo Vibe K4 Note key test findings:
- Great build quality and quality finishes all around; battery is accessible behind the back cover, but not meant for the user to replace;
- The display is bright and accurate, competitive even with the one of the iPhone 6s Plus, which is on another planet price-wise;
- The battery life is surprisingly good, 3 days of moderate use; No fast charging is a bummer, but we got 30% in 30 min
- Some Marshmallow features were ported over to Android 5.1, Lenovo added a good amount of features and customizations to the underlying OS;
- The fingerprint reader works fast - not flagship fast, but still more than good enough and it's always on;
- Chipset delivers solid general performance, not so good for gaming;
- Dolby Atmos offers plenty of sound tuning options, but we were expecting a custom music player (nothing against Google Play, though); FM radio is welcome
- Audio quality is good for the class, but the output is quiet
- Good 13MP camera - processing leaves plenty of detail (some noise too); Panorama usable despite ghosting, HDR is bad; Selfies were mostly blurry;
- Solid 1080p video, not quite on the level of the still camera; the noise reduction fails to mute wind noise, audio quality is good when everything goes okay;
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note certainly impressed us, but Lenovo's odd product strategy already has it competing against its successor - the K5 Note. Both were launched at the same time too!
So, the Lenovo K5 Note is slightly pricier but has an all-metal body (if that's something you miss on the K4). It's thinner too, but with a bigger battery. The other major difference between the two is the chipset - the K5 Note is powered by the Helio P10, which offers much higher clock speeds (1.8GHz vs. 1.3GHz) and a next-gen GPU too.
Lenovo K5 Note
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 is the other overachiever. Its all-metal case holds a 5.5" 1080p screen and a fingerprint reader. Either choice of available chipsets - Helio X10 or Snapdragon 650 - offers much better performance than the chipset inside the Vibe K4 Note.
The camera is more promising on paper - higher resolution sensor, 16MP, with phase detection AF and a brighter aperture (f/2.0). The big 4,000mAh battery offers competitive battery life. You miss out on the microSD slot, though.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (MediaTek) • Xiaomi Redmi Note 3
The Meizu m2 note has its charms too, they come in Flyme flavor. The chipset is the same as the Vibe K4 Note's, the camera setup is mostly the same too.
You probably want the Meizu m1 metal version, though. It has a metal body (obviously) and faster chipset (Helio X10). There's no fingerprint reader, though, and the microSD card uses the SIM2 slot.
Meizu m2 note • Meizu m1 metal
The closest phone from the Motorola lineup is the Moto X Play. It has a dual-SIM version and stereo speakers around its 5.5" 1080p screen. The insides are coated with a water-repellent material, improving the phone's chances of survival if it gets wet (but it's not waterproof).
The Snapdragon 615 chipset isn't necessarily faster and there's no fingerprint reader.
The camera shoots 21MP photos while video is capped at 1080p (the X Style is the one with 2160p skills).
Motorola Moto X Play Dual SIM • Motorola Moto X Play
If you're willing to drop to 720p screen resolution, you can have an AMOLED with the Gionee S6. Same chipset and similar camera are held in a thin metal body, just 6.9mm, and that's without a significant compromise with the battery capacity (3,150mAh).
Gionee S6
The Lenovo Vibe K4 Note is a fine phone, and certainly, a great deal for its price. Still, assuming the K5 Note is available in the same regions, we'd probably go for it over the K4 - if not for the all-metal body, then for the faster chipset. The K4's chipset does well for day to day tasks, but more is always better (and in this case, it's not much more expensive).
The limited availability of the Vibe K4 Note will keep it from becoming a global mid-range champ but in Lenovo's target markets it will be a very strong contender.
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