Last month, I did an overview review of the Umidigi A7S based on the phone’s specifications and overall first impressions. That review was filled with superlative praise. I now have the A7S in my hands and while I’m not taking back my verdict that the phone is a worthy ‘budget budget’ smartphone, I have some new and not so praiseworthy impressions.
Design and build quality
| Form factor | Polycarbonate |
| Build material | Plastic edges and back |
| Weight | 195g |
| Thickness | 9.4mm |
| Available colors | Granite Grey | Sky Blue | Peacock Green |
Let’s start with the design and build quality. If you’ve seen Umidigi’s promotional material for the A7S, you might be tricked into believing this phone is as sleek as the A7 Pro. It’s not.
The A7S looks and feels well built (for a budget device), but I’ll have to say that the phone is a tad bit clunky. It feels heavy – heavier than the iTel S16, which competes directly with it – and the edges are noticeably thick
The screens’ edges are prone to scratching
The bezels surrounding the screen are also thick, and for a weird reason, there’s a rubber-like margin around the screen that’s very prone to scratching. Since getting this device, the top edge and bottom right margin have all picked up bruises from the very lightest of drops.
A textured back makes the phone look sophisticated
On the plus side, though, the textured back of the Umidigi A7S looks and feels very nice. It gives the phone a very distinctive look and adds a bit of that premium form factor to the overall feel. Taking everything together, as I noted earlier, the A7S is still an overall well-built phone for the price.
Performance
| Processor (CPU) | Mediatek MT6737 Quad core 1.25GHz clock speed |
| Graphics processor (GPU) | ARM Mali T720 MP1 |
| RAM | 4GB | 6GB | 8GB |
| Storage capacity | 32GB |
| Storage type | eMMC |
| Micro-SD card support | Yes | Dedicated slot |
| Micro-SD card capacity | 256GB |
The Umidigi A7S was never meant to be a heavy lifter, a fact that’s emphasized by the phone’s 1.25GHz processor and 2GB RAM allocation. But while it doesn’t do any heavy lifting, it’s still a good phone for your everyday tasks. Through the period I’ve been with the phone, I’ve not encountered any issues with lags or app crashes.
Seamless UX
The phone ships with stock Android 10, and the UX experience is very fluid for a phone that now costs $75. Inbuilt storage is locked at 32GB, but A7S also comes with a micro-SD slot that allows storage expansion by up to 128GB.
On the AnTuTu benchmark, the phone scores a measly 46,246 points, about 10,000 points above the iTel S16.
Display quality
| Display type | LCD IPS display |
| Display size | 6.53 inches |
| Display resolution | 1600 x 720 pixels |
| Pixel density | 269 PPI |
| Refresh rate | 60Hz |
| Display protection | 2.5D Scratch resistant glass |
| Display notch type | Tear drop notch |
The HD panel on the Umidigi A7S is good; that’s the short of it. For the long of it, I find the colours a little bit washed out, and I definitely can make out the individual pixels of the screen while it’s in use. That’s to be expected for a device with a pixel density of 269 PPI.
Still, it’s a nice and large screen that fits into the overall architecture of the device. I’ve watched a couple of videos on it, and the experience has been very good for a smartphone of this price.
Camera quality
| Main camera sensor | Triple 13MP | 8MP | 2MP |
| Optical image stabilization | Nil |
| Aperture size | F1.8 |
| Selfie camera sensor | Single 8MP |
| Aperture size | F1.8 |
The camera department is where the Umidigi A7S falls dramatically behind expectations. Umidigi makes excellent cameras for its phones, but I’m tempted to assume that with the A7S, the camera was the sacrificial lamb to keep production costs down. Don’t get me wrong; it’s not terribly bad – heck, it’s not even bad – but given the marketing hype of a triple 13MP primary, 8MP wide, and 2MP depth sensor camera, I expected a lot more.
Okay shots in well-lit environments
In well-lit conditions, the back camera takes okayish pictures with a fair amount of detail. Colours appear diluted, and there’s a bit of pattern distortion, but nothing really out of the ordinary. In poorly lit scenes, it goes from okayish to terrible.
A portrait mode that’s not really portrait
What really irks me with A7S’s camera is the primary camera’s portrait mode function. So, the thing is, rather than integrate a real portrait mode complete with all the bokeh and sharpening effects, Umidigi just flat out went with a radial blur filter. When you click portrait on the Umidigi A7S camera menu, it’s merely a radial blur filter over the images the camera would normally take. That’s a big let down for anyone who’s buying this phone. It makes me wonder what the 2MP depth sensor actually does.
Battery performance
| Battery type | Li-polymer |
| Removable | No |
| Battery capacity | 4150mAh |
| Battery charger | 5W (non – fast charger) |
| Fast charging support | Yes |
| Charging port | USB C |
The A7S’s 4150mAh battery is adequate, in my experience. While I did notice some inexplicable battery drain, the battery still manages to power the phone through a half-day of moderate use.
No fast charger in the box
The only real issue here is the amount of time it takes to charge the device to 100%. Umidigi only includes a 5W charger in the box. And despite some sources saying that the phone supports fast charging, I’m yet to confirm this.
Extras
| Extras | Yes AI Thermometer Extra customizable button |
| Notification light | No |
| Biometric validation | Yes Facial recognition support * No fingerprint sensor |
The Umidigi A7S has some aces up its sleeve in the form of an extra customizable button and an infrared ‘non-contact digital thermometer.’
Infrared thermometer
The AI thermometer allows you to take body temperature readings snappily 
screenshot of AI thermometer readings taken using the Umidigi A7S
The infrared thermometer works, and if you’re a health worker or something of that nature, then I guess it’s a handy feature to have.
A customizable button
The extra customizable button is the one I really like. It’s located on the bottom left margin of the phone. By accessing the smart key option in the settings menu, you can map it to any desired phone function. Currently, there are settings for single-click, double-click, and long-press mapping. As someone who loves shortcuts and gesture control on Android, I find this feature very useful.
Pricing
| Price | $78 |
| Amazon | Check current price |
| AliExpress | Check current price |
Since I wrote the first review, the Umidigi A7S has shed some 25% of its original retail price. You can now get it for under $75 on AliExpress. Given the pedigree of this phone, I still consider that price to be an absolute steal.
What’s not to like
The camera and the fact that the phone runs on Android Go – the stripped-down version of regular Android. All the other shortcomings of the phone are made up for by its very low price.
Should you buy the Umidigi A7S?
| What you’ll like on the Umidigi A7S | What’s not so nice on the Umidigi A7S |
| Good picture quality in daylight | Android 10 Go |
| The price | Somewhat heavy build |
| The Extras | No fingerprint sensor |
Yes, if you’re looking for a budget smartphone that cost less than $100 and does what you’d expect from a budget smartphone, you’ll be hard for choice finding a better alternative. However if you have a couple extra bucks I’d suggest you go for the Oukitel C21, it’s a better phone by all ramifications and like the A7S it doesn’t break the bank.
- Buy the Umidigi A7S on Amazon by clicking here
- Or on AliExpress by clicking here
- As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Affiliate commissions help keep my reviews unbiased.
Umidigi A7S – Full technical specifications
| Smartphone name | Umidigi A7S |
| Display type | LCD IPS display |
| Display size | 6.53 inches |
| Display resolution | 1600 x 720 pixels |
| Pixel density | 269 PPI |
| Refresh rate | 60Hz |
| Display protection | 2.5D Scratch resistant glass |
| Display notch type | Tear drop notch |
| Processor (CPU) | Mediatek MT6737 Quad core 1.25GHz clock speed |
| Graphics processor (GPU) | ARM Mali T720 MP1 |
| RAM | 3GB |
| Storage capacity | 32GB |
| Storage type | eMMC |
| Micro-SD card support | Yes | Dedicated slot |
| Micro-SD card capacity | 64GB |
| Form factor | Polycarbonate |
| Build material | Plastic edges and back |
| Weight | 195g |
| Thickness | 9.4mm |
| Available colors | Granite Grey | Sky Blue | Peacock Green |
| Android version | Android 10 Go |
| Main camera sensor | Triple 13MP | 8MP | 2MP |
| Optical image stabilization | Nil |
| Aperture size | F1.8 |
| Selfie camera sensor | Single 8MP |
| Aperture size | F1.8 |
| Battery type | Li-polymer |
| Removable | No |
| Battery capacity | 4150mAh |
| Battery charger | 5W (non – fast charger) |
| Fast charging support | Yes |
| Charging port | USB C |
| Extras | Yes AI Thermometer Extra customizable button |
| Notification light | No |
| Biometric validation | Yes Facial recognition support * No fingerprint sensor |
| Price | $78 |
| Amazon | Check current price |
| AliExpress | Check current price |
Comments are closed.