The Unite 2 from Micromax (A106) is the first handset launched by Micromax that runs KitKat out of the box. This handset sports 4.7 inch screen with WVGA resolution and is powered by MediaTek 1.3GHz quad core processor. Does this handset compete with the Moto E check the A106 review to find out.
What’s inside the box: Micromax A106, warranty card, user guide, 2000 mAh battery, data cable, travel charger and standard quality earphone. The SAR Value : 0.45 W/kg @1g Head and 0.85 W/kg @ 1g body.
Design, Display and OS
The Micromax A106 build quality and finishing is very good, the back cover with matte finish covers almost 80% of the handset. The handset is slightly curved on the edges, comfortable to hold and the rear feels like rubber.
Micromax Unite 2 weight with battery is 157 grams, thickness is 9.27mm, breadth is 72.04mm and the length is 138.16mm. The power button and volume rockers are placed on the right side, micro USB port and the 3.5mm audio jack are placed on the top. There is a single mic on the bottom.
This is a dual SIM handset SIM 1 is normal SIM and SIM 2 is a micro SIM. There is a micro SD card slot too. The Micromax Unite 2 A106 runs on KitKat OS.
The TFT IPS LCD screen is 4.7 inches with WVGA (800 x 480 pixels resolution). Colour reproduction and viewing angles are good. Touch is smooth and responsive. There are only 3 sensors – accelerometer, proximity and light (check video review). There is LED notification – it blinks green on notification and turns red on charging and when fully charged (over 90%) it turns green again.
Memory and Storage
The Unite 2 comes with 1GB RAM and 4GB storage plus 32GB external card support. Of the 1GB RAM you get around 666MB free on the first boot. Of the 4GB storage, 1.67GB is the internal storage and 0.89GB is the space allocated for apps. The free space for apps is 646MB.
The good part is that you can install apps on the external storage. OTG is supported however there seems to be some issue with the software as it keeps checking the pen-drive for errors. A software update might fix this issue.
Performance
The handset houses the commonly used 1.3GHz MediaTek MT6582 quad core chipset (Cortex A7) with Mali 400 MP GPU. The performance is lag free and even the gaming experience is pretty good.
Benchmark Scores
| App | Result |
| Quadrant | 8841 |
| Antutu | 16683 |
| Vellamo | HTML5 (2101) Metal (569) |
| Nenamark 2 | 63.4fps |
| Multi Touch | 2 point |
Gaming
I could easily install the Modern Combat 4 and the Asphalt 8 on the external storage. Both the games played well and Asphalt 8 was playable in highest visual quality mode. Check the gaming part in the video review.
5MP AF camera
There is 5MP rear AF camera with LED flash and a 2MP fixed focus on the front. The camera still quality is very good considering the price tag. What’s more the rear camera can shoot 1080p videos at 30fps (though it’s mentioned as HD on the box pack). Even the night streetlight shot is very good in HDR mode. Check the sample images and videos.
Entertainment
I tried playing Full HD videos in MX player. It worked smoothly in both H/W and S/W modes.
Others
The sound is loud and clear. No issues found with 3G, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. Handset also doesn’t heat up much. GPS lock is very fast almost instantly but GPS does not work indoors.
The box pack says 20 Indian regional languages; however that is not the case. In OS language selection option there only the Hindi Indian language. Probably Micromax were referring to the Reverie phone book application that does support many Indian regional languages. However if you count the number of languages listed there are just 11. The 20 languages are in fact present on the default keyboard, you can tap and hold the space bar to get the list and can try in any of those 20 + 1 (English) languages.
The Reverie phone book app is nothing new we have seen that on other MMX devices too. I could not find all of the 20 languages may be the others that are missing might get added up after an update – but not a big issue I guess.
Wi-Fi – I was able to connect to my repeater using WPA2 security and also directly to my MTNL Wi-Fi ADSL modem using WPA security, I could also connect to another phone that acted as a hotspot.
2000 mAh Battery
The 2000 mAh battery is removable. I used the handset for benchmark and for playing the high end games for about 38 minutes – battery dropped by 18 percent and max temp was 41 degrees. I also played a 1080p video with Wi-Fi on, brightness set to auto and with full loudspeaker volume. I played the video in a loop for 1 hours 36 minutes – the battery dropped by 29% and the max temperature was 37 degrees.
If you are playing high end games the battery will last for up to 3 hours. You can watch FHD videos for over 5 hours.
Verdict
Micromax Unite 2 may not be as tough as the Moto E but it does come loaded with good features that are missing on the Moto E. The Unite 2 A106 performance is impressive and there is 5MP AF camera that does a much better job, plus it can record 1080p videos.
It would have been a good competitor to the Moto E had it been selling for Rs. 6,999. Unfortunately as of now the price is around Rs. 7,500 and the online websites that are still selling for Rs. 6,999 are mostly out of stock. For now it is costing a little more than the Moto E. If brand is not an issue and if you are looking for a better camera and performance the Micromax A106 is the one.
The Lava Iris X1 review also coming soon, would be better if you wait for the review.
Micromax Unite 2 is currently available for Rs. 6,999.
Micromax A106 image gallery
Sample images shot using A106
Front Camera samples