Weβve noticed a flurry of budget phones in the Chinese market this year, right from the Redmi 1S to the most recent, Ecoo Focus E01. All of these phones donβt burn a hole in your pocket, and offer entry-level to mid-range features on paper, which however donβt translate too well in real life. This results in the need for a truly no-nonsense phone thatβs made to do the job and nothing else.
In this review weβll be talking about how the new Cubot S168 aims to be the very phone that you imaged while reading the previous sentence. It costs under a $100, but doesnβt have a specs sheet to boast too much of. However, it does have a lot of other things going its way. Lets know more about these in the Cubot S168 review!
TL;DR
Cubot S168 Review: Specifications and Pricing
[table id=173 /]Cubot S168 Review:Β In the box
The Cubot S168 comes in a cardboard box that looks a lot like the ones Xiaomi use for their phones. In the box, you will find:
- the Cubot S168 itself
- a soft TPU case
- a screen protector
- a charger
- a USB to micro USB charging/data cable
- the userβs manual
The phone comes with a screen protector pre-applied.
Cubot S168 Review:Β Build, Form Factor
If thereβs one phone that youβll be reminded of when you take the S168 in your hands, it is the Xiaomi Redmi 1S. That isnβt necessarily a bad thing; the Redmi 1S offered a durable build and so does the Cubot S168. In no-nonsense terms, the Cubot S168 feels extremely well built. Unlike many other phones that cost as much as the S168 (or even more), the phone has a peculiar heft to it which gives the beholder a sense of reassurance. It also has what feels like a metal frame to me, a final nail in the coffin to confirm the deviceβs surprisingly good build.
Cubot, thankfully, went the generic design route rather than doing a 1:1 copy like some other phones we know about. The S168 might not have the most eye catching design, but it at least has one which it can call its own. Enough for no other company to decree the S168 as a clone.
Like the Redmi 1S, the S168 features a removable back with tactile button plates on the rear. This leaves room for additional rear cases, but weβre not really sure how many youβll see of those.
The plastic on the rear is extremely sturdy; a far cry from the norm where its usually very bendy and flexible. However, this does mean that you require that extra bit of effort to take the rear off. Once you do, you can see the SIM slots (2x) and a microSD slot. The SIM slots accept one regular SIM (aka mini SIM) and one micro SIM. The microSD card slot, which you will eventually have to use, can work with up to 32GB of capacity.
You will also notice the housing for the battery, which does seem below standard capacity on paper at 1700mAh. However, as you shall read later, it isnβt really as big a problem as you might think.
A mono speaker labeled β3D soundβ sits just below the housing for the battery.
Something that took some getting used to was the micro USB port, which peculiarly sits not on the chin of the phone but on the top edge. While this shouldnβt be a problem, you will have to spend time getting used to holding the device in a somewhat different manner from usual if you tend to use your phone while its charging.
Cubot S168 Review:Β Display
The S168 has a 960 x 540 pixel display panel. You might think that oh, thatβs so 2011; the fact is that it is very 2011, but it does the job well. Compared to the 1920 x 1080p display of the Focus, the 960 x 540p qHD panel on the S168 hardly seemed to lack any detail. On the brighter side (no pun intended), the lower pixel resolution allows for slightly better usability in direct sunlight.
The low-ish resolution also gives the proven MediaTek MT6582 quad-core SoC a breather, and while using it doesnβt really feel like youβre pushing the MT6582. This is a great feeling to have (to know you still have some throttle left), especially when youβre dealing in phones that are as affordable as the S168.
The fact that the S168 suffers from no noticeable backlight bleeding goes to show the potential of budget manufacture. If Cubot can accomplish that on a sub-$100 phone, other, more expensive phones literally have no excuse for any it.
Cubot S168 Review:Β Performance
The general βfeelβ of the phone is fast and snappy. This is in context; the S168 will not beat the crap out of your OnePlus One, but it might well own your 1st gen Motorola Moto G. In fact, we tend to prefer the quad-core MediaTek MT6582 over the octa-core in general. Iβm sure those of you who have used both phones will agree.
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The S168 handles multi-tasking extremely well. Unless youβre coming from a 3GB RAM phone, you will not miss the lack of extra RAM. We made a few people use the S168 and estimate, by the performance, how much RAM it had; the general consensus was that they felt it had 2GB of RAM. This really goes to show what a good job MediaTek have done with the low cost, high performance MT6582, and that Cubot havenβt missed on properly optimizing their system ROM to make the full use of the available resources.
Performance is the strongest suite of the S168. Possible users of the Cubot S168 could be: people looking for a well built budget phone with great performance; first time Android smartphone buyers; etc.
Cubot S168 Review:Β Camera
The S168 features a 2 mega-pixel / 5 mega-pixel hardware camera set, which the software extrapolates to 5 mega-pixel and 8 mega-pixel respectively. The front camera is good enough for selfies and video chat when youβre in good light conditions, but doesnβt do too much otherwise.
The rear camera, again, is a very VFM proposition, like many other components on this phone. Extrapolation is very much nonsense, so you can safely ignore claims for 8 mega-pixel picture quality. As a 5 mega-pixel shooter, the S168 does quite well. Again, itβs mainly made for use in good lighting conditions, but it doesnβt suffer too much with low lighting as well.
Pictures are decently clear and have a good dynamic range, but the sharpness suffers. Also the S168 doesnβt seem to have a very good macro ability like some of its distant cousins.
Features like panorama, HDR, beauty shot (it has two of these for some reason, with one letting you control the amount of added fake beauty you wish to add) and live photo mode are supported by the S168, good enough to keep you interested in the camera for a while.
Cubot S168 Review:Β UI
The phone runs Android v4.4 KitKat out of the box. Its again a very close-to-stock-Android installation, with some cosmetic changes that mainly involve icons. Cubot too have gone for the rounded square look like innumerable other Chinese makers. Funnily enough this applies only to the stock apps, and if you install other 3rd party apps they continue to have their original icons, unchanged. This leaves you with a rather βinconsistentβ taste. A (sort of) workaround is Nova Launcher + an icon pack; this has been our go to solution for most Chinese budget phones.
The S168 comes with a gesture control feature, which is thankfully not crap and actually usable. It lets you trigger a certain number of apps (pre-defined, unfortunately) by performing gestures on the phoneβs screen while its off. Handy ones include gestures for unlocking the phone, opening the dialer, Facebook, camera, etc.
A few examples:
Cubot S168 Review:Β Battery
Although the phone comes with only a 1700mAh battery, it lasts long enough to take the average user through one day. Many other small-time Chinese companies claim larger batteries (2000-2500mAh), which are often false and a simple thickness/weight test is enough to give you a better idea at the actual capacity. What this also does is make one trust Cubot a bit more than other companies; this was at least the case with me during my time with the S168.
Coming back to the battery life per se, it helps since the phone is not really meant for high-end gaming and/or full time multimedia consumption. While the MT6582 is certainly capable of handling some enjoyable games, it isnβt really the best with the latest and greatest titles. This means that youβll be using the phone mainly for productivity and web purposes, which only helps the battery life.
In general, the S168 returned up to 4-4.25 hours of screen on time in general. If youβre mostly on a WiFi network at home/work, expect your returns on the higher side of the spectrum.
Cubot S168 Review:Β Other
The gesture unlock feature can sometimes be sporadic; especially if youβre using a screen protector on top of the S168. We got rid of it instantaneously and found the feature to be way more consistent.
Another thing that youβll miss on the S168 is a notification LED. In my books, the notification LED on a smartphone is a must, and itβs a shame Cubot decided not to include one. Nothing beats the convenience of tracking your notifications when you want to, without getting disturbed with every incoming one.
Cubot S168 Review:Β Verdict
The Cubot S168 is, without doubt, one of the best budget phones weβve tested this year. Itβs right on top with the Xiaomi Redmi 1S, which has sort of gained a cult status lately, with the prices dropping and availability increasing. While it may not boast features like some other phones that have released in the recent months, it certainly does whatever it is made to do, and does it well.
GizChina Reader Discount!
As a special offer for readers of our site, Geekbuying is offering the Cubot S168 with a $3 discount. Just be sure to use the following coupon code before checking out:
FDUCIZXU
The review unit was kindly sponsored by Geekbuying.com, and if youβre interested in purchasing the Cubot S168, you can do so by visiting their store. Stay tuned to GizChina.com for more reviews, we have quite a few of them (iNew V3 Plus, Ecoo Shining Pro to name a few) lined up!
Great writing style bro…
Nice u are improving quite a lot each day… Becoming Pro soon:)
But yea…Turn off
Camera & Battery..
I prefer a 2gb, 16gb rom expandable, 720p screen, 2750mAh battery, 13-16mp camera, 5″-5.5″ screen and yea lastly 6-7.5mm thin bezel metal/aluminium etc phone with touch double tap wakeup like OPO, dual sim & gorilla glass2/3 with free screen protector, back case & extra battery for around 100-150usd max. Can? any recommendation
Gorilla glass, 2gb RAM, 5.5” with 100usd? only in our dreams!
I can’t imagine how a 1700mAh battery is enough for this phone…
@konak10:disqus, like said in the review, it is nothing great, but it really does the job.
Your comment is shouting Xiaomi Redmi Note. Only that there’s no double tap to wake (yet).
Lol…
Thin bezel not mighty 9+mm
4g note has only single sim
Rest guess its alright
Well a less than 100usd phone and IG can get for 100sgd that would simple awesome..but again camera and battery yes…so its like few $ $ more and go for higher one…then a bit more and bit more and its never ending demand
In general
Is 6582 enough for 2nd lazy companion
1gb ram OK?
Just need good camera & battery& thin bezel
Suggestions?
How’s iNew V3+
1GB RAM is OK (at least for me) on a backup phone. About the iNew V3 Plus, we’ll know soon. Expect the review in a couple weeks or maybe lesser π
I still use the Nexus 7 (2012) with 1 GB of Ram and it I never have any problems. I am not a typical power user though, which most of the people buying this phone also won’t be.
double tap wakeup…..kingsing s2, dual sim
Also hows
LANDVO L200 QHD MTK6582 Quad Core 1.3GHz Smartphone 5.0 Inch Android 4.4 1GB RAM 8GB ROM IPS Gesture Sensing 3G – Black
AT 53.99usd (black friday sale)
comparison in terms of battery & camera…since only addition is it has expandable upto 64gb rom. Rest all looks almos the sa,e
If’ you are talking about geekbuying sales. They have limited stock for those HUGE discounts. They fly away in an instant. I don’t think it’s possible to catch up any of these promotions.
This is how a phone should be reviewed! Great stuff
Thanks, glad it helped!
Zeaplus M4 seems to be a great alternative if the shipping costs are included in the price.
Can’t say about the M4 yet, but we’ll soon be testing the No. 1 Mi4.
96×540 display? that’s an aspect ratio of 16:90 0_0
Sometimes we need a common sense to know that this is a typing mistake.
ufg just kiddin π
Sometimes we need a common sense to know that this is a joke.
Haha you’re right. Thankfully it was a mistake which now stands corrected π
I would rather pay another $20-30 and get a 720p screen and a better camera.
You have a valid point there. If I were offered one upgrade between the two, it would certainly be the camera. Trust me, the screen looks better than you think!
If I was going to buy a budget phone it would be the Blu Life Play 2 (Gionee E3) it is a little bit more money (around $125) but every Blu/Gionee I have used the camera and screen have been excellent.
Me too
Great writing style bro…
Nice u are improving quite a lot each day… Becoming Pro soon:)
But yea…Turn off
Camera & Battery..
I prefer a 2gb, 16gb rom expandable, 720p screen, 2750mAh battery, 13-16mp camera, 5″-5.5″ screen and yea lastly 6-7.5mm thin bezel metal/aluminium etc phone with touch double tap wakeup like OPO, dual sim & gorilla glass2/3 with free screen protector, back case & extra battery for around 100-150usd max. Can? any recommendation
Gorilla glass, 2gb RAM, 5.5” with 100usd? only in our dreams!
I can’t imagine how a 1700mAh battery is enough for this phone…
Your comment is shouting Xiaomi Redmi Note. Only that there’s no double tap to wake (yet).
@konak10:disqus, like said in the review, it is nothing great, but it really does the job.
Lol…
Thin bezel not mighty 9+mm
4g note has only single sim
Rest guess its alright
Well a less than 100usd phone and IG can get for 100sgd that would simple awesome..but again camera and battery yes…so its like few $ $ more and go for higher one…then a bit more and bit more and its never ending demand
In general
Is 6582 enough for 2nd lazy companion
1gb ram OK?
Just need good camera & battery& thin bezel
Suggestions?
How’s iNew V3+
1GB RAM is OK (at least for me) on a backup phone. About the iNew V3 Plus, we’ll know soon. Expect the review in a couple weeks or maybe lesser π
I still use the Nexus 7 (2012) with 1 GB of Ram and it I never have any problems. I am not a typical power user though, which most of the people buying this phone also won’t be.
double tap wakeup…..kingsing s2, dual sim
Also hows
LANDVO L200 QHD MTK6582 Quad Core 1.3GHz Smartphone 5.0 Inch Android 4.4 1GB RAM 8GB ROM IPS Gesture Sensing 3G – Black
AT 53.99usd (black friday sale)
comparison in terms of battery & camera…since only addition is it has expandable upto 64gb rom. Rest all looks almos the sa,e
If’ you are talking about geekbuying sales. They have limited stock for those HUGE discounts. They fly away in an instant. I don’t think it’s possible to catch up any of these promotions.
This is how a phone should be reviewed! Great stuff
Thanks, glad it helped!
Zeaplus M4 seems to be a great alternative if the shipping costs are included in the price.
Can’t say about the M4 yet, but we’ll soon be testing the No. 1 Mi4.
Why does everyone like a hefty well built phone? Give me a lightweight phone any day over a hefty phone. All these reviews seem to suggest plastic is a neg. What the !@#$#@@#? I love the lightweight plastic phones and there is less weight to damage things when they fall. Look at samsung, always have a small form factor and lightweight. Not overly long like almost every chinese phone I have purchased.
The lightweight, slim profile phones usually cost a lot more than $90. Look at the Samsung, always have a small form factor with a $500+ price tag to go with it.
96×540 display? that’s an aspect ratio of 16:90 0_0
Sometimes we need a common sense to know that this is a typing mistake.
Haha you’re right. Thankfully it was a mistake which now stands corrected π
ufg just kiddin π
Sometimes we need a common sense to know that this is a joke.
I would rather pay another $20-30 and get a 720p screen and a better camera.
You have a valid point there. If I were offered one upgrade between the two, it would certainly be the camera. Trust me, the screen looks better than you think!
If I was going to buy a budget phone it would be the Blu Life Play 2 (Gionee E3) it is a little bit more money (around $125) but every Blu/Gionee I have used the camera and screen have been excellent.
Me too
Why does everyone like a hefty well built phone? Give me a lightweight phone any day over a hefty phone. All these reviews seem to suggest plastic is a neg. What the !@#$#@@#? I love the lightweight plastic phones and there is less weight to damage things when they fall. Look at samsung, always have a small form factor and lightweight. Not overly long like almost every chinese phone I have purchased.
The lightweight, slim profile phones usually cost a lot more than $90. Look at the Samsung, always have a small form factor with a $500+ price tag to go with it.
This smartphone vs Eco focus E01 vs xiaomi redmi 1s
Which is the best ?
Imo,
1. Redmi 1S (only for the camera)
2. Cubot S168
3. Ecoo Focus
You’ll be seeing a direct comparison between the Ecoo Focus and this phone soon π
This smartphone vs Eco focus E01 vs xiaomi redmi 1s
Which is the best ?
Imo,
1. Redmi 1S (only for the camera)
2. Cubot S168
3. Ecoo Focus
You’ll be seeing a direct comparison between the Ecoo Focus and this phone soon π
Anything that comes with a camera where the sharpness suffers is just a waste of resources. What is a camera used for without sharpness? It is the most important feature of any camera.The iOcean X1is also cheap (means: not expensive), but you get excellent hardware in all categories and not just a cheaply priced phone.
Anything that comes with a camera where the sharpness suffers is just a waste of resources. What is a camera used for without sharpness? It is the most important feature of any camera.The iOcean X1is also cheap (means: not expensive), but you get excellent hardware in all categories and not just a cheaply priced phone.
how are things gps wise?
Also id like to make a request if possible.
Can you do a touch plus review for the honor 6?
Is it possible to fit WITH a tempered glass protector?
Hi Yash.
Thanks for you review..
I have order from gearbest. They provides a coupon code S168W at $79.99 by sharing their site.. http://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_88929.html
how are things gps wise?
Also id like to make a request if possible.
Can you do a touch plus review for the honor 6?
Is it possible to fit WITH a tempered glass protector?
Hi Yash.
Thanks for you review..
I have order from gearbest. They provides a coupon code S168W at $79.99 by sharing their site.. http://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_88929.html
Odd, everyone but gizchina claims that the gesture recognition is crap on this device.
Odd, everyone but gizchina claims that the gesture recognition is crap on this device.
Does this phone allow the SD card to be used as the main storage? (install apps to SD)?
Does this phone allow the SD card to be used as the main storage? (install apps to SD)?
Cubot s168, had one for a few weeks now, very impressed, only downside I know is that it does not seem to support OTG devises and I like to connect to these. Better buy than many others as the sim cards go into individual slots, side by side rather than one over the top of the other, which is easily damaged during insertion.
Cubot s168, had one for a few weeks now, very impressed, only downside I know is that it does not seem to support OTG devises and I like to connect to these. Better buy than many others as the sim cards go into individual slots, side by side rather than one over the top of the other, which is easily damaged during insertion.