Comparison of smartphones Zera S and Zera F. Budgets from Highscreen

You can treat it differently. Someone will like them because of the low price, and someone in no case will use them for a number of reasons. Today we will compare the two inexpensive smartphone produced by Highscreen, these are models of the Zera line - Zera S and Zera F.

To date, the Zera line consists of only two smartphones, as it is not difficult to guess, these are Zera S and Zera F. The first smartphone can be attributed to state employees, while the second, so to speak, to ultra-budget employees. What are the “budget” and “budget-budget” smartphones of 2014 according to the Highscreen version, read below.

Design and ergonomics

Outwardly, the devices are very similar. They are so similar that it seems as if the designers drew Zera F, stretched its drawing and saved the result under the name “Zera S”.

Seriously speaking, the gadgets are quite compact. Here you will not find record thin bezels (perhaps they even catch up with those in the iPhone 6 Plus), but still. Zera S with a display diagonal of 4.5 inches measures 131.6 x 66.45 x 9.4 mm. Zera F, however, seems quite small, and with its 4 inches, dimensions are 123.8 x 63.1 x 9.9 mm. The mass of smartphones is 146 g and 136 g, respectively.

The cases of both smartphones are made of really pleasant soft-touch plastic. Again, both devices fit well in the hand, however, due to the smaller screen diagonal, the Zera F does it better.

As I said, outwardly Zera S and Zera F are very similar, but one noticeable difference (besides the size, of course) between them is the location of the power key. If you find it on the Zera S at the top of the left side edge, then on the Zera F it is located on the right above the volume rocker, which, in my opinion, is more convenient and practical. As for the rest of the keys and connectors, everything is pretty traditional here.

On the front edge of both gadgets there are a display, a front camera, a light sensor, a grill under which an earpiece is hidden and three touch-sensitive keys (“Menu”, “Home” and “Back”), and, frankly speaking, they are labeled incomprehensibly - and “ Menu ”, and“ Back ”are points. On the bottom you will find a MicroUSB connector and a microphone, and on the top, the manufacturer has placed a 3.5 mm mini-jack for headphones. On the right side of Zera S and Zera F, you will find a volume rocker, as mentioned above about the location of the power key. The back side is occupied by the main camera peephole, flash, multimedia speaker grill and Highscreen logo. It is strange that in such not the thinnest smartphones (9.4 and 9.9 mm), the peephole of the main camera sticks out.

The scope of delivery is boring and common, with the exception of one detail. In addition to an unremarkable power adapter, a wired headset and a few pieces of paper in the box with Zera S and Zera F, you will find a cool USB-MicroUSB cable with backlight. Its MicroUSB side is highlighted. This nice little thing saves you from such eternal problems as finding a cable in a dark room and getting the right side of the cable into the MicroUSB connector on the n-th attempt in the same darkness. Also, with the help of this backlight, you can find out from a distance of several meters that your smartphone is fully charged.

Display

The resolution of the 4.5-inch IPS-display Zera S is 960 x 540 pixels, the pixel density is 244 ppi. All the same, on a smartphone, albeit a budget class, I would like to see an HD-resolution display. Of the pleasant features of this screen, we can only note the absence of an interlayer between the touch and liquid crystal layers. On 4 inches IPS-matrix Zera F is located 800 x 480 pixels, the pixel density of the younger model is 233 ppi.

Both displays are quite responsive to pressing, however, tests have shown that they are unable to recognize more than five simultaneous touches. As for the viewing angles, not everything is smooth here either: at relatively small angles of deviation, both displays invert colors. This is frustrating, even though the devices are inexpensive.

Cameras

If I had some questions about the displays of Zera smartphones, then I had real complaints about their cameras. I think to start with the fact that the resolution of the main camera in the younger model is 5 megapixels, but standard application cameras allow only two-megapixel (!) pictures to be taken, and this is in 2014 in the yard. There is no autofocus. You tap on an object on the screen and nothing happens. At first, this causes confusion, followed by indignation. But the same camera application is able to shoot HDR-photos, how high-quality such HDR is is another question. The presence of a front camera in Zera F can be safely attributed to the advantages of a smartphone. How many state employees with a front camera can you name? The resolution of the front camera is 0.3 megapixels - you won't make masterpiece selfies on it, but for Skype it will do just fine.

The resolution of the main camera in Zera S is 5 megapixels. Thanks for the autofocus. She takes mediocre photos. You can evaluate their quality below. The video, oddly enough, is recorded in FullHD resolution. The resolution of pictures taken with the front camera is approximately 1 megapixel. The camera application here is absolutely the same as on the Zera F, and on any other smartphone, which has a processor manufactured by MTK. In the presence of the HDR mode and a bunch of others, among which there are all kinds of panoramas and "beautiful faces".

Examples of photos and videos

Hardware and software

Inside the younger model, a quad-core MTK MT6572 processor is installed, operating at a frequency of 1.3 GHz. Together with him, the manufacturer installed the Mali-400 MP video accelerator. Volume random access memory Zera F is 1 GB, storage is 4 GB. A slot for memory cards of the MicroSD format is available, flash drives up to 32 GB are supported.

The processor installed in the Zera S is MTK MT6582, which also clocks in at 1.3 GHz. The video chip is the same Mali-400 MP. The older model has the same amount of memory as the younger one.

Filming, editing:

-Anton Yasirov

If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.

Before you know how to flash Highscreen zera F and Highscreen Zera F rev.s you need to familiarize yourself with the basic recommendations:

1. All the actions performed you do at your own peril and risk.
2. You may lose the official guarantee from the company.
3. Use only an original USB cable.
4. Charge your Hiskrin Zera F smartphone with power up to at least 70 percent.
5. Since you will be downloading a large amount of data, use unlimited tariff plans to access the Internet.

Now you can get down to the most important thing: flashing your Highscreen smartphone. There are two ways - official update and using third party utility... We choose the appropriate option and run to flash our favorite gadget.

Official software update

1. We connect to wireless network Wi-Fi. Just in case, we save all important data to external media (computer, HDD, flash drive and so on).
2. Go to "Settings". This item is easy to find in the main menu of the device.

1. Now we are looking for "About device", where there is a tab "Update". Click on "Update". If your smartphone says that updates have already been installed on your device, then it means that there are no available firmware for your device. Otherwise, you need to agree to download updates and wait for it to complete. When finished, click on the Install button.
2. After the update, you will see the home screen of the device.

Highscreen Zera F firmware

Please note that all of the following operations are only suitable for revisions A and B! If you have rev.S, then go to the next paragraph.

1. Before carrying out the manipulations with the flashing of the device, you will need to download and install the following list of materials on your computer or laptop: the corresponding drivers http://Highscreen.org/uploads/ZeraF12Upd/HM_Drivers.rar, special software for firmware - http://Highscreen.org/uploads/ZeraF12Upd/SP_Flash_Tool_exe_v3.1344.0.212.zip, and, in fact, the firmware files themselves. http://Highscreen.org/uploads/ZeraF12Upd/Zera_F.v12.20140529.zip
2. Please note that it is recommended to unpack all these files into the C: \ drive directory.

1. Run the SP program on the PC Flash Tool using the Flash_tool.exe application. Click on Scatter-loading and select Text Document MT65XX_Android-scatter_emmc.txt, where XX depends on the version of the downloaded firmware. This file is located in the unpacked archive in the folder from the first paragraph.
2. Next, click on Firmware-Upgrade, install the battery back into the smartphone and connect it to the computer via USB. Please note that you need to insert the cord exactly into the connector that was used in the fourth paragraph.
3. It remains to wait while the firmware is installed on the HighScreen Zera F. This process may take some time.
4. When finished, you will see a green circle on the screen - then you can close the SP Flash Tool application and pull out the USB cable.
5. The final touch: remove the battery from the device, insert it again and turn it on. Now you can close back part cover and use the device as usual.

Highscreen Zera F rev.S firmware

1. The process is very similar to the previous one, but there are some nuances. Therefore, be careful.
2. Download the drivers, the firmware file and the SP Flash Tool, as in the previous instructions in the first paragraph. But now you need files specifically for your device. The previous ones will not work. Please note that it is recommended to unpack all these files into the C: \ drive directory.
3. Next, take your Highscreen Zera F smartphone and turn it off using the corresponding button on the case.

1. Then you must remove the battery from the device (first detach the back cover that covers the battery). Then put the battery back in place, but without turning on the phone, we connect it to your personal computer... Install the drivers manually, specifying the path to them - the directory from the first item. Wait while the Found New Hardware Wizard installs the files on your computer. You can disconnect the device from the PC.
2. Turn off the smartphone again and remove the battery again.
3. Run the SP Flash Tool on the PC using the Flash_tool.exe application. Click on Scatter-loading and in the dialog box that appears, select the text document MT65XX_Android-scatter_emmc.txt, where XX depends on the version of the downloaded firmware. This file is located in the unpacked archive in the folder from the second item.
4. Uncheck the Preloader item. Then we disconnect the device from the PC.
5. We click on the Download button in the SP Flash Tool window and immediately connect the device to the PC via USB. When finished, you will see a green circle on the screen - then you can close the SP Flash Tool application and pull out the USB cable.
6. We remove the battery from the device, insert it again and turn it on. Ready!
7. Attention! If it did not work out that way, then the second time try not to uncheck the Preloader checkbox and click on firmware-ugrade (points seven and eight).

Let's sum up

Today we have learned how to flash or reflash Highscreen Zera F and Zera F rev.S. smartphones. Successful work, dear friends! We share in the comments what worked and what didn't. This will help other users to avoid your mistakes.

) faithfully served me for almost 3 years, but in recent months it began to slow down a lot in the programs I needed, and even when scrolling through the desktops, it sometimes slowed down. In addition, 420 MB of memory for modern applications was not enough, it was necessary to remove all rarely used programs and leave only the most necessary. That is, the device ceased to be a full-fledged smartphone and the question arose about its replacement.

Now the Chinese are releasing inexpensive phones with interesting filling, and I wanted to try one of them. And, to be honest, there was not much money to buy. Of course, one could wait until spring and buy something more expensive from a well-known brand, but, as I already wrote, it took me into my head to experience quality and reliability from my own experience. Chinese phones... Having looked at the characteristics, after reading the reviews, I opted for the Highscreen Zera F rev. S. I liked this smartphone for its excellent hardware and screen in this price category, as well as the latest version of Android - 4.4 KitKat (obviously I considered only models with 1 GB of RAM in order to guarantee to avoid brakes in the new device). Another plus is the presence of a flash that can be used as a flashlight. But first things first.

Highscreen is a Russian trademark under which smartphones, tablets, radar detectors and video recorders are sold in our country. Smartphones for Highscreen are, of course, developed and manufactured by Chinese partners.

Complete set and appearance

The phone comes in a cardboard box, which is only slightly larger in length and width. In addition to the device itself, a battery, a USB cable and a charger, a headset was also put in the box, which is a rarity for a budget phone.

I took a black smartphone, although turquoise and yellow are also available for purchase. This phone is only 9mm thick and weighs 122 grams. It itself is a rectangular tile with rounded side edges. The protective glass protrudes above the front surface of the case. The width of the side frames around the screen is about 6 mm.

On the top is the headphone jack, on the right is the power button and the volume rocker underneath. Both physical buttons have a small stroke, they are pressed clearly. The location of the power key on the side is definitely more convenient than on the top, as in some other phones: it sits right under your thumb and you don't have to reach for it.

On the bottom edge there are USB connector(also, in my opinion, the most convenient option for placing it for talking while charging) and a microphone hole. There is nothing on the left side.

Above the screen are the earpiece, front camera and light and proximity sensors. Under the screen there are three touch-sensitive buttons, and the "menu" and "back" buttons are marked in the same way - with dots, they can be swapped in the settings. By default, the "back" key is on the right, and the "menu", respectively, on the left. The keys have a soft bluish illumination, pleasing to the eyes.

There is no indicator light in the phone, you can find out about missed events only by activating the screen.

On the back surface, there is a camera with a flash on top, and a call speaker on the bottom. The camera protrudes 1 mm above the back cover. And along the edges of the speaker mesh, the developers placed two small pimp-legs so that it does not overlap when the phone lies on a flat surface, and because of this, the sound of a call or an alarm clock is not muffled. Between the flash and the loudspeaker, there was an inscription highscreen. There are no inscriptions or logos on the front panel.

Back cover made of slightly rough matte plastic, pleasant to the touch, no fingerprints remain on it. It is difficult to open, I even feared to break it. The phone lies comfortably in the hand, it does not strive to slip out.

The device is assembled with sufficient quality, the gaps are even. No creaks. But with a strong press on the center of the screen, a barely audible "squelch" is heard.

Display

An interesting feature: the USB cable has an indicator light at the end connected to the phone, which glows red when the phone is charging and blue when it is charged. But, as for me, it would be better if the manufacturer built an indicator light into the smartphone itself. Although, of course, the indicator light on the cable is better than without it at all. Most low-cost smartphones lack this luxury at all.

Now about the sad thing: my Zera does not display the battery charge correctly. For half an hour of listening to music in headphones, both 4% of the charge and 15% can be removed. At the same time, I do not include anything else. During the night, if you believe the readings of the charge indicator, the phone does not discharge at all, not one percent. But when I left the phone overnight with 11% charge, in the morning it turned off. SE LWW honestly discharged 12-15% overnight, apparently Zera discharges the same way. Initially from 30% to 0 mine new phone was discharged in a matter of minutes, this is the only problem with the battery that was solved by calibration.

Another bug appeared during the first charge - the cable rim turned blue when it reached 86% of the charge. Sometimes this problem recurs, not necessarily 86 percent. Usually, from 0% to 100% Zera is charged in about two hours, but it can also add 20% per hour.

Software platform

My last device worked on Android 4.0. Version 4.4.2 is also installed here. Therefore, here I will mainly point out the noticed differences between 4.4 KitKat in Zera F and 4.0 in the version from Sony.

And the differences begin with the lock screen - now you cannot immediately launch the camera from it, only unlock the phone. Missed calls and SMS notifications are now more clearly displayed with large special icons with a number indicating the number of missed events.

Moving on to desktops. The leftmost one is the main desktop, which is not very convenient with a large number of them. In SE LWW, the main desktop was positioned in the middle so that the other desktops were to the right and left of it. The desktops can be swapped, but the leftmost one will still be the main one. You can change the number of desktops. SE LWW had five desktops and couldn't be added or subtracted. In Zera, I also created seven desktops, but I constantly use six. For a long time I could not understand how to create folders until I remembered how I read in one of the reviews that for this you need to drag one shortcut to another. I myself would never have thought of that.

A set of live wallpapers is preinstalled in Zera. There is even a video wallpaper.

The "reboot" item has appeared in the shutdown menu, from here you can take a screenshot. Moreover, a screenshot from the shutdown menu could be made on Android 2.3, but in 4.0 this item was removed from there. Now they have returned it back. So, of course, it is clearer for inexperienced users, and for me personally, it is more convenient than holding down the power and volume buttons at the same time.

The shift button is not fixed on the standard keyboard. That is, if you need to type an abbreviation or just highlight an important word in capital letters, you have to press the shift key before entering each letter. But the substitution of words when typing from the keyboard now works fine. Well, at least it doesn’t interfere, so I didn’t turn it off on Zera. There is no hard sign on the keypad, we have to hope that the phone itself will suggest the right word with this letter.

I liked the attitude of Hayscreen to the pre-installed third-party programs. There is only one of these here - a 4Sync cloud storage client with 32 GB of allocated space for free. But it can also be removed. The absence of garbage taking up space in the phone is good news.

The clock application has four tabs: alarm clock, clock itself, countdown and a stopwatch. You can get into them by clicking on the clock widget. A triggered alarm clock can be turned off by swiping to the right, and if you swipe to the left, the alarm clock will repeat after a specified period of time. Unfortunately, clues about this appear only when you put your finger on the screen, so you can easily perform the wrong action while sleeping. When a call comes in, by the way, the tips will also not appear until you click on the screen. The alarm will go off even if the phone is turned off, the device will turn on.

Google has finalized the standard browser. Now I am quite satisfied with its functionality and speed. I didn’t even bother to install my usual Opera.

Now you don't need to install third party programs to display the percentage of battery charge, Android shows it itself. You can set your phone to turn off automatically and turn on on a schedule, for example, at night. This saves battery power.

There is no "widgets" tab in the application menu, how should it be?

It is already known that there will not be a fifth version of Android for Zera, but I did not expect otherwise: who will update the operating system for a budget smartphone.

Performance and memory

Zera has a chipset from MediaTek MT6582M, which includes a quad-core processor with a maximum frequency of 1.3 GHz and a Mali-400MP2 video adapter. RAM - 1 GB, I usually have 500-600 MB free. In Antutu, the phone dialed 19184 parrots.

In practice, the following picture is observed: the interface usually does not lag, desktops scroll quickly and smoothly, applications open quickly. No, there are, of course, millisecond slowdowns when opening the phone book, SMS, settings, etc., but personally they do not bother me at all, they are also found in much more expensive models. But now and then the device freezes for half a second or a second when performing any action. Due to the overall excellent responsiveness, this always happens unexpectedly and is confusing.

When launching not particularly demanding games, the back surface of the phone is moderately heated just below the camera. In heavy games, the heating must be significant.

Total internal memory in Zera - 4 GB. It is divided into three sections: system, data memory (1.67 GB) and application memory - only 900 MB. In the settings, you can select the default disk for recording - SD card or phone memory.

Android 4.4 does not allow installing applications on a memory card, but the developers heeded user complaints and released an update that fixed this feature operating system... True, now most applications themselves refuse to be transferred to a memory card.

The size of applications is growing from year to year. Three years ago, 420 MB of SE LWW memory was enough for me. One of the reasons for its replacement was precisely that this amount of memory was sorely lacking. I'm afraid the lack of memory for applications will also be the reason for replacing my current device. At least I hope it doesn't crash sooner. Or his bugs will finally get me.

Camera

The main camera of Zera has a resolution of 5 megapixels and takes pictures at a resolution of 2880 by 1728. There is a function of face recognition (a face on the computer monitor distinguishes), smiles, HDR. Panoramic shots can be taken. There is an LED flash that can also be used as a flashlight. But there is no autofocus, so small text or a bar / QR code cannot be photographed.

The taken pictures look good on the phone screen, I expected the worst. You can take photos for wallpaper on the smartphone itself and on the contact.

The video is shot in a resolution of 1280 by 720 at 30 frames per second. Front camera - 0.3 MP. Under artificial lighting, it turns very yellow, but when I tried to take a photo, the yellowness disappeared.

Front camera during the day:

Front camera under artificial lighting:

Multimedia

The sound in the headphones of my new phone is loud enough for listening to music on public transport, but there is no headroom. The sound quality suits me. But the external speaker is suitable only for ringtones, but not for music, which for me, spoiled by Walkman's stereo speakers, was a slight disappointment. Compared to the two SE LWW speakers, it is also quiet, but in fact, in order to draw your attention to an incoming call or wake up in the morning, its volume is quite enough.

The headset from SE LWW did not fit Zera. The sound in it is quiet, the volume is normal only if you hold down the button, but you won't keep holding it down all the time. You cannot control the player with a button from the headset. The native headset is not the worst, you can talk on it, it transmits the voice well, but of course, it is not suitable for listening to music. Anyone waiting to be put in a box with a cheap phone good headset? Yes, okay.

There was a problem with third-party players. I tried to install 2 players. In both cases, if the widget was placed as the only one on the far right desktop, then after restarting the phone, it disappeared both from the desktop and from the list of widgets. The regular player widget does not disappear. Also, when playing music from third-party players, after a while the next song did not start until you turn on the screen with the power button or press the button on the headset. So you have to use your own player. It has almost all the functions I need, only it can't play tracks in folders and I don't like its widget. A transparent widget would look better. It is also impossible to start the previous composition from its widget - there is no such button on it. Another bug is associated with the player: once the on-screen player control buttons were not displayed on the lock screen. This trouble was cured by a reboot.

I do not like that after each reboot, when I try to turn up the sound in the headphones above a certain level, the phone warns about the danger of this action for my ears, and until you confirm that you have read this message, the sound cannot be added. And I turn off my smartphone for the night. That is, you have to confirm that you have read the warning every day.

The phone has an FM receiver. The radio works only with connected headphones, which are used as an antenna. You can output the sound to an external speaker and record your favorite song or broadcast from the air.

Connection

The phone is dual-SIM: one SIM-card is of a regular size, the other is a micro-SIM. One of your choice can work in 3G networks. For each SIM card, you can choose your own color of the network indicator icon.

The earpiece is loud enough, the interlocutor can be heard clearly, they can also hear me well.

Zera F downloads applications from the Market via the mobile Internet much faster than my previous smartphone, apparently, it did not support the HSPA data transfer protocol.

Wi-Fi works, the phone clings to the router without problems.

Bluetooth version 4.0. It connects to Sony Ericsson Live With Walkman, accepts files.

GLONASS is not available here. For the first time, the phone found the GPS satellites in one and a half to two minutes. In buildings, the location is determined with a large error, the point designating the location is constantly moving around the actual location. On the street, at worst, it can show that you are on the sidewalk when in fact you are on the road.

Miscellaneous

Highscreen sells branded flip cases for their phones. This means there is no need to look for a suitable cover all over the Internet.

Hyscreen doesn't have much service centers across Russia, in my city he is not. In case of any malfunction, you will have to send the phone to another city for repair under warranty or repair at your own expense.

Conclusion

Zera is not distinguished by its exquisite design, but outwardly I like it. The materials are pleasant to the touch, the phone is pleasant to hold in the hand. I like the display, even a budget IPS-matrix after a high-quality, but TFT, like a breath of fresh air. A quad-core processor with a decent video adapter and a whole gigabyte of RAM pleases - this is a good start for the future. The impression is spoiled by the buggy device and poor optimization of power consumption. The small amount of memory for applications causes some concern. There are concerns about the reliability of the Chinese phone.

To summarize, I want to say that, perhaps, I bought in vain for the overestimated technical characteristics in this price category and enthusiastic user reviews: the firmware of the device is raw, it still needs to be finished and finished. Next time I'll think hard: is it worth taking a Chinese.

Smartphones from Highscreen are traditionally packed in original boxes with designations of the main parameters. Both devices are equipped in the same way: a power adapter with an output current of 1 A (the rim around the perimeter glows blue), a USB cable (the rim also shines), headphones that copy those in the iPhone 5S, a warranty card and a user manual.

Introduction

A couple of months ago, the company "Vobis Computer" (brand "Highscreen") released two inexpensive smartphones in our market under the names Zera F and Zera S. The first, the most budgetary, costs only 4,000 rubles, while it has a good IPS-screen and good appearance. The second is more expensive - 6,000 rubles. It can boast of an IPS-matrix with qHD-resolution, an autofocus camera, a 4-core processor and a quite attractive design.

Before my vacation, a video about the Highscreen Zera F was released on YouTube channel, however, I did not have time to write the text. And during the holidays, Zera S appeared. In order not to stretch the lost days even more, I decided to combine, or compare these two devices in one review.

Design, dimensions, controls

The gadgets have a classic appearance: a rectangular case, sharp corners, smooth upper and lower edges, sloping sides. Outwardly, they practically do not differ from each other, the difference can be noticed only if they are placed vertically: Zera F will be slightly lower, and Zera S - accordingly, slightly higher. The dimensions of the first are 123.8x63.1x9.9 mm and weighs 136 grams, the second one is 131.6x66.45x9.4 mm and weighs 146 grams.

The black front panel is unremarkable, as most Android devices look like. The screen is covered with glass, it is not the most durable, but after several weeks of using the devices, there are no scratches or scuffs left on the displays. There is no oleophobic coating in these devices. The screens are very easily soiled, there are fingerprints, and they are not easily erased. It should be noted that the prints on the Zera S are still less noticeable, the finger also glides a little better than on the Zera F.

The piping on both S and F is made of glossy black plastic. The back cover is covered with "soft-touch". The quality is definitely higher on Zera F, since the older model has started to peel off from the bottom end, and quite strongly: you just need to pry it off with your fingernail, and you will bare the glossy plastic under the soft-touch. This does not happen on efka.

The Zera S's back is dark gray and one tone darker than the Zera F's lid.

Both phones fit perfectly in the hand due to the narrow body, light weight and smoothed sides. The assembly is also excellent: nothing creaks, no crunches, the reverse side of the devices does not push through to the battery.

In general, the S and F are ergonomically designed, comfortable to handle, pleasant to hold in your hands, and won't slip out even if your hands are wet. The back panel reminds Nokia smartphones Lumia series - looks cute and original.

Speakers are located on the front of the devices. They are located in a recess, so over time, dust accumulates there. The volume of the Zera S speaker is average, the intelligibility is the same, the interlocutor is heard relatively clearly, the sound is booming. The speaker volume of Zera F is slightly above average, but all other sound parameters are similar to those in Zera S.

To the left of the earpiece are indicators of missed events, to the right are front cameras, light and proximity sensors. The sensors worked correctly on both S and F.

Under the screen are the standard touch buttons "Back", "Home" and "Menu". Engraved with translucent white paint. The backlight is available only in the Highscreen Zera S: white, relatively bright. Why they saved in Zera F on a couple of LEDs is not clear to me.

The microphones are on the bottom, with the S on the right and the F on the left. On the upper end of the "eska" there is a 3.5 mm audio output and micro-USB, in the same place at the "efka" there is a 3.5 mm audio output and a power button (small, almost recessed into the body, but the pressure is pleasant). On the right side of Zera S and Zera F there are volume rocker keys. They are long, narrow, and easy to grope. On the left, the S-ki has a power button, while the F-ki has a micro-USB.

On the back of the devices there are cameras (in the S it rises a little more noticeably above the body), flashes (in the S it is on the right, in the F - on the left) and the speakerphone from the bottom behind the decorative mesh in the panel.

To open the back cover on devices, you need to pry it off by the notch on the left edge. Smartphones are equipped with two sim card slots: Zera S has both microSIM and miniSIM, while Zera F has only two miniSIMs. In addition, both devices are equipped with slots for memory cards of the microSD standard.

Displays

The Highscreen Zera F has a 4-inch screen, while the Zera S has a 4.5-inch screen. Physical size display of the first device - 52x86 mm, the second - 56x99 mm. Despite the absence of an oleophobic coating on both devices, Zera S still has antiglare coating. This is clearly visible when you compare screens in the light: the picture on the F-ke is practically invisible - everything glares, and the picture on the S-ke can be seen without difficulty ...

The screen resolution of the younger Highscreen model is 480x800 pixels (density - 233 pixels per inch), the older one - 540x960 pixels (244 PPI). As you can see, the pixelation is about the same, separate points are not visible. But the quality of IPS-matrices is incomparable.

The Zera F matrix produces a too contrasting yellow color, which is why the faces and the skin of people in general come out red-yellow, as if only from a solarium ... The white color at the corners is slightly yellow and violet. The black color is also imperfect: the glow is visible, and under the slopes of the display, the black color turns into off-white.

The Zera S sensor produces correct color reproduction at right angles. If you tilt the display, the colors on the right turn into blue, on the left - into yellow, but not critical. The white color at the corners is slightly blue and yellow. Black is relatively deep, if you tilt the screen, then the right and left of the image is blue.

The backlight brightness of the Highscreen Zera S display matrix is ​​slightly higher than the backlight brightness of the Zera F. In the sun, both screens fade. However, as mentioned earlier, the image on the S-ke is seen better.

Viewing angles

White color

Black color

In the Zera S settings there is a "Wireless Projector" mode. The Zera F does not have this mode.

Zera F and Zera S work out two touches.

Zera F settings

Batteries

The smartphones have removable lithium-ion (Li-Ion) batteries. The battery capacity of the older model is 1800 mAh (6.66 Wh), the younger model is 1600 mAh (5.55 Wh). By modern standards, the values ​​are scanty, however, due to simple screens and chipsets, the operating time is typical for most of these devices. Oddly enough, almost everything test modes both gadgets went the same way. Plus or minus 10%.

In video playback mode (MP4, 720p) at maximum brightness and volume in the headphones, the batteries ran out after about 3.5-4 hours. If you use 3G, make about 10-15 calls lasting 1-2 minutes, take pictures for 20 minutes, then the battery will run out in 7-8 hours. Toys will run the Zera S battery in about 1.5 hours, and the Zera S battery in 2.5 hours (I think specific games and performance settings play a role here).

The Highscreen Zera S battery is charged from USB for about 4 hours, from network adapter- in less than 2 hours. The Zera F battery makes it a little faster only due to the fact that the capacity is 200 mAh less than that of the S-ki.

Communication capabilities

Everything in this section is typical for any budget Android smartphone. The devices operate in cellular networks 2G (GSM / GPRS / EDGE, 850/900/1800/1900 MHz) and 3G (900/2100 MHz).

In the Zera F smartphone, both slots can be used in the operation of the 3G network, while the Zera S smartphone has one slot for 2G, the other for 2G / 3G.

Available Bluetooth version 4.0 for file and voice transmission. Present wireless connection Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11 b / g / n. The device, of course, can be used as an access point (Wi-Fi Hotspot) or a modem.

The USB connector of the older model operates in Host mode, that is, it is easy to connect, for example, a Flash device to it. Unfortunately, the junior model does not have such an opportunity.

There is a GPS. Their sensitivity is quite good: in the "cold" mode in 20 seconds it finds up to 3 satellites (Zera S - up to 4) in a room near the window in 10 seconds - up to 5 satellites (Zera S - up to 7) , in open space during the same time - up to 8 (Zera S - about 10).

Memory and memory card

Both Zera S and Zera F have 1 GB of RAM. The number of applications is the same, in the background all the “appa” are “killed”, nevertheless, in the S-ke it is a little less than 800 MB free, and in the F-ke it is a little less than 700 MB.

The flash memory is the same - 4 GB each. However, in the older model, again, more memory is available - 2.3 GB versus 1.7 in the younger one.

There are slots for microSD cards up to 32 GB.

Cameras

The Highscreen Zera S and F smartphones have two camera modules: the first is 5 MP, and the second is front-facing at 2 MP in the older model and 0.3 in the younger. There is also a difference between the main modules: the S-ke has autofocus, but the F-ke does not.

The difference between cameras can only really be captured if you take pictures at a distance of less than one meter. Otherwise, the frames are close in quality, color rendering, noise and other parameters. If it is important for you to photograph small text (something like ads), then it turns out well on Zera F, but it is better to take a closer look at Zera S.

The front module is better on the model that is more expensive: sharper sharpness, larger viewing angle.

The Highscreen Zera S device records video in FullHD resolution at 30 fps. However, its quality pulls at 720p at best: sharpness is low, a click is heard when switching focus. The Zera F device records in 720p resolution at 30 fps, the quality is slightly worse than on the S-ke. The sound is cleaner in the older model, the younger one makes a lot of noise.

Both gadgets on the front camera shoot video in a resolution of 0.3 MP with a different number of frames and quality. The S-ki has a larger viewing angle and better quality, but the number of frames is about 12.

In general, if you don't bother with cameras, then the module in the Highscreen Zera F will be enough for you, since the Zera S does not shoot much better.

There is no EXIF ​​information from Zera F photo files. Info-EXIF Zera S:

Characteristics of a video file with Zera S:

• File format: 3GP
• Video codec: MPEG-4, 17 Mbps
• Resolution: 1920 x 1080, 30 fps
• Audio codec: AAC, 128 Kbps
• Channels: 1 channel, 48 kHz

Characteristics of a video file with Zera F:

• File format: 3GP
• Video codec: MPEG-4, 12 Mbps
• Resolution: 1280 x 720, 30 fps
• Audio codec: AAC, 128 Kbps
• Channels: 1 channel, 48 kHz

Sample photos:

Zera F	Zera S

An example of a photo on the front camera:

Zera F	Zera S

Performance and software platform

The older model Highscreen Zera S operates on the MediaTek MT6582 chipset:

Cortex-A7, 28 nm, 4 cores at 1.3 GHz, graphics accelerator Mali-400MP2 with a clock frequency of 400 MHz.

Younger model Highscreen Zera F on the MediaTek MT6572 chip:

Cortex-A7, 28 nm, 2 cores at 1.2 GHz, graphics accelerator Mali-400 with a clock frequency of 500 MHz.

Zera F at a glance:

Zera S at a glance:

The Zera S smartphone scores 5335 points in the Quadrant test, the Zera F - 3253. In the Antutu test, the Zera S scores 15472 points, and the Zera F - 11067 points. With games, the situation is about the same: what is more or less normal on the older model slows down on the younger model.

Quadrant test on Zera F / Zera S

Antutu test on Zera F / Zera S

Both devices run on Google operating system Android version 4.2.2. There is no proprietary shell, only a "naked" android.

Multimedia

The devices are equipped with a standard music and video player, radio.

The volume of the speakers is about the same, although when compared in detail, the Zera S sounds a little louder. But in general, the volume is average there and there. The sound is clear.

The volume in the headphones is slightly higher in the older model, the quality is also better in it: low and high are heard.

With video, everything is simple: maximum 720p is for Zera F, maximum FullHD at bitrate up to 10 Mbps is for Zera S. I see no reason to test modern devices to support a huge number of audio and video codecs. Earlier - yes, I agree, in Android Market there were practically no such applications, I had to choose a smartphone already with playback functions, for example, AVI or MKV. Now it is easier to install any video player with these codecs.

Conclusion

Both the Highscreen Zera F and Zera S made a good impression. For their money (F - 4,000 rubles, S - 6,000 rubles), they have quite adequate technical characteristics.

The Zera F device stands out among the rest of its brothers with a normal IPS-screen and an interesting appearance of the back side. The older model has a high-quality IPS-matrix with a good resolution, a relatively efficient chipset, and the rear panel also looks original.

If it's not a matter of principle for you to have a camera with autofocus and you don't play often, then take a closer look at Zera F. If you have enough money for Zera S, then take a closer look at this device.

Pros of Highscreen Zera S:

• Excellent build
• High-quality IPS-matrix
• Anti-glare screen
• A high resolution qHD
• Autofocus camera
• 4 cores

Cons of Highscreen Zera S:

• Weak battery
• Lagging soft-touch layer

Pros of Highscreen Zera F:

• Low cost
• IPS matrix
• High-quality assembly

Cons of Zera F hard to find because price plays a role here.

Highscreen Zera S features:

• Class: Smartphone
• Form factor: candy bar
• Body materials: plastic
• Network: GSM / GPRS / EDGE, UMTS
• Processor: four cores, 1300 MHz, MTK6582
• RAM: 1 GB
• Screen: capacitive, IPS 4.5 "" with a resolution of 540x960 pixels
• Camera: 5 MP with autofocus + 2 MP, flash
• Navigation: GPS
• Battery: removable, capacity 1800 mAh
• Dimensions: 131.6x66.45x9.4
• Weight: 146g
• PRICE: 3,990 rubles (Q3 2014)

Highscreen Zera F specifications:

• Class: Smartphone
• Form factor: candy bar
• Body materials: plastic
• Operating system: Google android 4.2.2
• Network: GSM / GPRS / EDGE, UMTS
• Processor: two cores, 1200 MHz, MTK6572
• RAM: 1 GB
• Storage memory: 4 GB
• Interfaces: Wi-Fi (b / g / n), Bluetooth 4.0, microUSB (USB 2.0) connector for charge / synchronization, 3.5 mm for a headset
• Screen: capacitive, IPS 4 "" with a resolution of 480x800 pixels
• Camera: 5 MP without autofocus + 0.3 MP, flash
• Navigation: GPS
• Optional: accelerometer, proximity sensors, FM radio
• Battery: removable, 1600 mAh capacity
• Dimensions: 123.8x63.1x9.9 mm
• Weight: 136g
• PRICE: 3,990 rubles (Q3 2014)

I greet all the guests and guests of the Expert Club.
Today, continuing the line of reviews of new products from the Russian brand Highscreen, we will consider another kid with a screen diagonal of only 4 ", which is an updated version of the Highscreen Zera F smartphone - Highscreen Zera F Rev.S.

At the beginning, traditionally, a few words about the brand.

The VOBIS Computer company started the development of the Highscreen brand in the 2000s. Since 2003, the first models have appeared in Russia portable devices our brand: computers, laptops, peripherals. Among them was the Highscreen WebPad tablet, the appearance of which on sale became one of the first in the Russian market among tablet computers.
As a result, in 2012, VOBIS Computer made a decision to change the vector of the company's development and fully independent development of personal electronics. Our own developments allowed us to move from a regular upgrade to the production and supply of technologically advanced mobile devices original style. The new result was the line released in 2012 Alpha smartphones(GT and GTR), which has top-end characteristics at that time: a dual-core processor with a frequency of 1 GHz, 1 GB of RAM, a high-quality HD screen and the ability to use two SIM cards. After the release of the Alpha series, consumer interest in the brand increased several times.

Among the models of 2014, the hearts of consumers were especially won by the unique functional smartphones Highscreen Boost 2 / Boost 2 SE with two capacious batteries 3000 and 6000 mAh, providing up to two weeks autonomous work.
Launched in the same year, the Highscreen Zera F and Zera S smartphones became bestsellers, thanks to the combination of a bright recognizable design, high-quality body, modern characteristics, an IPS-screen, a gigabyte of RAM and high quality workmanship previously unavailable in this price segment. Low-end devices, the workmanship of which corresponded to much more expensive smartphones from leading brands, took Highscreen sales to a new level.

In the new revision, Zera F not only changed the color of the case, but also significantly increased its performance. The device now boasts a quad-core MT6582M and 1GB of RAM. Also, a rather fresh version of the operating system - Android 4.4 and a very democratic price - can be attributed to pleasant moments.
Well, what the device is really capable of, we will try to find out during testing. As usual, let's start with technical characteristics apparatus.

Specifications

Main characteristics

Yellow color
Device type - smartphone
Device model - Highscreen Zera F (rev.S)
Body type - monoblock
Body material - polycarbonate
Rugged case - no
SIM card format - Micro-SIM (15 × 12x0.76 mm), Mini-SIM (25 × 15x0.76 mm)
Supports two SIM cards- there is
Mode of operation of two SIM-cards - standby mode

Screen

Screen type - touch
View touch screen- capacitive
Screen resolution - 800x480
Screen diagonal - 4 "
Screen manufacturing technology - IPS
Screen protector - yes

Hardware part

Processor model - MediaTek MT6582M
Number of cores - 4
Processor frequency - 1300 MHz
Graphics Accelerator - Mali-400MP
The amount of RAM - 1024 MB
The amount of permanent memory - 4 GB
Memory card slot - yes
Supported memory cards - microSD, microSDHC
Maximum memory card size - 32 GB
Sensors - G-sensor (gyroscope), illumination, proximity

Camera

Main camera (rear) - yes
The number of megapixels of the main camera - 5
Built-in flash - yes
Camera for video calls (front) - yes
The number of megapixels of the camera for video calls - 0.3
Flash type - light-emitting diode (LED)
Maximum video resolution - 1280x720 (HD)

Access to the Internet

Wi-Fi module - yes
WiFi standard - 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n

Communications

Bluetooth - yes
Bluetooth version - Bluetooth 4.0
GPS - yes

Nutrition

Battery - Li-Ion
Battery capacity - 1600 mAh

Dimensions, weight

Width - 62 mm
Height - 122 mm
Thickness - 8 mm
Weight - 122 g

Packaging and delivery set

Highscreen Zera F Rev.S. Supplied in a gray cardboard box. Yes, yes, it’s a box, because to call it a “box”, the language does not turn. The container has very modest dimensions and is similar in size to two packs of cigarettes if you put them one on top of the other. In the upper part there is a sectional image of the device itself.

On back side there is information that the user receives 32 GB of cloud storage as a gift for a smartphone.

After opening the container, our eyes are presented with the smartphone itself, which lies in a cardboard backing.

The delivery set is almost standard. It includes:
Smartphone;
Charger;
USB cable for connection to a charger or a PC;
Wired headset;
Quick start guide;
Warranty card.

As I said, the package is completely standard. We will not find anything unusual or remarkable in the box.
You can only pay attention to the bundled USB cable. When connected to a PC or charger, around micro USB the blue light is activated on the plug.

As the saying goes: "a trifle, but nice."
The bundled headphones do not differ in anything remarkable.

Appearance, materials

As in the original Zera F, the design is dominated by straight, strict lines, thanks to which the device stands out from the general number of smartphones. There are no decorative frames or other elements. Outwardly, the smartphone is a bit like the younger models of the Lumia line.

The smartphone can be called quite lightweight. In addition, there are no problems with the balance. The weight is evenly distributed over the entire area of ​​the case, so that the smartphone does not tilt to any side during use.

And here slim smartphone can not be named. However, you should not be intimidated by the numbers in the characteristics. Thanks to the sides rounded to the back cover, the thickness is noticeably concealed and visually the smartphone does not seem like a brick at all. But if the smartphone had a smaller thickness, there might be problems associated with the comfort of the grip.
And so, there are no complaints about this parameter. One-handed operation is not difficult at all.
The case material is matte plastic. Because of this, you do not have to worry that after a short use, the device will be covered with small scratches. The back cover has a Soft Touch coating. Thanks to this, the device does not strive to slip out of the hand during use.

The build quality is quite high. There are no claims on this point.

There are no complaints about the quality of the ports. When in use, USB cords and headphones are securely fixed to their interfaces. There are no backlashes or creaks at all. At the top of the device is a 3.5 mm headphone jack.

At the bottom there is a micro USB port and a spoken microphone hole.

Both hard keys are located on the right side. They are made in the form of flat plastic strips.

The upper part of the front side houses the earpiece, front camera and proximity and light sensors.

In the lower part there are classic 3 touch buttons. The backlighting is pretty bright and even.

The back cover is removable and, as I said, has a Soft Touch coating. At the top is the main camera and flash.

The main speaker is at the bottom.

After removing the cover, the battery appears to our eyes. Above it are slots for SIM cards and micro SD memory cards.

Screen

Zera F Rev.S is equipped with a 4 ”touchscreen IPS screen with a resolution of 800 x 480 pixels. Lovers of viewing individual pixels will certainly be able to cope with this task. However, with standard use, the image does not appear grainy at all.

The matrix is ​​made using IPS technology, without the use of OGS technology. Despite this, the display has fairly wide viewing angles. There are no problems with this parameter when used.

Also, the screen supports up to five points of simultaneous touch, inclusive.

There are no white stripes around the edges of the screen.
Also, the display has good sensitivity. Therefore, in almost 90% of cases, touches are processed correctly.
In addition, the screen has an oleophobic coating. Therefore, it has good sliding properties and is very easy to clean.
Next, I propose to go directly to testing the screen.
First, let's look at the brightness and contrast table.

The maximum brightness level is not very high. Of course, the image can be disassembled in the sun, but you cannot call it very comfortable to use. But the minimum level of brightness is very small. Therefore, in complete darkness, the screen does not blind at all. Auto-adjustment works quite adequately. There are no sharp jumps in the brightness level. The contrast is at 550: 1, which can also be called an average for a budget IPS matrix.
Next, let's move on to color rendering. First, let's take a look at the gamma curves:

The display behaves well here. All lines lie close to the reference curve and not far from each other.
The color gamut is slightly below the sRGB standard. And a little goes into the green.

The color channels are quite stable.

The color temperature is stable in the main range, but much higher than the standard 6500K. This can make the colors appear chilly.

The uniformity of the backlighting raises practically no questions. With standard use, overexposure zones are not noticeable.

But at an angle, the color shift makes itself felt. The screen starts to turn quite blue.

Performance and testing

The smartphone is equipped with SoC MediaTek MT6582M (4 cores, maximum frequency 1.3 GHz). The Mali 450MP acts as a graphics accelerator. The device also has 1 GB of RAM and 4 GB of permanent memory. Of course, there is no need to talk about ultra-high performance with such hardware filling, but it should be enough for most everyday tasks.
To begin with, I suggest that you familiarize yourself with the information about the system that the CPU Z and AnTuTu utilities provide us with:

I'll tell you about the different use cases in more detail.
General impression from using a smartphone is quite positive.
Let's start with simple tasks... Making calls, typing SMS, navigating menus, desktops and settings and other simple tasks are not at all overshadowed by any problems and troubles. There are no delays or jerks when switching desktops and turning menu pages. Installing live wallpapers and heavy widgets also does not put the smartphone into a stupor. Smoothness is not lost at all because of this.
Web surfing also does not cause any difficulties. However, it still cannot be called comfortable. This is due to the small screen diagonal. If you do not open at the same time more than five to six tabs in the browser, all sorts of problems are completely absent. Scrolling is smooth, switching between pages is quite fast. After this threshold, slightly noticeable twitching appears and each movement or switching between tabs takes a little longer.
As for the games, everything is pretty good here as well. With light and casual toys, there are no problems at all. With heavy gaming applications, not everything is so smooth. Many of them are installed and start safely, but you can forget about high graphics settings. At the lowest settings, many games run without any problems. Again, the gameplay cannot be called comfortable because of the same small screen diagonal. It is also worth noting that all applications install and start quite quickly.
Next, I suggest that you familiarize yourself with the benchmark results.

The test results are quite expected and do not show us any surprises. The indicators are pretty good.
Next, let's deal with memory.
The smartphone has 1 GB of RAM on board. Of the total volume, about 600 MB are available to the user.

Permanent memory 4 GB. Of this volume, about 2.5 GB is available to the user.

It is possible to expand its number using micro SD memory cards. The device supports cards up to 32 GB. Among other things, there is a choice of installation location. So there shouldn't be any problems associated with a lack of space for applications.
Speed ​​indicators are at an average level.

Multimedia

The main speaker demonstrates average sound quality and volume. I am glad that even at maximum volume levels, there are no strong distortions. In principle, the speaker copes well with the soundtrack of films. The voice remains fairly well audible against the background of gunfire and explosions.
The bundled headphones do not have high sound quality. The only thing they do well for is for use as a headset.
When using third-party more expensive headphones, the sound quality is noticeably improved. In this case, the smartphone can be used as a player.
The smartphone has a standard video player. As usual, it does not differ in support of a large number of formats and codecs. When installing a third-party player, the list of playable files expands noticeably.
I suggest that you familiarize yourself with the results of playback attempts provided by the AnTuTu Video Tester utility.

Operating system and software

Works smartphone running Android 4.4.
We are greeted by a classic desktop.

The interface has been left almost unchanged. Replaced only the desktop wallpaper. From the desktop settings menu, access is opened not only to the wallpaper, but also to the installed widgets.

The main menu is built according to the 4x5 formula. Those. 20 application shortcuts are placed on one page. There are 2 pages with attachments in total.

But we will not find widgets in the main menu. List installed widgets accessible through the desktop settings menu. There are six widget pages in total.

As we can see, the smartphone is not overloaded at all additional applications and for the most part all pre-installed software is standard.

The settings menu is also pretty standard. There are all the basic options for personalizing a smartphone for yourself.

Wireless interfaces and communication

The smartphone operates in 2G cellular networks (GSM / GPRS / EDGE, 850/900/1800/1900 MHz) and 3G, UMTS / HSPA (900/2100 MHz). The device has only one radio module. Those. The mode of operation of SIM cards is alternating and if you receive a call to one of them, then both will be busy. This solution has both pros and cons. I will not talk a lot about the drawback, it is already understandable. But the advantages of having one module include the fact that in this case the battery charge for communication with the network is spent much more slowly.
The navigation module works with the GPS system. Speed GPS work module is at the middle level.
There are also no complaints about the work of the WiFi and BT module. Network reception is stable. There are no breaks and other troubles.

Battery and autonomous work

The smartphone has a 1600 mAh rechargeable battery.

Charging by regular charger happens in less than two hours. From USB Smartphone charging a little slower. Port 2.0 - 2.5 hours; Port 3.0 - 2 hours.

Below are the results of measurements of battery life under various loads:
Phone only - 2 days
Listening to music with headphones - 36 hours
Video playback - 6 hours
Games - 4 hours
Mixed cycle (some calls, some internet, some games) - 8 hours
As you can see from the measurements, the results are not the best. However, with average use, the smartphone should quite live until the evening.
Below are the results of the battery test:

Camera

Highscreen Zera F Rev.S has 2 cameras on board. The main one, with a resolution of 5 megapixels and a front one for video calls. I can't say anything bad about the second one. She copes well with her tasks.
The main camera shows very average results. In bright sunlight, the pictures are quite acceptable, unless of course you ask too much of the camera. As for the main one, I can say that it is frankly disappointing. Strong effect In more difficult conditions, photographs suffer noticeably from noise and lack of brightness.
The interface and settings are left unchanged.

The maximum video resolution when shooting is 1280x720. Below is an example of video recording from the main camera.

Conclusion

In conclusion, we can say that we have in front of us a rather interesting and successful budget smartphone... For a very low price, the manufacturer offers us a fairly high-quality and balanced device. The main advantages are the abundance of color solutions, austere and nice appearance, a very high-quality screen and ample performance. The disadvantages include only not the most convincing indicators of battery life. Otherwise, there are no complaints about the smartphone. And if we take into account the fact that the number of competitors for the device is not so great, we can say that it will definitely find its customers.
Pros:
Interesting design;
High quality assemblies;
Sufficient performance;
High-quality display in all respects;
Price.

Minuses:
Not the highest indicators of autonomy.

That's all for me.
Enjoy your shopping, reliable communication and see you soon.