Infinix Smart 8 Pro Review 2024: Best Android Under RM500?
The sub-RM500 smartphone market is filled with low-grade smartphones. While some brands still offer choices at this price bracket, Infinix has come and brought real value into this market.
The Smart 8 Pro is an entry-range smartphone, priced at RM399, targeted for the youth. That means we’re curious about one thing: how good is it?
Smart 8 Pro Overview: Unassuming
The phone is encased in a plastic housing, with the back using a matte soft brushed finishing plastic. This generally gives the phone a more classy look, but the bundled clear hard plastic cover is a clear no-no. I wonder why Infinix picked this cover over soft TPU.
The front of the phone is dominated by the display, which is a 6.6-inch IPS panel. We are not expecting to find an IPS screen at this price bracket, but we did, and more on this later.
The phone casing has a chamfered edge profile, feels alright in hand, but the back is a fingerprint smudge magnet. Weighing only 189g, it feels light in an adult male hand.
Below the phone is where the mono speaker is located. Infinix claims it can be set to be 200% louder when needed, and over a simple test, it is very loud. I find this extremely useful, especially in situations that call for it. As for the clarity of the sound, we’ll discuss more later.
Display
For a sub-RM500 smartphone, an IPS a-si screen with vibrant colors is the best value the Smart 8 Pro offers. Again, at this price bracket, an IPS screen is a surprising find as we were expecting something like a simple TF panel, but here we are.
Despite being HD+ resolution, images and videos are clearly and well define. As an additional added value, the screen is capable of displaying at 90Hz, not exactly the smoothest on the market, but enough to catalyze between an okay user experience to a better one.
Security
This is where the phone shines. For a phone at this price point, it features not only a side fingerprint sensor but also a face unlock. It may sound basic, but face unlock is essential for quick access to the phone but mostly forgone in budget phones due to higher sensor requirements.
Battery Life & Charging
The Smart 8 Pro features a large 5000mAh battery. This will give great hours in any form of gaming and productivity works. During our 4-day testing run, which consists of a few rounds of gaming and other work, it went from a full charge to 18%. With these results, it is safe to say the Smart 8 Pro would last for days before needing another charge.
While this is the standard capacity for phones in this price range, we are sad to inform you that it doesn’t feature fast charging. This is not exclusive to the Smart 8 Pro, though; we checked many other phones at this price point, all lacking fast charging. It took us about 1 hour and 50 minutes to complete a full charge from 20%, which is expected for non-quick charge phones.
Smart 8 Pro Audio: Crowd clearing
Despite being in the sub-RM500 segment, the Smart 8 Pro still comes with a unique audio setup. Despite not having stereo speakers, Infinix equips it with a loud mono speaker. This speaker can go deafeningly loud by holding down the volume rocker once reach the max, and it will activate the extra loud function.
On another high note, the Smart 8 Pro comes with DTS sound on board. This is a speaker-level DSP so users would be able to enable better sound quality over wireless earbuds and also the onboard speaker.
Overall, the speaker produces very loud audio, and the sound quality is pretty basic, but DTS can make it slightly more pleasant.
Smart 8 Pro Camera: Performing
The Smart 8 Pro is using a 50 MP main shooter with Ai lens. With no mention of sensor model officially, it is still capable of capturing decent images.
In our test, the images came out sharp, vivid, but a bit on the warmer side.
It’s not the best image quality out there, but I have seen similar grade of images on smartphones three times the price.
Smart 8 Pro Performance: Hit or miss
Here’s where the phone really shows its pricing nature, sporting a Mediatek G36, an entry-range octa-core SoC with a maximum speed of 2.2 GHz. The phone is also using 4GB of RAM and paired with 128GB of storage.
Infinix indicates the phone is running on a version of XoS based on Android Go, a stripped-down version of the Android OS designed for lightweight and budget smartphones.
In essence, the user experience remains faithful to other XoS devices we tried, nothing is out of the ordinary except for having less bloatware.
Gaming
On the gaming side, we are sad to report that Genshin Impact and Diablo Immortal are not available on the device. It likely has something to do with it running on Android Go edition or the less potent SoC chip. However, other games like PUBG Mobile, Mobile Legends, and League of Legends are still playable.
We tested a round with League of Legends, and the gameplay is generally smooth with minor subtle hiccups here and there. The 90Hz refresh rate made the gaming experience a bit more enjoyable, but the Mediatek G36 can only offer so much in terms of processing power.
Smart 8 Pro Conclusion: Raise among the
In conclusion, while the Infinix Smart 8 Pro may not be the top-tier choice in the smartphone market, it remains an exceptional option within its price range. Its impressive screen quality, featuring vibrant colors and a smooth 90Hz refresh rate, sets it apart from competitors in its segment. Moreover, the inclusion of both a side fingerprint sensor and face unlock feature enhances security, providing users with convenient and reliable options for device access.
Furthermore, despite its modest camera performance and average system-on-chip capabilities, the Smart 8 Pro delivers satisfactory results for everyday tasks and casual gaming. Its respectable 5000mAh battery ensures prolonged usage without the need for frequent recharges, although it lacks fast charging functionality. Nevertheless, considering its comprehensive feature set and competitive pricing, the Smart 8 Pro emerges as a standout choice for budget-conscious consumers seeking a reliable and feature-rich smartphone experience.
Help support us!
If you are interested in either the Infinix Smart 8 Pro, we would really appreciate if you purchase them via the links below. The affiliate links won’t cost you any extra, but it will be a great help to keep our lights on here at HelloExpress.
- Lazada: https://s.lazada.com.my/s.R53zM?cc
- Shopee: https://shope.ee/5fRBjhuAQ4
Check out our review of other Infinix smartphone below:
Infinix Smart 8 Pro
The Infinix Smart 8 Pro emerges as a standout choice for budget-conscious consumers seeking a reliable and feature-rich smartphone experience.
Positive
- Impressive IPS screen with 90Hz refresh rate
- Finger print sensor + face unlock
Negatives
- No fast-charging
