Micromax threw us a curve-ball today by launching the thin and light Canvas Sliver 5, when we all were expecting a beefy Canvas 5. The Canvas Sliver 5 is one of the thinnest smartphones to hit the market with 5.1mm thickness and weighs in at a measly 97 grams. That's impressive considering there is no camera bulge here and Micromax was able to cram a 2000 mAh battery here. But the rest of the specs really aren't that impressive especially considering the Rs. 17,999 price-tag. Should design, usability, and I dare-say beauty give way to specs? That's a discussion for another time, for now let's have a look at the Micromax Canvas Sliver 5.
Hands-on Video
Key Hardware Specifications
- Display: 4.8-inch HD AMOLED, 720x1280 Pixels, Corning Gorilla Glass 3
- Processor: 64-bit, Quad-core Cortex-A53, Snapdragon 410
- GPU: Adreno 306
- OS: Android 5.0.2 Lollipop
- Camera: 8MP AF Rear Camera, Sony IMX219 Sensor, 1080p Recording, Blue-glass Filter, 5MP Front-camera
- Memory: 2GB RAM, 16GB Non-expandable Storage
- Connectivity: 4G LTE Single-SIM, WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, FM Radio
- Battery: 2000 mAh (Non-removable)
Build
This is an insanely light device. Probably the lightest smartphone I have ever held in my hands. Even more than the 5.1mm thinness its the weight that surprised me. Now, 97 grams doesn't sound that less when you hear it, but considering a 4.8-inch display, 2000 mAh battery, metal and glass construction. Trust me, its quite less.
Getting to the build, the entire frame of the Canvas Sliver 5 is made of aircraft grade aluminium with glass front and back. The frame has rounded sides which are matte, making the phone easier to hold and you need that given the thin frame.
The two volume buttons can be found on the left, ergonomically placed. At the top you have a secondary noise-cancellation mic.
Moving to the right you have the lone SIM Card slot, this is a single-SIM smartphone and storage is non-expandable too. Right below it is the power button. All the buttons are made of metal and offer great feedback, tactile response, something I always take a note of.
At the bottom of the phone you have the primary microphone, micro-USB data-syncing/charging port alongwith a full 3.5mm audio jack. Coming to the back you have a 8MP camera (with no bulge) and LED flash. The speakerphone sits at the bottom.
A 13 MP camera might have created a bulge and with the emphasis on thinness here, that's a sacrifice Micromax made, so goes the same for the second SIM card slot and the MicroSD card slot, something I am not really that happy about.
A subtle Micromax logo sits in the middle while the speakerphone can be found at the bottom. Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protects both the front and back of the device. Coming to the front you have a notification LED, 5MP camera, proximity and light sensors up top.
Just below them you have a 4.8-inch HD AMOLED display with excellent viewing angles, with great color reproduction and on-screen buttons. The top and bottom bezels are a bit large, but even then its quite a spectacularly thin device.
Camera
The camera interface has been worked upon and you now have a list of all the settings in one place instead of different menus to click through. Micromax is using a 8MP rear camera with Sony IMX219 stacked CMOS sensor which should produce decent results. We tried out the camera and in the low-light environment we were in, not-surprisingly images turned out a bit grainy and full of noise. But still the camera performed better than expected. The front facing 5MP camera too was able to take decent shots. But this is just an overview of the camera, I really can't tell you how it performs until I get the phone in our labs. Nevertheless, here are some of the shots we took at the event.
Software
The Micromax Canvas Sliver 5 is running an almost stock build of Android 5.0.2 Lollipop with what seems like the CM-Home launcher from Cyanogen. The interface elements worked well, no lag anywhere, apps too opened up quickly and multitasking was fine. Not a lot of bloatware on the device, always appreciated.
But you are limited to just 10.6GB of storage out of that 16GB ROM as storage is non-expandable but atleast you have USB OTG support. Web-browsing was also smooth on the device, text and images rendered quickly and pages remained in memory even after opening several apps.
First Impressions
The Canvas Sliver 5 is thin and the first thing you think about when you hold this device, is where's the battery as its so light. But going under the hood reveals lower mid-range specs found on phones that are 1/3rd the price.
The phone still performs well, looks great and is definitely a head-turner. Lack of a microSD card slot is what pains me the most, even more so than the second SIM card slot. If Micromax would have given 32GB onboard storage, which one should expect at this price, I would have been okay. But just 16GB at Rs. 18,000 asking price is a bit too much.
Micromax is also working to improve on its after-sales service. Both the Canvas Sliver 5 and Canvas Knight 2 come with 7-day Door-step pickup and delivery service for your smartphone. You will either get a repaired or replaced smartphone within 7 days of it being picked from your address.
Moreover, the Xiaomi Mi 4 16GB is now retailing for just Rs. 14,999 and it comes with 3GB RAM, a superb 5-inch 1080p display, Snapdragon 801, 13MP /8MP cameras. In all departments apart from the heft it seems and actually is better than the Canvas Sliver 5. So shouldn't you just get that one?
Let me rephrase that. Should you pay a premium for a thin and light device, purely for aesthetic appeal or is there some merit to the design and its added usability? These are some of the questions we need your participation to answer, so hit us in the comments section with your replies.
