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Ulefone Armor 7 and 7E test / review

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Published on: 06-06-2020 / Modified: 07-10-2022
When I started testing smartphones, Xiaomi was still an exotic brand that was very little known to the mainstream. Today everyone is talking about Xiaomi so I thought I should explore new horizons and choose a Chinese brand completely unknown in Europe.

The Ulefone Armor 7 is not a phone like the others, it is designed to withstand shocks and the few videos circulating about its solidity are impressive. The Ulefone Armor 7 has a brutal aspect and it is not the kind of phone you will be able to show off with.

Beyond its rough aspect, the specifications are also interesting, if it had a more fashionable look, I could have compared it to a Redmi from Xiaomi.

The Ulefone Armor 7 is available in two versions, the Armor 7 and the Armor 7E. I bought the Armor 7E but the test remains completely valid for the Armor 7 because the phones are not very different.

Manufacturer web site:
https://www.ulefone.com/

Structure of my tests

I test the phones according to a pre-established structure (see below) to provide you with as much information as possible. Unfortunately, this takes a long time. Some tests like network performance tests take several days and for photo tests I sometimes have to wait until the weather is suitable to take pictures in good conditions. I am therefore obliged to publish the tests step by step, so I invite you to come back if the test is not complete at the time of your visit.

Price Ulefone Armor 7E

The list below shows the prices for the Ulefone Armor 7E from more than 50 sites around the world. If you are not satisfied with any price, you can subscribe to a price alert to be the first to be notified when the price drops.

Timeline

12/05/2020 Purchase of Ulefone Armor 7 / 7E on Banggood
05/06/2020 Receiving the phone and start of this review

Why this phone?

I usually test phones that have a good sales potential because since I am alone and not sponsored, I have to make the right choices to hope to make some money. The Ulefone Armor 7 doesn't really meet those conditions and yet I took the risk of testing it.

The Ulefone Armor 7 / 7E is a phone designed to be shock and water resistant, so it is aimed at people who are in an activity that could damage the phone. It is therefore not the kind of phone to be used for showing off. There are many videos on Youtube where the phone is mistreated, here is one from Gearbest:



Beyond the brutal aspect of the telephone, it is solidly equipped with elements that could be of interest to another type of public. It has a large 5500 mAh battery, it has a Mediatek processor offering a performance superior to a Redmi Note 9, it uses a Samsung photo sensor (the same as the Redmi Note 9), it is compatible with many frequencies, ... etc... If we disregard its exterior appearance, this phone could very well compete with very popular devices such as those of the Redmi range.

Unpacking

The box of the Ulefone Armor 7 is much bigger than the boxes I'm used to receive, it's also heavier. The phone alone weighs almost 300 grams but the box is also full of accessories.

The box contains the phone, a charger, a reinforced usb cable, a usb to jack adapter, a normal usb to c type adapter, a usb to usb c type adapter, a strap to hold the phone and a user manual.

The design of the box does not leave too much doubt about what to expect from the phone, I felt like unpacking a toolbox.

First configuration

The startup of Ulefone Armor 7 does not deviate from the standard Android configuration, Ulefone will not try to sell you an additional product, the startup procedure goes straight to the point.

Finish

The Ulefone Armor 7 / 7E is not a phone like the others, it is very heavy (almost 300 grams!), it is very thick and seems to be protected by an armor. Ulefone does not make elegant phones, these phones are made to resist to shocks. The phone has a rough look but the finish is impeccable, nothing is left to chance. Ulefone fully assumes its position and the phone gives an impression of solidity.



The 4 corners of the phone are protected by a hard coating to absorb shocks. The top of the phone is only interrupted by a small watertight opening to allow the infrared port to be used.



The bottom of the phone follows the same logic as the top with the corners protected by a shock-proof coating. Only one USB C port interrupts the phone's path. This USB port is water resistant like the rest of the phone.



The sides of the phone are reinforced with metal and the configuration of the buttons is quite atypical. On the left there is a SIM drawer and a quick access button a bit like some Samsung models.

On the right side, there is a side fingerprint sensor like on the Redmi Note 9s and it works really well. The usual power and volume buttons are a little bit higher. These buttons are quite small and circular. Luckily they are easy to distinguish by touch.



The back of the phone is protected by a uniform plastic coating. The photo sensor is almost invisible, unlike most phones today. The triple photo sensor is accompanied by 5 LED diodes so that the phone can be used as a flashlight. These diodes are very powerful.

At the bottom of the phone there is a notch to attach a strap, so you can attach your phone to your work clothes.



The 6.3" screen occupies only 72% of the front of the phone, so the borders are larger than average but it is a choice to protect the screen. The screen still offers an important comfort of use.

Specifications

The information below comes from the Device Info HW application. The application provides detailed technical information about the tested phone.I have tested the 7E version and you will find all the features on the following pictures:



If I disregard the phone's peculiar design, its specifications put it on an equal footing with more popular devices like the Redmi Note 8 / Redmi Note 8 Pro.

CPU / GPU Performance

The Ulefone Armor 7 is equipped with a Mediatek Helio P90 processor and an IMG PowerVR GM9446 graphics processor.

I was positively surprised by the performance of this phone because basically, this kind of phone is not designed to play or use complex applications. The Ulefone offers a very good price/performance ratio which puts it at the level of a Redmi Note 8 Pro for the CPU, it is however less performant for the graphics part but will allow to play most of the games accepting a lower level of graphics.

There is no difference between the Armor 7 and the Armor 7E in CPU/GPU, it's mainly in memory but given the price difference between these two models, I recommend the Armor 7E.

Benchmark Antutu/3DMark

As I wrote above, I didn't expect this phone to offer a good level of performance, yet I got a score of 210,000 points on Antutu, this puts it at the same level as a Xiaomi Mi 9 Lite.



I got a score of 1187 points with 3D mark, this places the Ulefone Armor 7 at the level of the Redmi Note 8.




Gaming

To test the performance in game, I download the mobile PUBG game and evaluate the in-game experience, graphics level and depth of vision. This game is quite demanding and should help you evaluating the performance of a phone.PUBG Mobile runs without any problem on the Ulefone Armor 7E, the graphics are not at their highest level but the game experience is quite comparable to a Redmi Note 9.

Network performance

The Ulefone Armor 7 / 7E offers very wide frequency coverage, so you can use it just about anywhere in the world.


Signal 4G (before december 2020)

The ability to pick up the network correctly is an essential element for a phone but it is only very rarely measured. To measure a phone's ability to pick up the network, I perform a large number of measurements on the same cells to be able to compare phones under similar conditions. The signal is measured in dBm, a value of -90dBm indicates a worse signal than -70dBm. These measurements are therefore taken under real conditions and not in a laboratory, they are not scientific but give a good indication of performance.


I obtained an average score of -98.7 dBm over 1000 measurements, this signal level ranks the Ulefone Armor 7 in the average. What is expected of a phone of this type is that it is also able to call in good conditions and the Ulefone does what is expected of it.

Signal 4G (from December 2020)

I decided to change the methodology for measuring the network because I noticed that the configuration of the mobile network changes over time. This makes it more difficult to compare phones because the conditions are no longer exactly the same.

To overcome this problem, I set up a device that captures 24 hours a day about ten parameters from the mobile network (ex: cell id, rssi, rsrq, snr, frequency,...). I then place the phone next to the device for 24 to 48 hours taking the same measurements so that I can compare them.

Overview of the phones tested with this methodology



Download/Upload speed

To test the download speed, I have identified some 4G cells offering good performance where I test all my devices several times to see what download and upload speed they can achieve.

I got a comfortable speed of 60 Mbps download and upload. The phone can probably go higher but the antennas I had access to during this test did not allow me to go higher.

Wifi performance

To test a phone's ability to receive the network properly, I take measurements near my router and then remotely (and always at the same place). This gives me an average in dBm where a value of -90 dBm indicates poorer performance than a value at -30 dBm.


Wifi signal

I measured a signal of -28 dBM near the router and -74 dBm remotely, these are scores in the average, so the Ulefone is neither good nor bad.





Download/Upload speed

To test the speed in Wifi, I connect to my router in 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz (if available) and use the Ookla application to measure the speed.I got a download speed of 320 Mbps with the Ulefone Armor 7, that's an excellent score. I didn't expect this kind of phone to be efficient at wifi level at all, it's a surprising result.

GPS performance

To test the quality of the GPS signal I use the Offline Maps application and I make the same train trip in pedestrian mode. Why? In pedestrian mode, the GPS does not artificially correct the signal to stick to the road, it has no markings, so you can see the actual position. I then use an application to measure the accuracy of the signal.

The Ulefone Armor 7's GPS accuracy test shows that this phone picks up the signal very quickly and achieves a very good level of accuracy. The signal also remains very stable, so the Ulefone Armor 7 is a good phone for GPS.

A road test also shows that the Ulefone deviates very little from the trajectory.

Battery range

[battery product="ulefone-armor-7e" capa="5500" lg="en"]

The Ulefone 7E is equipped with a 5500 mAh battery, this is the largest battery I've tested so far and no surprise, this battery will allow you to last several days of autonomy.

If I look at the results of my tests, I see that despite the good battery life, the Ulefone does not have an efficient power management. If I compare it with the Motorola G8 Power which has a 5000 mAh battery, the Ulefone holds 19 hours with 50% brightness where the Motorola holds more than 40 hours with less battery capacity.

Photo camera test

To test the quality of photos produced by a phone, I do a technical test (resolution, sharpness, chromatic aberration,...) in studio (identical conditions) to evaluate the technical part objectively. From the second half of 2020, I built my own laboratory to take completely objective technical measurements. I then take pictures in real conditions to see how the camera performs. I then evaluate these photos according to my criteria but I publish the photos so that you can evaluate the result according to your criteria.

Hardware

The Ulefone Armor 7 / 7E is equipped with a 48 million pixel Samsung S5KGM1 sensor, this sensor is used in many other phones. This sensor is capable of producing good photos but the final result always depends on the processing applied to the photo.

Default app

The default photo application of the Ulefone Armor 7 is a bit atypical like the rest of the phone. It offers a limited number of choices, which makes the application easier except for one thing: the choice of the sensor. Most phones allow you to switch from one sensor to another by choosing the zoom level directly from the main screen, this choice is not available on the Ulefone. You have to go to the settings and choose the image size to change the sensor. This is far from being practical because the image size tells you nothing about the focal length used.

The photo application seems to apply a color treatment to the photos that makes the colors cooler and it's a pity because this sensor has already proven itself in other cameras.

I tried Gcam and OpenCam to check if the color problem was still present and unfortunately it is the case. You can however use settings in these applications that will alleviate the problem.

Photo quality

Photo test / studio

To test the Ulefone Armor 7 in the studio, I mainly focused on the different photo modes available. So I took again the same scene without filter, with/without HDR, in 64 million pixels, ...



The different photo modes don't change much to the basic image, the colorimetry is sometimes different, but this is not obvious.

I find that the sensor of the Ulefone has interesting optical qualities because the photo offers a good level of sharpness, the blurs are not too aggressive and I don't see any distortion despite the use of a 2.8mm sensor. The only big defect of the image is the too cold coloring, this problem is even more visible on pictures taken outdoors.



Photo test / sunny

First example: ƒ/1.7 1/5618 2.8 mm 118 ISO


Exposure: slightly underexposed
Sharpness: good
Colours: cold
Depth of field: good
Distortion: none
Chromatic aberration: none
Vignetting: none
Digital noise: none

The ultra-wide angle module of this phone produces technically correct photos if you look at elements such as sharpness or depth of field. Unfortunately, there is an element that spoils everything: the color temperature is much too low and completely distorts the photo. This is a great pity because with the right colour temperature, the photo would have been good.

Second example: ƒ/1,7 1/6369 2,8 mm 125 ISO


Exposure: slightly underexposed
Sharpness: good
Colours: cold
Depth of field: good
Distortion: none
Chromatic aberration: none
Vignetting: none
Digital noise: none

Here too it is the same and it is the same for all the photos that will follow. The color treatment of the Ulefone is bad. It's a problem related to the photo processing because when I force a higher color temperature, the colors come much closer to reality, so the problem can be circumvented by the PRO mode or another application but it's not normal. A phone should be able to take correct pictures without the user having to make any effort.



Photo test / cloudy

Not yet available / tested

Test photo / night

Not yet available / tested

Video quality

Stabilisation

The Ulefone Armor 7 doesn't have video stabilization, so the shakes are clearly visible as on the following video:


Video normale conditions
The Ulefone Armor 7 produces videos with colors that are too cold, it's the same problem as for photos.



Video low light

Not yet available / tested

Audio quality

To test the quality of the phone's audio output, I connect the device's audio output to a measuring tool, then play sounds on all frequencies and measure the differences between the original sound and the sound produced by the phone. In this way I measure the phone's ability to correctly reproduce all sounds.
The Ulefone Armor 7 is not a phone designed for music, so I didn't expect to discover an extraordinary phone for the audio quality test.

In reality, the Ulefone is a phone in the average price range. It produces an acceptable sound but if you push the volume up, the sound will be of poor quality. The level of distortion is very important.

Frequency Response

This test is intended to test the device's ability to correctly reproduce all frequencies. The white line in the middle of the graph is the ideal situation and the other colors come from tests on different phones. A deviation from the reference line indicates a deviation from the ideal situation. To see good sound at all frequencies, it is therefore necessary to get as close as possible to the reference line.

The Ulefone Armor is capable of reproducing most of the frequencies correctly as long as the volume is not pushed to the maximum. It detaches itself more quickly from the reference in high-pitched sounds.

Dynamic Range

This test is designed to test a phone's ability to play sounds at different volume levels. Here too, the phones must be as close as possible to the reference.

Volume plays a big role in the ability to reproduce sound correctly. The sound produced by the Ulefone is not very powerful and when pushed to the maximum, the distortion is very high.

Noise Level

This test aims to identify if the device under test is able to reproduce sounds without too much noise. A high score indicates a low parasite rate, a lower score indicates a higher presence of parasites.

The sound quality of the Ulefone is similar to what I have been able to test in the same price range, the difference is mainly in the power of the sound where the Ulefone is far below average.

As I mentioned above, this Ulefone was not designed to be a music phone and therefore it does not deliver a high level of performance but this is quite normal.

Screen quality

To test the screen, I use a colorimetric probe that measures the color accuracy of a screen, as well as other parameters to see if a screen is able to correctly reproduce an image. I also test the brightness level to determine if the screen will be able to display an image in full sunlight.

Colorimetry



The Ulefone Armor 7 screen does not produce correct colorimetry, the colors are too cold. I measured a temperature of 7500k for the whites, it's much too high and it makes the whites a little blue. The other colors are on the other hand more faithful to reality. In the end I get a dE of 5.7, it's not the best screen on the market but it's far from being the worst. This screen is in the average.



Brightness / Contrast

I measured a brightness of 361 cd/m by setting the brightness to the maximum, this brightness can still increase when the phone is exposed to strong light. The display is readable in bright light but it would need just a little more brightness to be usable in all conditions. Screen protection also seems to play a role in light reflection.

The Ulefone Armor 7E's screen offers a contrast ratio of 1455:1, which puts it in the average range of screens of this type.

Biometry

Not yet available / tested

Operating system

The Ulefone Armor 7 runs Android 9, it's quite rare to still find phones launched in 2020 that run Android 9. This shouldn't stop you from taking full advantage of the phone but as this is the first Ulefone I've bought, I don't know if Ulefone offers a good update tracking. It will take a few more years anyway before Android 9 is completely discontinued.

Encoutered bugs

Not yet available / tested

Accessories Ulefone Armor 7E

Compare Ulefone Armor 7E with the others

Test / Review conclusion

The Ulefone Armor 7 / 7E is an atypical phone which is mainly aimed at a public looking for a solid phone. The Ulefone is heavy, it is imposing and looks like a phone from a science fiction movie from the 80s.

It's not a phone you should buy for its photo or video quality, but it offers everything a modern smartphone can offer like a large screen, a good battery life, it runs on Android and will meet most of your daily needs.

I was positively surprised by this phone because it is reliable and powerful. Its network performance is good, it picks up the GPS well and the phone is responsive on a daily basis.

I have not tested this phone in detail as I usually do because some tests don't make much sense. By buying this phone, you are not buying a fashionable object, you are buying a work tool.

Strengths

Solidity
Autonomy
powerful LED
Big screen

Weaknesses

Photo/video
Weight/Height

Alternatives to this product

Not yet available / tested

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