SKK Mobile Platinum Review: Precious Metal

Anjie lou delos Reyes
16
SKK Mobile Platinum

INTRODUCTION:


The SKK Mobile Platinum is another flagship from SKK, it was announced last June and it took quite a while before it was officially released. The SKK Platinum has a 5-inch HD IPS LCD screen display and we know that almost all its competitors have smartphone of the same size. Does it stand a chance among a very saturated market?

I had previewed the Platinum when I was able to got a hold of it at SKK SM North Edsa and I was amazed that it had improvements. First was the internal storage, the demo unit had 8GB of memory but the actual production unit has a 16GB ROM. 

Another big surprised was the chipset, the demo unit utilizes MediaTek MT6589 which has 4 cores clocked at 1.2GHz, the box imprint also has the same information, however when I run several benchmarks I confirmed that the chipset is the updated version.

The Platinum is powered by the MT6589T, the T stands for Turbo which translate to higher frequencies of the GPU and CPU. The CPU clock speed is now 1.5GHz as opposed to 1.2GHz, the GPU clock speed is also higher 357MHz versus 286MHz.


Specs at the Box


1.5GHz Quad Core

Key Specs:

  • Dual SIM , Dual Standby
  • GSM/EDGE/GPRS/3G/HSPA+ (Both SIM)
  • 5.0" capacitive HD IPS LCD (1280x720), 5-point multi-touch
  • Android Jelly Bean 4.2.2
  • 1.5GHz Cortex-A7 Quad Core CPU, 357MHz PowerVR SGX544MP GPU MediaTek MT6589 Turbo chipset
  • 1GB of RAM
  • 16GB internal (13.6 GB available), expandable up to 32GB via microSD
  • 13MP auto focus main camera with LED Flash, geo-tagging, HDR, Burst Shot, panorama, photo-sphere, simultaneous still and video capture
  • 8MP secondary camera
  • Video Recording up to 1080p (Rear Camera), VGA for front camera
  • GPS with A-GPS and EPO assistance
  • WiFi 802.11 b/g/n, WiFi Direct, WiFi Hotspot
  • 3.5 Audio Jack
  • Stereo FM Radio
  • Multi Media Player
  • Micro USB 2.0 with OTG support
  • Bluetooth
  • Sensors: Accelerometer, Light, Proximity, Sound 
  • 1800mAh Li-Ion Battery 
  • Air Slide
  • Rich retail package

Main Disadvantages:
  • Battery is relatively small
  • No scratch resistant glass


UNBOXING:

I reviewed several SKK Mobile units, and they are very consistent in paying good attention to their retail package. The box contains the unit, battery, wired headset, charger with detachable USB cable, warranty card & manual. As usual there are freebies such as screen protector and cellphone case.

SKK Mobile Platinum Retail Package

The Platinum has a solid build quality and its looks is similar to HTC Butterfly. It is also slim at about 9mm and even measured 5mm on its thinnest part. I got the white unit and unexpectedly the free case has PINK lining. 
The front is mainly overlaid with the gorgeous 5-inch display, my unit came with screen protector pre-installed plus another spare in the box. You can see all display in the screen even in direct sunlight. There is no branding or SKK marking of any kind in front.

Front

Above the display on the right hand portion we will find the 8MP secondary camera while the light and proximity sensor are to its left. There is a silver lining design on top and underneath it is the loudspeaker grill with red accent. When charging you will notice that there is an LED lighted inside it but it is NOT a notification LED of any kind.

Earpiece, Front Camera, Light and Proximity Sensors

The capacitive keys are below the screen, the menu and back keys are positioned similar to the way HTC does it.

Back, Home, Menu Capacitive Keys

There is the 3.5mm audio jack at the top and the silver lining as well.

3.5mm Audio Jack

The microphone and the micro USB 2.0 are housed at the bottom.

Micro USB port and Mic at the bottom


The volume rocker is placed at the left side while the power button is on the right side.

Volume Rocker at the Left

Both sides have silver meshed lining which adds up to its great design.

Power Key at the Right

The back is made of a high grade plastic wherein the company's logo comfortably located at its center.

Platinum's Back


The 13MP camera is enclosed in a silver ring with red accent and accompanied with a single LED flash.

13MP Main Camera and LED Flash

The Platinum branding is located just above the loudspeaker grill in the lower portion of the back.

Loudspeaker Grill

The 1800mAh battery, micro SD and SIM slots can be found after removing the cover.

1800mAh Battery, microSD and SIM slots


INTERFACE:

During the first use, the OOBE will prompt you to do basic up to advance settings. This is quite useful especially for first time Android users. If you wish to skip you can do it anytime and you can do it again by activating the OOBE app in the app drawer.

OOBE

Advance OOBE

Passed the OOBE, the quick start guide will appear, basically it is a tutorial on basic phone functions.

Quick Start Guide

The SKK Mobile Platinum runs on Android 4.2.2 which is one of the latest Jelly Bean version. The hardware resembles a lot of HTC's design but on the software it has a touch of Samsung UI. The lockscreen is the usual SKK design with "Life Companion" tag line at the top. The good news you can now change the lockscreen wallpaper, the bad news is the tag line remains there.

Unlike other Jelly Bean, the lockscreen is modified a bit. To unlock you can just swipe to any direction, one thing I missed is the ability to go directly to a missed notification and the lockscreen widget. Here there is nothing you can do but only to unlock.

Lockscreen


The homescreen is filled with familiar Samsung look a like widgets and icons. There are five panes, there is nothing you can do to delete or add any additional. There are also five icons at the bottom of the homescreen, the first 4 can be altered depending on your likings while the last one always open the app drawer.

Homescreen Portray

The homescreen can also work in landscape mode if the auto rotation is enabled.

Homescreen, Landscape

The app drawer uses tabbed interface, apps and widget are on separate tabs. The Play Store shortcut is always present at the upper right hand corner.

Default Apps

Default Widgets


You can access the notification panel anytime by swiping one finger from the top of the screen going down. Is has collapsible notification, for example a missed call will have an option to call back or send a message. To access the device settings shortcuts namely Airplane mode, Battery, Wi-Fi, BT, GPS, Data Connection, Data Usage, Audio Profile, Brightness, Timeout and Auto Rotation you need two-finger swipe or press the icon on the upper right most corner in the notification panel..

Notification Area


BENCHMARKS:


This is the first time I owned an Android phone powered by MediaTek MT6589 Turbo and I am impressed that the Antutu scores is much higher than the usual MT6589. Honestly when I run the Anutu I never thought it has that kind of chipset, I thought that the 16386 score is attributed to the updated benchmark version.

Antutu, 16386

The quadrant score is also higher (4684), topping off the HTC One X. The refresh rate is about 57Hz ensuring smooth transition between pages.

Quadrant, 4684

The GPU has also a higher frequency which means a slightly better graphics performance, it scored 52.4 fps in Nenamark2 test.

Nenamark2, 52.4 fps

The Vellamo scores almost catch-up with that of the Galaxy SIII.

Vellamo, HTML 1570 & Metal 489


DUAL SIM FUNCTIONALITY:

If you are using two SIM you can manage it under settings>wireless & networks>SIM management. You can also turn-off each SIM if you want to, other options are below.
  1. Voice Call - you can choose SIM1, SIM2 or Always ask
  2. Video Call - you can opt to select SIM1 or SIM2
  3. Messaging - you can choose SIM1, SIM2 or Always ask
  4. Data Connection - you can choose SIM 1, SIM 2 or off
SIM Management

Both SIM card slots are capable of HSPA+ connections, we will talk about it later when we reach the connectivity section.


TELEPHONY:

The telephony supports smart dialing (both name and number dialing are working) and has speed dialing of up to 8 numbers. Calling the desired person can be done by either the 3 green buttons below, video calling, SIM1 or SIM2 respectively.

Telephony

Under Call Log tab, you can choose which resources to display and filter based on type of calls. Selecting the item in call log will display more information about it and the options like sending a message or make an IP call. During a call, you can add a person to the current call, put it on speaker or record the call.

Call Log and Call Option


PHONEBOOK:

The phonebook can be accessed by either selecting the People icon or the contact tab in the telephony section. Adding a new contact will prompt you to which account you want it to save, in the same manner you can also opt to choose which account you want to be displayed.

Each contact can contain multiple information (except if you save it to your SIM card), merge them if got duplicated or if they exist in different accounts.

Phonebook


MESSAGING:

The messages are displayed according to the latest one that arrives. You can search for a certain message if your list becomes too long by pressing the magnifying lens icon on the upper right hand. You can delete each message by selection or all of them at once. You can also pin a message to your homescreen.

The conversation are color coded, blue bubble for you and gray for the recipient message. Each message is tag with the SIM used and if you got bored with the background you can change its wallpaper under message settings. The handset icon is always present at the upper right hand corner for the call option.

Message Threads

The default keyboard is a QWERTY type with gesture function similar to SWIPE keyboard. The recipient box allows number or name inputs. There is a message box which you can view the inputs up to five lines. If you are done composing, you can send it by pressing the SIM1 (top) or SIM2 button  beside the message box.



Messaging

Pressing the green circle with a cross inside will give you the option to attach almost anything to your message, and if you do that it will automatically convert it to MMS.

New Message

Online messaging or chat applications like Viber, Skype and WeChat work without issue on the Platinum.

On-Line Messaging


EMAIL:

It uses a stock Android email app with the background set to black instead of white. Adding an account is simple, just input your username and password and you are good to go. The number on top of the message lists indicate the unread email, the icons beside it are compose an email, search and folder.

While reading an email you can navigate between messages by the greater than or less than symbol. You can attach any file to your email.

Email

The Gmail app is also present, it will automatically sync the email you use in setting up your Google account. Below the email lists are the icons to compose a new message, search, folders and sync. Navigating between emails is done by swiping left or right. Like the email app it also accepts multiple accounts and sync intervals can be adjusted based on your need.

Gmail


MULTIMEDIA:

One of the main purpose of today's smartphone is as multimedia companion and this option can be a make or break for some.

Gallery:

It houses both your pictures and videos stored on your device, it can be arranged by Albums, Locations or Times. You can view a certain compilation either by Filmstrip or Grid, if you select the latter the videos will appear as live tiles. Pressing the upper rightmost icon will enable the slide show, the camera icon is always present also on that spot.

Gallery

The pictures or videos can be shared anytime via Bluetooth, Email and the likes.

Gallery Options

You can edit a photo using the pre-installed  Photo Editor.

Photo Editor

If trimming a video is not enough, there is a Movie Studio for a more profound option.

Movie Studio

Video Player: 

The video player will list all supported types, it shows important video information like title, size and length.

Video Player
Having a 5-inch vibrant screen makes it pleasurable to watch video on the go, it can play almost any file I throw at it .3GP, .MP4, .FLV even .MKV. The problem with stock video player is that it has limited options and it is a good thing that MoBo comes pre-installed.

Video Samples of Different Format

The Mobo Player supports subtitles, floating videos and more.

Mobo Player

Music Player:
You can view the songs on your device by Albums, Artists, Songs or Playlists in the music player. The equalizer is present in the lower left portion of the interface which you can turn on or off or adjust the way you want it. There will be a small player present at the notification panel once the music player is running and you minimize it.

Music Interface


FM Radio:

A wired headset is necessary for the FM Radio to work, the interface is eye catching. It has a rotary dial in the middle for frequency tuning and for turning the radio on or off. You can record a certain broadcast, use the load speaker and you can save your favorite station at the vacant spot below the interface.

FM

Camera/Video:

The shooting department is equipped with 13MP back camera which is capable of recording 1080p videos while the front facing one has 8MP sensor and can record VGA video.

Camera Options

The interface is stock Android, the shooting modes available are normal, HDR, Panorama, Photo-Sphere and more which you can select on the right side. The upper right corner resides the thumbnail of the last picture taken, below it are the still and video shutter. It supports simultaneous 1080p video capture and 5MP still image (for main camera only).

The GPS tagging is also available as well as several camera and video options. Recording format can be .3GP or .MP4, in order to shoot 1080p video you to to set the quality to fine.

Camera Settings

Sample Shots

Night
Night_1
Night_2
Day
Day_1
Day_2
4x Zoom
4x Zoom_1
Close-Up
Panorama
Panorama-1
Front


Sample Video, 720p - Main


Sample Video, VGA - Front

The image and video produce are acceptable especially under good lighting conditions, but then again do not expect that it can match the quality of branded phones. One downside, (like any other local phone) Panorama images are small in size (unlike branded phones wherein they can capture up to 28MP panorama photo).

Browsing:

The Platinum uses the stock Android browser, it supports up to 16 tabs and has incognito mode. Pages load fast even those with images. Thanks to the high-resolution screen you can easily read the text on the webpage even without zooming.

Browser

Gaming:

Casual games like 4 pics 1 word, Candy Crush Saga, Contra Evolution and Temple Run works like a charm.

4pics1word

Candy Crush

Contra

Temple Run

High graphics intensive games like Asphalt 7, Asphalt 8, Dead Trigger and Dungeon Hunter 4 works great. All types of games load quite fast, no hung ups, no hiccups proving that the updated chipset helps a lot.

Asphalt 7

Asphalt 8

Dead Trigger

Dungeon Hunter4 4

Thanks to the 16GB built-in storage, games with large file can be installed even without the help of a micro SD card.

Phone Storage

One thing I want to point out is that the ROM is divided into two parts, Internal Storage (0.98GB) and Phone Storage (12.68GB) unlike Samsung where both of them are combined as a whole. Therefore the internal storage might be full soon and you cannot move the apps manually to Phone Storage it can only be done if you have external storage.

Move to SD Card


CONNECTIVITY:

The SKK Platinum supports HSPA+ on both SIM slots, you can assign which SIM you want to enable 3G connection by going to settings>wireless & networks>mobile networks>3G service. You can share its fast mobile data connection via USB and Bluetooth Tethering or via WiFi Hotspot of up to 8 users.

3G and WiFi Hotspot

The WiFi is 802.11 b/g/n standards that can detect different channels and support WPS Pin entry as well as WiFi Direct.

WiFi

The micro USB port support on-the-go (OTG) functions, wireless mouse and 16GB thumb drive fully working without issue. The Bluetooth and 3.5mm audio jack completes the list.

OTG Support


SENSORS:

The phablet is equipped with just basic sensors such as accelerometer, light, proximity and sound. All of them are functional tested using Android Sensor Box and CPU-Z.

Sensors


PRODUCTIVITY:

The Documents To Go is there to manage your Word, Excel, Power Point and PDF documents.

Documents To Go

The calendar has Samsung Skins but its functions is just the same with that stock Andorid calendar.

Calendar

The File Manager is there to help you organize your files, its functions are just basic so if you want a more powerful file explorer just download a different one at Play Store.

File Manager

The NoteBook is a note taking app which you can categorize by work, personal, family and study.

NoteBook

The Sound Recording is for recording audios, the format can be .amr, .3gpp or .ogg.

Sound Recorder

The ToDo apps is similar to NoteBook, the main difference is you can set the date and time when you need to be reminded of a specific task.

To Do

The clock has an alarm, stopwatch and timer functions. You can also opt to include different time via the world clock.

Clock

The calculator supports basic function when in portray mode, when you go to landscape advance function will appear.

Calculator



GPS
Google Map and Google Navigation work fine with the help of the GPS, I was able to get quick satellite lock thanks to A-GPS and EPO assistance.

GPS


BATTERY:

With 30 minutes of call, 30 minutes of playing Dungeon Hunter 4 and about 6 hours of standby the 1800mAh battery juice drop down to 76%.




SETTINGS:

The settings are arranged in tabs and divided into four parts, General, Device, Account and More.

Settings

Air Slide

It is a gesture based option where in you can navigate photos and videos in the gallery, move to the next song on the music player, take a picture and switch to the next page of the homescreen. These are done by waving your hand it front of the proximity sensor.

Air Slide

Suspension Window

Once enabled in the display setting, a line full of app shortcuts will appear on the left portion of your screen. Sadly there is no way to select which app should be included on the window.

Suspension Window

DayDream

Works like a screen saver, you can opt to view the clock, colors, photo frame and photo table which is activated in idle mode either when charging or docked.

Day Dream

Data Usage

It shows the data usage you use for both SIM cards, you can also set a limit for a warning to appear.

Data Usage


OTHERS:


Back-up and Restore

Back-up and restore

IMDB

IMDB

Flashlight

Flashlight


Google Apps



Google Apps





CONCLUSION:

Having a MediaTek MT6589 Turbo chipset helps a lot in its performance and fluidity. The 16GB storage comes as a bonus too. The major downside is having an 1800mAh battery which is quite small for a quad-core device.
The SKK Mobile is an all-rounder device, it has a solid build quality, a good design, vibrant HD display and many more, a truly precious metal.

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16Comments

  1. One day event lang po ba yung sale nila bukas?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yap, one day lang po at Robinson's Place Manila, Victory Mall Antipolo, SM Baliuag and SM Marilao.

      Delete
  2. nakabili ako kanina sa robinson ermita skk platinum 1.2gh quadcore cpu nya mt6589 d po sya turbo gpu is powervr sgx544mp 1gb of ram ang cam nya ok naman rear and front ang antutu score nya po eh 13432 base on antutu benchmark ang downside lang talaga nito eh battery need talaga ng powerbank may pre installed na games temple run natest ko super smooth gaming kaya sulit din naman pera ko at take note ang laki ng internal memory nya 12gb plus happy ako dto:}

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. can you post the screenshot of your benchmark? thanks a lot for the info.

      Delete
    2. Anjie, san mo nabili yung SKK Platinum mo?

      Delete
  3. Hi.
    I also bought a black SKK Platinum last Sept 16 at SM Novaliches. Antutu tests showed that it run on 1.2Ghz with the display running at 60Hz. Scores were in the 13K range. It also does not have OTG function. 2 days of use showed the the battery drains very easily. After <5 hours of continuous mixed use - browsing, downloading, watching movies, the battery level was at the 20+% mark.

    When I saw your review above, I went back to the store this afternoon and checked the white unit. To my surprise, it runs on 1.5Ghz and the display at 56Hz. It also has OTG feature.

    Comparing the 2 units, I also noticed that the rear white camera's outside construction is slightly different from the black though the specs were the same - 8MP.

    Based on these differences, I decided to return the gorgeous black unit and got instead the less gorgeous but more powerful and useful white unit.

    Will do some battery tests tomorrow and will post what I see.

    Initial assessment - this is a top notch phone with a practical price tag. SULIT.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Antutu score of my new white unit is 16k+.

      Delete
    2. It seems that white unit has an updated chipset..

      Delete
    3. Price of battery is Php 1K as per SKK staff - too expensive!

      Delete
  4. You might be right Anjie. I was really torn between the black and white but the OTG function on the white unit made me decide to change units.

    Pogi lang talaga ng black unit.

    BTW, there is also a Black unit with red back casig. I saw it at SM Fairview earlier.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wow... i like the design... Nice review po... Thumbs Up..

    ReplyDelete
  6. Dimensions please..

    ReplyDelete
  7. why blCK APEC IS DIFFERENT TO THE WHITE ONE AND IS THERE UPGRADE FOR BATTERY

    ReplyDelete
  8. How much is this smartphone?

    ReplyDelete
  9. Is there a follow up review to this? I'm very interested to know.

    ReplyDelete
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