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| Kata i4 Review: Immense, Invigorate, Innovate, Ingenuity |
INTRODUCTION:
The Kata i4 is one of the two current flagship devices of Kata Digital, wherein the other one is the Kata M3. It is their first ever octa core smartphone, the first phone to have 16MP camera and if I am not mistaken, the only one with NFC.
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| CPU Z |
The Kata i4 has a 5-inch IPS HD display powered by MediaTek MT6592 processor with 8 CPU cores clocked at 1.7GHz each and Mali-450MP4 as its graphics processing unit. It comes with 2GB of RAM to handle multitasking properly and a huge 32GB of non-expandable storage.
UNBOXING:
Kata i4 Video Unboxing and Hands-on
The retail package is the signatured Kata white box with a big picture of the unit printed on top. After opening the box, you will be greeted with the Kata i4 wherein the front and back are covered by temporary screen protector. The other things in the box are warranty card, user manual, charger, USB cable, wired headset and ejector pin.
The unit has a well-built unibody design housed in a solid metal frame. It is one of the most sophisticated and well-crafted device from Kata, and it really looks and feels beautiful up close. To know more about the Kata i4, you can watch the video unboxing and hands-on above.
DISPLAY:
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| Display |
It has a 5-inch display with 720p resolution, which translates to 294 pixels per inch, for clearer display and IPS technology for better viewing angles. It has automatic brightness, which adapts properly when the available lightning is changed. In terms of multiple touch support, it can accommodate up to five fingers.
SENSORS:
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| Sensors |
The electronic sensors embedded on the phone are accelerometer, proximity, light, gyroscope and magnetic. All of them works as they should and no issue encountered during test and in actual use.
BENCHMARKS:
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| Benchmarks |
Along with the scores above, we also run NenaMark2 and PC Mark wherein they scored 49.3fps and 2150 respectively. These results are expected for a phone powered by MediaTek MT6592 processor and comparable to other devices that are using the same chipset.
SOFTWARE:
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| Software |
The Kata i4 runs on Android 4.4.2 KitKat and has an almost identical user interface with other Kata smartphones that we reviewed before. If you want to know more about the UI, you can read our review of its predecessor Kata i3s, the Kata M2 or the entry level Kata B1s.
CAMERA and VIDEO:
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| Camera and Video |
Related: Kata F2 Review, Faster Than F1
As mentioned above, the main camera features an auto focus 16MP module accompanied by a dual LED flash while the front facing one has an 8MP resolution. The camera interface is the same Android UI wherein in the shutter buttons are placed at the bottom and the shooting modes are at the top. Speaking of which, there are several shooting modes, namely normal, live photo, motion track, face beauty, panorama and multi-angle view.
Sample Shots:
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| Day Shot |
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| Day Shot with HDR |
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| Noon Shot |
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| Noon Shot with HDR |
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| Day Shot |
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| 100% Crop of the Above |
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| Night Shot |
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| Night Shot with Flash |
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| Night Shot with HDR |
Sample Video:
Sample 1080p Video
The main camera is a capable snapper, it can shoot good photos with nice amount of details and true to life colors. The dual LED flash is strong enough to bring more light to darker subject and environment. It also comes with HDR, however, most of the times, the resulting image tends to be overexposed. Meanwhile, video recording capability is up to 1080p resolution, you can check the quality in the sample above.
GAMING:
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| Asphalt 8 |
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| Batman Arkham Origins |
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| Marvel Contest of Champions |
The 1.7GHz octa core CPU, Mali-450MP4 GPU and the 2GB of RAM are good combinations that can handle casual games and many graphics-intensive titles (like the 3 above) smoothly.
CONNECTIVITY:
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| Connectivity |
The Kata i4 is a single SIM Android phone, it is capable of high speed data connection via 3G, which you can share through hotspot or tethering. It also supports USB on the go function and has an NFC chip for faster exchange of data between two devices. Other connectivity features, include WiFi, Bluetooth, Wireless Display and 3.5mm audio jack.
PRODUCTIVITY:
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| Productivity |
Apart from the usual productivity tools, like Calculator, Calendar, File Manager, Sound Recorder, Clock and To Do, it is also equipped with Evernote for taking down notes, WPS Office for document viewing and editing, and Kata Cloud for managing file across multiple devices.
GPS:
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| GPS |
The phone is able to get a satellite lock in less than 30 seconds when the location mode is set to high accuracy and A-GPS data pre-loaded. In terms of accuracy, it can detect as close as 11 feet.
BATTERY STATS:
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| Battery Stats |
For more than 18.5 hours of standby time, the phone only consumed about 5% of its battery. We also did our usual video looping test and it managed to last 5 hours, 59 minutes and 59 seconds before the battery is completely out. Meanwhile, in PC Mark Work Battery Life test, it scored 6 hours and 19 minutes.
CONCLUSION:
The Kata i4 is one of the most, if not the most, premium smartphone from Kata Digital, it has a solid build quality with nice looking aesthetics and comes with good sets of internals that are capable to perform daily tasks with ease.
PROS:
Octa core processor
2GB of RAM and 32GB of storage
Well-built
USB OTG capable
CONS:
No scratch-resistant glass
Kata i4 Specifications:
- GSM 850/900/1800/1900
- 3G 850/1900/2100
- Single SIM
- 5-inch IPS capacitive HD (1280x720) touchscreen display
- Dimensions: 144.5mm x 71.5mm x 6.5mm
- Weight: 161 grams
- Android 4.4.2 KitKat
- 1.7GHz Octa Core Cortex-A7 CPU, Mali-450MP4 GPU, MediaTek MT6592 chipset
- 2GB of RAM
- 32GB internal storage
- 16MP auto focus main camera with LED flash, 1080p video recording
- 8MP fixed focus secondary camera
- Multimedia player
- FM Radio
- 3.5mm audio jack
- Yamaha speaker
- GPS with A-GPS
- WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
- Micro USB 2.0 with OTG support
- Bluetooth v4.0
- Sensors: accelerometer, light, proximity, gyroscope, magnetic
- 2300mAh Li-Po non-removable battery
- Price: Php7,499
