Test Nubia M2 Lite: a beautiful Christmas gift

Of course it is not new, since released in June 2017, but by its price, it is now a very good deal.

Indeed, at the beginning of December 2018 we can find this Nubia M2 Lite at just under 109 Euros including tax on some well known online shops.

But you will tell me “the price does not is not everything, must it still be good. ”
This is exactly what we will check together throughout this test article.

The best offers of the moment:

1. Aesthetics: an elegant apparatus

The Nubia M2 Lite is available in two colors: Champagne and Black Gold.
It is this last variation which is the object of this test.

We are thus in the presence of a mobile with an anodized aluminum case in black and sprinkled with golden touches.

The front is occupied by a 2.5-inch 5.5-inch 16: 9 screen occupying 70% of the front surface.
A very average score at a time when some competitors are massively adopting 18 : 9, but which, however, has nothing dishonorable thanks in particular to relatively thin lateral edges.
On the other hand, large bands take place above and below the display.

The latter is surmounted by an earphone, a front photo sensor and sensors of brightness / proximity.
At the bottom, we find the 3 back-lit sensitive keys “Return, Home and Menu”.
Note that the Back and Menu keys can be swapped, and also serve as notification LEDs.
The Home button integrates the fingerprint reader.

The back side is occupied by a simple photo sensor surrounded by a red border with an LED flash and the Nubia mark.

The upper edge accommodates a noise reduction microphone, while on the opposite side there is a mini-jack port, a micro USB port and the loudspeaker grille.

The left side houses the two volume keys, while on the right side is the SIM / micro SD slot (2 nano SIM or 1 nano SIM + 1 micro SD) as well as the button of ignition.

The telephone is pleasant to take in hand but proves relatively slippery.
The quality of manufacture is exemplary.

 Dimensions: 155.7 mm long x 76 mm wide x 7.5 mm thick | Weight: 164 grams

2. Image and Sound : a beautiful image in HD

Behind a Corning Gorilla pane, we find a 5.5 inch slab for which the manufacturer has retained the IPS technology.

This screen adopts a 720p HD resolution (we are here on the entry level) able to satisfy many users with a density of 267 pixels per inch.
Only a trained eye can distinguish the pixels at first look.

The colors are beautiful and the screen is bright enough to be viewed outdoors
The viewing angles are wide open.

We will enjoy watching videos on the screen of this smartphone.

The sound is provided by the speaker located on the lower edge of the mobile.
With 112 db measured at the output, it is relatively powerful but lacks bass.

On appeal, the sound restored by the listener is very satisfactory, we understand his correspondent.

Finally, in terms of the mini-jack, listening to the headphones is nice without being really exceptional.
But let’s not forget that we are on an entry-level device.

• Screen: 5.5 inches (IPS) with resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels, ie a density of 267 dpi.
• Sound: 3.5 jack and mono speaker. Classic earphone

3. Performances: sufficient

On a smartphone sold a little more than a hundred Euros, it should not of course expect performance ouf!

Yet, with scores of just over 49,700 points on Antutu and 5150 points on 3D Mark (Ice Storm Extreme), the Nubia M2 Lite manages to run most of the major applications and 3D games present on the Play Store.
PUBG Mobile launches well in low graphic quality and remains quite playable.

To animate its M2 Lite, Nubia uses a processor 8 hearts Mediatek signed.

Coupled here with 4GB of RAM, this chip offers the smartphone a great reactivity everyday.

The storage of this test copy is based on 32GB of internal memory of which 2 1.6GB actually available to the user
This memory can be quickly expanded by adding a micro SD card. The latter then occupies one of the two SIM slots.

A 64GB version of this mobile also exists

 

• Antutu Benchmark (v7.1.1): 49,749 points | The 3D Mark (Ice Storm Extreme): 5150 points
• Processor: Octa-core Mediatek MT6750 (4 x 1.5GHz + 4 x 1.0GHz) | RAM: 4GB | Processor graphic: Mali-T860MP2
• Storage Memory: 32GB of memory that changes to 21.6GB during the first start.

4. Connectivity: rather complete

 

This Nubia M2 Lite is of course compatible with 4G LTE networks, here category 4 (150 Mbps in download ).
We are here in the presence of a “global” version, which means that we have the B20, the 800 MHz band.
By cons, no B28! This is not really dramatic, since the 700 MHz band is still very rare.

Of course, we also have 2G and 3G +

Of course, this terminal has all the other expected connections: WiFi (b / g / n / ac), Bluetooth (4.1) , (A) GPS / Glonass / BDS, micro USB (OTG), 2 SIM slots, a micro SD port, a mini-jack port, etc.
However, no FM radio.

Regarding network hooks, they are good, whether in 2G, 3G, 4G or WiFi.
For GPS, in an urban condominium courtyard, it took 32 seconds for Nubia M2 Lite before getting a first fixed (6 satellites).

Concerning the sensors note in particular the presence of a fingerprint reader located on the front of the mobile.
It is efficient and fast, to unlock the smartphone in the twinkling of an eye

There are also other sensors such as an accelerometer, a compass and the usual sensors of brightness / proximity.
On the other hand, we will have to do without the gyroscope.

• SAR (Specific Absorption Rate): 1.21 W / kg. This is a very high score for a mobile released in 2017.

5. Operating system: a customized Android

The Nubia M2 Lite runs under Nubia UI 4.0 based on Android Marshmallow 6.0.
Well no, no Android Oreo and not even Nougat for this Chinese smartphone.
It will be one of the concessions to make if you decide to buy this smartphone, but still we will be entitled to the “split screen” function with Android 7.

We are here in the presence of a Chinese-style interface, without application drawer All screens are desks.

Nubia UI remains aesthetically sober and pleasant to use.
It is full of original features some of which exploit the edges of the screen.
For example, by touching the upper and lower corners, it is possible to launch a predefined application
By touching both edges at the same time, you can also increase or decrease the brightness.

A finger up and down from the Back or Menu keys will bring up the control center.

Among the applications added by the manufacturer, we have in particular:

– MP3 player
– Tools: Recorder, Calculator, Flashlight, Gestures de bord , Backup of data (cloud)
– Lock screen: allows to lock the screen, but not to unlock it
– Super Snap (screenshot by area)
– Agenda
– Video
– News Republic: a news feed
– Kika Keyboard: offers a virtual keyboard based on emoji and gif
– Notepad
– Touch gestures: screenshot with Three fingers
– Double instance: allows to clone some applications
– Accelerate: allows to clean the RAM

On the other hand, we regret the absence of double tap.

• [1 9459010] Operating system: Android Marshmallow 6.0 | On the surface: Nubia UI 4.0

6. Usage: correct photos, good autonomy

I will not make you an affront to return to the basic uses of a smartphone worthy of the name.
On the other hand, I am going to dwell on the 2 points which still allow today to distinguish the different mobiles between them: the photo quality and the autonomy.

The manufacturer chose to equip his M2 Lite a single 13 megapixel rear photo sensor opening at f / 2.2
The photo application offers many shooting modes.

In automatic mode, in a bright environment, shots made are quite satisfactory.

 

The back sensor is capable of 1080p shooting at 30 FPS.

At the front, the 16-megapixel photo sensor opening at f / 2.0 makes beautiful self-portraits possible.

 

This Chinese smartphone has a battery of 3000 mAh allowing it to consider a day and a half of reasonable mixed use.

With the charger of 5V / 1.5A supplied in the box, a full charge will take about 2 hours.

 

A 60-minute YouTube video (all connections on, 50% sound, 50% brightness) will have consumed 11% of the energy in the battery, which is really good.

• Back-end camera: 13 megapixels with autofocus and LED flash
• Battery: Fixed 3000 mAh.

In conclusion: an excellent quality-price-performance ratio

Of course, this Nubia M2 Lite is not new and it is even still animated by an Android Marshmallow 6.0, but it presents a very beautiful design, with premium materials and benefits from an excellent quality of presentation.

It also offers a beautiful image and performances allowing to shoot most of the big 3D games.

The shots made with this Chinese mobile have a satisfactory quality and we are even entitled to a mini-jack port and a micro SD port.

At less than 110 Euros including tax, this Nubia M2 Lite is a good buy.
And as Christmas is approaching, why not put it at the foot of the tree ..