Gionee’s Elife S7 skips chasing the slimmest crown for features (hands-on)

BARCELONA — Chinese company Gionee may not be on most of our radars unlike the more established brands such as Xiaomi, Huawei or Lenovo, but the company’s claim to fame last year at Mobile World Congress was its super slim 5.5mm thick Elife S5.5.

Since then, the phone has since been beaten at the thinnest game by other Chinese manufacturers such as Oppo with its Oppo R5 (4.85mm) or Vivo, with the X5MAx (4.75mm). Now, the chase for slimness crown seems to be something of a Chinese thing (though Apple has always managed to shave away the milimeters for each new version of its devices), Gionee has decided to sensibly stick with a sensible 5.5mm frame this time around while opting to put in better components.

Price wise, Gionee’s latest flagship product won’t be cheap. The company plans to sell it a whopping €399 — that converts to around $450, £290 and AU$575. It will launch in Europe first and will be sold online, and Gionee plans to sell the handset globally.

 

Design

 

Much like other super-slim phones, the Gionee Elife S7 feels barely there in the hands, and it feels pretty fragile. However, the company says it’s not worried about it bending. The handset is clad in Gorilla Glass 3 on both the front and the rear, which gives it a very premium feel. The aluminum alloy frame is airplane grade and features a nice-looking “U” groove design that doesn’t dig into your palms. It also gives you a grip, which helps with the slippery glass back.

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https://www.cnet.com/reviews/gionee-elife-s7-preview/