Recently, it has become increasingly difficult to surprise users, however, some manufacturers still succeed. A prime example of this is Fly Tornado Slim. Even now, the smartphone remains attractive both in terms of design and price. Characteristics? You can’t tell everything in a nutshell, so let’s move on to the review.
I just want to make a small disclaimer. The smartphone went on sale at the end of last year, and soon it is expected that the model will be discontinued and will begin to disappear from store shelves. Nevertheless, even after such a significant period of time, the device remains relevant, especially if you take into account the price, characteristics and unique feature of the device - its record thickness. It so happened that the sample reached our editorial office just now. As it turned out, the device is very interesting and you need to talk about it, even if the product is sunset.
We will go over the key points, highlight the pros and cons, and, perhaps, complete the story about the device with a short but capacious conclusion. Go!
Meet by clothes, see off by mind. We can’t get away from this system, so we start with packaging and packaging. The box is made stylishly, not at all in the spirit of the company's products. With her appearance, she seems to say that not another brick on the Android OS is hidden inside, but something stylish, at least with a hint of premium.
Equipment:
- telephone
- Micro USB cable
- power unit
- headset
Interestingly, the user manual lists the battery as a separate item in the package. Actually in Fly IQ4516 it is non-removable, so how can I check “whether all the components are in place” (the phrase is all from the same instructions) - I personally do not understand.
Design
Tornado Slim strongly stands out among dozens of its competitors from the middle price segment, not only due to its record low case thickness (5.1 mm), which, of course, is impressive in itself, but also due to its appearance in general. A side frame made of smoothly polished metal, glass with protection against scratches and fingerprints in front and behind, a beautiful play of light on the edges - usually all these are the advantages of flagship products.
Do you know what is the main and far from obvious difference between expensive devices, and even then, far from all, from cheaper smartphones? As a rule, flagships play, so to speak, ring in the hand. This can be said about the iPhone of all generations starting from the 4th, about the Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge, the same is true for the Sony Xperia Z3 and other similar devices. It so happened that Fly Tornado Slim wormed its way into one row with them - this is its big and, perhaps, main advantage.
Let's take a look at the dimensions of the device by comparing them with the main competitors.
| Length | Width | Thickness | Weight | |
| Fly Tornado Slim | 139,8 | 67,5 | 5,15 | 95,5 |
| Lenovo S90 | 71,7 | |||
| Apple iPhone 6 | 138,1 | |||
| Sony Xperia Z3 | 146,5 |
I hope you noticed that the smartphone is not only very thin, but also very light. Weight below 100 grams quite unusually felt in the hands.
For a very long time I have not seen phones with such a mass. Perhaps, since the reign of all sorts of Siemens and Motorola.
I will not describe the elements of the appearance of the smartphone. Everything is clearly visible in the photos below. Let's focus on some key points.
Touch keys for system control are located under the display. They are slightly tight to the touch. During the three-week operation, I have repeatedly encountered the fact that they reacted to touch from the second, or even the third time. However, the nice thing is that they are not devoid of backlight. At night, you will not need to blindly poke and look at what you finally clicked on.
Positioning the power button on the left side was certainly an original solution. This is probably what took me the longest to get used to. I am right-handed and the thumb in my case fits exactly on the right side, which in our case turned out to be empty. Stupor.
In fact, the right side is not completely empty. On this side is a tray for a SIM card (one). I am glad that the manufacturer left the Micro SIM form factor and did not use the Nano card standard that was not needed by many.
As you already understood, there is no support for memory cards. So, Tornado Slim is not suitable for those who like to store everything in the world on their device: photos from the previous vacation, the last season of the Game of Thrones, music downloaded from hares (which, despite the attempts of Roskomnadzor, are still missing) and the like. This entire warehouse will have to be stored on a USB flash drive, since it connects and is successfully recognized by our Fly without any problems. We buy and go.
Behind, in the upper right corner is the peephole of the main camera. She does not stick out above the body (hello, Apple!) And this is a victory, comrades.
Closer to the bottom is something for which you can safely go to the store and buy this smartphone. The inscription "Made in China" is in Russian. No "MadeinChine" or "Design California" for you. Give ... inscriptions in Russian!
By the way, do not worry about the absence of the PCT sign familiar to the Russian person on the case. Now instead of it, as in many other products, the designation EAC is used, which means Eurasian Conformity or Eurasian conformity. In other words, the presence of this emblem means that the goods are subject to circulation on the territory of the Customs Union, which includes such countries as: Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and more recently Armenia and Kyrgyzstan.
Right there, closer to the left edge, there are slots for a multimedia speaker. He cannot boast of any particular loudness. Missing a call on a noisy street costs nothing.
In the settings, you can set the vibration response to any touch on the touch screen. For such a thin and light device, you do not expect the vibration to be strong at all. It seems as if the apparatus can crumble from it. In this regard, it would be nice to be able to adjust the vibro intensity to your habits and needs. Still, you expect that the vibration response will be subtle, slightly noticeable, that is, consistent with the design of the phone. But no!
At the end of the section about appearance, I want to tell you one important thing.
The smartphone is very slippery due to the use of glass on the front and back panels.
And if in the hands it still lies quite well, then on the table it begins to crawl in different directions by itself. I confess, several times the phone fell to the floor from the audio speaker (ordinary computer acoustics), despite the fact that I put it exactly in the center of the top cover. By the way, the phone withstood such a repeated crash test (height - 1 meter, parquet floor) with amazing durability. I can’t say anything about tiles or asphalt, but I wouldn’t try if I were you.
In nature, there are only two colors: black and white. Both solutions look stylish and interesting in their own way.
Specifications Fly Tornado Slim IQ4516
The hero of our review is not just a beautiful shell, not some kind of dummy. It is equipped with quite a decent Mediatek MT6592 processor with eight Cortex-A7 cores and a frequency of 1.7 GHz. The chip was created using a 28-nanometer process technology and was introduced to the world at the end of 2013. Freshness, of course, is not the first, but this does not mean that everything is gone.
- video chip Mali-450 MP
- 1 GB RAM (469 MB available on blank device)
- built-in memory 16 GB (data storage 9.76 GB)
- battery (lithium polymer) 2050 mAh
- OS Android 4.4.2
- connectors: Micro USB (OTG), 3.5 mm audio output
- sensors: accelerometer, gyroscope, light and proximity sensors, compass
- weight 95.5 g
It would seem that one should not expect breakthrough performance from the built-in hardware, but in combat conditions the device showed its best side. For example, the process of playing Real Racing 3 was marked by brakes only when I took screenshots for the review. As part of the usual gameplay, the picture was very smooth, there were no frame failures.
But the behavior of the device in Asphalt 8 somehow did not convince. Both medium and high graphics settings did not give high FPS. Nevertheless, you can play on any settings, there are no brakes.
With the animation of the interface, everything is not so rosy. For the most part, there are no brakes and critical lags, but there are visible slowdowns in the settings menu. You leaf through the list, and it trembles like an aspen leaf.
I would add another gigabyte of RAM to the device. Still, one gig for a universal device is not enough. Browser pages constantly have to be reloaded, and with real multitasking, our hero begins to noticeably think.
It is clear that you should not expect from this device support for data transmission over short distances (NFC) or 4G Internet speeds. Although, according to the trend of recent months, many even relatively low-end devices are already starting to receive an LTE modem.
The rest of the network capabilities of the device look like this:
- 2G, 3G (HSDPA+ up to 21 Mbps)
- Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n) 2.4 GHz
- Bluetooth 4.0
- GPS, A-GPS
- FM radio
Display
The Super AMOLED screen is very easy to distinguish from IPS. The last category of displays is distinguished by more natural color reproduction and the absence of raised contrast, which cannot be said about our copy.
- 1280 x 720 pixels (ppi)
- screen size 4.8''
- protective glass Gorilla glass 3 (front and back) with an oleophobic coating
In addition, viewing angles also suffer from the use of these "Samsung" matrices.
At sharp angles, a clearly visible greenish tint appears, but the picture is not inverted.
A clear plus of Super AMOLED is reduced power consumption. More black in the interface automatically reduces battery consumption.
In the sun, the image, of course, fades, but readability is fully preserved. Fortunately, the light sensor works for the most part correctly. By the way, the brightness of the display is sufficient. In my practice, there were devices with more powerful illumination, but there was no point in this. Is it possible to blind the punks in a dark alley, that is, use it instead of a gas spray.
cameras
In this case, you can paraphrase a well-known saying and say the following: “They say either good things about a bad camera, or nothing at all.” And everything positive in our case is the official specifications of the photomatrix, that is, the theory.
- 8 megapixels - main camera (3264 x 2448 pixels)
- 5 megapixels - front (2560 x 1920 pixels)
- Full HD video recording
- led flash
- autofocus
In practice, nothing good can be said about the quality of photographs. They are fuzzy, sometimes blurry, the exposure is determined poorly - in general, we are dealing with a complete set of a conventional, average camera. Judge for yourself.
The originals of all images can be downloaded from here for a detailed view in a relaxed atmosphere.
The device can shoot video in Full HD resolution at 30 frames per second. The quality of the video stream is good. Usually, devices take good pictures, but they don't shoot videos well. Here everything is somehow the other way around. In general, the sample is in front of you.
Battery life
Frankly, I expected that the smartphone would completely fail in this aspect and would not be able to work even one light day. I was misled by the thickness of the device, namely, the lack of understanding of how a more or less capacious battery can be installed in this case. Fortunately, I was wrong.
Lithium-polymer battery with a capacity of 2050 mAh is able to extend the life cycle of the device up to one and a half, or even two days. We are talking about the average mode of operation (more than three hours of screen operation, all wireless interfaces are included). In conditions of aggressive operation, the device will quietly survive until late in the evening. A very good indicator for such a baby.
There is a power-saving mode that limits the maximum frequency of the processor, but I can not confirm its effectiveness. I did not notice any special changes with or without it.
Shell
On top of Android 4.4.2, a proprietary shell is preinstalled. It doesn’t bring anything particularly new, but it’s just like an alternative launcher for those who are already fed up with the standard look of Android KitKat.
There will be no update to Android 5. However, you can install an alternative MIUI 6 firmware and the phone will play in a new way.
Let's get back to what we have.
I don’t know what could be the matter, but during testing I repeatedly encountered a “fall” of running applications.
You calmly climb Yandex.Metro and then the utility suddenly crashes, and the system reports an error. I repeat, this happened more than once, but, fortunately, not at every turn.
For some reason, several times I was unable to make a call. The phone simply refused to dial the number, nevertheless, diligently trying to do this for almost a minute. The sore was quickly cured by a normal reboot.
I didn’t manage to notice any other crime, well, except for counting a ton of garbage applications that arrogantly occupy a significant part of the phone’s memory.
Some of them, for example, UBANK even managed to send me a notification once with an offer of some kind of loan. This is no gate! Fortunately, most of these programs can be removed or at least stopped from the Applications menu.
In the parameters, you can choose a larger font, but there is no particular sense in this. If the menu items are well distinguishable, then it will be difficult for people with imperfect vision to read them, so to speak. There are no standard fixes for this problem.
The developers have provided several gestures that can make familiar operations more convenient, but they take some time to get used to. For example, double-tapping the sleeping screen wakes it up, and the "C" symbol drawn with your finger on the display in sleep mode automatically launches the photo application. You get used to the first quickly, and to use the second, you need to constantly remind yourself of this.
Outcome
Retail Fly Tornado Slim Can buy for 12,990 rubles. There are better deals, and there are more expensive ones. However, by and large, it makes no sense to scour the Internet in search of a really good price - everything is about the same.
The advantageous difference between Fly Tornado Slim and other similar smartphones is that this champion (in case thickness, of course) is easily accessible to any user in our country. This is not some semi-mythical Chinese from the news feed, for which you need to wait from two weeks to a month for delivery from Ali or Gearbest. He is here, nearby, in a communication salon around the corner and with a normal, full-fledged guarantee (2 years).
However, the phone still found flaws. The most critical is the software, which even since the end of 2014 (when the device went on sale) has not been able to finish up to a 100% stable state. Rare, but still present crashes of applications, communication errors when making calls - all this obviously slightly spoils the impression of the device. However, it turned out that this is a kind of payment for a relatively low cost and a unique case. Either that or not. I will express myself in a slightly different way: it is not a fact that in the same Vivo X5 Max S or ZTE Nubia My Prague it will be different.
Already on sale Price: 12 990 rubles
The thickness of Fly Tornado Slim is only 5.15 mm. These figures allowed the smartphone to get into the Guinness Book of Records and became its main feature. The record has already been broken, but the fact remains: Fly is very thin. The smartphones of the editorial staff lost the comparison:
Lenovo S90, Fly Tornado Slim, Nexus 5
The “record” millimeters are underlined by the overall minimalistic design: the smartphone is covered with Gorilla Glass 3 on both sides. The white color variant that arrived for review has a pleasant golden hue on the edges. Matte thin metal in profile really looks great. Minus design: this combination wins when the surface is in perfect condition, and stains and fingerprints on smooth glass are inevitable, so you have to keep the smartphone clean so that the creators' idea is noticeable.
Fly Tornado Slim 
There is another big but. The manufacturer sent the phone with a crack on the back cover. Apparently, this instance has already been tested and tested the resistance of Gorilla Glass 3 to scratches and damage. As a result, the personal impression of the appearance was greatly spoiled.
It is pleasant to hold the thin and very light (only 95 g!) Fly Tornado Slim in your hand. Due to the thickness, or rather its absence, the smartphone can be operated with one hand, despite the size of the screen. The unusual weight and width of the edge confuse only at the very beginning, when it seems that the smartphone can be broken in one motion.
You get used to comfort quickly, but the graceful shapes of the Fly do not always mean convenience. For example, a smartphone lying on a table is not so easy to pick up. Your fingers have nothing to grab on to, you have to develop the habit of lifting, moving and intercepting the phone. But in pockets Fly Tornado Slim is almost invisible.
The power and volume buttons are located on the left side. The distance between them is optimal so that you can understand which of the buttons you are pressing without looking. On the bottom edge connectors: 3.5 mm for headphones, microUSB-connector. The microSIM slot is hidden on the right.
The 4.8-inch SuperAMOLED screen with HD resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels (306 ppi) shows an excellent picture with rich colors. You won't be able to change anything in its settings other than the brightness, but you don't have to - the images look great. The auto-tuning mode changes the brightness of the screen depending on the lighting, and there is no desire to interfere with the operation of the display - the parameters selected by the manufacturer are already good. In the sun, the Fly Tornado Slim display behaves with dignity, and in most cases it is not necessary to cover the screen with your palm.
Great display picture The Fly interface differs from other Android devices in the absence of an application menu, all icons are on the work screens. To get to the application, you need to flip through the pages or group frequently used icons into one folder, as is already done for Google applications. The icons themselves have a discreet design that maintains minimalism in the design of a smartphone.
Google apps are collected in one folder Due to the weak external speaker in public transport or on a busy street, the Fly Tornado Slim signal is not audible, so if you prefer to carry your smartphone in your bag, you risk missing a call even at full volume. Movies will also have to be watched in a quiet room in order to make out what the characters are talking about. At the same time, there are no complaints about the phone speaker, the audibility is excellent during a conversation.
There is an 8-megapixel camera on the back, and pictures and videos can be safely recorded to the strengths of the smartphone. Management of shooting parameters is easy, the result is worthy. But what surprises Fly Tornado Slim is the front camera: this is a real gift for selfie fans.
The front camera of 5 megapixels is an indicator worthy of the level of flagships and much more powerful smartphones. If you need a smartphone for selfies and photos, Fly Tornado Slim will easily "make" the rest of the deals in price.
A 2,050 mAh battery is hidden under the non-removable cover - the maximum that one would expect from this size, and the smartphone remains active longer than you might think. In a quiet mode of operation, the charge lasts more than a day, the video battery eats up the fastest. The battery will allow you to watch videos during the day or even choose a movie without being tied to a power outlet, but watching a video on Fly Tornado Slim for a long time is inconvenient, despite the image quality. Literally after 10 minutes, the back cover heats up to such an extent that it becomes uncomfortable to hold the smartphone.
An eight-core processor with a maximum frequency of up to 1.7 GHz and 1 GB of RAM promise that the smartphone will work quickly in multitasking mode, but in fact the declared parameters do not always justify themselves. Often the smartphone responds with a delay. During the delay, you have time to think that the touch to the screen was not recorded, but Fly Tornado Slim responds until you press it again. Moreover, such delays are unstable and do not appear constantly.
The settings work the slowest (and this is not about changing parameters, but simply about opening the menu and navigating through functions) and the telephone part itself. A “sleeping” phone, occupied with at least a couple of applications, “woke up” several times with obvious reluctance. Below are the test results in parrots.
General characteristics
Type
Deciding on the type of device (phone or smartphone?) is quite simple. If you need a simple and inexpensive device for calls and SMS, it is recommended to stop the choice on the phone. A smartphone is more expensive, but it offers a wide variety of options: games, videos, the Internet, thousands of programs for all occasions. However, its battery life is significantly less than that of a regular phone.
smartphone operating system Android OS version at launch Android 4.4 Case Type Classic Control touch buttons Number of SIM cards 1 SIM card type
In modern smartphones, not only conventional SIM cards can be used, but also their more compact versions of micro SIM and nano SIM. eSIM is a SIM card integrated into the phone. It takes up almost no space and does not require a separate tray for installation. eSIM is not yet supported on the territory of Russia. Glossary of terms for the category Mobile phones
micro SIM Weight 96 g Dimensions (WxHxD) 67.5x139.8x5.15 mmScreen
Screen type color AMOLED, touch Touch screen type multi-touch, capacitive Diagonal 4.8 inches. Image size 1280x720 Number of pixels per inch (PPI) 306 Aspect Ratio 16:9 Automatic screen rotation There is scratch resistant glass There isMultimedia features
Number of main (rear) cameras 1 Resolution of the main (rear) camera 8 MP Flash rear, LED Functions of the main (rear) camera autofocus Video recording There is Max. video resolution 1920x1080 Front-camera yes, 5 MP Audio MP3, FM radio Headphone jack 3.5mmConnection
Standard GSM 900/1800/1900, 3G Interfaces
Almost all modern smartphones have Wi-Fi and USB interfaces. Slightly less common are Bluetooth and IRDA. Wi-Fi is used to connect to the internet. USB is used to connect your phone to a computer. Many phones also have Bluetooth. It is used to connect wireless headphones, to connect the phone to wireless speakers, and to transfer files. A smartphone equipped with an IRDA interface can be used as a universal remote control. Glossary for the category Mobile Phones
Wi-Fi 802.11n, Bluetooth 4.0, USB satellite navigation
Built-in GPS and GLONASS modules allow you to determine the phone's coordinates from satellite signals. In the absence of GPS, a modern smartphone can determine its own location based on signals from the base stations of a mobile operator. However, finding coordinates from satellite signals is usually much more accurate. Glossary for the category Mobile Phones
GPS A-GPS system yesMemory and processor
CPU
Modern phones and smartphones usually use special processors - SoC (System on Chip, system on a chip), which, in addition to the processor itself, houses the graphics core, memory controller, I / O device controller, etc. Therefore, the processor largely determines the set of functions and device performance. Glossary of terms for the category Mobile Phones
MediaTek MT6592, 1700 MHz Number of processor cores 8 Video processor Mali-450 MP4 Built-in memory 16 GB RAM 1 GBNutrition
Battery type Li polymer Battery capacity 2050 mAh Talk Time 8 h Standby time 140 h Music listening timeIt is positioned as "the thinnest smartphone in the world." Like, even in the Guinness Book marked. Smartphones and thinner ones have already been practically announced ... But that's not the point. It's still insanely loud.
Subconsciously, my body is waiting for a dirty trick from such devices. Gift-for-not-to, you have to pay for everything. Only what? Small battery? Or a bad camera? As my experience shows, there is always a place to plow, there would be a mood and hands growing from the corresponding place.
But no. It seems that is not the case. Everything works as it should for Tornado Slim. In strict accordance with the declared tactical and technical characteristics. No one has plowed anything anywhere. Almost.
Short, formal...
Brief conclusion
Honest thin smartphone. 5.15 mm - and no protruding parts. Characteristics are not flagship - no LTE, no water protection, not enough memory (either one or the other). The battery is not the most outstanding - more simply did not fit. On trifles, of course, I’ll grumble. But, in general, definitely offset. A very nice smartphone.
Archaeological excavations
In appearance and in most parameters, we have a copy of Gionee Elife S5.1. But only on a different chip. Gionee has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 with LTE support. Fly stuffed eight cores from Mediatek without LTE into their Tornado. When they just announced Tornado Slim, I remember looking at its characteristics for a long, long time and trying to understand who was crazy here. But no. Nobody got off. Really a lot of cores and no LTE. Strange decision.
Unpacking, first use (video)
Demonstration of work (video)
Price
Equipment
Headphones, charger, Micro-USB cable, a paper clip to pull out the SIM tray, a little bit of paper.
Appearance
With the exception of the android buttons, Slim's appearance is fine.
The device is available in two colors, white and black.
Very light, 95.5 grams. Slim (5.15 mm). Rather narrow, but not too short (139.8 x 67.5 mm). Non-separable.
Two glasses - front and back. What's funny, the back glass in my copy was covered with a film. Factory or not - it is not clear. It is glued quite well, although not ideally. In any case, I quickly peeled it off, because scratching spoils the appearance of the device. And I don't like tape at all.
The film is scratchy - and the back surface turned out to be rather dirty, this is not a screen for you, there is no oleophobic coating here. However, for a white device, this is not scary, all the same, no fingerprints are visible. With black, I suspect it will be sadder.
The sides are silver, metal.
Logically, a device made of such materials is supposed to be slippery. Oddly enough, it is not felt, he does not seek to jump out of his hands. Either my hands have been too sticky lately, or it has something to do with the very low weight. But unlike, say, the Sony Xperia Z3 (also a glass miracle), which I carefully dug into with all my fingers, this was not the case here.
Let's go over the edges and surfaces.
The top is empty.
Bottom - Micro-USB, 3.5 mm audio output, microphone. If you look carefully, you can see that the audio output is slightly unbalanced, shifted towards the rear surface.
Left buttons (volume rocker and power button). True, I'm more used to them when they are on the right, but this is not critical.
On the right - a tray for Micro-SIM (1 piece, removed with a supplied pin or a standard paper clip).
Rear camera, flash, noise-canceling microphone, main speaker. The camera was shoved into the very corner, where it is convenient to accidentally cover it with a finger. Unusually, the camera is covered with the same glass as the rest of the back of the smartphone. Flash - no, not closed. Perhaps even a little sticky. But there are literally some hundredths of a millimeter, this does not affect the thickness and evenness of the smartphone.
Front - the screen, of course. Above it is a speaker, front camera, sensors. Below it are touch android buttons ("Menu", "Home", "Back").
The buttons are light gray, with a weak backlight. With room lighting, the backlight hides the buttons extremely "competently" - they become completely invisible. In the dark - yes, in the dark, such a backlight is just in place. But since Since I rarely use phones in the dark, I ended up turning off the backlight altogether, since there is such an opportunity.
The signal LED is nowhere to be seen. It's a pity.
Entrails (iron)
Chipset MediaTek MT6592M, 8 Cortex-A7 cores with a frequency of up to 1.7 GHz, Mali-450 video accelerator. "Iron" is already quite familiar, well studied. No surprises. The test results confirm this. The smartphone is cheerful and nimble.
Synthetic tests:
RAM 1 GB. Free at best about half. Greedy, of course. I would like to see all the same two gigabytes. However, the screen resolution is not extreme, there is no special garbage and giant third-party shells in memory. So in most cases this volume is enough.
Built-in flash memory - 16 GB, there is no support for memory cards. Of the available memory, almost 10 GB are allocated for the internal memory card, almost 3 GB more for internal storage. It would probably make more sense to combine these two sections, as it is now fashionable to do. But then the ability to connect to a computer in Mass Storage mode would disappear. In principle, if you do not get too carried away with heavy toys, the indicated volume is more or less enough.
A set of sensors is normal, no frills. Accelerometer, gyroscope, compass, proximity, illumination. There is no thermometer or pressure gauge.
Communication with the outside world
3G works without problems.
Wi-Fi b/g/n, single band. Sensitivity is average.
Bluetooth version 4.0.
The smartphone can connect to a computer via USB both in MTP mode and as a flash drive (Mass Storage).
The ability to connect external USB devices (USB-OTG) is.
There is no video output (MHL). NFC is not.
Screen
Super-AMOLED screen with a diagonal of 4.8 "with a resolution of 720x1280 (i.e. HD). Personally, I do not like AMOLED screens too much. But, in general, the screen, of course, is very good. The resolution for this diagonal is enough, the sensor competent (10 simultaneous touches, if you're interested) Good oleophobic coating (it's not very difficult to cover the screen with fingerprints, but they are easily rubbed off).
With measurement of brightness the nonsense turns out. If you evenly fill the entire screen with white (white picture), then the maximum brightness is about 285 cd / m2. Even if you crack, you won't get any more. Tolerable, but not too much.
But if you reduce the size of the white image, and fill the rest with black, then the brightness of the white increases dramatically. The maximum that I was able to measure is 475 cd/m2, which is a lot.
Color temperature - 9300K, frankly, not ideal.
Work with gloves is supported. Super? Yes. With the current weather, it is very handy. Alas, a barrel of tar in a spoon of honey - the under-screen android buttons are not trained to respond to gloves.
Operating system and other software
Android 4.4.2 KitKat operating system, slightly modified with a file in place. The settings menu has been redesigned, there is no separate list of all-all applications (they are necessarily distributed across desktops). But, in general, we have the usual familiar Android.
There are quite a few pre-installed software. Fortunately, most of it can be removed. Annoying exceptions - Taxi, uBank...
Battery
111% of the standard, according to my test results. With a battery capacity of only 2050 mAh - quite a decent result. Nothing outstanding - remember that the Xperia Z3 has as much as 179% (3000 mAh). But not a nightmare like Fly IQ455 Octa EGO Art 2 (86%, 1800 mAh).
Fly IQ4516 Tornado Slim as a phone
No problem.
Fly IQ4516 Tornado Slim as a flashlight
The flashlight from the camera flash turned out to be extremely bright. Already 14 lux when illuminating an object from a distance of 180 cm. Not a record, but still that infrequent case when a smartphone is really quite possible to use as a flashlight.
Fly IQ4516 Tornado Slim as photo and video camera
The main camera is eight-megapixel (3264x2448), with autofocus. To be honest, I had fears that everything would be bad, bad - that it would not be possible to cram a decent lens into such a thin body. So the fact that you can look at the pictures without a shudder, I write down with a clear conscience
Smartphones have ceased to amaze owners. The era of rapid growth and technological experiments ended five years ago. Nevertheless, among the mass of the same type of models there are still interesting samples. One of these is Fly Tornado Slim. This is the thinnest smartphone sold in Russia. Its thickness is only 5.15 mm.
While Apple and Samsung are fighting each other for the title of the manufacturer of the coolest devices, the brands of the so-called second tier are achieving the greatest success in the Russian market. This is largely due to price competition, but there is another important fact. Previously, Asian companies used cheaper materials in the construction of their products, but now the border between them and top-level vendors has completely disappeared.
For example, the new Fly Tornado Slim smartphone is comparable in feel and build quality to the iPhone 6 and. The design of the device uses a metal frame, tempered glass - everything is the same as that of the most stylish and fashionable devices of our time. Moreover, Fly Tornado Slim turned out to be the thinnest smartphone on the Russian market. Its thickness is only 5.15 mm.
In functional terms, the novelty also turned out to be a very worthy option. The device is equipped with an eight-core MTK6592 processor, running the Android 4.4.2 operating system. In addition, there is a 4.8-inch Super AMOLED screen covered with Gorilla Glass 3, 8 megapixel camera with Full HD video recording and electronic image stabilization, 16 GB of internal memory.
Let's deal with all the pros and cons of this device.
Specifications
id="sub0">- Screen: 4.8" Super AMOLED, 1280x720, capacitive, multi-touch (up to 5 touches), protected glass Gorilla glass;
- Processor: Octa-core MTK6592M ARM Cortex-A7, 1.7GHz;
- Graphics accelerator: Mali-450 MP2;
- Operating system: Android 4.4.2;
- RAM: 1 GB;
- Flash memory: 16 GB;
- Mobile communication: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz; 3G UMTS 900/2100 MHz;
- Mobile Internet: GPRS Class 12; HSPA+ 21 Mbps, HSUPA 5.76 Mbps;
- SIM card type: micro-SIM
- Wireless interfaces: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n 2.4 GHz, Bluetooth 4.0;
- Navigation: GPS, A-GPS;
- Cameras: main - 8 MP (autofocus, flash), front - 5 MP;
- Sensors: illumination, proximity, accelerometer;
- Battery: 2050 mAh, non-removable;
- Dimensions: 139.8 x 67.5 x 5.15 mm;
- Weight: 95.5 grams.
Dimensions. Contents of delivery
id="sub1">Fly Tornado Slim comes in a miniature cardboard box, painted in white and black. The profile of the device with information about the thickness of 5.1 mm is applied to the box. Such packaging should emphasize the peculiarity of this model.
In addition to the smartphone itself, the box contains:
- USB charger adapter
- PC synchronization cable
- Stereo headset with 3.5 mm mini-jack connector with earbuds
- Lockpick for the SIM card tray
- Instruction
- Warranty card
At the first acquaintance with the device, a small thickness (5.15 mm) catches the eye. At the moment, this is the thinnest smartphone in Russia, and the thinnest available for sale in the world. At the same time, the dimensions of the smartphone are 139.8 x 67.5 mm, and the weight is 95.5 grams.
If we talk about the convenience of wearing tight clothes in the pockets, then there are no problems with this. A small thickness allows you to comfortably carry the phone in the pockets of jeans, trousers, shirts. Well, the glass and metal frame will not allow the body to bend.
Design, construction
id="sub2">The appearance of Fly Tornado Slim is stylish and, at the same time, very simple. The front and back panels are made of glass, and the body frame is made of metal. The presence of metal and glass in the design is perfectly perceived both visually and tactilely.
There were no scratches or scuffs on the glass during testing. The most amazing thing is that the gloss does not collect dust and fingerprints. Of course, there are traces, but thanks to a special coating, they are not visible, or they are very weakly visible. This is a plus.
The design of the model reminded me of the iPhone 6 and Sony Xperia Z3. These models also contain metal and glass, similar dimensions and shape. The main thing that Fly has achieved is the solidity of the case. The feeling of high reliability and high-quality assembly does not leave you. Thanks to the smooth contours on the sides, the smartphone fits perfectly in the hand.
By the way, the back surface of Tornado Slim is perfectly flat. It doesn't have any camera bumps like the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.
On sale you can find two versions of the smartphone: in white and black. I got the white version.
As for the placement of individual elements, almost the entire front of the device is occupied by a touch screen with a diagonal of 4.8 inches. Above it is a speaker hole. To the right is a camera for video calls, to the left - all kinds of sensors and sensors: motion sensor, light sensor, G-sensor. Speaking of the display, I would like to note the thin bezels (only 3 mm) on the sides of the screen. They emphasize the manufacturability of the device. Not every flagship has this.
Below the display are three touch buttons. They are responsible for launching the manager of running applications, returning to the home screen and returning one level back. It is worth noting that these buttons are not highlighted. It's a little confusing at first, but over time it becomes familiar.
On the right side is a slot for a microSIM card. You can open it with the lockpick that comes with the kit, or with a paper clip.
The power button, as well as the screen lock and the volume rocker are located on the left side of the Tornado Slim. The buttons move hard, but very clear. I did not find any discomfort.
At the bottom there is a 3.5 mm hole for headphones, as well as a standard microUSB connector for charging and connecting to a computer.
The speaker for external calls and audio playback is placed on the back of the smartphone at the bottom. The volume reserve is enough to hear a call in winter clothes or in a handbag. There is also a vibrating alert.
On the back of the smartphone, there is a main 8 megapixel camera lens and an LED flash. Due to the design features, the battery is non-removable here.
In general, the build quality of the Fly IQ4516 is at the highest level. The smartphone is assembled at a factory in China.
Screen. Graphic features
id="sub3">Tornado Slim uses a 4.8-inch AMOLED touchscreen display with a resolution of 1280x720 pixels (320 pixels per inch). The matrix boasts good color reproduction, colorful and contrasting images. The pluses of the display include large viewing angles and deep blacks. High-quality glass is used to protect the display, which reliably protects the screen from damage. By the way, during the two weeks of the test, there were no scratches on the screen, despite the extreme finding of the device in the place with the keys in your pocket.
The display resolution allows you to comfortably view websites in their original form. Clicks are processed instantly, the sensitivity is at a high level.
Menu. Interface and navigation
id="sub4">Tornado Slim runs on Android 4.4.2 operating system. kitkat. At the same time, some of the icons and interfaces were specially adapted for Fly. So, the usual menu item with all installed applications is missing here. Programs are placed immediately on the working screens.
As for the update, there is a corresponding item in the menu. This will allow you to receive software and operating system updates, if any.
It so happened historically that Fly preinstalls a large amount of useful software on its smartphones. Tornado Slim did not deviate from this rule.
Among the most useful applications, I note: the ES Explorer file manager, FM radio, Opera browser, Navitel maps (in a test copy - without a license), 2GiS directory, Change Yo! Voice (changing your voice in a telephone conversation) and Melodies (preparing your favorite tracks to be set as a ringtone). There is also access to the social networks VKontakte and Odnoklassniki, the Megogo movie service, the Promsvyazbank mobile bank and the universal Ubank for making payments, and the intaxi taxi call service. There are also several games: Green Farm 3, Danger Dash, World at Arms. In addition, the smartphone has programs for reading books, newspapers, news feeds with the possibility of purchasing them, as well as numerous Google and Yandex services.
By the number of applications running on a smartphone out of the box, the device can be praised. Most need to be eaten. The rest can be downloaded from Google Play.
Multimedia features
id="sub5">The app for playing music is called "Music" . Here you can view and listen to audio tracks. The following file formats are supported: MP3, AMR, AAC, AAC+, e-AAC+. There is sorting by artists, albums, genres, composers.
The sound quality is good. For headphones there is an option BesAudEnh, with it the sound becomes richer, the bass is better heard.
The package includes a regular headset. Thanks to the 3.5 mm jack, you can pick up any headphones.
The "Video" item displays videos made both by the device's camera and downloaded from the Internet.
Smart Features: Gesture Control
id="sub6">Fly Tornado Slim has a function to control gestures from the screen lock mode. Accurately for this reason, the “Gesture recognition” item appeared in the settings. A total of eight gestures are programmed. Three of them remain unchanged: double-tap - wake up, up - unlock, down - launch the phone application. For five more actions (gestures “c”, “w”, “e”, “m”, “o”), you can choose your own option. At the same time, the user can launch almost any application or function. This is very convenient, since the standard KitKat launcher offers to quickly launch only the camera, phone, or browser, and even then you need to first tap the power button.
Photo and video capabilities
id="sub7">The main camera in the smartphone is 8-megapixel with autofocus and flash. As I noted earlier, it does not protrude from the case. This is a plus. However, due to the compact size of the matrix, the photomodule demonstrates average image quality. This is a minus.
There are several shooting modes in the device settings: standard, live photo, motion tracking, beautiful face, panorama.
You can also select the automatic scene mode, or use the preset ones, including: night, sunset, party, portrait, sunset, etc. In addition, there are settings for exposure, white balance, image quality, you can shoot series, set a shutter delay and put geotagging. There is also an HDR mode.
As for video, the camera shoots at a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels at up to 30 frames per second. The quality is three. The picture looks worse than in cheap devices from Samsung, Apple, Sone, HTC or Nokia.
Front camera 5-megapixel. It takes good photos, but their quality depends on the lighting, when it deteriorates, it decreases.
Navigation and maps
id="sub8">The smartphone has a navigator with GPS support, A-GPS. "Cold" start - 5-6 minutes, "hot" - up to 15 seconds. To work with maps, the following programs are installed in the device: "Maps" and "Navigator" from Google, as well as Navitel, however, without a license. Personally, I had no problems with the navigator.
Memory and speed
id="sub9">The Tornado Slim uses the MT6592 platform with an 8-core 32-bit processor with a maximum frequency of 1.7GHz and Mali-450 MP graphics. The amount of RAM is 1 GB. Built-in flash memory 16 GB, of which about 10 GB is available to the user. There is no microSD card slot on the device. This is a minus.
If we talk about the perception of the speed of the device, it is fast enough. I did not feel any slowdown in the interfaces. Opening third-party applications takes 1-2 seconds. These are average performance indicators. Although or work significantly faster.
On a smartphone, you can watch videos in FullHD without any glitches. The preinstalled codecs allow you to play videos in popular .avi and .mkv formats, but not all audio codecs are supported. Watching videos from YouTube is carried out without delays and freezes, no frame drops were noticed. In the pre-installed games, the smartphone also performed well.
Communication options
id="sub10">The device works in 2G (GSM/GPRS/EDGE, 850/900/1800/1900 MHz) and 3G (900/2100 MHz) networks. I did not notice any problems with confident reception. There is no LTE support here.
In addition, the smartphone supports Bluetooth version 4.0 for file and voice transfer. There is Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11 b/g/n. The device, of course, can be used as an access point or modem. In the settings, this item is listed as "Modem Mode". There is WiFi Direct.
Working time
id="sub11">To be honest, the small thickness of the Tornado Slim body did not leave hope for a long battery life. In fact, everything turned out not so bad.
