Jul 25

NUU Mobile X3 Unlocked Dual SIM Android Smartphone
NUU Mobile’s Dual SIM Unlocked 4G LTE Android Smartphone

Want a 4.5” Android KitKat unlocked smartphone for less than $200? That is where NUU Mobile comes into play with their dual SIM 4G LTE enabled X3 smartphone.

Overview

Traveling overseas or the country next door can be tough with a locked smartphone and most carrier’s expensive roaming data rates. NUU Mobile’s X3 Android 4G LTE ready Dual SIM phone reaches to max the connection speed in any country you are in. Pop your home country SIM in and enjoy 4G LTE data from nearly any GSM provider. It comes unlocked at an excellent value at $149.99 from Amazon. Once you land in the next country, find a local SIM and install it in its second slot. Easily switch between the two via an Android app to avoid high roaming charges.


NUU Mobile X3 Android Smartphone Unboxing

Disclosure: I tested a loaner X3 smartphone for review from NUU Mobile. I was not compensated for this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. All photos are courtesy of NUU Mobile.

Unlocked phones from alternate brands continue to innovate in emerging and midrange markets. NUU Mobile’s approach to the Dual SIM smartphone market is smart. The form factor of the X3 is similar to other 4.5” smartphones like the Lumia 635.


Microsoft Lumia 635 Unboxing

Screen brightness is on par with other budget smartphones. It adjusts backlight performance based on ambient light. I enjoyed watching short videos that loaded quickly over a 4G LTE connection on the X3.

KitKat 4.4 is preinstalled and all features worked well enough with its Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 1.2GHz quad-core processor and 1GB of RAM. A NUU Mobile Android firmware update app is included to help notify users of when new software becomes available. It has already received a firmware update during the review term and the company is promising a Lollipop 5.0 update in the summer of 2015.

NUU Mobile X3 Smartphone Side
NUU Mobile X3 Smartphone Side

Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 series smartphones are typically Quick Charge 2.0 compatible, so it may be possible to charge this faster than other emerging smartphones. Quick Charge 2.0 backup batteries from Aukey can also be found on Amazon.

Testing its micro Dual SIM card functionality was easy. The settings for each SIM are pre-programmed for multiple US carriers. Carrier APNs can be entered manually when using a SIM from outside of the US. There are screen icons showing connection and signal strength for each SIM. The first micro-SIM card slot offers a 4G LTE connection, while the second slot is for 2G data connections.

Calls were clear in multiple test environments, however carriers are mostly responsible for that. Your experience with call clarity will depend on the signal strength available.

A maximum 4G LTE cellular connection speed of 150Mbps, the relatively low 245 pixels per square inch 960×540 resolution screen, 1GB of RAM and 2.4GHz only WiFi shows where resources were saved with this model. However, the value for what you do get and 4G LTE is impressive.

NUU Mobile X3 Smartphone Back
NUU Mobile X3 Smartphone Back

Final Thoughts

At the price of $149.99 on Amazon, the NUU Mobile X3 is a smart purchase for someone who needs dual SIM card slots and 4G LTE. Two SIM card slots helps to take the second phone out of your pocket and still keep work and personal separate. Going international with this should help to limit the use of expensive data while roaming.

Included in the package is a 1A USB wall charger, a Micro USB cable, a wired headset a quick start guide and a removable battery. The screen is bright and the photos it takes are nice enough for selfie uploads. If the pixels per square inch were slightly more and if the screen had more resolution, it would have been rated at four stars. I understand though that the company needed to save money in the build somewhere.

Rating: 3.5/5

Pros:

  • 4.5” qHD Screen
  • Dual Micro SIM Slots
  • Removable 2,000 mAh Battery
  • microSD Expansion Slot Up To 32GB
  • Unlocked For Any GSM Carrier
  • 8MP Camera With Low Light Sensor

Cons:

  • Low screen resolution
  • Thicker Than Other Budget Smartphones

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