Micromax Yu Yureka

As a subdivision of Micromax, the Yu brand of phones hopes to turn heads and entice buyers with low-cost, high-performance devices. The Yureka is the first handset available from the group. With so many budget options available, what makes this one the one for you? Let’s see how reviewers feel.

At first glance, the phone is rather unassuming. While large the plastic shell is typical of budget phones. Reviewers did love the rear “moonstone” treatment for improving grip and reducing smudges. With its rounded design and thinner 8mm+ profile, they also help to improve the manageability of this otherwise massive phablet. Times of India thought it was easy to use, noting that it, “doesn’t feel humongous.” Unleash the Phones was more positive, stating, “Sure its all plastic, but in terms of build quality, I’d say its the best phone Micromax has made so far.”

Housed in the plastic shell, you’ll find a 5.5-inch IPS display with a resolution of 1280-by-720 pixels. If you’re a detail junky, the screen is a little behind the times, but still adequate for its price market. The resolution shows in many reviews, with NDTV Gadgets saying that it’s, “A little grainy.” Times of India also found the color balance to be a bit off, with colder hues than usual, leading them to say, “We found the tint to be intimidating.”

On the performance front, the Yureka boasts a 1.5GHz 64-bit Snapdragon 615 octa-core processor with 2GB of RAM. No reviews mentioned any issues with the device’s performance, many even trying the latest games and having no issues. Combined with Cyanogen OS 11, the phone appears to provide silky smooth performance. A promised update from Micromax will bring a Cyanogen OS update based on Android 5.0 in the future as well. When this happens, Times of India is concerned about performance, noting, “Phones still need more memory to fully leverage 64-bit capabilities and 2GB would not really suffice.”

If you’re looking to snap pictures while you’re out and about, the handset features a 13MP Sony-powered rear camera with flash and a 5MP front-facing chat and selfie camera. Overall, reviews of the cameras were very positive. Unleash the Phones said, “Camera quality was pretty impressive for a phone in this price range.” Android Guys was on the fence, stating, “The camera focuses swiftly, captures adequate details but the color tone is slightly on the warmer side.” Some reviews noted issues with low-light performance as well, but for a budget phone, it appears to pack quite the camera.

All of this is kept running with a 2500mAh battery. Reviews of battery life were hit or miss. Some claimed all day usage with no problems, others found they were scrambling for the charger before the end a work day. Battery life will likely depend on your data usage and gaming. If you’re a power user, you might consider a battery backup just to be safe.

Other features include 16GB of internal storage with microSD support and Dual SIM support. Forwarding calls from one SIM to another is not supported and one SIM is located behind the battery, making it impossible to hotswap, so planning your network connectivity ahead of time could be important.

While Micromax might not have the best reputation, it appears their new Yu brand could be working to fix some of the concerns. Times of India noted “The build quality and display are not top notch but the performance offered by the phone is superior compared to other phones in the price segment.” NDTV Gadgets was similarly impressed, stating, “The Yu Yureka has a lot going for it, and even its minor flaws can be overlooked considering the amazingly low price.“