Orange San Diego Pro Reviews

Handsomely specified and cleverly priced, the Orange San Diego offers a lot of phone for the money. That said, it’s a bit short on style, has a so-so camera, doesn’t support a lot of popular gaming titles and at launch Ice Cream Sandwich is a promise, rather than a reality. However, the last two points are likely to be remedied in due course. The screen is a gem though, performance strong and battery life good. It also renders web pages with truly dazzling speed and can play 1080p video. With this debut handset, the future with Intel and Android is bright... and Orange.

Intel's first Android smartphone proves that the company is more than happy to bring the fight to existing processors. Despite the low price, the admirable performance of the San Diego's Medfield processor is the take-home message here -- which is great news for a manufacturer looking to dip its toes into mobile devices. What we're interested in seeing now is what Intel can make if it really pushes the envelope. How would an Intel-powered, 1080p, flagship smartphone with a more capable camera compare to Samsung's and HTC's best and brightest? In comparison, the San Diego looks plain cheap, lacks Ice Cream Sandwich and has often disappointing camera. If we think globally, the Galaxy Nexus is just $100 more expensive, and represents competition that the San Diego (and its duplicates) would lose out to. However, for this price -- and as Intel's entry-level smartphone gambit -- we were left impressed by both the display and battery. The first Medfield phones may not register on the radar for those looking for the best Android has to offer, but it remains a strong start for Intel to build upon.

The San Diego is a solid Android device that’s worth a lot more than Orange is charging, as least on hardware alone. It’s difficult to find a comparative phone in this price range. The HTC One V comes with Android 4.0 — something that should come to the San Diego at some point — but has a small, low-resolution display and a single-core processor. A better comparison would be the HTC One S, which is by far a more complete package, but also happens to be twice the price in the UK. While If you can deal with the occasional incompatible game, and don’t mind waiting for Android 4.0, the San Diego is a bargain. Intel has now proven that the Medfield platform can power a smartphone, run Android, and sip power effectively. There’s room for improvement in both performance and battery life, but it does well in most Android metrics that we care about. What it needs next is compelling hardware and a strategy to lure developers into ensuring all their apps are compatible with x86 processors.

Intel deserves some credit. The company has been trying to make x86 work in mobile devices for quite some time, and has finally proven that the whole package is possible with good performance sans ridiculous battery consumption. Now the company needs to start working on refining the process and bringing battery drain up to speed with competitors, because they’re certainly not standing still. As for the San Diego, it feels more like an experiment or the result of a happy accident that somehow made it into full scale production for general sale. It’s a quirky little device that features a good screen and decent longevity, but suffers tremendously from Gingerbread and a mediocre camera. Orange, however, has priced it pretty much perfectly. You’ll be paying well above the £199 asking price for phones that rectify those problems, or sacrificing key features and specs if you dip below it. In a nutshell, it’s good value for money if you can live with being stuck on an old version of Android for the foreseeable future.

If you're an existing Orange customer, with moderate monthly needs in terms of minutes and data, and you're looking for a hassle-free upgrade to a capable smartphone, then the Orange San Diego is a good choice. It's cheaper on contract than any phone with a similar screen resolution or processor speed. At £185 However, if you're a heavier user of your phone, and are happy to shop about and get a new number, maybe porting your current one over later, then better handsets are available for similar money on other networks. Namely the HTC One S, which can be had currently for £21-per-month with 300 minutes, unlimited texts and 250MB of data. The One S isn't an obviously superior handset on paper, but the superior feel of its exterior, easier to use buttons, an OLED screen, a better camera, full app compatibility and Android 4, all make it a better choice. The first Intel-powered smartphone is far from a failure then. It's just not quite ready to take over the world yet.

Intel's first smartphone processor makes its debut, and it's a good one too

In short, the Intel debut is a solid phone. It's wildly uninspiring to look at, and the Orange exclusivity is a bind, but we assume that will change in the future. We could live without Orange's customisations, as they make everything very orange without actually improving much. We'd also like to see HD voice and Signal Boost - Orange's best value-added features - but neither is present here. At £200 it isn't an extortionate price either, and on a two-year contract it can be had for about £15 a month, with the usual Orange calling plans. This is certainly nearly as capable as some high-end smartphones, and while it's visually a bit boring, it's quick and likeable to use. We don't see people seeking out this phone, because it doesn't have that "tier one" feel, but anyone who does get one will be very happy with it. Another triumph for Orange, and a great debut for Intel.

It’s too early to make a final judgement on the Orange San Diego, although the evidence of its high price and very limited battery life so far suggests this phone is unlikely to become a must-have handset.