Three days. That’s how long Acer claims its new Liquid Zest Plus smartphone can last you, although realistically you’re probably looking closer to two with normal use. Nevertheless, by the standards of 2016, this is not something to turn your nose up at.
For the magic to work, Acer has placed a 5,000 mAh battery inside. For context, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge contains a 3,600 mAh battery. Acer’s phone also has the advantage of fast charging, the result of which should require much less charging time.
The phone itself is nice; nothing incredibly beautiful, but it shows that Acer gives more love to the design than before. This is a mid-range phone in 2016, with a decent-looking 5.5-inch IPS screen, 2 GB of RAM and Android 6.0 Marshmallow on board.
Acer has also talked a lot about the 13 megapixel camera, of which it is especially proud. The camera uses a sacred technological trinity of laser focus, face detection and motion-sensing autofocus to beautify photos.
I found the contrast detection to be the most noticeable effect, and overall it’s a good camera, although I would need to take it out of the living room to see how well it really does. The phone also has HD DTS sound, so you will get solid sound from these speakers.
This stuff is nice, but my favorite feature of the phone is the optional front cover, which can be added or removed by swapping the back cover of the phone. The cover has a long ovular space in which certain notifications and commands will appear.
It’s not a new concept, but it’s smart and it looks really nice on the Zest Plus. I could change my music, adjust the volume, see the weather forecast and get calendar updates – all this looked vibrant on the front of the phone. You can also read the messages, although given the lack of space to read them, you will probably open the cover anyway.
I have bought various Acer phones over the years, but this is the first time I would be really happy to use one regularly. It looks good and its battery life sounds fantastic, but its mid-range specifications mean that it is not the fastest phone on the market. The so-so IPS screen holds it back a little too.
We don’t have a price yet for the Liquid Zest Plus, nor any confirmation of where it could be launched. Expect to see it pop up this year though.
Although this one is clearly about the battery, the Zest Plus is also a beautiful phone. Its mid-level specifications take it from being a flagship, but if you look in this part of the market and find that battery life is your biggest problem, this could be a good choice. If it ever happens in your country, it does.
