Hi all! Tired of Xiaomi and Meizu, well, no matter what, these brothers come up in any conversation about smartphones.

Sometimes you want something different, something that doesn’t set your teeth on edge, something fresh, but still functional and not too expensive.

This time, seeing a discount on a frameless smartphone Sharp Aquos S2 in the online store [link], I decided it would be nice to admire it in person.

Let's start, as usual, with the configuration. The box is quite impressive; inside, the smartphone itself, a usb-usb type c cable, a power supply and an adapter from type c to mini jack are neatly packed (yes, there is no headphone jack).

The power supply is packaged in a separate box, and the cable is very stylish and has a flat design. The paperclip for opening the SIM card tray is in the envelope with the documentation.

Sharp Aquos S2 cost me 12 thousand rubles, this is close to the ceiling of the class of devices that we consider public sector.

What do we get for this money? The main feature of the smartphone is its framelessness and interesting screen coupled with decent characteristics gland.

As you may have noticed, the screen bends around the front camera, leaving an “eyebrow” on the front panel. After IPhone output X, this feature began to appear on many devices released at the end of 2017.

An additional feature is the bevels of the screen at the edges. Before ordering, this really bothered me, but with actual use, I realized that these sharp bevels do not bother me and my eyes don’t catch on to them.

I like the fact that the guys didn’t invent a bicycle and all the controls are in the usual places.

There is also a fingerprint scanner, it works well and is fast.

The body itself is made of glass, front and back, and there is a metal frame along the edge. And inside there is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 630 processor with Adreno 508 graphics.

This combination allows you to use all the capabilities of the system and even some demanding mobile games without lags or brakes.

This is also confirmed by the Antutu test, in which the Sharp Aquos S2 scores a decent 88,000 points.

On board is the painfully familiar Android 7.1, there is a global version of the firmware. But, unfortunately, some menu items are not translated into Russian; even some switches in the notification shade have an English name.

Although the firmware itself from Sharp is very interesting, there are standard decorations in the form of updated themes and wallpapers, as well as many system features and functions that are simply not found in other devices.

The smartphone positions itself as frameless, but in fact it is not, because in reality it has frames and very noticeable ones. It’s clear that this is all a PR campaign, but in everyday use it doesn’t really matter to me whether a smartphone has frames or not. The screen here is 5.5 inches, has a resolution of 1080 x 2040 px with an aspect ratio of 16:9, it is very rich and has a large reserve of brightness.

The battery is 3000 mAh, it is enough for the phone to last for 2 days, quite normal, plus there is the possibility of fast charging.

Another feature of the smartphone is its camera. Here we have a dual camera, this is a 12 and 8 MP Sony IMX362 Exmor RS sensor. The same camera is found, for example, in HTC U11 or ZTE Nubia Z17.

This camera takes excellent photos in good lighting, takes decent macro photos, and has a blur mode (Bokeh), but in low light and in the dark it takes very poor photographs.

As usual, you can evaluate the photos yourself.

Having bought most of Sharp Corporation, the Chinese giant Foxconn began to think about what to do with its mobile division. First, InFocus smartphones began to be released under the Japanese brand, and last year timid attempts began to release something more interesting. They started with the Aquos S2 model, a device that tries to repeat and rethink the almost legendary design concept of EDGEST. This spring, Sharp Aquos S2 appeared on the shelves of cross-border trade stores with a very tasty price tag - about ten thousand rubles. We couldn’t resist and ordered a smartphone, and now we’re telling you about it.

Specifications Sharp Aquos S2:

• Network: GSM (900/1800/1900 MHz), CDMA (800 MHz), WCDMA (850/900/1900/2100 MHz), TD-SCDMA (Band 34, 39), FDD-LTE (Band 1, 3, 4 , 5, 7, 8, 12, 17, 28), TDD-LTE (Band 34, 38, 39, 40, 41)
• Platform: Android 7.1.1 Nougat with Smile UX shell
• Display: 5.5", 2040x1080 pixels, 420 ppi, LCD
• Camera: dual, 12 MP + 8 MP, phase detection autofocus, 6 lenses, f/1.75, 1.4 micron pixels
• Front camera: 8 MP, 5 lenses, f/2.0, 1.4 micron pixels
• Processor: 8 cores, up to 2.2 GHz, 64 bits, Qualcomm Snapdragon 630/660
• RAM: 4/6 GB
• Internal memory: 64/128 GB
• Memory card: microSD (up to 128 GB)
• A-GPS, GLONASS
• Bluetooth 4.2
• Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n/ac), 2.4/5 GHz
• Fingerprint's scanner
• Battery: 3020 mAh
• Dimensions: 141.8x72.04x7.9 mm
• Weight: 140 g

Equipment and design

The fact that this is not a real Japanese Sharp, but a Chinese product from Foxconn, becomes clear as soon as you open the box. No, no, nothing bad appears to the buyer’s eye - on the contrary, in the unusually arranged red and white box everything is very neatly laid out and there are a lot of all sorts of accessories, although the Japanese prefer to include only documentation and a SIM needle with the smartphone (a couple of years ago even flagships were sold with this kit). Here, in addition to the Japanese standard, there is also a 3.5 mm -> Type-C adapter, a USB cable, a 10-W charger with a Chinese plug and a plastic case.

The case protects all the ends, the protruding chamber, and, thanks to the sides, the front panel. There is only one problem: the sides are made quite crudely. Because of this, using a phone with a complete case is not very pleasant.

The smartphone is available in four colors: blue, white, green and black. There is also a top-end version with a glass back panel in three colors (black, white, blue) and more powerful hardware. For some reason it is much more expensive than usual, and the differences are clearly not worth such an overpayment. In the regular version, the back panel of the smartphone is plastic, and it is glossy plastic. Despite this, the panel looks very interesting: a layer of unevenly colored plastic is hidden under a completely transparent layer, giving the visual sensation of a glass backdrop. I especially like the Sharp logo, which is applied over the clear coat and casts a shadow on the paint - a small thing, but it looks very cool.

No less curious – and indeed, much more curious – is the design of the front panel. As I already wrote, Foxconn tried to replicate the EDGEST design, only this time without sacrificing the placement of the front camera. A small-width cutout in the screen was arranged for her. You can’t call it an eyebrow, more like a nipple. In order for the screen to fit more tightly to the edges of the case, which would not be too angular, the manufacturer decided to cut off the corners of the display. Not to round it, but to cut it off – and this is perhaps the worst decision of the Aquos S2 designers. Fortunately, in Play Store There is a program that allows you to round off sections (the chamfers physically remain, but software rounding appears).

Finally, below the screen, in the best traditions of EDGEST, there is a rather large chin. There is a fingerprint scanner (it doesn’t work very quickly, sometimes it asks you to hold your finger longer, but it recognizes even dirty fingers) and another Sharp logo. This chin irritates many people, but somehow I didn’t pay much attention. But what you pay attention to when using the Aquos S2 is the ergonomics. The smartphone, despite the 5.5" display, feels compact. It is very convenient to use with one hand. All the buttons on the ends are located in convenient places and are easy to feel, you don’t have to reach for anything. The phone does not slip out of your hands, for which we must say thank you the absence of an oleophobic coating on the back. Yes, because of it it is difficult to maintain the phone in marketable condition, but ergonomics is perhaps more important. The assembly is perfect.

The 5.5" screen of the Sharp Aquos S2 is made using LCD technology and has a resolution of 2040x1080 pixels (17:9, like in the first Xiaomi Mi Mix). The screen is good. The clarity is high, the brightness range is wide, the color rendition is accurate, although a little oversaturated. White color quite white, but the black lacks depth - it is much lighter than the frame around it.However, within the limits of LCD technology it is difficult to do anything about this.

Software

Sharp Aquos S2 came to us with Chinese firmware, which has Russian language, but no Google services. However, it is very easy to upgrade to normal software; we have published instructions. The offered firmware is even GMS-certified! As is often the case with Chinese smartphones, the “green robot” is not given in its pure form; instead, Smile UX firmware is offered. Chinese firmwares don’t often leave a positive impression, but I liked this one. I'll tell you a little more about it.

All application icons are located on desktops; there is no separate application menu. However, getting into full list programs is still possible and even not difficult: when opening any shortcut folder, you can scroll left and right, getting into other folders, and the leftmost folder is always “All”, which is, in fact, the application menu. In the launcher, you can change the grid (4x5 or 5x5), block the movement of shortcuts, or press them to the bottom of the screen (convenient if the phone still seems big to you). HiBoard can be configured as the leftmost desktop - search by application names, contacts and SMS texts. A swipe from above opens a completely ordinary curtain, and you can swipe from anywhere on the screen. Among the switches you can find a button to capture video from the screen.

The multitasking menu deserves special mention. He has two modes here. In the traditional one, it takes up the entire screen, and at the same time about one and a half application previews are visible. In compact mode, four previews are visible at once, and most of the screen on which you opened the menu remains visible. This menu seemed to me much more convenient than the usual one, although this is a matter of taste, of course.

The standard applications are really standard, there is nothing to talk about them. There is a "Themes" application, but it constantly complains about Bad Internet(apparently having difficulty connecting to servers in China), and therefore impossible to use. Among the interesting functions in “Settings” we can note the selection of display parameters, the ability to set graphic key on applications, useless gesture control features, S Boost accelerator (it can defragment the disk!), function of changing button positions navigation bar, a button to turn off the RoboS smart assistant and other little things. You can customize how full-screen applications work at 17:9 - stretching or leaving the notch bar black. Partial-screen applications start exactly below this bar, and the status bar with them looks very wide and ugly.

The firmware has not been fully translated, but overall it’s not bad. Many points lack explanations. For example, I never found any traces of RoboS working, because nowhere is it explained what it is. Having turned on HiBoard in the launcher settings, I looked for it for quite a long time, thinking that it was a keyboard - if I had not accidentally swiped to the left on the left desktop, I would have written in the review that this thing does not work at all. In the status bar parameters, you can turn off some indicator, but something like that is not explained anywhere. And so on. But even without these mysterious options, Smile UX has plenty of interesting things. Foxconn was able to make some cool firmware. After the terrible software of the InFocus M810T, I am very surprised by this.

Cameras

The main camera of Sharp Aquos S2 is dual. The second module is based on an 8-megapixel sensor, but is only needed to blur the background. The main one is more interesting: a 12-megapixel sensor with 1.4 micron pixels, six-lens optics with an aperture of f/1.75. There is a flash: two-LED, two-color. The camera application has a professional mode with manual adjustment of frame parameters. There is also a built-in time-lapse creator.

But first, about the photographs. The Sharp Aquos S2 produces them differently depending on what you are shooting. Close-ups and macros come out great. But there are some problems with distant plans - the noise reduction begins to turn the image into watercolor, and the sharper unnaturally highlights all sorts of wires and boundaries. At the same time, Sharp's resharpening definitely works after noise reduction - sometimes it highlights the boundaries of watercolor strokes. But, however, all this is not too striking. If you don't look too closely, you'll like the pictures. Well, I can’t help but note the very fast autofocus - I just pointed it at the object, and it was already in focus. It's also worth adding that enthusiasts will be able to get a lot more out of the camera when using Google Camera.

The front camera has a resolution of 8 megapixels and somehow does not stand out at all. The camera, like a camera, takes quite passable self-portraits, although it is not easy to get your face into the focusing area. The Sharp Aquos S2 cannot be classified as a selfie phone. It doesn’t justify its cutout in any way – a nipple/pimple/well of this size could have accommodated a more interesting camera.

Very fast autofocus is also pleasing when shooting video, but somehow nothing else is pleasing. The sound is not recorded very naturally, there is no stabilization. But you can record 4K. The acceleration of time-lapses is not configurable in any way, but by default it is an acceptable 30x.

Performance and tests

The regular version of the Sharp Aquos S2 is based on the Snapdragon 630 chipset, accompanied by 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of ROM. The amount of free RAM after reboot is approximately 2.5 GB. If the built-in memory is not enough, you can insert a card microSD memory up to 128 GB, however, it will take one of the two slots for nano-SIM. Let's return, however, to productivity. Benchmarks:

Snapdragon 630 is a fairly powerful chipset, especially in terms of its graphics component. Many even demanding games (Injustice 2, Unkilled, Asphalt Extreme, World of Tanks) run on the Sharp Aquos S2 without any complaints with the maximum available graphics settings. Stuttering occurs in rare cases - for example, in Injustice 2 when first launching, when it seems to be caching something. More demanding games may lag, but there are very few of them and only flagships can cope with them.

Sharp Aquos S2 is heating up. Sometimes it gets very hot. I tried to play Air Attack 2 while World of Tanks was downloading and unpacking its cache, and it was quite difficult. Back panel It's plastic, it doesn't heat up too much - but because of it, all the heat is transferred to the metal frame, which you don't want to hold on to at all. But, curiously, there is practically no throttling. AnTuTu did not notice a change in performance at all; GFXBench recorded a drop of about 12% 15-20 minutes after the start of the long-term test.

The battery capacity is 3020 mAh. There is a connector for charging USB Type-C. The specifications state support for Quick Charge 3.0, but the included charger is only 10 W. With normal use, the smartphone lasts for a day, but no more. The Sharp Aquos S2 will spend every night charging. Results in our traditional tests: full discharge when showing a video - 6 hours 45 minutes, discharge per hour in Asphalt Extreme - 19%. GFXBench predicts 268.5 minutes of gaming on a single charge, which is more optimistic than our test results.

The smartphone supports LTE, including many Russian bands. On the forums, many users complain about problems with connection quality and find solutions to them, but I haven’t even encountered them. (Update: as we were told in the comments, those who updated to Oreo have problems with communication, which is not worth doing.) There is NFC, which is still an infrequent guest in Chinese non-top smartphones, and can be used for shopping.

After all, only there you can buy the device that we will talk about today. Everything went well, the parcel reached me and today we will look at the Sharp Aquos S2. The model is very popular among those who like to order gadgets from the Middle Kingdom. Yes, the brand is Japanese, well known to everyone, but these devices are produced, as usual, in China. Among the masses modern smartphones The Aquos S2 really stands out, it’s like that alien who flew in from another planet to make a splash and show what a smartphone should be like for one and a half hundred dollars.

EQUIPMENT

Included we get:
— protective plastic bumper
- paper clip for tray
- charger for 5V and 2A
- USB-C cable
— adapter from USB-C to 3.5 mm jack.

FIRMWARE

SHARP Aquos S2 arrives from China with Chinese firmware. It has Russian language, but no Google services, and also has a bunch of preinstalled Chinese software. It is advisable to update the smartphone to the official international firmware. The process of flashing the Sharp Aquos S2 is so primitive and simple that even a child can handle it. The international firmware itself can be downloaded from the w3bsit3-dns.com forum>>. When you turn it on for the first time, do not activate WiFi, otherwise the smart phone will automatically start downloading updates, but we don’t need that. Download the firmware as an archive and upload it to the smartphone’s memory, directly to the root of the disk. Next, open the dialer on your smartphone and enter the combination *#*#874#*#* and after that the smartphone will automatically detect the firmware and begin the process of reinstalling the software. All!

But if you have already connected to WiFi and updated Chinese firmware, then the smartphone will display a message stating that the archive with the firmware was not found. That is, he simply won’t see new firmware, because its number will match the number of the current firmware. This is also not a problem. We just need to rename the archive with the firmware, replacing the number in it. For example, if we are installing the 35th international firmware, and we already have the 35th installed, but Chinese, we change the number 35 to 36 in the archive name, thereby telling the smartphone that here it is, a more recent firmware. Again we dial the above combination *#*#874#*#* and the smartphone will successfully begin to reflash. After installing new software, it is recommended to reset to factory settings.

DESIGN AND DIMENSIONS

The first thing that makes the Aquos S2 stand out in the smartphone market is its size. Due to the very narrow side and top frames of the screen, it offers relatively modest dimensions: 142 mm x 72 mm, and it is also thin - its thickness does not exceed 7.5 mm (if you do not take into account the protruding camera), and the weight is small - approximately 140 g. Look how much smaller it is than modern shovels:

In terms of dimensions, the Aquos S2 is comparable to 5-inch smartphones, despite the fact that it has a 5.5-inch screen.

Yes, the glossy back panel is a minus for practicality, so if you want to keep its presentable appearance longer, you will have to protect the back of the smartphone with a bumper or case. By the way, the older version has a glass back, not plastic.

The ends are metal, as are the power and volume buttons. The tray is made of plastic, it is combined - either two nanoSIMs, or 1 SIM + memory card. Assembly without any comments. In addition to the blue color, the smartphone is offered in black and there is a cool white color with longitudinal gray stripes.

Yes, some people hate this design. But the value of this device is that it is not like most others. And wouldn’t it be cool if the Aquos S2 became another clone? No. And don’t forget that it was Sharp who set the fashion for this design, which later became known as frameless. And only then this trend was picked up by other brands. If the protrusion at the top of the screen, where the front camera and light and proximity sensors are located, is annoying, you can hide it using dark wallpaper. When watching videos and playing games, this protrusion does not interfere at all - the screen is simply cut off before reaching the protrusion. In addition, everything here is at your discretion - in the screen settings you can set the native aspect ratio of this display to 17:9 and then the picture will stretch to fill the entire screen. The choice is up to the user.

On the top narrow frame, the manufacturer managed to place a classic auditory speaker and even found a place for an event indication LED. The upper corners of the screen have bevels - again, this looks unusual. But if you are not comfortable with such bevels, there are many applications that can be used to make the corners of the display rounded.

To control the smartphone under the screen there is touch button, it is multifunctional: a single touch is “back”, a long touch goes to the desktop and a slow swipe to the side launches the background applications menu. You can also activate on-screen buttons in the settings. And it’s not difficult to guess that the fingerprint scanner is built into the multifunction button: it is accurate, and its response speed is good.

DISPLAY

When you turn on your smartphone for the first time, you realize that the screen is gorgeous. He's such a guy that it's hard to find fault with him. FullHD+ resolution, comfortable brightness range, responsive 10-touch touchscreen and beautiful rich picture. Sometimes there was even a feeling that it was AMOLED display– it’s so juicy and contrasting. But the matrix, of course, is IPS. The color rendition is correct, I don’t want to readjust it, but just in case, there are three presets in the screen settings - you can make the picture warmer or, on the contrary, cooler. There is an oleophobic coating on the 2.5D glass and it is of good quality.

HARDWARE

We are talking about the younger version of the Aquos S2, which means we get the Snapdragon 630, which is essentially an improved version of the successful 625 “dragon”: the same 8 Cortex-A53 cores, but with a maximum frequency of 2.2 GHz + Adreno 508 graphics. Random access memory 4 GB and this is dual-channel LPDDR 4 memory. The drive is 64 GB, of which about 47 GB is free. In the older, more expensive version, you get a higher-end Snapdragon 660 processor, 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB storage.

The hardware is simply excellent for this price. In games he also shows himself worthy, incl. in the most demanding. Tanks (WOT BLITZ) can be played in many locations even on maximum graphics. But some cards have FPS drops, so it would be ideal to set the graphics to medium or reduced to maximum.
PUBG mobile set low graphics upon launch. Everything is playable, there are no critical lags. When playing games, the smartphone gets warm, but does not overheat. The maximum temperature recorded on the cores was 48 degrees.

SOFTWARE AND FUNCTIONALITY

The international firmware is based on Android 7.1.1, the shell is not standard, but quite convenient. The firmware is updated, I have the latest version 1-35F installed, released in March of this year. If any other questions arise, something is not clear, or something suddenly doesn’t work as you would like, you will find all the answers in the topic of this smartphone on the 4PDA forum - the model is very popular, has gathered a large community around it, with this no problem. And during my communication with the smartphone, I didn’t have any questions.

The audibility during conversations is quite normal. Concerning LTE frequencies, then the main ranges for us are supported. I mean primarily the 3rd and 7th bands. Band 20, as far as I understand, is not supported.

The Sharp Aquos S2 is excellent for navigation - the connection with the sky is good, there is GLONASS support. WiFi is dual-band, OTG works, but there is no hardware radio. Sensors are through the roof, including a gyroscope, magnetic sensor, etc. But NFC is important to many people these days, and this module is also present here, unlike the vast majority of smartphones in this price category. Google Pay launches on your smartphone and allows you to add a card. Judging by the reviews of other users, wireless payment works correctly.

Sound is not a smartphone's strong point. The speaker here is not bad and in terms of sound quality it can be compared with the speaker of Redmi 4 Pro. The sound through the headphones is very ordinary, without any frills. The downside is that there is no audio jack, so wired headphones connect via USB-C port, using an adapter from USB-C to audio jack. By the way, not all such adapters are suitable, so you need to take care of your original cord. And no one has canceled wireless headphones.

CAMERAS

Dual camera, 12 + 8 megapixels, with phase detection autofocus, f/1.8 aperture, what sensors are used - I don’t have exact information. There are full manual settings, there are various color filters, etc. If you get confused, you can also install a Google camera here, thereby improving the results. In the video version of the review (presented below) you can see a detailed test of the cameras, where I also compared the Aquos s2 camera with the camera. In good lighting everything is fine. I am sure that this quality is quite enough for most users. At night, everything is also more or less worthy - it is clear that the sensor is decent and the optics are not the cheapest, of course there is noise, but there is not so much of it and they are not an eyesore.

It is possible to shoot video not only in FullHD quality, but also in 4K. The frame rate is stable - 30 FPS and the frame rate does not drop when there is insufficient light. The detailing is not bad, but one thing is missing - electronic stabilization. In addition to the lack of a stub, the video mode has another drawback - the quality of sound recording.
The sound on the video is recorded without low frequencies, which makes it seem somehow plastic and not saturated.

The front camera is 8 megapixels, f/2.0 aperture, decent quality, but there is a software flaw - the front camera takes overly saturated photos by default. This issue can be fixed through manual settings.

AUTONOMY

Battery capacity 3020 mA. Yes, with a FullHD+ display and such a capacity, the Aquos S2 does not impress with its autonomy, but I cannot call it a weakling in this regard either. An energy-efficient processor saves the day. As a result, we get just normal autonomy, which is quite enough for the whole day with moderate use of the smartphone. For 3 hours of playing a video on YouTube via WiFi in 720p quality, 32% of the charge was consumed, which is equal to about 11% per hour. This is about the same result as or. The smartphone sleeps well and does not drain the battery in standby mode. Relatives charger charges 64% in 1 hour and fully in 2 hours 25 minutes. But the smartphone supports QuickCharge 3.0 fast charging, and if you have the appropriate adapter on your household, you can reduce the charging time.

VERDICT

So, if you look at the price of about $160 (at the time of publication of the review) and if you compare it with competitors, then I conclude that this is one of the best options. And for those who don’t need a big shovel, this is probably the only smart one. Yes, he's not ideal ideal smartphones I haven't seen one in this price category yet. The disadvantages include the lack of an audio jack, the impractical glossy panel on the back with a protruding camera, and I would like the sound when recording video to be better. To whom all this is critical, let’s pass by. But otherwise the smartphone is cool. It is not like its competitors, its appearance is original, it is convenient due to its size, it has a gorgeous screen, the processor gives decent performance, there is a lot of memory, and the camera does not let us down. And many will pay attention to it due to the presence NFC module. And for those who consider its appearance somehow awkward, there is a huge selection of smartphones of the same type.

WHERE TO BUY SHARP AQUOS S2:

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VIDEO REVIEW:

Hello friends! Some time ago, the long-awaited for all fans fell into my hands Sharp brand frameless smartphone AQUOS S2. As for me, despite all its disadvantages, the device turned out to be quite interesting both externally and functionally. This is despite the fact that the Japanese company is now more than half owned by Foxconn, and both Sharp engineers and their Taiwanese colleagues took part in the development of the gadget. And now, when it is already in my palm, it is extremely unpleasant to admit this, given all my previous mocking censures against the AQUOS S2. But first things first.

It is worth noting that the manufacturer maintained the intrigue until the very end, without refuting or at least indirectly confirming what all fans of the brand expected from the “new” Sharp.

Sharp AQUOS Tab SH-06F, Sharp AQUOS S2 and Samsung Galaxy Xcover 3

I have already expressed my disappointment more than once regarding the “full screen” AQUOS S2, which everyone was so hoping for. The bummer that ultimately awaited all Sharp fans is comparable only to the indignation over the very fact of the purchase of the Japanese giant by the Chinese. However, many have already even managed to come to terms with this reality. As for the “full-screen body,” in my opinion, the iPhone X is more consistent with this definition. Agree, visually its display occupies a larger part of the front surface than the display of the new Sharp. In fact, the difference in these indicators between the iPhone and Sharp is slightly less than 1% in favor of the first: 79.55% versus 78.51%. Of course, no one will measure these numbers in everyday life. But the fact remains that in 2017 the main trend among flagship devices (and not only) is the race for maximum frameless facade.

It's funny that the world has only now picked up on the frameless fashion. Let me remind you that at the beginning of 2014, the then Japanese Sharp was the first to present its revolutionary solution - EDGEST technology, which was used to produce several subsequent generations flagship smartphones with three narrow frames on the sides and top. The pioneer in this direction was the Sharp AQUOS Zeta SH-04F model. The peak of perfection turned out to be the still unbroken record for frameless (not full screen) smartphones of the CRYSTAL series (Sharp AQUOS Crystal 305SH, AQUOS Crystal X 402SH and AQUOS Crystal 2 403SH).

Sharp AQUOS Zeta SH-04H

For a moment, three years have passed since then. It turns out that not so long ago the Japanese were trendsetters, but, as often happens, the trend did not take hold immediately, and not everyone knew about these very specific (hidden from prying eyes) models. Most of these devices were sold exclusively in Japan, except for the AQUOS Crystal line, which could be purchased in the US from Sprint.

Sharp AQUOS Crystal X 403SH

In addition, I would like to draw your attention to the fact that promotional images of Japanese Sharp smartphones have never diverged in appearance from their prototypes. That is, the frames of live devices remained the same in thickness as on advertising images, and not as is the case now in most cases. By the way, Foxconn with its AQUOS S2 decided to use this marketing trick to the fullest. In the photo below, the difference is noticeable to the naked eye. On the left is an image from official page Sharp AQUOS S2, on the right – real photo. Such tricks on the part of manufacturers are designed to attract the attention of a potential buyer, distracting from the real picture. But what the owner will say later, when he receives the treasured gadget, remains behind the scenes.

Specifications

Despite the fact that work on the Sharp AQUOS S2 was carried out simultaneously with the Essential Phone, and both devices clearly have a common design style, in technical terms they have slight differences.

Chinese marketers offer the buyer a choice of two versions of AQUOS S2 - with 4 GB RAM/64 GB ROM and an 8-core Snapdragon 630 processor with A53 cores, as well as 6 GB RAM/128 GB ROM and an 8-core Snapdragon 660 with Kryo cores. I have the top version with 128 GB.

But that's not all. In addition to technical subtleties, designers offer to choose the color and material of the case. In the first case, you can purchase a device with a rubberized back cover, which received 4 colors: black, white, blue and menthol blue. The company logo on the back will be applied with regular paint. The alternative is a top-end version with a glass case and an engraved SHARP logo on the back.

Specifications of Sharp AQUOS S2:

• Operating system: OS Android 7.1.1 Nougat, Smile UX shell;
• Support standards: GSM, 3G, LTE;
• Support for 2 SIM cards: yes (combined slot for 2 SIM cards or one SIM and one MicroSD);
• Processor: 2.2 GHz/1.8 GHz, eight-core, Qualcomm Snapdragon 630/660;
• RAM: 4GB/6GB;
• ROM: 64GB/128GB;
• Display: 5.5", FullHD+, 2040x1080 pixels, FFD, 420ppi, 16 million colors;
• Main camera: 12+8 MP, CMOS, dual optics, 4K video recording, autofocus, two-color LED flash;
• Front camera: 8 MP, CMOS, fullHD video recording;
• Memory card support: microSDXC up to 128 GB;
• Fingerprint's scanner;
• GPS/GLONASS;
• Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac;
• Bluetooth 4.2;
• USB Type-C;
• Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 fast charging function;
• Battery: Li-Ion, 3020 mAh;
• Dimensions: 141.8x72x7.9 mm;
• Weight: 140 grams.

In terms of performance, the Sharp AQUOS S2 is able to satisfy the needs of many demanding users. Powerful processor, a lot of memory, a large 5.5-inch display and a 3020 mAh battery will please the sophisticated lover of most modern toys.

Equipment

Unlike Japanese mobile operators, who actually entered into collusion with manufacturers, Chinese manufacturers never skimp on accessories, especially when it comes to flagships. Moreover, a transparent hard case was added to the box with the phone, in which the smartphone immediately loses its external luster.

So, complete with the phone we have:

• network adapter;
• USB-Type C cable;
• audio adapter from USB Type-C to mini-jack;
• SIM tray needle;
• hard translucent bumper case;
• instructions and warranty card.

First impressions. Design

And this is where my cognitive dissonance begins. Assuming that the new AQUOS S2 will not be a revelation for me due to my extensive experience with frameless Sharp smartphones, I understand that the sensations from its presence in the palm of your hand are truly new and, most importantly, pleasant. It is incredibly light and compact. What I am used to seeing in third-party photographs and what I hold in my hand are completely different things. And I immediately like this thing. The 5.5-inch display does not seem large, thanks to the relatively thin frames, and the dimensions and weight of the smartphone are quite comfortable to hold with one hand. Apparently, I haven’t used frameless smartphones for a long time. This is incredibly convenient, and this is definitely the very near future.

On the other hand, such a screen diagonal is still unnecessary for me. It’s time to grow my fingers so that I can enjoy just such diagonals, but, apparently, it’s not meant to be. That is why the ultimate dream for me is still displays no larger than 5 inches.

The AQUOS S2 feels comfortable in your hand, but its soapy shape can easily play a trick on you. The glossy surface and cold metal frame with smoothed edges can easily cause multiple falls, and it costs nothing to drop the phone from your hands. To prevent this from happening, Sharp suggested putting the phone in a hard matte case with sharp edges. In my opinion, this symbiosis looks poor and cheap. The whole meaning of framelessness is lost. It's like buying a white phone because you like it and putting it in a black case.

The matte case also easily retains palm and fingerprints.

For some reason, the narrowest HOME button with an integrated fingerprint scanner became one of the features of the smartphone that Chinese marketers emphasized. The functionality of the scanner is standard and does not differ in originality from its competitors. The settings allow you to touch the button to go back a level, and pressing it takes the user to the desktop.

A barely noticeable earpiece, covered by a perforated grille, is very elegantly integrated into the corner between the top of the metal end and the display. The interlocutor can be heard clearly and without any extraneous noise.

To the right of it there is a light indicator neatly located.

Display

For some reason, this time Sharp decided not to use a matrix made using IGZO technology. AQUOS S2 uses conventional TFT technology. Apparently, Sharp's Japanese Free-form displays still remain the domain of purely Japanese models. For example, the compact version of the Sharp AQUOS R compact smartphone, presented not so long ago by the Japanese operator Softbank, is already made using an IGZO matrix. If you pay attention, the upper corners of the compact are rounded, unlike the Chinese counterpart.

As for the picture quality, I personally didn’t have any questions about it. The 2040x1080p resolution is quite reasonable given the non-standard 17:9 aspect ratio. The display itself is covered with Corning Gorilla Glass, but Foxconn did not indicate which generation. The glass has 2.5D rounded edges and an oleophobic coating, from which dirt and fingerprints are erased in one go. The color scheme changes when viewed from an angle, but only slightly.

The screen performs great in the sun. Everything, even small texts, is readable perfectly. The screen can also be read without problems with sunglasses. I decided to mention this fact because... I encountered the opposite situation on my current Samsung Galaxy Xcover 3 - it’s simply impossible to see anything in the sun without turning on the special “Outdoor” checkbox. With sunglasses the screen is just black. I have to take it off every time to answer a call or write a message.

Now let's talk about what gives rise to a lot of confusion among users who see the Sharp AQUOS S2 for the first time. This, by the way, also applies to the Essential Phone. One of the nuances that causes controversy when looking at the façade of the AQUOS S2 is the unusual location of the front camera inside the screen. The lens simply divides the top edge into two halves. Upon closer inspection, you can see light and proximity sensors above the lens. The solution is truly unusual. Why in the minds of Xiaomi engineers and other companies the decision was made to place the front camera in the “beard” under the screen remains a mystery. And if you look at the frameless Sharp smartphones from the past, we will see exactly the same camera placement under the screen. The future will tell whether Foxconn’s idea can be considered a kind of experiment in the field of technology that allows the display to be given absolutely any shape. By at least, Sharp made it clear that this is technically possible. It is likely that in the AQUOS S2 and Essential Phone we are seeing the first commercial samples with the implementation of similar ideas.

Is this spot noticeable when using a smartphone? The question is controversial. Personally, I stopped paying attention to it almost as soon as I started using the phone. It becomes interesting to observe in which particular use cases the lens “cuts into” the image, and in which it is a harmonious part of the curtain with on-duty information or a black stripe, given that the screen has an aspect ratio of 17:9. Examples below.

Lock Screen Screensaver

Fully opened curtain with functional icons

Camera operation in video recording mode

Camera in photography mode with screen width resolution

View photos in the gallery. 4:3 photos appear with black margins around the edges, but when zoomed in the camera cuts into the image

Playing widescreen video with a black stripe near the camera

Interface

When you turn it on for the first time, the smartphone prompts you to select the interface language (English and Chinese are available). It is noteworthy that after localization using morelocale, more Russian language appears in the interface than when Russifying Sharp smartphones (and not only) for the Japanese market using the same method. The interface is Russified by about half. Some settings menu items have been translated into excellent Russian, and not as it was before on cheap Chinese ones. Below are some screenshots.

Considering that the Sharp AQUOS S2 runs on Android 7.1.1 OS, the next time you turn it off/on, the Russian localization disappears, and you have to return it by simply selecting the Russian option in the morelocale menu. Although I don’t think that anyone will often turn off their smartphone, unless the battery is completely drained.

Smile UX is used as the main and only interface option for a smartphone. It has never been used in Japanese versions of smartphones, so those who have never used Chinese Sharp variants will find something new here.

At the moment, Foxconn releases AQUOS S2 with two firmware versions - Chinese and Taiwanese. The difference between the first and the second is the traditional lack of pre-installed Google services. For most owners Android smartphones this is a huge omission. However, the craftsmen have already corrected the situation by developing and offering small instructions for flashing Chinese version to Taiwanese.

Let's now return to the appearance of the smartphone. Hidden on the left side is a hybrid slot for SIM cards/memory cards. Let me remind you that the Sharp AQUOS S2 can work with two SIM cards from absolutely any operator at once. Unlike Japanese operator devices, there are no hard blocks on the corresponding networks. The smartphone supports various frequency ranges Worldwide. As soon as the device catches cellular signal, the profile is automatically configured mobile internet and MMS. Necessity manual settings This menu item, as is the case with most Japanese counterparts, is no longer needed. AQUOS S2 uses nano-SIM SIM cards.

The case is not protected from water or dust. So be careful with liquids. At the bottom end, behind grilles symmetrical with respect to the USB connector, a microphone and speaker are hidden. The volume of the speaker is enough to hear a call on a noisy street or in the subway. USB Type-C is offered as a connector. Through it, using the included adapter, you can connect headphones. The usual 3.5 mm jack is not here.

The chrome on/off and volume buttons are partially painted in the color of the body. Looks nice.

I’m sure that I, like many others, are upset by such inelegant elements of the phone’s exterior, such as camera lenses sticking out impractically from the body. In AQUOS S2 this solution is very striking. It seems that this artifact was emphasized deliberately. Yes, I agree that the thickness of the smartphone tends to be record thin, but the decision made regarding the pair of lenses makes me despondent.

The place where the phone comes into contact with the surface will sooner or later begin to become covered with small scratches and abrasions.

The monolithic glass surface covers both lenses without breaking.

The back surface has a glossy finish and gets very dirty. You'll have to get used to it or put all this beauty in a case. We are, of course, talking about a black smartphone. White will always be more practical in this regard.

The SHARP logo is etched into the glass. I'm not sure if it looks expensive, but one way or another, it is presented as a feature that was awarded to the expensive version of AQUOS S2. The manufacturer strongly recommends that you be proud of this fact. So...

Camera

In order not to describe in detail one of the best cameras in the entire history of Sharp smartphones, including the period when it was in the hands of Chinese owners, it’s better to immediately point out the disadvantages. The main disadvantage for me was the lack of any stabilization. If you can somehow fix your hands during photography, it is extremely difficult to do this during video shooting. Below, using the example of 4K video, you can clearly see why at least digital stabilization is necessary, and even more so in flagship models. I carefully searched all the camera settings menus, but I couldn’t find anything related to image stabilization.

It still remains a mystery to me how to change the size of a photo. By default the most a high resolution. There are three image formats: full screen, standard and square. You cannot make any other changes to the image size. At least, I didn’t even find such an item. In any case, if there is an urgent need, all these shortcomings can be eliminated by installing a suitable third party application cameras.

As for the quality of photos and videos, here I personally saw a huge leap forward, even compared to current flagships released for the Japanese operator market. Firstly, it is more realistic color rendition. Unfortunately, I have not yet had the opportunity to compare the results of the AQUOS S2 cameras and the most current AQUOS R for Japan at the moment, so I will not rashly declare the victory of the Chinese Sharp. But from experience I can say that Japanese operator Sharp smartphones do not produce a completely believable picture.

The maximum photo resolution is 4032x3024p. Maximum video resolution is 4K (3840x2160p) at 30 fps, with stereo sound (96 kbps). File extension – MP4.

The second lens is only needed to blur the background (bokeh effect). The LED flash can work as a flashlight. The corresponding button is in the set of icons in the top curtain.

Sample photos

As a conclusion

Having many years of experience in creating and producing completely different smartphones, Foxconn-Sharp, as it seemed to him, put all the best and most advanced into his brainchild - a “unique” appearance and almost top-end hardware. The smartphone really turned out to be extraordinary and controversial in a good way. Perhaps it would have aroused even more interest if it were not for the Essential Phone, presented earlier, especially after the decision was made to reduce the official price of the latter by 200 USD. Although the AQUOS S2 is interesting in itself, after the device from Andy Rubin it is perceived as its “little brother”. And outwardly, many perceive the “American” as more attractive. Although I have often come across the opinion online that Essential is more of a non-name brand than something branded.

As for me, calling the Sharp AQUOS S2 a revolutionary solution is a stretch. I speak based solely on the previous experience of the Japanese division of Sharp. There is nothing here that users of Japanese smartphones love them for - neither traditional protection from external factors, nor proprietary technologies, nor even the Made In Japan label. Just an unusual, and for some, a crazy solution with a front-facing camera, coupled with the now trendy one appearance. Yes, Foxconn brought something of its own, such as dual-SIM functionality, the ability to choose from two filling options, and, again, for most, a controversial decision with front camera. It is unlikely that such a symbiosis can attract a mass buyer. But it’s easy to scare away true fans of the “traditional” Sharp. We can only hope for original Sharp models for the local market, where perhaps the Japanese will remain true to themselves and continue to produce interesting and largely exotic devices.