CUBOT Note 20-Although the economy is in a bad state now, most Chinese companies haven’t lost their heart. They are closer to overcoming these difficulties and are now thriving more than ever before. The smartphone market has also been propelled forward by some of the most well-known brands as well as “minor” ones to keep up with modern customers. One of CUBOT’s latest products is a strong contender for the “best buy” title in its price range, but how successful will it be? We’re here to find out.
The CUBOT Note 20 Pro is a powerful device for those who want to be productive and enjoy the latest technology. It has a large 6.3-inch screen, which makes it easy to read and write on the go.
CUBOT Note 20 Pro Design
Take a look at this phone, it looks to me like the design was heavily influenced by another, more expensive product. The rear camera module on this phone resembles that of the Huawei Mate 30 Pro. However, there’s one more thing to watch out for when using your iPhone. If you take a glance to the side, you can see that this cover has a small hole in it. Covering this hole is one part that is fixed and the other part can be removed by applying focus onto the latter. The phone has a battery with a matte finish that will hold fingerprints. It has two SIMs and one microSD slot.
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Dimensions-wise, this phone has a surprisingly comfortable feel to it despite its generous measurements. It measures 155.8mm x 77mm x 9.1 mm and weighs in at 200 grams. The phone is not by any means the most difficult to use, but it is also not the most uncomfortable one out there. It has a grippy, soft-touch plastic back. This provides a PC-certified polycarbonate surface so you can easily hold it and grip it without fear of dropping it. On the upper frame, we have a 3.5mm audio jack and on the bottom, we find the microphone, USB Type-C port, and everything else you need to get started. On the right are the on/off button and volume rocker. As the device does not have any certification for water or dust resistance, it still has a removable cover.
CUBOT Note 20 Pro Display
This device features a space gray LCD with a 6.5-inch display that has 1,600 x 720 pixels and offers a PPI of 266. The screen also has a slight curvature at the edges which flows into the thin plastic strip on the front that divides it from the metal body. From a chromatic point of view, the colors are great but perhaps not as varied as they could be.
My front screen was not made with the most advanced technology. It doesn’t help much when I’m outside or in sunlight, and it’s hard to view what’s on my screen. The screen brightness is always a concern too. While the device performs well in bright conditions, it has lower performance at night.
The problem is that the minimum brightness is still too high making it bothersome even when you don’t want to use the device. The second positive aspect of the Poco is that it has a sensible design with side edges that are easy to touch. This means you can utilize the Poco just by holding it as if you’re touching an interactive screen, and start tasks without even unlocking your phone. Almost as if I’m touching the surface of the panel, even though my fingers are on the edge of it. The feeling, then, is just what I have often experienced on phones with rounded edges.
CUBOT Note 20 Pro Performance
One thing to note about the Note 20 Pro is that under the body, it mounts a MediaTek SoC. This octa-core CPU has 4 x 73GHz ARM Cortex-A2.0 cores and 4 x 53GHz ARM Cortex-A2.0 cores. The device comes with a chipset ARM Mali-G72 MP3 800 MHz, with 6 GB of RAM and an additional 128 GB of internal storage. This can however be expanded via microSD.
There are obvious drawbacks, but this is to be expected. For instance, the product can’t open or use some applications. That being said, it’s still possible to open, use and enjoy all your favorite apps including Facebook, Instagram Whatsapp, and more. Even though it sometimes takes a little more than usual, it has never spontaneously rebooted or crashed. Considering how relatively cheap it is, in the long run, I think that this exceeded my expectations! No problem, then, even when viewing videos on YouTube, as well as on Netflix and Disney+ but watch out for the resolution. Here, the certification Widevine of type L3 only allows SD resolution.
Of course, this device doesn’t just have to be for gaming. It’ll work for your frivolous games too, but could struggle with harder ones. With Call of Duty Mobile, we have low-quality graphics as well as frame-rate issues that make the game impractical.
CUBOT Note 20 Pro Software
This smartphone has a stock version of Android 10 with security patches dating back to August 5th, 2020. It’s got no kind of software customizations, giving you the same graphics in icons and same settings menu as always. As a startup, you will find all the main Google apps pre-installed, such as the clock, FM radio, and more.
I was pleased with this device and I only found a few minor bugs. Overall, the apps I installed worked well and there were no major problems. I cannot assure you, however, that important updates will arrive on this smartphone in the coming months. Hopefully this will change over time.
CUBOT Note 20 Pro Camera
There is a 12MP main camera, as well as a 20MP Sony IMX486, with noise levels that have been successfully reduced. There are also two other cameras — the first 8MP (IMX274) and one 2MP – that still capture good quality shots. At the user interface level, it includes all sorts of useful features.
The daylight shots look great when it comes to image quality, which is a sign that the main sensor is still working well. Even in less than ideal conditions, the camera does an excellent job at maintaining a good balance and solid white balance. The colors are a little bit too warm for my liking at a chromatic level. Excellent performance, then, with the 2x zoom, which also in this case is well balanced and shows no particular problems. It offers an excellent balance between colors and detail. I haven’t been able to find a macro mode because this camera only has black and white sensors.
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The low-light performance I was expecting is not what I got. The main sensor doesn’t capture images well without external lighting sources and given the lack of those, my photos were a bit too dark. In the darkness, the camera is more sensitive to noise, with lights appearing as intense orbs in low-light situations. Improve something, in this respect, by taking advantage of the Night Mode, which shows a clearer image and is less subject to overexposure in the most illuminated points.
In the front area, we find a room that does not have problems during the day, depending on good light conditions. The situation changes slightly, however, when we are perhaps in a closed place, where it is possible to appreciate a much more marked photographic noise and a beauty effect that, via software, cannot be eliminated. CUBOT has also been made available, however, the bokeh effect is quite accurate for the price range we are considering.
Audio & Connectivity
I start with audio quality, which is quite poor because a single speaker is placed at the bottom. I’m disappointed to report that bass-heavy sounds are few & far between, which means that the sound has too much emphasis on high & medium frequencies. At maximum volume, there is some distortion and that’s why it should always be set to the max. I find the sound quality much better with earphones, which can be inserted into the 3.5mm audio jack located on the upper frame. I would also like to mention that I had no issues with the calls and always managed to have a clear conversation with my interlocutor.
On the side of connectivity, we have Wi-Fi that supports ac, Bluetooth 4.2, L ‘NFC, and GPS / A-GPS. There is also a USB Type C that allows for both data and power input as well as LTE 4G. I can tell you that at home I haven’t experienced any wireless network problems, as it’s a bit weak but doesn’t cover all parts of the house. Despite this, many people still make use of the 4G network because it’s always so superb.
Autonomy
The device features a battery of 4.200 mAh, enough to get you through the day without charging. In my tests, I found that wearers of smartwatches spend an average of 8.3 hours with their screens on over two days when doing not too taxing jobs. So what if you’ve been playing for a few hours already? You can still keep gaming if you choose to, but going the whole night isn’t the only thing you should be doing. The display comes with a standard power supply, 10W, which takes about 3 hours to fully charge.
Price & Conclusions
Amazon offers the CUBOT Note 20 Pro for 149,99 €. Even though that may be quite a low price, it is justified by the performance you get from this handset. I expected this to be a low-cost product but matches the quality of some pricey ones. Unfortunately, I think that this Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 20 is not competitive compared to other similar products on Amazon.
I take into consideration, for example, the Xiaomi Redmi 9 which has better performance and a more balanced photographic sector. It has limited capabilities with regards to photo-taking but if you want an affordable phone with a good camera then it is worth considering.