Review of Beeline Smart3. Functional smartphone for ridiculous money

A year ago

1. The phone only accepts a Beeline SIM card, unless you ask the operator for an unlock code. 2. Initially, the phone has quite a lot of applications from Beeline that are unnecessary at first glance (7 pcs.), which can be easily removed; this point can not be considered a drawback. 3. Initially, the phone does not have a lot of memory (out of 4 GB, only 2.45 GB are available, which quickly become cluttered with photos or downloads and you have to insert an SD card). 4. There is no built-in menu with a flashlight, if you just download it, but I haven’t tried this in almost 5 years of using the phone, so instead of a flashlight I have to turn on video recording on the camera and pause it, but the flash works like a flashlight (then this is technical I'm deleting the video). 5. The brand of the phone is missing, which is why

2 years ago

Terrible camera and impossible to buy a replacement battery.

2 years ago

A bit weak

2 years ago

The camera in daylight is tolerable in a room with dim lighting, you can say there is no camera). For me it’s not critical because I don’t need it at all on this phone. You can take a photo during the day and it’s a good picture, but you shouldn’t even think about counting on the clarity of the photo))

3 years ago

1. Very bad screen, not at all rich colors 2. It slows down terribly 3. Even if one drop of water falls into the screen, the touchscreen starts to work incorrectly 4. The camera sucks 5. Some kind of Chinese name brand 6. No updates at all 7. Terrible autonomy 8. The battery charge indicator freezes on one specific number 9. You won’t find a case for it 10. You won’t find glass or even a film for it 11․ Very quiet sound 12. It takes a very long time to charge for 1400mah 13. Very dim flash 14. The network constantly disappears 15. Poor Wi-Fi reception 16․ After 2 months, auto-rotate stopped working. 17. It just gets terribly hot when playing games and these points can be continued forever...

4 years ago

little memory runs out quickly slows down

4 years ago

1) No 4G 2) No autofocus in camera 3) Battery barely lasts for 1 day

4 years ago

1. The screen and body are very dirty 2. The proximity sensor is dull, as a result of which the date and time on the phone are constantly lost (terribly annoying) 3. The phone itself does not shine with speed 4. It is not very convenient to use as a “dialer” 5. Camera (corresponds to the price ) 6. The battery is dull (it can show 50% charge, and then completely discharge in 1 hour) 7. Very bad vibration

4 years ago

It picks up poorly and constantly loses GPS satellites, making it impossible to use as a tracker. Not enough built-in memory. Poor viewing angles of the screen - in horizontal orientation you need to hold it at an angle, otherwise your eyes get very tired.

4 years ago

Unfortunately, there will be more disadvantages: 1) after 2.5 months of use, the vibration has gone away, now the call is almost inaudible in noisy places, you have to carry a Nokia 105 with you 2) the processor heats up, which I want to say is weak (mtk6572, 2 cores at 1.3 GHz ). in the rating, this processor is the latest 3) poor color rendering, on the net on a page with a white background it gives off a slight blue tint 4) 512 MB of RAM is quite small for an android (if you also consider that only 460 are free) 5) the camera is a separate point... 3.2 It looks like an mp, but the optics are simply terrible... no matter how I set it up, the quality is disgusting. Although it is possible to take a successful photo during daylight hours, the probability is 10%. before that I had a Nokia 7230, Nokia 202, I constantly took pictures with them, but with THIS I stopped using the camera altogether,

Despite the fact that the Beeline Smart 3 smartphone is an operator model, it can be untethered from the operator and used with a SIM card from any other cellular company. Many owners of this smartphone use it after unlocking it with SIM cards from various Russian operators and do not experience any problems with communication, even though the model is “branded”. The apparent complexity of unlocking may initially scare off an inexperienced user, but with this method it is almost impossible to turn the gadget into a lifeless “brick” (more details about methods for restoring and “revitalizing” Beeline Smart 3 below in this article). Read carefully, follow the instructions step by step, and everything will work out.

How to unlock Beeline Smart 3 from an operator?

So, to unlock the gadget we will need the Quick Shortcut Maker application installed on the phone from the Google store. After installing this application, you need to open it and scroll through the selection of actions to the line EM Sim me lock. Click on this line, after which a submenu opens, where you need to select the first line with the same heading EM Sim me lock.

After that, click “view”, a menu opens with various items in English. We are only interested in the Network Personalization item.

Click on it and get to the next submenu, where the options Lock, Unlock and Add will be indicated. We need the Unlock item, click on it and see the field for entering numbers. In this field we enter 12345678. We confirm the entry, and our smartphone is officially disconnected from the network, after this manipulation the SIM card of any operator will work as expected.

How to get root on Beeline Smart 3, how to install recovery

What are root rights? Root on smartphones is a special type of user rights that allows the user to fine-tune the system parameters of the smartphone, add additional functions and remove unnecessary or interfering applications. For example, using root, you can remove advertising from all applications, change the appearance and location of on-screen buttons, and force the phone to change the color of the battery and network indicator. In general, the scope for creativity with root rights is enormous, and in good hands, such a tool will help turn your smartphone into a reliable workhorse that meets your requirements.

Attention! If you don’t know what root rights are, don’t know how to use them, or aren’t confident in your abilities, it’s better not to try to get them, since due to errors you can end up with a “dead” smartphone, which will then be either impossible to restore or very hard.

So, to obtain root rights, you must first install a custom ClockWorkMOD or CWM, which will allow you to enable root access.

Instructions for flashing recovery firmware

Instructions for obtaining root rights

Backup of native firmware "Beeline Smart 3"

If you plan to flash your Beeline Smart 3, then you will need a backup of the smartphone's stock firmware. It is designed so that in case of errors during the firmware, you can easily return the phone to its original state.
For backup, you need CWM recovery installed (installation instructions are given above).

How to make a backup of the stock firmware of a Beeline smartphone.

How to flash Beeline Smart 3

Why might smartphone firmware be necessary? Typically, stock (or “native”) firmware is the most reliable and safest for a smartphone, since manufacturers test it for all possible errors and achieve the most stable operation with the hardware component (hardware). But sometimes stock firmware causes some problems in the operation of the smartphone or even leads to irreparable bugs. Chinese “no-name” manufacturers are especially distinguished by this approach. In pursuit of the lowest cost of a smartphone, they reduce the cost of programming and testing devices and release them according to the principle of “cobbling together what was available.” And many manufacturers are in no hurry to update firmware to the latest version of Android (here we are talking not only about Chinese smartphones, but also about almost all smartphones in the lower and middle price segments - such devices usually enter the market with one version of Android and do not support updates to more high version, even when the hardware of the smartphone could run on a more recent OS). This is where the user community comes to the rescue. Many popular smartphones of different price segments have custom ("non-native") firmware that either corrects factory omissions, or adds new functionality, or speeds up the device, or updates the Android version to a more recent one. Most often, custom firmware combines all these qualities or several of them.

The Beeline Smart 3 smartphone is also no exception and, like many smartphones, can be reflashed. And thanks to the instructions below you will learn how to do this.

Attention! All actions to flash your smartphone are done at your own peril and risk! It is possible to render the phone inoperative, so if you are not confident in yourself, do not start this dangerous activity.

So, to flash Beeline Smart 3 firmware we will need:

1. Custom firmware file (archive with zip extension).
2. Smartphone "Beeline Smart 3" with custom CWM recovery and root rights installed (instructions for installing CWM and root are above).
3. microSD memory card (2 GB or larger).
4. Backup your system on a memory card.

Firmware selection

Each user will have to choose custom firmware individually, since each of them has its own pros and cons, and the choice depends on what kind of improvements you want to see. For example, some firmware works very quickly, but errors appear in them from time to time. Or the firmware will be only slightly faster than stock, but stable. One firmware may improve the camera experience, but at the same time degrade the call quality or speaker sound. In general, compare different firmware and decide what exactly you want to see in your Beeline Smart 3.

For example, we will take the CyanogenMod 12.1 Final firmware, based on Android version 5.1.1 (which is not officially supported by the Beeline Smart 3 smartphone; the latest official version for it is 4.4). The main advantages of this firmware are stable and fast operation, a more recent version of Android than stock, and a huge number of customizations and improvements based on the firmware from Cyanogen. The company has been involved in customization almost since the very appearance of the OS and has accumulated vast experience in this matter.

First of all, we need to download the CyanogenMod_12.1-BS3.zip archive. After the archive has been downloaded, you need to throw it into the root (the very beginning) of the memory card in any way convenient for you - via a USB cable and phone, through an external or built-in card reader. The most reliable method is a built-in card reader, but not all computers have it, so any other method will also work. You can also immediately download the archive to your phone, bypassing the computer, but then you need to remember to move it to a memory card.

After the archive is downloaded, you need to make sure that all your data is saved in some other place (computer hard drive, another memory card, USB flash drive or cloud storage), since all data from the smartphone will be destroyed during flashing. Also make sure that you have saved your contacts (for example, if you have enabled synchronization of contacts with Google, that all your contacts remain in the Google cloud and after the firmware you can resynchronize them with the already flashed Beeline Smart 3; if synchronization is disabled and you do not If you want to turn it on, then save all contacts on a SIM card or on another memory card).

Beeline Smart 3 firmware instructions

1. Check your smartphone's charge. It is recommended to update the firmware when the battery charge is at least 90 percent, but it is best to fully charge the smartphone. Turn off the Beeline Smart 3 smartphone. Make sure that the memory card containing the CyanogenMod_12.1-BS3.zip firmware archive is inserted into the phone.
2. We turn on the smartphone in CWM mode. Hold down the volume up button and, without releasing it, press the power button. As soon as the CWM mode screensaver appears, the buttons must be released.
3. Selecting items in this mode is done using the volume keys, and confirming the selection with the power key.
4. Select "install zip from sdcard".
5. Select the archive CyanogenMod_12.1-BS3.zip, which we previously copied to the memory card.
6. Click "yes - install CyanogenMod_12.1-BS3.zip".
7. We are waiting for the installation to complete. During the installation process, you should not touch the phone or press anything on it. Just wait patiently. Usually the process takes about 10-15 minutes, but it can take half an hour (depending on the speed of the memory card and the size of the firmware you downloaded).
8. When the process is completed, select the Beeline Smart 3 phone and it will reboot with the new system. Here you also need to be patient, since the first boot takes much longer than a normal boot, the phone may turn on for 10-15 minutes after flashing, this is absolutely normal. It is also recommended that after the first boot, skip all the quick settings (Google account, Wi-Fi connection, etc.) and restart the phone manually again. After this, you can customize your smartphone according to your requirements and wishes.

What to do if Beeline Smart 3 does not turn on

So, if you made a mistake during the firmware update, or your phone is dead and did not have time to fully flash it, there is a way to restore your Beeline Smart 3. You will need a memory card inserted into your smartphone with a backup of your previous system and a fully charged smartphone.

Instructions for restoring a Beeline Smart 3 smartphone from a backup

1. Turn off your phone into CWM mode.
2. Navigation in this mode occurs using the volume buttons. Select "backup and restore". Confirm your selection with the power button.
3. Select "Restore from sdcard" and confirm your choice.
4. After this, the process of restoring your previous firmware will begin. During this process, it is not recommended to touch the phone or press anything.
5. When the phone says “restore complete”, you can turn off the smartphone and turn it on as usual.

You have returned to your previous firmware and all data has been restored. If the backup recovery process did not help you, you will have to try a more radical method.

Instructions for restoring a Beeline Smart 3 smartphone via PC

Attention! This is a complex procedure that requires good PC knowledge and a basic understanding of the English language. If you are afraid of “killing” your phone, it is better to take it to a technician or service center.

To restore you will need:

1. Installed drivers on the computer. How to install drivers is indicated above. Plus, you need to download the MTK drivers for meta mode.
2. SP Flash Tool program on your computer. How to install this program is also indicated earlier. Attention! You need version of this program v3 - no lower or higher, only this one.
3. Factory cable from the phone (which was in the box with it), if there is no original cable, then take a high-quality cable from another smartphone, the cable should be intact, the connectors should not be loose in the sockets, the wire should not be thin and easily bendable.

Recovery process:

So, with the help of this article you will be able to make the most of your Beeline Smart 3 smartphone. Unlocking, flashing and restoring are not easy processes, but the instructions will help you figure out what's what. Thank you for your attention.

Regular mobile phones are gradually dying out as a class that has almost been replaced by smartphones. What is the reason for this? Smart devices hit several areas at once. The interface of this kind of gadgets 7-8 years ago based on Windows Mobile or Symbian OS was a dark forest for ordinary users, while modern smartphone software, be it Android, iOS or Windows Phone, can be understood by even a conservative pensioner. The second area is financial. Today you can buy a functional smartphone for less than what basic models of simple mobile phones cost in the recent past. An excellent example is Beeline Smart3, that’s what we’ll talk about in this article.

Very inexpensive and cheerful

On the eve of the New Year holidays, Beeline began to burn its competitors with napalm, and one of the operator’s powerful “volleys” turned out to be a smartphone Beeline Smart 3. This is a compact device that can do everything and is offered for 1590 RUR. « It's too cheap, something's wrong here“, an inquisitive reader will think, taking a tomato out of his pocket with the intention of throwing it at the author with a mighty cry of “fucking advertising.” But let's not rush to conclusions. I’m sure you already know that for the stated price the device can be purchased subject to payment for a package of communication services at the tariff “ All for 300" And " Beeline TV"in two months. That is, in the end you need to pay 2490 RUR, and in the case of Moscow - 2670 RUR, as this region offers the " All for 390" It is already more expensive, but for this money a lot is offered.

Firstly, you get a very decent package of mobile services for two months - this includes mobile Internet (2 GB of traffic in EDGE/3G, LTE is not charged until January 15, 2015), and 60 minutes per month to local numbers of other operators ( to Beeline numbers in Russia - free), and 300 SMS, plus TV (traffic is not taken into account). Secondly, they offer decent on-ear headphones as a gift (they have bass, cope well with pop and electronic music, are loud, and do not wheeze at maximum):

Thirdly, the smartphone is truly capable of meeting any needs of an inexperienced user, which I was able to verify in practice. What's more, it's a great option for frequent travelers who need to stay connected via their primary SIM card, but also need a backup handset. Actually, the gadget was tested in this mode during a trip to Thailand.

Close acquaintance with Beeline Smart3

The smartphone came to me in a compact box made of fairly thick and high-quality cardboard:

Inside I found the phone itself, a charger, a simple wired headset and instructions for operating the device. As for the SIM card, you are not limited to just the “All for 300” package - you can use any one with your smartphone. The main thing is that the card is from Beeline; SIM cards of other operators do not work in it, which was verified at the local True Move. After turning on, the phone requested an NCK code, that is, in principle it can be unlocked, but out of the box it only works with Beeline cards:

But the card with the tariff “ All for 150", connected roaming options and the service " My planet"Earned with half a kick. This smartphone was used for voice communication with relatives and backup Internet. But we’ll talk about operating experience a little later, but for now let’s continue looking at the gadget itself.

There are models to choose from in black, yellow and white, in this case it is the latter option that appears:

The plastic on the back panel is matte and practical, does not collect fingerprints, looks good, and does not slip in your hands. There is also a speaker grille and a 3.2-megapixel camera with flash. The speaker is of medium volume, it does not know about the existence of bass, but it is sharp and can be heard well, even if the phone is lying with its back on a flat surface.

As for the camera, it lacks stars from the sky. In good lighting conditions, it is quite possible to take pictures for publication on social networks, but do not count on miracles, this is a very budget solution. Here are examples of pictures of how they will actually look on the Internet:

Under the cover there is a battery with a capacity 1400 mAh, SIM card slot and microSD capacity up to 32 GB. Own memory in the phone 4 GB, and 512 MB RAM. The smartphone is based on a dual-core processor MediaTek MT6572A with frequency 1.3 GHz. Its capabilities are sufficient for almost any consumer task, be it reading, lazy web surfing, watching videos up to HD, and even playing games. Popular with my kids, Subway Surfers [download from Google Play] works great. I didn’t load the gadget with anything more serious. There are iPads and iPhones for this, but Beeline Smart3 has different tasks in my operating scheme.

Let's return to the filling. As you can see in the photo above, the SIM card can only be installed by first removing the battery. Although even in cool Android flagships, when changing SIM, you still have to reboot the phone, or rather, it does it on its own. I remember that even the very first iPhone allowed you to do this while hot. Well, okay, let's not put pressure on one of Android's pet peeves, there are plenty of them in both camps.

As for the battery capabilities, in my normal operating mode (10–15 minutes of calls, a little Internet, laying several routes in), they lasted for almost two full days.

It is worth mentioning the telecommunications capabilities of the gadget. There is support for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, a GPS receiver and a GSM modem (900, 1800 MHz). There is also support for 3G, up to HSPA+, however, on the island of Phuket (Thailand) I was able to get 3G only in one place near Karon Beach. Roaming services in this case were provided by a local operator Dtac.

In all other areas of the island that we managed to visit, there was only reliable EDGE reception - this speed was quite enough for searching on Google and even plotting routes in Google Maps. Not fast, but stable.

The main attraction of the front panel is a 4-inch display with a resolution of 480x800 pixels, a capacitive touch panel and a TN matrix. An ordinary display without any frills, it’s a pity that it’s not IPS, but for the price for which Beeline Smart3 is offered, the screen is good. In the sun it behaves normally, the image fades but remains legible. In all other situations, the display brightness is sufficient with reserve, while for night reading it is not excessive.

The system buttons are touch sensitive, with vibration response and backlight. There is also a 0.3-megapixel camera and a phone speaker on the front panel. There are no complaints about its operation - the interlocutor can be heard well, the volume is sufficient even for a noisy city street. On the right side there is a power button, on the left there is a volume rocker. The stroke of both is short, but clear.

Hidden on the top are a 3.5mm headphone jack and a standard micro-USB port.

In terms of design, the smartphone is nice - there is something in it from the early Android smartphones Sony Xperia and some other popular handsets. In addition, the device is very compact, will easily fit into any pocket and will not weigh it down (125.5 x 64 x 9.7 mm, 122 g), while it fits comfortably in the hand. By the way, thanks to the rounded top and bottom edges, the phone slips into pockets just fine.

Software and work in roaming

Beeline Smart3 runs on OS Android 4.4.2, and without any shells - a pure system from Google, moderately beautiful, functional, with a nimble interface. Although the operator added a few of its own goodies, namely the proprietary application "", an antivirus package ESET Mobile Security, client " Beeline TV"and a small set of other services, plus a standard set of software from Google:

By the way, the “My Beeline” application [download from Google Play] is a very, very useful thing that allows you not only to monitor your account, but also to view completed transactions for a selected period of time (details), manage connected services and order new ones, find the nearest offices “Beeline”... In general, do everything the same as in, that is, you get full control over your number and account.

As you can see, abroad I used the services “My Planet” and “Internet Roaming Week”. The first allows you to “not be left without pants because of voice calls” (incoming calls - 9 rubles / min., SMS - 9 rubles, outgoing calls to Russia, within the host country and other countries of international roaming - 19 rubles / min. ), the second provides access to the World Wide Web, providing 300 MB for 7 days. Is it a lot or a little? It is quite enough for mail, daily search for 5-10 routes, a dozen check-ins and even reading your Twitter feed. If you want more and cheaper, you will have to bother with a local SIM card.

I would like to draw your attention to the fact that Android is a convenient platform for global control of your Internet traffic. You can set two threshold values: the first is a warning that the Internet is already running out, the second is to disable access to the Network when a certain limit is reached. There is no such thing in iOS yet, although you can control the access of applications to the Network individually.

Well, don’t forget that Beeline Smart3 is a full-fledged smartphone, that is, its capabilities are very, very wide thanks to Google Play. This is an e-book reader, a video and audio player (especially since good headphones are given as a gift), and an electronic notepad, and a window into the world of social networks and the Internet, a portable game console... you can continue. As practice has shown, the capabilities of this gadget are sufficient for most tasks. Considering its cost, this is one of the best offers on the market, taking into account the fact that the device is locked to Beeline SIM cards.

Beeline Smart 3- a simple and inexpensive smartphone for lovers of active communication and listening to music. It is made in a classic case and runs on the Android 4.4 operating system. Sold in three colors: black, white, and yellow. Supplied blocked to work only with Beeline SIM cards.

Beeline Smart 3 is equipped with a large touch display with a diagonal of 4 inches and a resolution of 480x800 pixels. Multi-touch supported. The screen is quite suitable for watching videos, reading, playing games and surfing the Internet.

The hardware is based on the MediaTek MT6572A processor, which operates at a frequency of 1.3 MHz and has 2 cores. Multitasking is achieved with 512 MB of RAM. The amount of built-in storage for user files is 4 GB, but, if necessary, it can be easily increased up to 32 GB by simply installing a microSD card.

Beeline Smart3, like other Android smartphones, is equipped with a 2G/3G module, Wi-Fi, GPS and FM radio. There are two cameras. The main one has a resolution of 3.2 megapixels, and the front one - 0.3. Multimedia features include a music player and video player.

The new product is capable of working up to 8 hours in talk mode and up to 200 hours in standby mode. The battery capacity is 1400 mAh.

The Smart 3 smartphone from Beeline is made in a black plastic case. Its dimensions are 125.5x64x9.7 mm. The device weighs only 122 g.

How to reset the pattern on Beeline Smart 3?
1. With the device turned off, press and hold “Volume+” and the “Power” button simultaneously.
2. You will see on the screen - There is no command. Press the "Power" button once.
3. Using the "Volume-" button, select the line wipe data/factory reset.
4. Confirm the selection with the "Volume +" button
5. Using the "Volume-" button, select the line yes - delete all user data.
6. Confirm the selection with the "Volume +" button
7. Select the line Reboot system now using the "Volume +" button.
8. That's all.

Unlock Beeline Smart 3

Unblock Beeline Smart3 necessary if you want to use it with SIM cards from other operators. Especially for this, we have a 24-hour service for obtaining NCK codes.

To order a code, you only need to know the IMEI of the device. It can be found on the box, under the battery on a sticker, or by dialing *#06# in the dialer. The Beeline Smart3 unlock code is very easy to order - just follow instructions on the website. After payment and sending the phone data, the NCK code will be displayed in the paid item section.

Turn on your smartphone with a SIM card from another operator (not Beeline) and in the field provided (enter the NCK code (attempts: 100)) enter the received code and confirm the operation.

Unlocking is carried out only once and is not required in the future. Our codes are 100% working, as they are calculated using the manufacturer's factory database (Huizhou Quaoxing Electronic Science and Technology Com, Ltd). Our Beeline Smart 3 unlocking method completely safe as there is no interference with the firmware.

Visual video of the Beeline Smart 3 unlocking process

Another video about unlocking Beeline Smart 3

Beeline Smart 3 Reset graphic password (Hard Reset).

Review of Beeline Smart 3

Beeline Smart 3. Installing CWM and obtaining root rights

The third “promotional” Beeline smartphone, this time in a rectangular body instead of the usual “sleek” one and in different color options. Looks noticeably nicer than previous versions. As a bonus - additional headphones.

The smartphone itself is budget, with a 4-inch screen and technical characteristics that do not shine. The main advantage is the price of 2,670 rubles, which includes two months of service on the “All for 390” tariff plan (780 rubles) and two months of the Beeline TV service (400 rubles)

Specifications

• Full name: Beeline Smart 3
• Manufacturer: Huizhou Quaoxing Electronic Science and Technology Com, Ltd (China)
• Operating system: Android KitKat 4.4.2
• SIM card: one, miniSIM (regular)
• Screen: 4 inches, TFT, 16.78 million colors, 480x800, pixel density 240 ppi
• Cameras: main 3.2 MP without autofocus, front 0.3 MP.
• Processor: dual-core MediaTek MT6572A, 1.3 GHz.
• Memory: 4 GB built-in, RAM 512 MB.
• Memory card slot: microSD up to 32 GB.
• Support 2G/3G (4G no), bands 2G 900/1800 MHz, 3G 900/2100 MHz
• Wireless interfaces: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, USB
• Navigation: GPS, A-GPS
• Battery: 1 400 mAh
• Dimensions and weight: 64 x 125.5 x 9.7 mm, 122 g.

Promotion

If you look back and remember the previous “Smartphone for 490” promotions, the history of changes turns out to be interesting. The full price of the set remains approximately the same, but the format for distributing this money changes. In the first promotion, you had to pay in advance the subscription fee for seven months of the “All for 300” tariff plan, in the second promotion, the service period was reduced to four months, adding “Mobile TV”, and now they have already made two months of service on the “All for 390” tariff plan and with the Beeline TV service (400) rub. They also abandoned the ringing slogan “Smartphone for 490 rubles,” announcing the price of “Smart 3” at 1,590 rubles.

We can assume that Beeline abandoned the original smartphone subsidy scheme. Compared to the previous promotion, this is a price increase for subscribers by the amount they will spend over the next two months after the end of the promotion. There is also a small positive: in case of a refund for the smartphone, its declared value must be returned, that is, 1,590 instead of the previous 490 rubles. As compensation, they give you headphones (smiley). In any case, 2,670 rubles. for a smartphone, headphones and two months of service at the “All for 390” tariff looks like a tempting offer. And if you also use Beeline TV, then that’s absolutely fine. You can read in detail about all the details and intricacies of the promotion on the Beeline website.

Dot the i's

"Beeline Smart 3", manufactured by Huizhou Quaoxing Electronic Science and Technology Com, Ltd (China). The price of the set is 2,670 rubles. One SIM card, standard format. Operating system – Android KitKat 4.4.2. Processor - dual-core MediaTek MT6572A, 1.3 GHz. 4 GB built-in memory, 512 MB RAM. MicroSD slot up to 32 GB. TFT screen 4 inches, resolution – 480 x 800, pixel density – 240 ppi. Battery 1 400 mAh.

Support 2G/3G (no LTE), bands 2G 900/1800 MHz, 3G 900/2100 MHz, maximum (theoretically possible) data reception speed - 21.6 Mbit/s, transmission - 5.76 Mbit/s. The main camera is 3.2 MP without autofocus, the front camera is 0.3 MP. Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, FM radio available, only via an external antenna (headphones/headset).

SIM-lock is installed, but you can get an unlock code. No additional shells installed, “pure” Android. There are light and proximity sensors, automatic brightness adjustment. Weight - 122 g, plastic, design is not quite standard (a strict rectangle without curves), available in three colors: black, white and lemon.

Positioning

An entry-level smartphone, AnTuTu called it “Budget”. As I wrote six months ago, in the budget segment they switched to a more or less acceptable screen resolution of 480 x 800. This already makes it possible to offer a smartphone to a child. The appearance cannot be called dull; it can be considered as a device for a girl.

Gift headphones hint at the “youth” of the set, but for such an audience the filling is rather weak. This is probably a good reason to replace your old smartphone with a low-resolution screen for little money. For the rest, see for yourself.

Equipment and design

The kit includes the smartphone itself, a power adapter for an output current of 0.65 A, a connecting cable, a headset, and a “User Manual.” Sometimes it’s empty, sometimes it’s thick: they started putting a headset in the kit again, and now there are additional headphones for it.

More - no less, headphones will come in handy. As for the design, here for once we were pleased. A nice “block” with sharp corners, although not the apotheosis of originality, looks advantageous against the background of identical budget “remnants”, forgive the comparison. The different colors of the back cover also pleased me. “Canary” yellow seemed too bright to me, but “the taste and color...”. Eh, if only there was a pink version, we didn’t think to make it. It’s still good; budget devices rarely spoil us with a variety of colors.

Due to the sharp corners, the device visually seems wider than usual, but this is not the case, the dimensions are standard. As for the hardware, the smartphone is well equipped and has everything you need, including a flash, front camera and LED event indicator. The question is whether you are satisfied with the quality of the modules, but the modules themselves are available.

A 1,400 mAh battery could still work for a “just” budget smartphone, but here we have “Beeline TV” in the kit. Which actively consumes the battery in viewing mode. It is clear that some people agreed on the technical details, and others came up with the composition of the package, but TV lovers will have to carry an external battery with them.

Design Features

The smartphone opens without much effort; the back cover is soft plastic. The surface is matte and does not leave fingerprints.

The 3.5 mm jack for headsets and headphones is on the top edge, and there is also a microUSB jack. For some reason, dust just sticks to the shiny black plastic, I only noticed it in the photo.

The power button is on the right side, the volume rocker is on the left. They perform just right, are easy to feel and work normally, no complaints.

On the bottom edge there is only a microphone, shifted to the left in the very corner. It may be a little worse to hear for someone who is used to holding the phone in his left hand during a conversation. According to interlocutors, the microphone is so-so. The lower buttons are backlit, they are drawn well and are also visible without backlighting.

The multimedia speaker is separate, traditionally located at the bottom under the back cover. The sound is average. The voice speaker is decent and sounds good.

Display

I repeat, a resolution of 480 x 800 with a pixel density of 240 ppi can be considered quite tolerable in a budget device. Just a year ago, cheap smartphones treated us to incomparably worse screens, but with such a display we can already coexist peacefully. “Hazyness” is felt as a general haze and is only really visible on fine lines.

Color rendering is so-so, blue is present. It can be noticeably worse, but it can also be better. Tolerable. What was more disappointing were the viewing angles; when rotated in the vertical plane, the colors were greatly distorted, even to the point of being inverted. This is important when watching videos and TV shows in “landscape” mode, and “Beeline TV” is included in our kit.

There is auto brightness adjustment and it works fine, without any jerks. It was not possible to get the sun these days, but the maximum brightness level seemed sufficient to me.

Cameras

The main camera is 3.2 MP without autofocus, the front camera is 0.3 MP. Thank you for being there; in budget smartphones, the front camera was until recently considered an unnecessary indulgence.

Two selfie samples taken with the front camera. It’s fine for video calls on Skype, but I wouldn’t recommend it for photographing your loved one. I mean, it’s not forbidden to take photographs, but it’s better not to show the result.

The main camera is not the best example of a 3.2 MP matrix without autofocus. In good lighting conditions, the pictures come out decent within what you can expect from a camera like this. As lighting conditions deteriorate, apparently (EXIF provides incorrect information), the exposure time increases greatly, and the image is almost inevitably blurred.

The flash doesn't help much. It itself is weak, plus it noticeably distorts colors. Above are two photos with flash, a distance of about one meter. The wall, by the way, was “originally” light beige.

In general, the camera cannot be called successful even taking into account the stated weak parameters. I don’t even want to write about working with documents or photographing small things, it’s just frustrating. Use of the camera - outdoors during the day, preferably in good weather.

Characteristics

Main technical characteristics of the smartphone, according to Beeline

Technical characteristics of “gift” headphones. Subjectively, the high frequencies seemed noticeably “stifled” to me, the bass was reproduced well. This is a budget option, but certainly better than cheap plugs.

AnTuTu data for fans of “virtual parrots”, there were 11,913 of them. Even a little less than in previous versions of Beeline Smart, no improvements can be expected in terms of performance. 512MB of RAM isn't much, but KitKat works well with limited memory, and stock Android performs decently.

Impressions from work

The radio unit behaves adequately and switches between 2G and 3G normally. Sensitivity in 3G is not bad, and the device does not crash prematurely in 2G. There are three available modes: 3G/2G (3G priority), 3G only and 2G only. I didn’t like the slight delay in turning on data transmission on the cellular network after leaving the Wi-Fi coverage area; the device “thinks” for a minute or a minute and a half.

As for the transmission speed, a lot depends on the specific location, time of day, day of the week and other factors affecting the load on the base station. Despite regularly published screenshots with “record” indicators, I would estimate the average 3G speeds in Moscow at 2 Mbit/s for reception and 0.5 Mbit/s for data transmission. But records live on their own and weakly correlate with average reality. It depends on how lucky you are.

The Wi-Fi module in the device is average, nothing remarkable. GPS works and starts up quickly enough. FM radio only works with a connected headset or headphones; there is no internal antenna.

I was pleased with the three-color LED event indicator; with a 1,400 mAh battery, its presence is very important. Indeed, separate SMS and application notifications by colors, and you won’t have to jerk the screen again. It really works, believe me.

Summary

The device attracts with its appearance, it does not look like a frankly budget model and I like it. In terms of hardware, the smartphone has everything that is often “forgotten” to be installed in a budget device: front camera, flash, auto brightness control, LED event indicator. Of the obvious weak points, I would note the cameras, I would also like a larger battery and an IPS matrix. You can't really play resource-intensive games. A spoiled user may turn up his nose, but for the money this is not a bad option.