Last year, a handful of budget 4G LTE-enabled Android phablets were launched in Indian market both by the domestic and international vendors. The Chinese manufacturer Lenovo made a popular name in the country by offering a handful of K Note series smartphones. The brand’s Lenovo K3 Note has been a popular device in this segment. To compete against the likes of the Lenovo K3 Note, the domestic vendor Swipe Technologies launched its latest smartphone in the Elite series called the Elite Note in April this year.
Similar to the K3 Note, the Elite Note is also a budget 4G LTE-enabled Android phablet. If you are planning to buy any of these devices, then let’s put them on the table and compare their specifications, so you can decide the one suits your needs.
Swipe Elite Note vs Lenovo K3 Note – budget Android phablet compared
Design
Talking about the design first, the Swipe Elite Note sports a durable body designed from magnesium alloy, says the company. The phone sports metallic finish on the sides, and on the back, it gets an OnePlus One-like Sandstone back, which feels smooth, rich and appealing in hand. The phone measures 8.4mm around the waist, and tips the scale at 194 grams. The Lenovo K3 Note on the other hand sports a plastic body, which measures 8mm around the waist, and weighs 170 grams. So the K3 Note is less appealing than the Elite Note, but is both slimmer and lighter than the latter.
Display and OS
The Swipe Elite Note sports a 5.5-inch HD display with a resolution of 1,280 x 720 pixels and a layer of Asahi’s Dragontrail glass. The Lenovo K3 Note also sports a 5.5-inch display, but it delivers much better media viewing experience thanks to a full HD resolution screen. Software-wise, the Elite Note and K3 Note, both the phones run Android Lollipop with their brand’s respective user interfaces. Overall, when it comes to the display, the K3 Note is without a doubt is a much better choice.
Configuration
Moving on to the configuration, the Swipe Elite Note is powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6735 processor, further supported by 3-gigs of RAM. The phone comes with 16GB of internal memory, further expandable up to 32GB via a microSD card. The Lenovo K3 Note on the other hand is backed by a more powerful 1.7GHz octa-core MediaTek MT6752 processor, coupled with 2-gigs of RAM. It also comes with 16GB of expandable memory. When it comes to the performance, the K3 Note is certainly a winner over the Elite Note.
Camera
For selfies and video calling, the Swipe Elite Note and Lenovo K3 Note, both the phones offer 5-megapixel front-facing shooter. The Elite Note comes with a 13MP Sony camera on the back with an LED flash and HD video recording. The K3 Note delivers a better primary imaging experience thanks to a 13MP rear snapper with a dual-tone LED flash and full HD video recording support.
Connectivity and battery
In terms of connectivity, there’s no different between the Swipe Elite Note and Lenovo K3 Note. They both come with 4G LTE support, dual-SIM slots, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, micro-USB 2.0, and A-GPS. While the Elite Note sports 4G on the first SIM slot, the K3 Note offers the same on both of its SIM slots. As far as the battery is concerned, the Elite Note is fuelled by a 3,000mAh unit, while the K3 Note is backed by a slightly smaller 2,900mAh unit. Since the former sports an HD display and a bigger battery, it delivers higher usage time than the latter, which delivers a full HD screen and a slightly smaller battery.
Conclusion
On the paper, the Swipe Elite Note and Lenovo K3 Note offer quite similar specifications. However, the K3 Note offers much better media viewing experience than the Elite Note as it offers a full HD display. Also, the K3 Note gets a more powerful processor, better camera specs, Dolby ATMOS-powered speakers for an immersive audio output, and a slimmer and lighter design. The Swipe Elite Note gets a more appealing design and a bigger battery than the K3 Note. As for the pricing, the Swipe Elite Note is priced at Rs 7,999. The K3 Note is being offered slightly higher at Rs 9,999, but is worth every extra buck thanks to the better specs. So which one are you going to buy? The Elite Note or K3 Note? Share your choice with us all in the comments section.
