Balmuda Phone Review: A small Android phone that surprisingly finds a market in Japan
Apart from the history of Balmuda, this company may be famous for its products such as relatively expensive and electric boackets. So what happens when a modern design company wants to dip into the smartphone market? This makes a smartphone, of course. Balmuda cellphones were launched in Japan towards the end of 2021, and due to poor acceptance, it was allegedly stopped only a few months after it was launched.
Nevertheless, smartphones are still sold in stores and can be easily purchased or turned off. So how is the phone that is not well received to get a second chance? It will be used again by those who sell it. Instead of being marketed as a high-class balmuda, it is sold as an affordable and compact smartphone that is good for beginners. The best of all, the telephone fee is almost nothing when purchased under the contract. You can see how at this point, it might be attractive. For most, this is enough to make sales. But is the smartphone concise with the name Balmuda Good? Let’s find out.
- Balmuda Phone: Specifications
- Balmuda telephone specifications
- Build
- IP4X
- Color:
- Black
- White
- Dimensions & weight
- 123mm x 69mm x 13.7mm | 138G
- Display
- Full HD LCD display 4.9 inch
- SOC
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 765
- RAM & storage
- 6GB RAM + 128GB Internal Storage
- Battery & charging
- USB-C cable filling
- Wireless filling
- The charger is not included
- Security
- Fingerprint scanner (power button)
- Rear camera
- 48MP f/1.8
- Front camera
- 8MP f/2.0
- Port
- USB-C
- Audio
- Single rear shooting speaker
- Connectivity
- 5G – N3/N28/M77/N78
- LTE – Band 1/2/3/4/8/12/17/18/19/28/41/42
- 3G – Band 1/2/4/5/8
- GSM – 850/900/1800/1900
- Software
- Android 11
- Other features
- n/a
- Balmuda Phone: Design
Balmuda mobile phones are unique technology, not because they package interesting features, but because it is a smartphone made by a non-smartphone company. This shows what comes to the market when a company is not accustomed to the landscape that is inserted and truly believe in its vision. While this approach has been successful in the past for some limited people, the opportunity as big as success is truly rare.
Balmuda phones quickly distinguish itself from the crowd by having a design that, at first glance, does not look like what is currently on the market. But if we return, maybe a decade ago, when there are more experimental devices, we can see where the Balmuda phone might get its inspiration. This phone has a glimpse of Palm Pre, Microsoft Kin One, and others. While Palm found inspiration for the design of ostrich eggs, Balmuda was more concerned with avoiding hardliners, making all efforts to combine the slanted curve in each corner of the phone.
At the front, we get a 4.9 -inch full HD screen that can be used with a punch hole cut in the upper right corner for the camera facing forward. Crispy screen (449 ppi) and works well in most conditions, but the panel is LCD, so you must not expect a thick black color or color that appears. Another thing to note is that there are two different color options for balmuda, black and white cellphones. If you have a black model, the bezel that surrounds the screen is not visible, but with a white model, you might see some extra spaces upstairs and bottom of the screen.
The back of the device has a different display, holding a round power button/fingerprint sensor on the left side and camera lens on the right. There is a speaker grill and flash between the power button and the camera, with a small LED indicator lights located right next to the camera. Imagine my surprise when I first received a message and saw him blinking: it’s fun because it’s not something you often see lately. Unfortunately, seeing through the settings menu, there is no way to adjust the color or pattern, so you will be trapped with soft white illumination for all warnings.
Thanks to its smaller tracks, tilted curves, and weighing 138G, Balmuda phones must feel pretty good in hand. This device hugs your palm, and to be honest, it feels like the opposite of what you usually do when handling a smartphone. This phone is made of plastic, which feels rather cheap in 2022, and the textured surface on the back gives enough grip to feel comfortable. Strangely, the design made carefully by Balmuda is something that I cannot appreciate, maybe because for years using square plates constantly carving themselves into my palm.
Regarding environmental protection, Balmuda mobile phones offer an official IPX4 ranking. Devices are certified to be used near water and can take sparks occasionally, but cannot sink and are not considered waterproof. The ranking also means that it is likely to protect from sweat.
Balmuda Phone: Software
Balmuda phones are equipped with Android 11, and in July 2022, it has received security updates in June 2022. Because this is an operator brand device, some special operator applications are included as not part of Android, but nothing is disturbing. Android 11 experience with a little additional touch by Balmuda here and there. This “touch” is one of the most surprising aspects of mobile software because it is a wise addition.
The “stripe” function is an attractive part of the home screen, giving users to access quickly to the shortcut by swiping the lines arranged in the background. You can set the strip function to take the predetermined action or set it to launch your favorite application. The best of all, it can be adjusted. You can adjust the lines to match the right or left handle, or you can deactivate them altogether. You can also adjust the color that suits your mood.
Balmuda has tools and widgets that accompany it such as schedules, hours, notes, and calculators. This is not new, because most of the cellphones install this application, but Balmuda takes it quite well. For example, in the scheduled application, the layout is beautiful and intuitive. You can pinch to enlarge and exit your schedule, show your day, week, or even your monthly schedule. There is also an integrated weather, showing what the weather was like a week before in the calendar display.
The clock application is also beautiful, offering time, weather integration, stopwatch, alarm, and time counting. Difficult to explain, but the appearance and nuances make the experience look elegant. The same applies to the application and application of the calculator, with a small touch gives a little more energy than your standard application on other devices. The sound design is also charming, in an elegant and pleasant tone for the ring tone, notification, and even charging. Everyone will have their preferences with things like this, but for the first experiment, Balmuda succeeded, providing a charming and impressive experience.
Balmuda Phone: Camera and Entertainment
The camera is an important part of any smartphone warehouse. Without the right camera, this phone can be a prayer for many smart consumers. If you are someone who wants an extraordinary photo from your smartphone, a balmuda phone is not for you. It has a single 48MP camera, which means you will be limited in the type of photo and video that you record.
Maybe what’s surprising about this phone is that it does not perform well in a bright environment. Activating HDR does help quality but to see this kind of quality from a new smartphone rather terrible. As you can imagine, it doesn’t do it well after the lighting becomes more dim. For those who like the ability to call camera settings, there is no such choice. At most, you will be able to choose a mode consisting of films, photos, dishes, portraits, and night vision. I have my opinion, but I have left several photo samples so you can become a judge.
When watching a movie in Balmuda, a smaller screen doesn’t look that bad. But the area that does require improvement is audio. A single speaker on the back is not enough and will train your muscle memory from years ago, making you cupped the back of the phone to channel the sound forward. If it is not enough, the audio is not crispy and is often distorted when played with a harder volume. This is not the worst in the world, but those who want to use this as a media consumption device might want to search elsewhere. Also, this device does not have an audio jack, with Bluetooth and USB-C Audio Passthrough to be the only choice.
Balmuda phone: battery and performance
Balmuda phones do not package the fastest SOC or even the largest battery; In everyday use, it shows. While the Qualcomm Snapdragon 765 processor is okay for most, sometimes you can feel or even see a little anxiety or stuttering now and then when scrolling web pages, watching YouTube, or playing games.
As far as 2,500mAh batteries run, it is possible to pass through the day of use. Suppose you are an ordinary user like me. In this case, you might use a telephone for several hours of music streaming, web search, some light media uses with applications such as Instagram and Twitter, and sometimes messages with applications such as WhatsApp, Voice, Slack, etc. If this is the way you use your cellphone, you will pass the day without problems, but you might feel a little nervous when you go home with only about 30 percent of the battery.
If you are a strong user, you will attach navigation, take photos and videos, watch videos like YouTube, receive calls, and more above the average experience. With this kind of use, you can expect the battery to push its limits, leaving about 10 percent at the end of the day. Fortunately, you will have an option to charge your cellphone via USB-C or wirelessly.
Last thought
Balmuda is famous in Japan because it offers designer items such as grilling, emptiness, electric kettle, and more. Although not always the most practical price, there are followers. Unfortunately, the company stepped out of its track with a Balmuda phone and tried to approach the smartphone business like other projects, and was not enough to nail the landing.
With that, there is a market in Japan for smaller smartphones. Balmuda phones may be the best example of this, with several other people such as Rakuten Mini and Sharp ia Meskipun ini umumnya tidak dipasarkan sebagai smartphone kompak, mereka dipasarkan dengan mudah digunakan dan pembeli pertama kali dalam pikiran. Although there are reports about a very high price for Balmuda phones, since then, the price of the cellphone has fallen slightly and can be purchased at a price below $ 200. In addition, the telephone is only one cent if you sign a contract with a wireless operator.
But I think even at a adjusted level, this is a niche device that will not be taken much. Plus, if you step into the middle class market, where Balmuda must sit, many better choices are available. I don’t think there has been a company outside the telephone industry that has produced truly successful products. The space is too competitive, and everything must be wrong without a strong footing. Hopefully, this will be a lesson for not only Balmuda but also others, and maybe one day, we will get an impressive smartphone from the company outside of searching.
