Gionee has made a name for itself in the mid-range segment but in the low end Android arena, its efforts were marred by better products like Redmi 1S, Moto E, and a host of other low cost Android phones.
Recently, Gionee came out with its V4S which is currently selling for around Rs 9,500. The handset offers a 4.5 inch IPS display with 480×854 pixels resolution, Android 4.4.2 KitKat operating system, 1.3 GHz quad core processor, Mali 400 MP GPU, 1 GB RAM, 8 GB ROM, 32 GB expandable storage slot, 8 megapixel rear camera, and a 2 megapixel front camera. Besides, it has dual SIM, WiFi, Bluetooth, micro USB port, FM radio, GPS and an 1800 mAh battery.
But wait isn’t it the same features as in most Android smartphones in this price range? Ofcourse it is, so we have decided to check out the phone ourselves and here are our findings.
Our Findings
To be very frank, the Gionee V4S is no looker. It has plain looks and comes with an odd flip cover that is half stuck with the rear cover. However, Gionee carefully kept the power and volume rocker on the right hand side; had it been in the left side like most device makers do, it would have been quite difficult to operate. 
Since it has a 4.5 inch display, it was quite compact to handle and that becomes quite obvious from its dimension (131X65X7.8mm). As usual, the micro SD card slot and the micro SIM slots are placed below the rear cover. The battery is removable too.
The 4.5 inch display has just enough brightness as well as resolution, though qHD resolution would have been much better. Touch response was appreciable too. 
The best aspect of Gionee V4S is undoubtedly its performance. With the 1.3 GHz quad core processor, 1 GB RAM, and Mali 400 MP GPU, the V4S offered smooth performance. The phone has no issues whatsoever in playing Asphalt 8, BB Racing, etc at all. Thus perhaps it got a pretty good score of 18646 on Antutu benchmark.
The Gionee V4S has an 1800 mAh battery which is pretty good considering that it has a 4.5 inch display. Thus the battery managed to run for a day with average usage. Standby was especially better; the phone managed to hold onto charge for 2-3 days.
Another highlight of the phone is its user interface. Though V4S comes with Android 4.4.2 operating system, it has a custom user interface. The notification bar has a special widget which frees up RAM with just a click. The settings page too is divided into Quick Setting and All Settings. The quick settings has the most used items including WiFi, Data Connection, Bluetooth, Ringtone, Display, System updates, and screen lock.
For storage, the V4S has healthy 8 GB internal storage of which about 4 GB is available for users. There is anyway a 32 GB micro SD card slot. It does not though accept external hard drives or pen drives.
The Gionee V4S offers an 8 megapixel rear camera with auto focus. Unlike other low end Android smartphones, the V4S has several camera features. To start with, it comes with 11 picture frames including Father Christmas, Fairy Tales, Koala Bear, Halloween etc. Likewise, it has got several capture modes like Normal, Panorama, Eraser, Face Beauty etc. The camera App is also quite simple – with the settings tab at the top while the capture button at the bottom. However, there is no tutorial for a first time user which makes it difficult to know the purpose of certain tabs. For instance, it isn’t clear the use of Eraser mode nor there is any clarity of “Swinging Switch The Picture Frame” that appears in the camera setting.
Quality wise the 8 megapixel camera of V4S is one of the best in its price bracket. It manages to capture colour quite nicely as well as doesn’t have much issue in capturing required amount of details. I was also quite satisfied with its front camera.
Images by Sushil Kumar