itel A70 review: deserves a second look

• By Ashish Kumar -
Published On: April 8, 2024

The itel A70 is an entry-level smartphone with basic specifications. The handset features an HD+ display, a 13MP AI camera, Unisoc T603 chipset, and a 5,000mAh battery. The phone is currently selling in India at Rs 6,299 for the base 4GB RAM + 64GB storage variant. There are 128GB and 256GB storage variants as well, which will set you back by Rs 6,799 and Rs 7,499 respectively. 

Is the itel A70 a worthwhile purchase at its current price point? That's precisely what we aim to evaluate in this review. Keep reading.

Verdict

The itel A70 is a viable option for those seeking an entry-level smartphone. The handset features a good design, display, and satisfactory camera performance for basic photography needs. However, individuals seeking a relatively clean software experience and a long-lasting battery life may have to explore other options.

Design and display

• As far as the looks go, the itel A70 doesn't exude an entry-level feel, at least not to me. The handset boasts an accent around the back panel underneath the glossy glastic back, which is a magnet to fingerprints and smudges. Fortunately, the fingerprints were not very prominent on the Brilliant Gold colour variant that we received for review. Moreover, a good quality black-coloured TPU case is bundled in the box.
• With its 187-gram weight, the handset is comfortable to hold, and its flat edges provide a solid grip. The handset has been fashioned out of plastic, which doesn't creek and cracks when the pressure is applied. The phone's rear cameras are aligned in individual rings in the top right corner that juts out of the frame. A contrasting shade around the camera module adds to the device's aesthetic appeal. Also, catching the attention is the ‘AWESOME' text etched on the back panel of the device. 
• The bottom edge of the smartphone houses a USB Type-C port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a speaker grille. The fingerprint scanner is mounted on the power button on the right spine, which feels slightly on the slower side when unlocking the device.

• The itel A70 features a 6.6-inch IPS display with HD+ resolution and a waterdrop notch. The handset supports 500 nits peak brightness, which is comfortable to view indoors but challenging outdoors under direct sunlight. It is worth mentioning the phone lacks an adaptive brightness feature, forcing users to manually adjust the screen brightness based on the ambience for easy viewing. Alternatively, they can keep the brightness fixed at 100 percent, which doesn't get too bright even in a dimly lit room.
• The text looks sharp on the screen, and the colours appear bright and vibrant. The picture quality and viewing angles are also acceptable for the price. Furthermore, the display supports the software-backed Dynamic Bar feature, which forms a pill-shaped notch around the front camera for at-a-glance information like charging animation, low battery reminder, and charge completion reminder, among other things.

Cameras

• In terms of optics, the itel A70 sports a 13MP rear camera setup and an 8MP front-facing camera. Both cameras are backed by AI and an LED flash. The latter is said to assist with details in low light, but it more often than not overexposes the images. The AI, on the other hand, analyses the scene and adds effects to make the images more appealing. For instance, if there is a human subject, it automatically clicks a portrait image. Speaking of which, the portrait shots look average at best, with slight warping around the edges of the subject and an artificial bokeh effect.

• The overall result of the cameras is acceptable for the price. These are simple point-and-shoot cameras that output images with near-accurate colours and skin tones. Details, sharpness, and dynamic range are a little underwhelming, but that's excusable given the price of the smartphone. Additionally, the cameras are slightly slow with focus and shutter speeds even in well-lit environments.

• Nevertheless, the itel A70 camera performance seems to be better than the similarly-priced Moto G04 smartphone. The itel smartphone pulls up sharper and clearer shots, as well as better dynamic range, than its counterpart.

Performance and software

• At the core of itel A70 lies the Unisoc T603 chipset, coupled with 4GB RAM and up to 256GB storage onboard, further expandable using a microSD card. The RAM can be virtually expanded up to 12GB using a portion of the phone's storage. The itel smartphone's AnTuTu and Geekbench scores are lower than the Moto G04, which is also powered by Unisoc T603 chipset but comes with 6GB RAM.
  

• The handset is good for basic tasks like communication, browsing, social media scrolling, and some navigation. You will find the smartphone struggling with anything more than that as we did with COD where even at low graphics it stuttered. Additionally, the handset's thermals also shot up significantly from 27 degrees at the start of the game to 41.3 degrees within half an hour. This shouldn't come as a surprise considering it is an entry-level smartphone. 
  

• Software-wise, the itel A70 boots Android 13 Go edition out of the box. The software has the company's custom Android skin running atop, which tweaks the overall UI and app icons. The phone comes with a bunch of apps pre-installed: those from Google, along with a few from itel apps including those for warranty, themes, photo gallery, file manager, and more. It also has Facebook Lite and Jumping Zoo third-party apps pre-installed, which are removable if desired. In general, the software is easy to use, intuitive, and customisable.

Battery and charging

• The itel A70 is equipped with a 5,000mAh battery, which scored 11 hours and 42 minutes in the PCMark test. This is on the lower side compared to the competitors, which achieved 15 hours on average. In our YouTube video playback test, conducted at maximum supported resolution with 50 percent brightness and volume levels, the handset's battery life decreased by 7 percent.
• Considering the phone will not be used for heavy tasks, the handset should provide at least a day of usage between charges. This is good since the smartphone lacks fast charging speeds. The itel A70 comes with a 10W adaptor bundled in the box, which takes over two and a half hours to fully charge the device from empty.

Final verdict

The itel A70 doesn't have many competitors at least for its starting price. However, its 128GB storage variant goes up against the Moto G04, which provides near Android experience along with better AnTuTu and Geekbench scores. However, on the downside, you are getting just 64GB of storage onboard. There is a 128GB storage variant of the Moto phone as well, but it has been priced higher at Rs 7,999.

If you are tight on budget and don't want to sacrifice storage, the itel A70 could be your go-to option. With satisfactory performance across all fronts – from its display quality to camera capabilities, battery longevity, and seamless handling of daily tasks – it offers good value for its price point.

Editor's rating: 7 / 10

Reasons to buy

• The handset looks attractive with its accent back.
• The display is pleasing to look at in indoor settings.
• The performance is good for basic tasks like communication, browsing, and social media scrolling.

Reasons not to buy

• The camera performance is quite average, with slow focus and shutter speed.
• The battery life looks slightly underwhelming for its calibre.