Lava Agni 2 review: a worthy choice

Here's my take on the Lava's new smartphone - Lava Agni 2.

• By Ashish Kumar -
Published On: June 19, 2023

The Lava Agni 2 is the latest iteration in the company's Agni-series lineup. The handset has been launched with a considerable gap of almost two years since the release of the first-gen Lava Agni (review), and there are numerous changes evident on both the design and specifications front. I have been using the device for a while now and here's why I think the Lava Agni 2 is worth considering for the price. Read on.

Verdict

Aside from the limitations in battery and cameras, the Lava Agni 2 is as good as it gets. The handset delivers a respectable performance for everyday use, an immersive viewing experience, fast charging speeds, and a user-friendly UI. Furthermore, the phone's design is exemplary.

Design and display

• The Lava Agni 2 has a striking design, with a curved display and a gigantic circular rear camera module that is likely to catch the attention of onlookers. The phone has frosted glass on at the back that effectively repels fingerprints and smudges, maintaining a clean and polished appearance. However, on the downside, the glass seems to have added weight to the smartphone. The Agni 2 weighs 210 grams, which is relatively heavier than some of the other smartphones in the segment. As a result, you may find the smartphone less optimal for prolonged multimedia consumption.

• That said, the phone has a thin glossy frame, fashioned out of plastic, making the device comfortable to wield. You do get a good quality case in the box to protect the device from dents and scratches. As for the I/O, the handset boasts a USB Type-C port sandwiched in between the SIM ejector tray and speaker grille at the bottom edge. The smartphone only has a single speaker, which sounds average at best.
• However, the Lava Agni 2 delivers a respectable viewing experience with its 6.78-inch display that bears razer-thin bezels and a centre punch-hole setup for the selfie camera. The display is of AMOLED variety, offering FHD+ resolution and up to 120Hz refresh rate. The higher refresh rate works across the UI and supported apps, contributing to smooth animation and scrolling. The colours on the display appear vibrant and vivid even when looked at from an angle. Additionally, you get decent sunlight legibility, making the text readable outdoors even under direct sunlight. The handset is Widevine L1 certified, meaning it can stream content in FHD resolution from OTT platforms.

Camera

• The Lava Agni 2 is equipped with a quad-rear camera setup, which has a 50MP primary snapper, an 8MP ultra-wide lens, and a couple of 2MP sensors for depth and macro shots. The main sensor takes some likeable shots in daylight with an excellent level of detailing. However, it tends to boost bright colours. Indoors or in low-light environments, the sensor produces average results, which are more often than not loaded with noise and the colours look oversaturated. There is a night mode on the phone, which is restricted to the primary camera, but it proved to be ineffective against noise.

• Moving on, the 8MP ultra-wide camera performs optimally in well-lit conditions, but there is a drop in details, and the edges often exhibit a fair amount of noise. The 2MP macro camera does not impress, producing overly-processed images. On the other hand, the 2MP depth sensor functions adequately with effective edge detection and blurring. For selfies and video calling, the phone relies on a 16MP shooter, which will leave you wanting more in low-light conditions. However, in daylight, the sensor snaps images with near-accurate skin tones and facial detail.

Performance and software

• The Lava Agni 2 is powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 7050 SoC, which is a decent mid-range chipset with 5G connectivity for regular usage and some multitasking. The chipset can even handle graphically-demanding games such as BGMI, albeit with limitations on high graphics and frame rate settings, and extended gameplay sessions. During heavy tasks such as gaming, the phone may get a bit warm and result in a drop in performance. However, in other everyday activities such as browsing, scrolling through scrolling media apps, and streaming movies/ shows, the handset performs admirably well. 

• Moreover, the in-display fingerprint scanner on the phone is also quick to unlock the device. The scanner is highly reliable too, ensuring a consistent and secure unlocking experience.
• In terms of the benchmark tests, the Lava smartphone achieved an AnTuTu score of 5,44,907 points, while scoring 968 and 2,442 points in the single-core and multi-core tests on Geekbench 6. These scores are comparable to those of the Realme 11 Pro, which also rocks the same chipset. In the CPU Throttle test, the Agni 2 performs marginally better than its Realme counterpart. The test showed the phone operating at 88 percent of its peak performance, which is impressive. The handset comes in just RAM and storage configuration: 8GB+256GB. While the RAM is expandable up to 16GB virtually, there is no microSD card slot on the phone to further expand the storage.

• In terms of software, the Lava Agni 2 runs Android 13 out of the box. Lave promises to issue two major software upgrades for the phone, including the upcoming Android 14, and three years of security updates. The phone has a light custom skin layered over the Android version, but it does not have any intrusive notifications or ads. The software maintains a close resemblance to stock Android, with very few pre-installed apps, a new material UI design, a Now Playing Widget in the notification area, a privacy and security hub, intuitive QR code scanner support, and more. Basically, the Lava Agni 2 is designed to be user-friendly even for a first-time smartphone user.
• Here's a speed test done using Airtel 5G Plus network in Hauz Khas, New Delhi.

Battery and fast charging speeds

• The Lava Agni 2 battery life is decent. The handset packs a 4,700mAh battery, which offers approximately 5 hours of screen-on-time. This duration is comparatively shorter than its competitors and could be a bit underwhelming for moderate to heavy users. But, regular users will find the battery life satisfactory. On the PCMark battery test, the handset achieved a score of 9 hours and 55 minutes. Fortunately, the phone supports 66W fast charging solution, which takes around 45-50 minutes to fully charge a dead battery. You get the charger in the box.

Final verdict

Editor's rating: 3.5 / 5

Reasons to buy

• The Lava Agni 2 has a striking design, with a curved screen.
• The AMOLED display on the device exhibits vivid and vibrant colours.
• The software is user-friendly and closer to stock Android.
• The performance of the device is good for everyday use.

Reasons to not buy

• The battery life is a bit underwhelming.
• The storage on the phone is not user-expandable.
• The cameras struggle quite a bit in low light.