Lava has been quite off track lately and hasn’t expanded its portfolio much since a very long time. Few weeks back, Lava launched its new flagship phone Lava Iris Pro 30 where it paid due attention to design and aesthetics but under the hood it featured slightly dated hardware. Now Lava is back with Lava Iris 550Q, another quad core smartphone with a phablet sized display attractively priced at 13,000 INR.
Camera and Internal Storage
The camera at the rear has an 8 MP BSI sensor and is supported by LED Flash. With the likely hood of MT6589 chipset powering this phone, we expected a 13 MP unit at the rear but Lava has opted for the conventional 8 MP camera which we see in MT6582 series devices.
The Internal storage is standard 4 GB and can be extended to 32 GB using MicroSD card slot. We are not fans of 4 GB storage especially when phones like Xolo Q1010i are available in the same price range with 8 GB storage.
Processor and Battery
Lava Iris 550Q comes with a 1.2 GHz quad core chipset . Lava has not mentioned the details of the chipset but it is expected to be MT6589 Mediatek chipset which we saw in Iris Pro 30. Most present generation phones have replaced it with MT6582. RAM capacity is 1 GB which is again standard.
The battery capacity is 2600 mAh will last for 10 hours of talk time on 2G, which is not as impressive considering the battery rating. Perhaps, the large display size will tax the battery more.
Display and Features
The display is 5.5 inches in size and this one too is a 720p HD IPS LCD panel coming from Sharp technologies. Bezel has been narrowed down to 3 mm. Also onboard is OGS (One Glass Solution) technology and lamination on the display for more premium looks.
The phone supports dual SIM functionality and runs on Android 4.2 jelly bean operating system. It is high time domestic manufacturers begin to ship phones with Android 4.4 Kitkat which has been designed to work better on humble hardware.
Comparison
Lava Iris 550Q will compete against phones like Xolo Q2000, Micromax Canvas Xl, Xolo Q2500, Xolo Q1010i and Moto G. The highlighted feature of this device will be its 5.5 inch HD display, which is not that readily available in this price range.
Key Specs
| Model | Lava Iris 550q |
| Display | 5.5 Inch, 720p HD |
| Processor | 1.2 GHz Quad Core |
| RAM | 1 GB |
| Internal Storage | 4 GB, Expandable |
| OS | Android 4.2 |
| Camera | 8 MP/ 2 MP |
| Battery | 2600 mAh |
| Price | 13,000 INR |
Price and Conclusion
Lava Iris 550Q looks like a decent smartphone with a decent 5.5 inch display for a price of Rs. 13,000. The competition is touch in this price segment but if you are strictly looking for a 5.5 inch HD display phablet below 15 k INR, it will be a viable option.
