General Mobile GM6: Google software on a nice budget smartphone

If you ask many user why someone would buy a Google Pixel, “quick updates direct from Google” and “Android without a manufacturer’s skin” would undoubtedly be the most frequently cited reasons. The point is that the cheapest Pixel costs more than seven hundred euros and not everyone wants or can put that on the table for a smartphone. To meet that objection, there has been a program from Google for a few years now: Android One. It means that Google compiles a list of components and that manufacturers build a phone around it. The big advantage is that Google promises to keep up with the software and it does. The General Mobile Android One was the first non-Google phone to receive an update to Nougat last year.

The only manufacturer that sells Android One devices in the Benelux is the Turkish General Mobile. Together with Google, that presented the latest addition to the line-up at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona: the GM6. It’s still a cheap smartphone, but it now has a metal frame and a fingerprint scanner.

Together with Google

How much General Mobile and Google work together became clear during the presentation at the stand of the Turkish manufacturer. It was teeming with Google employees, recognizable by the company name on their badge and often also by their prototypes of really blue Google Pixel devices.

A large part of the presentation was devoted to removing the tape from a pasted-over plaque on the stand, by way of unveiling. The black tape turned out to be stronger than expected and even without a microphone the cursing in Turkish could be heard. Add to that the fact that things went horribly wrong with the sound, which became distorted all the time, and that the promotional video ended up in an endless loop, and it was clear: this was not a large smartphone maker with a slick presentation. Of course that doesn’t matter; it is ultimately about what the manufacturer presented.

The GM6 is clearly not an expensive smartphone, but it shows how far makers have come from the budget market. For this preview we assume that the GM6 will cost about the same as the GM5, around two hundred euros. That was also what employees of the stand hinted at, although they did not want to mention a concrete price.

Design

The GM6 feels good. There is a metal frame in the palm of the hand, while the fingers rest on the back of a non-slip type of plastic. As you can see, the plastic is slightly ribbed, so you don’t leave finger smudges and it is also non-slip. It is practical and beautiful, although there are also competitors in this price range that have switched to an all-metal design, which is sturdier and feels more solid.

The front, as with so many phones, is behind a tempered glass plate. The fingerprint scanner can be found under the screen. We couldn’t try that because General Mobile had put the phone in a “demo mode,” where the settings app and various other apps, including the Play Store, were inaccessible. Sideloading apps also turned out to be impossible.

Hardware

The soc is a MediaTek MT6737T, a souped-up version of the MT6737, with higher clock speeds. The soc has four 1.5 GHz Cortex A53 cores and a Mali T720MP2 GPU. That is not very impressive and not really a step forward compared to the Snapdragon 410 in the previous version.

With 3GB of lpddr3 memory, it is spacious in that respect and the storage is also sufficient at 32GB, especially in this price range. In addition, the storage is expandable. In addition, the dual SIM version has three slots: two for SIM cards and a separate one for the SD card. We like to see that, because then you don’t have to choose between a second SIM card and more storage.

According to the specs, 4g is missing at 900MHz, something that T-Mobile customers experience a disadvantage, although it has little impact on the concrete range.

General Mobile mainly emphasizes the front camera. There is a flash next to it that, as it turned out during the short hands-on, can give quite a bit of light. The front camera has a maximum resolution of eight megapixels and did not appear to have autofocus.

Autofocus is in the thirteen-megapixel camera on the back and there is a dual LED flash. The few photos we shot with it didn’t look impressive on either camera, but expectations are low for phones in this price range.

With an aperture of f/2.8, the lens is not really bright compared to the competition. Remarkable: the camera can shoot photos in RAW and the software for the camera does not come from Google, but from MediaTek.

Screen

The screen is a 5″ LCD with a resolution of 1280×720 pixels. It is a display that at least seemed to have sufficient brightness on the exhibition floor to be read in a lot of light, although more expensive phones generally have screens that can be brighter.

With 294 pixels per inch, the sharpness is not overwhelming, but also not disturbing. You’ll be able to count the pixels for the first few minutes if you get used to it, but after some use it won’t be noticeable anymore. Those who watch a lot of video may be better off with a screen with a higher resolution.

Software

The software is what Android One is all about. We couldn’t check which version it’s running, but the spec sheet stated Android 7.0 Nougat, which surprised us. After all, it’s Google that provides the software and it sounds unlikely that the search giant itself would release a phone with a version of Android that isn’t the latest. For the rest it is exactly what you expect: stock Android without any frills. It, unlike the Nokia smartphones , does not contain a Pixel interface, but the interface as found on Nexus phones.

Despite the limited soc, we couldn’t get Android to falter on the GM6. Of course, that could be due to the ‘demo mode’, but many apps remained in the memory and switching was fast, although starting apps could have been a bit faster.

Conclusion

General Mobile has been making Android One devices for some time that are also available in the Benelux and the GM6 is an attractive addition. Many will find the fingerprint scanner a useful addition and given the success of phones with a focus on the front camera, the front flash will also appeal to a large audience.

Google’s software and update guarantee may be the most attractive promise for many users. Partly because of this, the Motorola Moto G was a popular smartphone line, until Lenovo started messing around with the update policy.

It may not be a Pixel, but those who do not have too high requirements for the camera and other components of the smartphone, and who do want an up-to-date Android phone, will probably be fine with the GM6.