YOTAPHONE : A brilliant smartphone from Russia

Indian review of a Russian phone

The Yotaphone C9660 is a premium product. A lot of thought has gone into this well-built phone. After a month of using the phone, its novelty is not lost - feels good each time I hold it.





The phone uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 1.7 GHz dual-core Krait 300 processor, 32GB of internal memory, 2GB of RAM, and a lot of sensors. 

The Yotaphone is must have for black & white photography enthusiasts and book lovers. Using B&W photographs as a background on the e-ink display enables one to appreciate the magic of black and white on a different visual medium.

Reading books on the e-ink screen is a breeze with the volume-rocker controlling page scrolling and gestures (on a narrow band below the e-ink display) to switch between apps.

Its profile - an elegant flat front and an asymmetrically curved back - is unique to this phone.

You no longer have to press a button to wake up your phone to check the time/date/weather - on this phone it is always on the back screen.

The configuration ensures stable performance. At 341 pixels-per-inch, the main screen displays more detail (iphone 6 - 325 ppi). Swipe gestures take some getting used to, but works well when one gets accustomed to it.

Third party apps that use the second screen:

• Web like a Book (Read text-rich websites on the e-ink display)
• FBReader (Read your own .txt & .epub books on the e-ink display)

A search using, "yotaphone" on the Google Play Store lists the suitable apps. (However since the next generation Yotaphone and it's new SDK have been launched, the software for the first generation Yotaphone is limited and it is unlikely that they will be updated. A lot of app developers now support the e-ink screen on the Yotaphone 2)

There are two ways to take a screen shot on this phone:

• By pressing the power button and the volume-down button simultaneously.
• By swiping 2 fingers from the top of the screen towards the bottom (this mirrors the screen to the e-ink display)

The power-button on the phone doubles up as a micro-sim tray which pops out with the help of the supplied eject-pin.

The positioning of the main camera at the bottom-rear of the phone might seem slightly inconvenient in the beginning, with the hand blocking the camera. However this unconventional positioning may entrain a different way of taking pictures with the phone over a period of time. 

The name : YOTA (Russian: Йота)

• Yotta, the largest unit prefix in the International System of Units [10²⁴]
• Yorta Yorta language, also spelled Yota, an extinct language once spoken by the Yorta Yorta people of Australia
• The logo : Its logo seems indicative of an iconified Yogic Shirshasana.

The Yotaphone comes with a large number of sensors for a phone at this price point : Gyroscope, Ambient Light Sensor, Accelerometer, Compass, Proximity Sensor

The phone is packed in the most innovative box have seen till date (far better than Apple). The box opens up and everything (all accessories) is directly accessible instantly.


When selecting this phone, I was a bit discouraged by Specification Comparison Tables, comparing it with other brands. But I am glad I selected this one.
The models I was considering were
- Lenovo A6000 INR 6999
- iPhone 5c INR 19000
- RedMi INR 9999

I probably would not have bought it at the original price, but I am glad that I got the discount. (There is nothing cheap about it, except the price. )



I was keen on a phone that would fit comfortably in my pocket. So I was not very comfortable choosing any of the 5+ inch screen size phones.



The reason I have written this review is because I felt that the phone received far less publicity and media attention than it rightly deserved. At present most mainstream media houses are dead against Russia - Russophobic, since the country threatens the world order created by the Banksters and the NWO neocons. 

The President of Russia, and hero of the freedom loving denizens of this world, seems to be impressed and proud of this Russian phone.

http://rt.com/news/203747-yotaphone-putin-present-china/


Yotaphone is more than capable of bursting the Apple marketing bubble, that has people queueing up for the brand. Apple has not been able to produce any significant game-changing innovations over the past few generations. This phone has the power to disrupt the apple cart.

The company does not seem to be focusing much on the Indian market. The phone was launched rather late in India compared to the European market. Yotaphone selected online e-commerce portal, Flipkart as their exclusive retailer.

Innovative, rugged and sustainable products such as this have a potential to increase trade among the BRICS countries. On Mar 3, 2015, Brazilian security company Sikur announced the GranitePhone, whose development was fueled by the NSA spying scandal.

It would be a good idea for Yotaphone to increase focus on the Indian market.

Specifications of Yota Phone C9660

GENERAL FEATURES
Brand	Yota
Handset Color	Black/White
Form	Bar
SIM Size	Micro SIM
Call Features	Loudspeaker
Model Name	Phone C9660
Touch Screen	Yes, Capacitive
SIM Type	Single Sim, GSM
Model ID	C9660
In the Box	Quick Guide, Pin for Sim Card Eject, Wired Earphone, Charger, Handset with Inbuilt Battery, USB Cable

MULTIMEDIA
Video Player	Yes, Supports WEBM, H.263, H.264, AVC, MPEG4
FM	Yes
Music Player	Yes, Supports AMR, MP3, eAAC+, AAC, eAAC, MIDI, WAV

CAMERA
Video Recording	Yes, 30fps fps
Flash	LED
Secondary Camera	Yes, 1 Megapixel
Other Camera Features	Auto Focus
HD Recording	HD, Full HD
Primary Camera	Yes, 13 Megapixel

INTERNET & CONNECTIVITY
Preinstalled Browser	Android
Bluetooth	Yes, v4
Navigation Technology	A-GPS, GLONASS, with Google Maps
Wifi	Yes, 802.11 a/b/g/n
Internet Features	Email
3G	Yes

OTHER FEATURES
Sensors	Gyroscope, Ambient Light Sensor, Accelerometer, Compass, Proximity Sensor
Phone Book Memory	Yes
SMS Memory	Yes
Call Memory	Yes
SAR Value	At the Head - 0.410 W/Kg, At the Body - 0.532 W/Kg
Important Apps	Special YotaPhone Gestures and Put2Back Apps for the Back Screen
Additional Features	Country of Manufacture China

WARRANTY
Warranty Summary	1 year manufacturer warranty for Phone and 6 months warranty for in the box accessories

DIMENSIONS
Weight	146 g
Size	67x133.6x9.99 mm

DISPLAY
Resolution	HD, 1280 x 720 Pixels
Other Display Features	Capacitive Touch Zone below the EPD for Gesture Controls, Secondary Screen: Resolution - 360 x 640, 16 Grayscale, EPD
Type	LCD
Color	16.7 M
Size	4.3 Inches

BATTERY
Type	1800 mAh

MEMORY AND STORAGE
Memory	2 GB RAM
Internal	32 GB

PLATFORM
Operating Freq	GSM - 900, 1800, 1900
Graphics	Adreno 320
OS	Android v4.2.2 (Jelly Bean)
Processor	1.7 GHz + Snapdragon 400, Dual Core