Micromax Knight 2 Review: An expensive-looking smartphone for a mid-range price

Micromax might have built its initial reputation and ‘brand traction’ in the sub Rs 10,000 segment but has been eager to prove its credentials in the pricier market segments too. The first of Micromax’s Knights (the A350) debuted about a year ago managing to incorporate an octa-core processor in a competitively priced device. The Knight 2 is Micromax’s first 4G device. While not too many data subscribers have ditched their 3G SIM cards for 4G versions, the Knight 2 is part of Micromax’s strategy to be ‘future proof’. It brings the fight to the fiercely competitive Rs 15,000 – 20,000 price band where customers don’t seem to display any strong brand loyalty.

The Knight 2 is a good looking device; it’s certainly not path breaking but very elegant.  It’s feels good in your hand - a near perfect blend of metal and glass. Micromax opts for a Corning Glass 3 rear and front with a metallic band that runs around the device. Oddly enough, Micromax has placed the power button and the volume rocker on the left spine. The slit-like speaker grilles sit on either side of the Micro-USB socket on the base while the standard 3.5mm headphone slot is located on the top. The SIM slot is located on the top right corner. While we like how the Micro USB slot in the SIM tray doubles up as a Nano SIM slot it also means that you will not have access to the Micro SD slot if you need to operate it as a Dual SIM device. There’s quite a lot of wasted real estate – the device does not improve on the 57.4% screen to body ratio of its predecessor.

Outdoor daylight shot

It’s the same case with the 5-inch screen where the Knight 2 manages just 294 PPI (720 x 1080 pixels). It’s just par for the course. If you’re looking at catching your staple of YouTube content or movies, you’re probably better off with a set of headphones. The device’s much hyped Cirrus Logic Wolfson stereo delivers good quality sound but, disappointingly, it is not loud enough despite the presence of two speaker grilles. 

The Knight 2 is reasonably well kitted on the hardware front – at its heart is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 octa-core processor (1.5GHz). It’s one of the areas where this sequel goes one up on the first Knight. The device comes with 2GB of RAM and the results while multi-tasking are more than acceptable. Aside from the 16GB of internal memory, there’s support for Micro SD cards up to 32GB. The Knight 2 clocked 29380 in our AnTuTu benchmark test, faring slightly better than the Xiaomi Redmi Note and the Xiaomi Mi2. On the PC Mark test, the device managed a score of 3137 (Work performance score)

The device’s 5MP front facing camera can hold its own against similarly priced devices. The 13MP primary cam (equipped with Sony’s IMX214 CMOS sensor) produced decent results and captured quite a few details in ambient lighting conditions. Lowlight results are nothing to write home about. There’s no camera hot key and you can’t fire up the cam with a quick swipe across the screen if you use a screen lock – slightly annoying if you want to snap something in a jiffy.    

There’s a 2260 mAh battery under the hood – battery life is average; you should get through a whole day as long as you don’t push the device with extensive camera use and gaming. The device runs Android 5.0.2 (aka Lollipop), Micromax thankfully doesn’t add too many layers over stock Android. There are a few India-specific apps that come bundled with the device (which can all be uninstalled) and there’s also SwiftKey Keyboard which is a welcome relief from the stock keyboard on the device.  

Overall, the Micromax Knight 2 delivers decent value for its Rs 16,299 sticker price. It looks more expensive than its price tag, which is a good thing for value-conscious customers in this segment. The camera produces above average results, while the device packs enough power for routine tasks. It’s not perfect though, with a few design quirks that you might not fancy; it’s also in an extremely competitive segment where customers have multiple options. Micromax will hope there’s room for its new Knight in shining armour; we’ll find out soon enough.