Ninetology, one of those small companies
that try to compete with the big boys has made some effort to be cost
effective. Indeed, their engineers are reasonably competent as the Black Pearl
II won't be setting the world on fire, but you won't throw it across the room
in a fit of rage either. Unlike some other phones...
Ninetology
Black Pearl II ships with Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich
Nice figure
Outwardly, it isn't the worst looking phone
in existence. A little thick around the middle in terms of design, which is
weird, it has no particular reason whatsoever. The tapering around the edges
does help a little with the illusion but the chrome strip seems to be more
decorative than functional. It does create an interesting profile though. One
that is quite pleasing to the eye. Most importantly, it doesn't look cheap.
However, the glossy plastic on the back is a sucker for fingerprints. After
barely three hours of use, the casing looks like it just travelled through the
Amazon rainforest, in the rain. And it took special care to step in every
puddle of mud it found.
It
does create an interesting profile though. One that is quite pleasing to the
eye.
Stock ICS
Visually, the user interface used is the
stock Android 4.0. Ninetology really didn't bother with getting a custom look,
which probably helped its cause. It must be said that stock ICS is quit a
looker on its own - Au Natural one might say. Deciding not to clutter the
system with bloatware is also decidedly a good move. The Black Pearl II runs
much more smoothly than anticipated. In fact, this could easily be produced by
a much bigger manufacturer. No disappointments here. Although, one wonders if a
Jelly Bean upgrade might be on the cards.
Black
Pearl II sports a very decent 4-inch, 16 million colors, IPS capacitive screen
Mayflies
There is a drawback...naturally...one that
affects the phone as a whole. While a great deal of engineering went into
making this device function on a level that is a pleasure to use, not as much
effort went into making it last very long. The battery life is short, very
short. One would be lucky to nurse the minimal battery life to five hours of
usage. This is without turning on the most battery draining functions, like
data connection. It's a pity. This phone was beginning to grow on me. But with
the operational life of a mayfly, it is unacceptable in this day and age.
Free
cover and screen protector!
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Specifications
§ Price:
$192
§ Dimensions
(HxWxD): 129 x 65.5 x 10.3mm
§ Weight:
139g
§ Processor:
Dual Core 1GHz
§ Memory:
512MB RAM
§ Storage:
4GB built in
§ Operating
system: Android 4.0
§ Display:
4.0-inch. 800 x 480 WVGA
§ Ports:
MicroUSB
§ Expansion:
MicroSD
§ Camera:
5MP rear, 0.3MP front
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