Cherry Mobile Sonic 2.0 Unboxing: Cherry’s Flare 2.0 successor?

Meet the Cherry Mobile Sonic 2.0!

Today, we’ll be unboxing Cherry Mobile’s Sonic 2.0. The Sonic 2.0 is Cherry’s most affordable quad-core smartphone offering, being offered by the local brand at only 3,999. At the price point, it’s safe to assume that the Sonic 2.0 is the replacement of the Flare 2.0 which is being offered by the company at the same price. The step up from the Flare 2.0 is obvious – the Sonic 2.0 has more RAM, has GLONASS and has OTG functionality built-in.

Cherry Mobile Sonic 2.0 specs

1.2GHz quad-core Broadcom BCM23550 processor
1GB RAM
4-inch capacitive TN touchscreen, 480×800 pixels
VideoCore IV GPU
4GB internal storage, expandable via microSD
5-megapixel camera, LED flash
VGA camera
Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n (with Miracast functionality)
OTG
2G, 3G, HSPA+
GPS, GLONASS, Bluetooth 4.0
1400mAh battery

Packaging and contents

The Cherry Mobile Sonic 2.0 came in the typical Cherry Mobile packaging that we’ve seen in their previous products in the past. The Sonic 2.0’s box color of choice is green, and the back of the packaging lists the specifications of the device.

Inside the box you’ll find the phone and a number of accessories which is typical of Cherry Mobile’s offerings. Aside from the typical headphones, USB cable and charger, Cherry Mobile also threw in a free jelly case with the Sonic 2.0, which is a nice freebie.

Initial Impressions: Shades of Rave 2.0

The Cherry Mobile Sonic 2.0 bears a striking resemblance to another Cherry Mobile product, the Rave 2.0. It has the same rounded corners and overall shape as the Rave 2.0, as well as the same matte black back. While we’re not really fan of the design (both the Rave 2.0 and the Sonic 2.0) the overall design asthetic isn’t bad. The volume rocker rests on the left side of the device, while the power button sits on top. The USB charging port sits on the bottom while the 3.5mm jack is located on the top. The speaker sits to the right side of the 5-megapixel camera on the back. A smaller VGA camera serves as the secondary shooter.

As far as the display is concerned, the Sonic 2.0 uses a Twisted Nematic panel, which is typical of smartphones in this price range.

Responsive and quick

Remember when we said that the Sonic 2.0 had a striking resemblance to the Rave 2.0? That extends to its hardware as well, as far as AntuTu benchmarks are concerned. We downloaded AnTuTu on the Sonic 2.0 and ran our standard benchmark test with the Sonic 2.0, and were pleasantly surprised to learn that the Sonic 2.0 managed to score 13,597 points, which surpassed the AnTuTu score of the Rave 2.0 which clocked in at 13,138. As far as actual use goes, the Sonic 2.0 was generally responsive and quick during use, with just a hint of lag during navigation. We do worry about the limited 1400mAh battery, but only a full battery drain test will reveal if the battery is good enough on the Sonic 2.0.

That’s it for this unboxing, we’ll be putting up the review of the Sonic 2.0 later this week.