Starmobile Diamond Unboxing!

Unbox.ph was one of the very first sites to have laid eyes on the prototype of the Starmobile Diamond. After writing the first hands-on and initial review article several weeks ago, we now have in our hands the actual final commercial unit. We did a quick unboxing earlier this afternoon and we’d like to share it with you guys today!

Starmobile Diamond Spec Sheet

• 1GHz Dual-core MTK6577H Processor
• Enhanced SGXS31 GPU
• 1GB RAM
• 4GB Internal Storage, expandable up to 32GB via microSD Card
• 5.0-inches IPS Capacitive Touchscreen with HD Resolution (720×1280)
• Dragontrail Glass (Scratch Resistant)
• 12.0-megapixels rear-facing camera with LED Flash and BSI
• 3.0-megapixels front-facing camera with BSI
• WiFi, WiFi Hotspot, 3G, Bluetooth, GPS with A-GPS Support
• Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
• 2,000mAh Battery
• Comes with free 8GB microSD Card
• Comes with free screen protector
• Dual SIM, Dual Standby
• SRP: Php9,990

As you can see in the spec sheet above, the Starmobile Diamond offers competitive specifications, useful freebies, and respectable after-sales service from Starmobile.

Packaging and What’s in the Box

Let’s kick things off with the packaging! The Starmobile Diamond came in the usual printed solid carton box. We tore off the tape at the bottom and pulled out the inner compartment. Wrapped in plastic and comfortably laying there was the 5.0-inch Starmobile Diamond. We picked it up, removed the plastic, peeled of the screen protector, and took a while to admire the design of the device. Subtle curves, aluminum like band a the sides, and the glossy white plastic chassis.

We dug deeper into the box and found the peripherals and accessories. There’s the USB to microUSB cable, headphones, 2,000mAh rated battery, manuals, and two freebies: an 8GB microSD card and a Screen Protector.

Ever since the Starmobile Astra, Starmobile has been very consistent with adding more value to the product by throwing in freebies. The Astra had the screen protector and microSD card while the Crystal even packed a free silicone case. We definitely appreciate this gesture of appreciation from Starmobile.

Hardware Check

The Starmobile Diamond truly looks like the older brother of the Starmobile Crystal. It sports the same white plastic chassis and a brushed metal-like aluminum band at the sides. The 5.0-inch screen is very prominent at the front but the screen-to-bezel ratio isn’t the best we’ve seen. There are no physical buttons on the front as the usual Android keys are capacitive. In terms of form factor the Diamond is quite thin but again it’s not the thinnest device out there. It looks a little fatter due to the band design at the side (it’s bigger than the usual band you find on phones).

At the back we found the 12-megapixel BSI shooter, LED flash, and, the Starmobile logo. We removed the backplate and found slots for the two sim cards, a slot for the microSD card, and the battery pack.

Software Check

For the software side, the Starmobile Diamond runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. With the dual-core processor and 1GB RAM, running that shouldn’t be a problem. However it did get a little bit laggy and responsiveness sometimes slowed down. It’s the same theory that we had for the other similar specced but different branded phone — the processor and the GPU had a hard time pushing the images to the HD screen. We’ll verify this in the next few days as we put the Crystal through the paces in our review.

Full Review Coming Soon

To summarize we can say that the Starmobile Diamond is the evolution of the Starmobile Crystal: it has better specs, an HD display, better battery rating, highly improved optics, and a bigger (and also scratch resistant) screen.

Watch out for our full review next week! By the way, we’re going to feature this phone on Monday during the Unbox Video Podcast so don’t forget to tune in on 7:30PM at the New Media Factory.