Starmobile Icon Says Hello!

The Starmobile Icon is a solid quad-core offering priced at Php7,990. It’s also the most affordable quad-core from Starmobile’s quad-core trifecta line-up which consists of the Starmobile Knight, Starmobile Diamond V3, and this one. It sports a 4.5-inch qHD display, an 8MP rear-facing camera, and a 5MP front-facing camera. It’s also dual SIM, dual standby making it very viable for Pinoys who have more than one number. We were able to get a unit and we’re in the process of putting it through our standard review tests. For now though we’d like to share with everyone our unboxing experience as well as our initial impressions.

>>> SEE ALSO: Starmobile Knight Full Review

Starmobile Icon Spec Sheet

• Quad-core Qualcomm MSM 8225Q Processor
• 1GB RAM
• 4GB Internal Storage expandable up to 32GB via microSD Card
• 4.5-inches capacitive touchscreen, qHD display, 540 x 960 resolution
• 8.0-megapixel rear-facing camera with BSI, autofocus, HDR, LED Flash
• 5.0-megapixel front-facing camera with autofocus and BSI
• Dual Sim, Dual standby*
• 3G, WiFi, WiFi Hotspot, Bluetooth, FM Radio, GPS/aGPS
• Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
• 1,800mAh Battery
• Comes a free Jelly Case, screen protector, and 4GB microSD Card

Everything looks good on the spec sheet but we’re definitely a bit worried with the 1800mAh battery. We’ll know if this can last through the day though when we do the full review. Anyway, let’s go on to the unboxing!

Packaging and Hardware Overview

The Starmobile Icon comes in your usual Starmobile packaging. Carton box with product shot printed up front and complete technical specifications at the back. For the unboxing it was very straightforward. We just removed the tape on the sides and then popped open the lid of the box. We were greeted by the Starmobile Icon wrapped in plastic (wrapping was kinda messy though). Minion was definitely happy to see the phone, lol.

We picked up the device and it felt compact, solid, and durable. The 4.5-inch display was very manageable, just the right size for one-handed use. We also appreciated the elegant finish, especially with the buttons. Instead of the usual boring plastic covered buttons, they used some sort of metallic material giving it a more premium and classy feel. They applied this to the power lock and volume rocker buttons.

Another feature that we appreciated they included was the LED notification beside the front-facing camera. It’s the little things like this that makes the big difference because it enhances the over-all experience and sets the phone apart from others that have the same technical specifications.

For the back they used a smooth matte coating. The Starmobile logo is at the center and colored red. As we shared before, a red Starmobile logo means it is a quad-core device. It’s the same color we saw with the Starmobile Knight and the Starmobile Diamond V3. The back cover is removable and we found the free microSD card pre-installed already.

Speaking of freebies, Starmobile also included a jelly case and screen protector inside the box. The jelly case we got though was a bit loose but we eventually got it smoothened out after some pressing down. Other peripherals like the earphones, micro USB cable, wall charger, and warranty certificates were all neatly placed in the compartment below the phone.

Over-all the hardware of the Starmobile Icon is quite good. It’s not the thinnest quad-core device out there but it is still nicely designed and backed up with very competitive specifications, including the 5MP front-facing camera for super selfie shots.

Software Check

We haven’t ran any of our usual benchmark tests yet but we definitely felt the quad-core processor, 1GB RAM, and Android Jelly Bean optimizations during our first few minutes with it. The phone was very responsive, fast, and smooth. Loading apps was also quite faster than the usual.

To get a better feel for the hardware and even the software of the Starmobile Icon, please do check out the Unbox Podcast episode where we featured and debuted Starmobile’s mid-year offerings. We’ve embedded the full episode below for your viewing pleasure.

Starmobile Icon on the Unbox Podcast

Full Review Coming Soon

We’re going to put the Starmobile Icon to the test in the next few days for our full review. Watch out for it next week!

If you can’t wait for our review though and you want to buy already we saw last night that the Starmobile store in SM North Edsa still had stocks. SRP is Php7,990.