BLU Life View hands-on impressions

The BLU Life View is certainly not what passes as a budget-friendly Android smartphone these days. With a 5.7” HD IPS display, quad-core CPU, dual-SIM functionality, and a metal clad body, the handset looks like anything but a device with a sub-$300 price tag.

Roughly a year ago, the BLU Studio 5.3 turned our idea about a budget smartphone upside down. This time around, the Miami based manufacturer launched a trio of Life series smartphones, and the 5.7” View is leading the way as the flagship of the bunch.

The BLU Life View features a MediaTek MT6589 SoC with 1.2GHz quad-core Cortex-A7 CPU, a PowerVR Series5XT series GPU, and 1GB of RAM. The handset features a sharp-looking 5.7” IPS 720p display with a pixel density of 258ppi. There is a 12MP camera on the back of the smartphone, capable of recording full HD videos, and a 5MP unit for video calls at the front. Internal memory is 16GB. It can be further expanded via microSD card slot.

BLU Life View live photos

The measures of the BLU Life View are 161 x 82.5 x 8.9 mm, while its weight tips the scale at 220 grams. The device is powered by a 2600mAh battery.

BLU Life View sized up against the rest of the Life series and the LG Optimus G Pro for AT&T

The overall build quality of the BLU Life View is impressive. The back of the smartphone is made of aluminum, while its front is covered by Gorilla Glass 2. Overall, the BLU Life View represents a massive leap in terms of both design and quality over the Studio 5.3 which we spent time with last year.

The BLU Life View boots the latest Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean out of the box. The quad-core CPU, despite not being the speediest around, makes quick work of the OS and offers a pleasant user experience overall.

Priced at $299 unlocked, the BLU Life View represents tremendous value for anyone, looking for an Android smartphone with a large display on a budget. The device has no direct competitors in its price range, so, essentially, it has the budget phablet niche all to itself.