Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt Quick Review : Hands-On Video, Five Things I Like About It

I'll keep this short. Just the 5 things I love about Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt and a couple of things I sorta don't.

(If you're looking for the complete technical specifications of CM's first quad core Android tablet, head on over to our Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt vs. Haipad A13 comparison post. Everything's there.)

1. The Display : Sure, you get Android 4.1 Jelly Bean operating system and a Quad Core processor but for me, Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt's 7-inch 1280 x 800 pixels IPS display is the true highlight of the device. The screen - delivering vibrant colors and crisp details - is simply arresting.


2. Rugged Look and Feel : While it's not particularly the most handsome tablet out there (I'd give that title to iPad Mini), Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt - with its textured matte back case - has an air of ruggedness giving users who live an active lifestyle reassurance that it can withstand the knocks and bumps of regular use. Also, while the power button, volume rocker, and home button on the side feel shallow and stiff, I don't think they'd conk out just like that.


3. Extra Ports : Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt has an HDMI port and a MicroSD card slot, two things that far more expensive tablets can only dream of having.


4. Jelly Bean : For me, the latest version of the Android operating system represents such a major improvement from all of its predecessors that it's hard not to mention it as one of the key selling points of Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt. You get Project Butter, Google Now, and all other improvements that make Jelly Bean the coolest iteration of Android so far.


5. Very Affordable Price : It almost feels unreal that Cherry Mobile gives us all that plus 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of internal storage for just Php 3,999. But that's the truth. No gimmicks whatsoever.

Bonus: All Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt units ship rooted. If it's your first time to hear about it, rooting allows you customize your Android device even further and bring it to its fullest potential by letting tweak you CPU and memory settings, remove bloatware, and install custom ROMs.

Alright. Now, on the two areas that need improvement.

1. Mediocre Benchmark Scores : Considering that it runs on a Quad Core chipset, Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt should be able to give other tablets a run for the money when it comes to actual performance -- or at least, that's what one would expect. Suffice it to say, I was really shocked when I saw the mediocre test scores. Some are saying that it's because of the GPU while others blame the firmware itself. If Cherry Mobile has a solution to this (like a firmware upgrade), I hope they give it to consumers soonest.



2. Lackluster Imaging Capabilities : This is pretty much an issue with almost all entry level devices these days. No biggie. Nothing we didn't expect.

Well, anyway. Here's my quick hands-on video of Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt, if you will, check it out.


Verdict: I had a chat with Ms. Joanne Cuarenta, Cherry Mobile's Marketing Manager, during this tablet's launch in Diamond Hotel several weeks back and she told me that the reason why CM products are priced really low is that the company wants to give everyone, regardless of how much budget they have for a gadget, an opportunity to experience the wonders of an Android device. Clearly, Cherry Mobile Fusion Bolt - with its very pocket-friendly price tag - is yet another testament to Cherry Mobile's vision and goal. It's an amazing release and all things considered, I give it 9.8 out of 10 TP Stars.