They say a gamer never settles for less. Gaming on the go is what these days' youngsters want. Have a glance at student community; everyone is obsessed with video games. The coming of mobile phones on the scene has made gaming even more popular. Every possible handset available in the market is capable of playing games. One can say these ‘connected devices' have crushed handheld consoles to an extent.

Very few manufacturers have understood that one need to have a dedicated gaming hardware to play games. Finally Intex has come with a gaming phone in the Indian market. The Intex Player is a feature phone that comes loaded with 1000 games. It is indeed a gaming phone by all means. GizBot got an opportunity to review retail unit of the handset. Has Intex achieved to sense what a true gamer wants? Let's get cracking.

What's inside the box?

Intex Player (Handset);

Adapter cum USB cable;

Earphones; and

4GB of external microSD card

Design and Aesthetics

The Intex Player is a cool handset build around gaming in mind. The handset is very charming at first glance. Though it is made from plastic, still one can forgive considering its costs just Rs.2,790 in the retail market. On the front panel you will see a 2.8-inch resistive touch display. In our tests, the screen performed fairly decent. Even in the outdoors, the results were remarkable. Beneath the screen you will find the home button, which can be also be used as direction key while playing games. On the either side of the home button, you will see a back button and power key.

Above the display, you will see two touch sensitive buttons. Intex calls them "A Key "and "B Key". They will basically help you to navigate, while playing games. A micro USB 2.0 cum charger port is given on the top of the device, and a 3.5 mm jack is located on the top. There is no volume rocker given by the manufacturer. On the rear back, you will a 1.3-mega pixel rear camera, and speakers in the lower right side. Overall, the design is pleasing, and the handset just feels right to hold with one hand.

User Interface (UI)

The Intex Player runs on company's homebrew software. Looks like the makers have tried to ape Android, while designing the UI. You also find active Notification bar, again, an inherent feature of Android OS. One can also change the position of apps, and widgets. It is so easy to change the look of the menu- thanks to Switch FX. It transforms the way you wanted to see the menu. Interesting! It is quite enjoyable to tour around the UI.

Valuable Features - Connectivity, Apps, Audio and Video Tests

The handset comes bundled with 4GB of flash storage, and can be expanded up to 16GB. As the device features Dual SIM, it can be used as your second phone. The Intex Player is powered by 1200mAh Li Ion battery. In our tests, the battery performed really well. Of course, when you play games on a stretch then battery starts draining. It is recommended to use a headphone, while you play a game. Intex has done a brilliant job by adding solid speakers.

While the makers could have added better headphones; they are cheap, and to some extent avoidable. Do not use the bundled headphones found inside...utter crap. You won't find Wi-Fi connectivity. Basic connectivity options include: Bluetooth, FM, Audio Player and Video Player. The video quality on the handset is bizarre, and pathetic. The Audio player is very much similar to what you find on Android 2.3 Gingerbread. Talking about the apps, you will find Mobile Tracker, Piano, Google Search, Facebook, and Notes app among others.

Camera

In the imaging department, you get to get a 1.3-mega pixel camera. Do not expect something really stellar out of the camera. In our tests, the images were washed out. The colours were overblown, and especially those pictures which were shot outdoors. Well, the camera fitted inside Intex Player failed miserably.

Gaming

As said earlier, the handset is primarily a gaming handset. There are around 1000 games preloaded on the handset. From Contra to Pac-man to Super Mario Bros...the list is endless. Surprisingly, the gaming part of the handset has to be the best. See, you won't get Need for Speed types heavy graphics ready games. If you love Arcade games in general then this is the best bet. There is no joystick like functionality present on the handset.

Amicably you have to use two touch sensitive buttons present on the top of the screen. The touch sensitive buttons responds to your feedback, trust GizBot. The handset does not support accelerometer so some folks definitely face problems while playing racing games. There are no exclusive games from Intex. Most of the games preloaded remind you of your good old past. All games have to play horizontally, which is a down side. Still, in a brief period of time, it was actually fun to play some games that dates back to early 1990s. Yes, the Intex Player successfully passed with distinction when it comes to games especially Arcade type gaming.

Conclusion

The Intex Player is basically meant to play sweet little games in between long office hours or while commuting in Delhi's Metro train. The logic behind the handset is to engage you with the joy of gaming. The handset is not capable of running Temple Run 2 type of heavy games. Still, it is a decent buy considering it can do much more than gaming. The above mentioned sane gaming handset can be purchased for Rs. 2,790 only.

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