A rock-solid funds cellphone with a case within the field

Blackview is probably not one of many better-known smartphone producers, however that doesn’t imply they don’t have lots to supply. The Hong Kong-based firm usually focuses on producing a few of the finest rugged telephones available on the market. Nonetheless, the Shark 8 reveals that Blackview is able to some severe versatility within the smartphone world. Between the low worth, the attractive show, and the massive battery, there’s loads of motive to wander away the crushed path if the Blackview Shark 8 is an indicator of what you could find within the brush.

Worth and availability

Not within the US? No drawback!

The Blackview Shark 8 isn’t extensively out there within the US, however you may nonetheless get your arms on it if you happen to’re . Naturally, you will get it from the Blackview retailer on-line, but it surely may also be discovered on Amazon and at Walmart for these on the lookout for third-party retailers.

The Blackview Shark 8 is out there in Moonlight Grey, Scorching Gold, or Galaxy Blue. You may as well select between two storage choices: a 128 GB storage model and a 256 GB model. The value is often $199, however we’ve lately seen it on sale for as little as $159, so hold an eye fixed out for offers before you purchase.

Sadly, Blackview has some problems concerning carriers, and the Shark 8 just isn’t exempt. We examined it with T-Cellular with out points, however different carriers usually are not so fortunate. Blackview and its customers have famous that CDMA carriers like Verizon, Dash, and Cricket Wi-fi have made it troublesome to activate the cellphone. The corporate recommends AT&T, T-Cellular, Mint, MetroPCS, and different GMS carriers to make sure you have no points.

What’s good concerning the Blackview Shark 8?

Mid-range and premium options at a funds worth

The Blackview Shark 8 comes with a charging brick within the field, which is kind of a refreshing change in 2024, significantly given how reasonably priced the machine is. On prime of that, true to the corporate’s rugged cellphone status, the machine comes with a case within the field. The machine doesn’t really feel significantly sturdy, so it is a nice profit, even if you happen to solely use it to fend off dents and scratches till you could find a much less flimsy case to your new cellphone.

As for really utilizing the machine, the Blackview Shark 8 impresses virtually instantly with the show. Sure, it’s sporting a mere LCD, which is once more indicative of the worth tag greater than something, however with the 120Hz refresh charge, you received’t discover me complaining. The interface expertise is clean and actually appears nice at first look. Merely put, if the OLED is that significantly better on Pixel 8a by way of picture high quality, I’m undecided I’m seeing a large enough distinction.

Battery life is one other large boon for the Blackview Shark 8. At 5000 mAh, its measurement matches that of dearer gadgets just like the Moto G Stylus. Maybe extra invaluable is how lengthy that battery can really final, with the corporate claiming 437 hours on standby. Whereas I didn’t have two and a half weeks to check this, I left for an out-of-town marriage ceremony early Friday with the machine at 35% and returned early Monday to a 25% battery, so it feels believable. The charging is quick at 33 wired, and the claims that it might cost 20% in quarter-hour had been proper on the nostril.

At 64 MP, the principle digital camera can also be surprisingly good for a cellphone at this worth. Granted, megapixels don’t all the time inform the complete story, however the footage got here out nice both manner, displaying crisp element and good colours, albeit a bit on the intense facet. The 13 MP selfie digital camera isn’t too shabby, with the identical consideration to element.

It’s onerous to disregard how good the worth is for the Blackview Shark 8 right here. At solely $199 and commonly on sale for even much less, you’re getting numerous mid-range options, just like the 120 hZ show, the 64 MP digital camera, and the 5000 mAh battery with quick charging. Sure, you’ll have some downsides, however relying on what’s necessary to you in a cellphone, the deal is tough to cross up.

What’s unhealthy concerning the Blackview Shark 8?

Efficiency and brightness disappoint

As is constantly the case with funds telephones, the processor and efficiency usually take an enormous hit. The Blackview Shark 8 sports activities the Mediatek Helio G99, which had some hassle maintaining with extra demanding duties. Swapping between video platforms and gaming, for instance, noticed a noticeable lag, even freezing the machine on two events. I additionally bumped into an odd drawback with a cell recreation wherein the efficiency was unusably lagging, however solely throughout cell recreation advertisements that allow you to strive the sport before you purchase. It’s definitely not a dealbreaker, but it surely speaks to the truth that funds gadgets all have their cracks.

The standard was one thing I favored when it got here to taking footage, however the digital camera was positively missing in another main methods.

The software program takes the identical hit, solely working its personal DokeOS 4.0, based mostly in Android 13 relatively than the newest Android 14. Even worse, Blackview is thought for offering restricted, if any, updates past obligatory safety patches, so it isn’t practically as future-proof as some customers would love. In comparison with different funds telephones, just like the Samsung Galaxy A15, which will get 4 Android updates alone, that’s clearly fairly low. Past that, the interface is nothing particular, replicating the fundamentals of Android 13 with fewer customization choices.

The standard was one thing we favored when taking footage, however the digital camera was positively missing in another main methods. The 4x zoom was undeniably a bummer, significantly when the pictures that come again are a lot blurrier than the prime quality of the usual zoom. I am not asking for the 100x zoom you could find on the Samsung Galaxy S24 Extremely, however 4x appears too low in 2024. On prime of that, the “Magnificence” options of the selfie digital camera are borderline foolish, enlarging eyes, and sharpening pores and skin to a cartoonish diploma.

Whereas the Blackview Shark 8’s show is a vivid spot, there was one drawback: the precise brightness. At solely 500 nits, it’s clearly beneath the business customary, even for a funds machine, and in contrast to the OLED vs. LCD state of affairs, you’ll positively discover it. Utilizing it on a vivid day in direct daylight isn’t essentially difficult, but it surely’s decidedly tougher than your common smartphone.

One other small however irritating facet of the Blackview Shark 8 is the singular exterior speaker on the underside of the machine. Regardless of the Sensible-Ok Field speaker, it nonetheless sounds one-dimensional for music and different audio content material. As an avid TikTok scroller, holding the machine with one hand virtually completely blocks the audio, forcing me to regulate my hand to get the complete expertise. It’s trivial, however if you happen to can relate, this sort of factor is sufficient to make you hate the cellphone over time.

Must you purchase it?

In the event you’re out there for a prime funds cellphone that sports activities mid-range/premium options like large batteries, excessive refresh charges, and cameras with a lot of megapixels, the Blackview Shark 8 is a stable selection. Sure, restricted digital camera options and poor brightness could be irritating, and laggy efficiency is an absolute non-starter if you happen to want your smartphone for something too demanding, like gaming or content material enhancing.

Nevertheless, something we didn’t like concerning the Blackview Shark 8 could be defined away by the truth that the machine is barely $199. There’ll all the time be caveats and potential deal breakers at this worth level, relying on what you want your cellphone for. As is usually the case, you get what you pay for with the Blackview Shark 8, and on the subject of worth, this looks as if a deal that’s tougher to beat than most.