Built by ZTE but exclusive to Orange, the original Orange San Francisco handset set a high benchmark for low-cost smartphones in 2011. Our Orange San Francisco II review now reveals whether the 2012 upgraded model will do the same this year.
The Orange San Francisco II is again a rebranded set from ZTE, unique to Orange. It comes with an upgraded version of the Android operating system, as well as a fast 800MHz processing chip and a 5 megapixel camera with LED flash, a significant improvement on the previous flashless 3.2 camera on the first version. A front facing camera is also installed for video calling. The camera will also shoot video in a variety of formats, so you can tailor your videoing to suit your playback devices.
The screen boasts 480 x 800 pixels across a 3.5 inch panel, offering the users a clear and crisp screen, very comparable to others in this market aiming at the same low-budget buyer. The handset comes with Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth and HSDPA all as standard, as well as Documents To Go which allows users to read (though not edit) Microsoft Office documents.
This handset also comes with something Orange call Signal Boost, which could be very attractive if you live in an area with a patchy signal; Signal Boost will enable Orange to route your mobile phone calls via your home broadband connection, bypassing their network if that gets you a better call quality.
As an Orange exclusive design, the handset is skimmed by Orange quite comprehensively – icons and wallpaper all have that distinctive Orange flavour to them, and Orange widgets are separated out in the navigation from Android ones. Overall, it’s a good looking, high performing handset and well worth a look for those browsing for a handset for less than £100.
