DTC GT9 Astroid Pump Review: A Mammoth Smartphone with a Weeny Price Tag

Following the release of their 3rd wave units, DTC, one of the leading home grown manufacturers of budget handheld devices, went on a 4-month hiatus to brew exciting things for their budget-savvy consumers. And my, what mighty things they’ve got brewing!

A couple of weeks ago, the company announced the release of five new Android-based additions to their existing Astroid lineup, including their very first phablet plus two dual core smartphones and two single cores. This mom had the pleasure of taking three of them home for a test drive (NOTE: Just for a test drive. Not a freebie loot): single-cores GT7 Astroid Max and GT6 Astroid Jack, and the 5-inch dual core smartphone GT9 Astroid Pump.

But, the GT9 Pump is my absolute favorite among the three, thus the special feature.


What’s in the box?
The ultra-sassy gift box includes the GT9 Pump unit, a pair of earphones, quick (I mean, real quick) user guide, warranty card, USB cable,free screen protector and a USB charger. On other news, the GT6 Astroid Jack comes with a free silicone case on top of the free screen protector, and I wish they did this for the GT9 as well. It’s a challenge to find DTC accessories to begin with, even generic stores don’t offer such cases for DTC products. 

Design
Boasting a massive 5-inch touch-receptive WVGA display, the GT9 Pump is stunning even beyond first glance. It is thin and lightweight for a smartphone its size, and sports a chrome side profile and a polished plastic white rear cover that mounts the 5-megapixel rear camera with LED flash. The design is straightforward and seamless with the VGA front camera up top and two capacitive buttons at the bottom (back and settings) plus the menu button at the bottom center. It is chic and elegant, resembling the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 very closely. 

UPDATE: The GT9 Pump also comes in black, which I only found out when we attended DTC’s grand launching of their fourth wave units at F1 Hotel last June 26. In contrast to the white variant, the black one features a rubberized matte cover, which allows for easier gripping. The side panels are made of high-quality plastic though, compared to the white GT9’s chrome chassis. Below are photos

Performance
Equipped with a powerful 1.2GHz MTK6517 dual core processor, 512MB ROM/ 512MB RAM, a touch-receptive 5-inch display, 2500mAh cell and impressive audio, this 5-incher makes for one heavy-duty performer. The mammoth LED display complements these features well, making downloads, Internet surfing and gaming speedy and enjoyable. Never had any problems with these functions, specifically when it came to screen transitions. The screen’s response time was excellent, and I experienced no lags whatsoever, though this is not the case for photos (more on that later).

We tried Temple Run many times over (sometimes even with the Internet browser window opened simultaneously) and the experience was so far smooth.  The audio was quite powerful and clear, although if you’re looking for the quality of a Walkman phone, the GT9 just does not have that caliber.

The cell life is quite impressive too. I’ve used this without recharging for about a day-and-a-half, where at daytime I do the usual texting and calling, then afternoons the husband would play Temple Run for a few minutes, and in the evening while nursing Lia to sleep I Web-surfed for about an hour or two. Considering how huge the display is, you’d expect the battery would drain fast, so 1 1/2 days is a bit of a long stretch.

To learn more about DTC, visit their official website at www.dtcmobile.com.ph.