Lenovo P2 review: Charge & Go

Final words

"When was the last time you charged your phone?"

"Hmm, let me think about it... I can't remember!"

And when was the last time you had this conversation? We can't remember, either. But it has to be around the zenith of Nokia, its iconic feature phones, and, of course, the glorious days of the 3310 almighty.

Today, you can once again relive those good ol' times with the Lenovo P2. If you are after the spectacular battery autonomy, the P2 is guaranteed to deliver. The smartphone's stamina goes beyond today's understanding for excellence, and you won't have to give up on any important feature.

But no matter how amazing the battery life is, a polished smartphone experience requires more than that. And the good news is Lenovo has prepared the P2 for greatness with an all-around feature set, which may even step on some flagship toes.

The vivid Super AMOLED display and its superb contrast are excellent, while the Snapdragon 625 chip delivers adequate processing power without the risk of heating up. The Adreno 506 graphic engine may not ace any tests, but it's a snappy enough performer for the midrange.

Lenovo has put some additional efforts to upgrade the main camera since the Vibe P1 and they were definitely for the better. The produced images and 4K videos came out surprisingly pleasant, and the Auto and Smart mode did not fail us in these demanding weather conditions.

The beautiful metal shell surely boosts the overwhelmingly positive impressions. As does the superb audio quality. And loudspeaker output. Finally, the outstanding power-user options integrated with the otherwise clean Android launcher will seal the deal for many.

Check the summary of our complete review findings.

Lenovo P2 key test findings:

• Great build quality, but we have to deduct a few points for the unoriginal design.
• The AMOLED screen is excellent with adequate brightness and sunlight legibility. There is no color tint or color shifting when you look at it at an angle. Color accuracy is on a very good level.
• The battery endurance is jaw dropping with a 149h total rating, and chart-topping call, video, and browser tests.
• Lenovo's ROM is close to stock concerning aesthetics. It is also almost entirely bloatware-free. There are, however, quite a few impressively powerful features baked right into the OS. Power users should be pleased.
• The chipset isn't top of the shelf, but it will easily get you through all everyday tasks. The processor is a keeper, while the GPU could have been better.
• Loudspeaker scores a Very Good mark with crisp and deep output.
• The audio output quality is clean and quite loud so it's a good match for big headphones.
• The 13MP samples from the main camera turned out contrasty with lots of detail, accurate colors and white balance, and good high dynamic range.
• The front-facing 5MP snapper produces below average selfies, as it's not tuned to have your face in focus at an arm's length, which is how we like our selfies.
• The 4K videos are great with smooth frame rate, lots of detail, little noise, high dynamic range and real-life colors. The same goes for the 1080p samples. There is no video stabilization whatsoever.

The Moto Z Play is an in-house competitor, which offers a few features on top of the P2's AMOLED and Snapdragon 625 chip, though in exchange of the beefy battery. The Moto Z Play is all about the ingenious Moto Mods. It's about whether you like the idea of snapping a speaker, or a battery, or a high-end camera with zoom on the phone's back, or you prefer the long battery autonomy right away. There is the price consideration as well. The Z Play is more expensive than the P2 and that's before you even start buying any Moto Mods.

Motorola Moto Z Play

The ZTE Axon 7 has become a popular choice thanks to the rich feature set and the reasonable price. For the extra €80 on top of the P2, you will get a higher-resolution AMOLED screen, flagship-grade Snapdragon 820 chip, premium stereo speakers, and top-notch 20MP camera with OIS. The phone offers a very good battery life with a 70h rating.

ZTE Axon 7

Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime is a good alternative matching most of the Lenovo P2's specs. It can't offer the punchy AMOLED or the huge battery capacity, but it does better with design and selfies. It comes with a TouchWiz, too, which may tip the scales.

Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime

Asus Zenfone 3 is probably the best match for the Lenovo P2 even though its lackluster battery won't turn any heads. The Zenfone 3 ZE520KL has a 5.2" 1080p screen, the same Snapdragon 625 chip, and an even better OIS-enabled 16MP main camera. It benefits from a better-looking design and more capable camera setup, though it lacks the AMOLED matrix and the remarkable battery life.

There are bigger 5.5" Zenfone 3 models - ZE550KL and Deluxe 5.5 - for those who can't live without the phablet-sized screen. They share the rest of the specs with the smaller Zenfone 3 flavor, but bump the screen and the battery capacity. These two cost about €100 on top of both the Zenfone 3 ZE520KL and the Lenovo P2, so we can't recommend them in a heartbeat.

Asus Zenfone 3 ZE520KL • Asus Zenfone 3 ZE552KL • Asus Zenfone 3 Deluxe 5.5

Xiaomi has a few attractively priced phones, which can't be ignored. The Mi 5s costs the same as the Lenovo P2, and while it has a slightly smaller IPS screen, it comes with Snapdragon 821 high-end chip, a great 12MP snapper, excellent 4MP UltraPixel selfie shooter, more storage, and great battery life at 84h.

Add some extra €50, and you can have the 5.7" Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus with powerful Snapdragon 821 chip, excellent 104h battery life (3,800 mAh capacity), and trending dual camera setup with color and monochrome sensors.

While the Mi flagships prices are in the same neighborhood as the Lenovo P2's, the latest Snapdragon edition of the Redmi Note 4 costs half the P2's money. It matches the screen size and resolution, utilizes the same Snapdragon 625 chip with 3 or 4 gigs of RAM, and there is even a similar 13MP cam with f/2.0. The even better news is the Redmi Note 4's battery capacity of 4,100 mAh - it may not be as high as the P2's 5,100 mAh, but is a close enough so it should provide a reasonable battery autonomy.

Xiaomi Mi 5s • Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus • Xiaomi Redmi Note 4

"With great power comes great responsibility", said Spiderman's uncle once. Indeed, the expectations of the Lenovo P2 are somewhat higher than usual, but thankfully it delivers great performance across the board, and won't fail you whatever the task. For a mid-ranger, the P2 goes above and beyond its purpose and that speaks volumes about its capabilities. If you can live with the bland design, the Lenovo P2 is an excellent smartphone in pretty much every other aspect.