For a smartphone that was a new mobile operating system’s first foray into the market, the Samsung Z1 was too low-end and unimpressive. Given the emergence of the budget smartphone segment in the last year or so and the slim chances of a costly device with a new OS attracting consumers, Samsung decision to make a low-end device the launching platform for Tizen made some sense.
This year, the Z3 is taking over as Samsung’s latest Tizen smartphone, and the Korean giant has made numerous upgrades to the hardware. The Z3 isn’t a flagship either, but Samsung is no doubt hoping the low price will once again help it sell a lot of units, especially now that the hardware is considerably improved across the board.
On the software front, the Z3 comes with Tizen 2.4, and Samsung is still pushing the OS as one that is light and fast. Light is the right word for the OS of course; it’s light on resources, and it’s light on third-party apps as well. The latter is what makes Tizen a poor option right now, and even though there are quite a few apps in the Tizen Store, most of them are simple ones that are better suited on a feature phone than a smartphone.
But every new OS needs devices to reach more people, so the Z3 has every reason to exist despite the numerous Android alternatives from Samsung in the market. The pricing is certainly attractive, so let’s find out if the user experience is worthy enough to make the Z3 a good purchase.
The Z3’s design is typical Samsung, but the rounded corners we see on the company’s Android devices have been somewhat squared up on the Z3, giving it a more rectangular look that we prefer. The phone feels good in hand for the asking price, due in part to the leather-like soft touch back cover. The back cover doesn’t have the coarse texture that we see on phones like the Galaxy J2, and that’s a good thing. It’s all plastic though, including the silver rim at the sides of the phone, so you won’t actually be getting a premium feel.