Bluboo Xtouch Smartphone Review

The Bluboo Xtouch promises a lot of lucrative features for the relatively low price point of $180. 5-inch 1080p display, 3 GB RAM, CNC frame, octa-core processor, fingerprint reader, and 802.11ac compatibility are just some of the listed features.
The specifications always look good on paper. Thus, we're here to find out what corners have inevitably been cut in order to meet the low price tag and to compare the smartphone against competing 5-inch mainstream offerings.
Case
Bluboo has designed one of the better-looking smartphones in the <$200 USD range. The Gorilla Glass 3 front, reflective metal frame and edges, and glossy plastic back come together very well to give the Xtouch a classy look. Construction quality is also very good as the unit can be twisted just marginally. It is not a uni-body chassis, however, unlike on the iPhone 6 series. Pressing down on the center of the non-removable back cover produces just slight warping. Fingerprints accumulate very quickly due to the glossy and texture-less features of the phone.
The Xtouch is advertised as being just 5.5 mm thick. This is only half-true as the edges are slanted, so its true thickness on the center of the smartphone is closer to 7.5 mm. Even so, the Xtouch is thinner than many of its competitors including the Ulefone Paris, Huawei P8 Lite, and Galaxy J5. The dedicated Android buttons below the screen increase the length of the smartphone just slightly.
Connectivity
Available ports are the usual 3.5 mm audio jack and Micro-USB 2.0 port for charging and data transfer. USB OTG is supported as our connected mice and keyboards work without issues. More advanced features like MHL are not supported. The MicroSD and Micro-SIM slots are flushed on the left edge since the back is not removable.
Communication & GPS
The Xtouch is one of the few budget smartphones to be compatible with dual-band 802.11ac networks. We had no connectivity or dropout issues during our time with the smartphone. Signal remains strong and very stable up to until the 20 meter mark where signal strength fluctuates between -80 dBm and -70 dBm. Nonetheless, we were able to browse online without any sudden interruptions.
The integrated GPS/GLONASS is not as accurate as our dedicated Garmin standard. A short path taken on city roads shows that the Xtouch does not accurately portray sharp turns, such as those made at intersections whilst driving. Nonetheless, signal quality is good enough for driving purposes and only average for off-road trails.
Telephone & Voice Quality
Both GSM and WCDMA standard are supported. FDD-LTE is also supported, but its compatible bands (800/1800/2100/2600 MHz) are not used by major carriers in the United States. Thus, 4G is not guaranteed for U.S. users. There is no Wi-Fi calling either as found on a number of higher-end smartphones or a few mainstream ones like the Sharp Crystal.
We were able to make calls through T-Mobile without any problems. Sound quality is acceptable, but users may want to turn up the volume if outdoors since it is a bit on the soft side. Callers on the other end claimed that volume was a bit soft from the Xtouch as well.
The removable tray is able to hold two Micro-SIM cards and a single MicroSD card. However, placing these cards on the tray itself is made difficult as there is no latch or recess to hold the items in place.
Cameras & Multimedia
The rear 13 MP camera uses the same Sony Exmor IMX214 CMOS sensor as the Nexus 6 and OnePlus One. Otherwise, the built-in LED Flash, f/2.0 aperture, and OIS (optimal image stabilization) features are standard fare. The generic Android camera application does not carry other notable features.
Camera quality is good considering the price of the Xtouch. Images are acceptably crisp with no major purple fringing to be found. Colors, however, are slightly off and with a green tint that isn't found on other mainstream smartphones.
Video quality is limited to 1080p maximum. Interestingly, frame rate is only up to 12 FPS if recording at the maximum resolution, so video recording is poor for fast-moving objects as there will be heavy blur.
Input Devices
Touchscreen
The 5-point capacitive touchscreen is as precise and accurate around the edges and corners as it is towards the center. Inputs with the onscreen keyboard respond swiftly and with no latency issues, which is not common on cheap smartphones. Even very light taps are recognized without any problems whereas we had to tap more aggressively on the screen of the less expensive Bluboo Xfire. Haptic feedback, however, is a bit on the weak side and could have been stronger.
While touchscreen responsiveness is very good, the Home button is much too soft with very little travel and tactile feedback. It feels almost broken on our model and could have benefited from a redesign. Otherwise, its built-in fingerprint sensor is very fast (up to 1 to 2 seconds at most) and works reliably to lock the smartphone.
Meanwhile, the soft-touch Tabs and Back buttons surrounding the hard Home button are lit Blue when active. Bluboo has taken the Samsung approach by having the Back button to the right of the Home button instead of the left.
Display
The Xtouch offers a 1080p screen for a high pixel density of 441 PPI. The 2.5D edge-to-edge protective glass is slightly curved around the edges and corners and is likely only aesthetic as the screen itself is still flat. Contrast is only average and backlight brightness is below average as most competing budget and mainstream smartphones can be much brighter. Bluboo advertises the Xtouch with a brightness of 450 nits, a contrast of 1000:1, and a gamut coverage of 95 percent NTSC. None of our measurements come close to these claims.
Subjectively, display quality is sharper than on 720p smartphones and 1080p video playback is very good with acceptable black levels, but colors are not as impressive and images do not pop.
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Brightness Distribution: 95 %
Center on Battery: 275.3 cd/m²
Contrast: 630:1 (Black: 0.437 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 7.61 | 0.5-29.43 Ø4.89
ΔE Greyscale 7.28 | 0.5-98 Ø5.1
Gamma: 1.97
Bluboo Xtouch 5", 1920x1080 | Ulefone Paris 5", 1280x720 | Motorola Moto G 3. Gen 2015 XT1541 5", 1280x720 | HTC One A9 5", 1920x1080 | Samsung Galaxy J5 5", 1280x720 | LG G4c 5", 1280x720 | Doogee Nova Y100X 5", 1280x720 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Screen | 54% | 32% | 41% | 26% | 27% | -2% | |
Brightness middle | 275.3 | 436.4 59% | 418 52% | 346 26% | 349 27% | 480 74% | 387.9 41% |
Brightness | 271 | 424 56% | 407 50% | 349 29% | 353 30% | 464 71% | 390 44% |
Brightness Distribution | 95 | 93 -2% | 95 0% | 93 -2% | 93 -2% | 92 -3% | 91 -4% |
Black Level * | 0.437 | 0.253 42% | 0.49 -12% | 0.49 -12% | 0.583 -33% | ||
Contrast | 630 | 1725 174% | 853 35% | 980 56% | 665 6% | ||
Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 7.61 | 5.32 30% | 3.92 48% | 1.55 80% | 5.22 31% | 8.13 -7% | 9.91 -30% |
Greyscale dE 2000 * | 7.28 | 5.8 20% | 3.81 48% | 2.05 72% | 3.96 46% | 6.73 8% | 10.04 -38% |
Gamma | 1.97 112% | 2.01 109% | 2.27 97% | 2.15 102% | 2.08 106% | 2.69 82% | 2.53 87% |
CCT | 8414 77% | 6369 102% | 7361 88% | 6267 104% | 7308 89% | 7727 84% | 10336 63% |
Color Space (Percent of sRGB) | 70.038 |
* ... smaller is better
Quick measurements with an X-Rite spectrophotometer confirm our color suspicions as grayscale and saturation are very poor. Competing mainstream models like the Motorola Moto G 3 and Samsung Galaxy J5 have more accurate colors and grayscale in comparison. Color temperature is also much too cool. Even the Ulefone Paris produces more accurate colors on its brighter screen. These signs are red flags for a budget smartphone as is the case with the Bluboo Xtouch.
Outdoor usability is average when under shade and on maximum display brightness. Otherwise, the backlight is not powerful enough to overcome direct sunlight. The screen becomes washed out even on brighter days and glare will quickly become an obstacle.
The now standard IPS panel helps in reducing glare by providing wide viewing angles. Colors do not shift dramatically and contrast only suffers marginally if viewing from extreme angles.
Performance
The octa-core MediaTek MT6753 is a mid-range processor that's just slightly below the Snapdragon 615 in the Moto X Play. The SoC shouldn't be confused with the MT6735, which is much weaker and found on cheaper smartphones like the Bluboo Xfire. The MT6753 can idle at just 300 MHz with seven of the eight cores disabled. Otherwise, all eight cores are able to operate up to 1.3 GHz simultaneously if the app demands it.
System RAM is quite generous at 3 GB LPDDR3 considering the price of the Xtouch. This is more than most mainstream smartphones and matches many flagship models from major manufacturers. We are able to multi-task and open multiple applications without significantly slowing down the device.
AnTuTu v5 - Total Score (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
Asus Zenfone 2 ZE551ML | |
HTC One A9 | |
Ulefone Paris | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Bluboo Xfire |
PCMark for Android | |
Computer Vision score (sort by value) | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Storage score (sort by value) | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Work 2.0 performance score (sort by value) | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Work performance score (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
Asus Zenfone 2 ZE551ML | |
HTC One A9 | |
Ulefone Paris | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Bluboo Xfire |
Geekbench 3 | |
64 Bit Multi-Core Score (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
Asus Zenfone 2 ZE551ML | |
HTC One A9 | |
Ulefone Paris | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Bluboo Xfire | |
64 Bit Single-Core Score (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
Asus Zenfone 2 ZE551ML | |
HTC One A9 | |
Ulefone Paris | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Bluboo Xfire |
Linpack Android / IOS | |
Multi Thread (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
HTC One A9 | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Bluboo Xfire | |
Single Thread (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
HTC One A9 | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Bluboo Xfire |
Processor
Browser-based benchmarks generally place the Xtouch in between the Xfire and Paris. Mainstream smartphones like the Moto X Play and Asus Zenfone 2 are still significantly faster across the board.
Octane V2 - Total Score (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
Asus Zenfone 2 ZE551ML | |
HTC One A9 | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Ulefone Paris | |
Bluboo Xfire |
Sunspider | |
1.0 Total Score (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
Asus Zenfone 2 ZE551ML | |
HTC One A9 | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Ulefone Paris | |
Bluboo Xfire | |
0.9.1 Total Score (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
Asus Zenfone 2 ZE551ML | |
Ulefone Paris | |
Bluboo Xfire |
Browsermark - 2.1 (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Ulefone Paris | |
Bluboo Xfire |
WebXPRT 2015 - Overall (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
Asus Zenfone 2 ZE551ML | |
HTC One A9 | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Ulefone Paris | |
Bluboo Xfire |
Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Total (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
Asus Zenfone 2 ZE551ML | |
HTC One A9 | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Ulefone Paris | |
Bluboo Xfire |
JetStream 1.1 - Total Score (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
HTC One A9 | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Ulefone Paris | |
Bluboo Xfire |
* ... smaller is better
Storage Devices
Unexpectedly, SSD performance from the integrated 32 GB eMMC is very good and rivals that of the costlier HTC one M9 and surpasses the Asus Zenfone 2. Sequential read and write rates are significantly faster than competing budget devices to aid in lowering latency and increasing system performance.
MicroSD cards are also supported for additional storage. However, access is not convenient as it sits right next to the SIM slot and requires a sharp pin to release.
Bluboo Xtouch | HTC One M9 | Samsung Galaxy J5 | Motorola Moto X Play | Asus Zenfone 2 ZE551ML | Doogee Nova Y100X | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AndroBench 3-5 | -5% | -44% | -27% | -39% | -71% | |
Random Write 4KB | 16.11 | 13.91 -14% | 7.2 -55% | 16 -1% | 5.91 -63% | 2.41 -85% |
Random Read 4KB | 24.08 | 20.66 -14% | 19.25 -20% | 16 -34% | 22.69 -6% | 15.64 -35% |
Sequential Write 256KB | 113.2 | 123.8 9% | 39.4 -65% | 75 -34% | 54.6 -52% | 21.09 -81% |
Sequential Read 256KB | 232.1 | 235.1 1% | 145.5 -37% | 139 -40% | 147.6 -36% | 38.05 -84% |
Gaming Performance
Raw performance according to 3DMark is roughly 10 percent below the Moto X Play and 30 percent ahead of the Ulefone Paris. A 30-minute stress test via GFXBench shows consistent performance with no throttling throughout the run. In comparison, high-power smartphones like the Galaxy S6 Edge will throttle after a few minutes of heavy use.
The Xtouch is able to play 3D titles from the Play Store with little to no issues. 2D titles play flawlessly while 3D titles will stutter during intense moments. Asphalt 8, for example, plays fine until frame rates begin to dip if multiple cars are onscreen. The Mali-T720 GPU is normally paired with 720p displays and not 1080p like we have here on the Bluboo.
3DMark - 1280x720 offscreen Ice Storm Unlimited Score (sort by value) | |
Bluboo Xtouch | |
Asus Zenfone 2 ZE551ML | |
HTC One A9 | |
Motorola Moto X Play | |
Ulefone Paris | |
Bluboo Xfire |
3DMark Ice Storm Standard Score | 6554 points | |
Help |
Emissions
Temperature
Surface temperatures are flat on both sides with no notable hot spots when the system is idling. After running very high loads for extended periods, we were able to record a maximum surface temperature of 36 C near the earpiece while surfaces closer to the Home button remain relatively cool. This is common on most smartphones as the motherboard is typically near the top of the device and away from the battery. Users will not have to worry about uncomfortable temperatures when gaming or browsing.
The Xtouch runs much cooler compared to the Ulefone Paris and about equal to the Galaxy J5 when taking into account the ambient temperature differences at the time of testing.
(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 36 °C / 97 F, compared to the average of 35.1 °C / 95 F, ranging from 21.9 to 63.7 °C for the class Smartphone.
(+) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 36.2 °C / 97 F, compared to the average of 33.9 °C / 93 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 28.6 °C / 83 F, compared to the device average of 32.8 °C / 91 F.
Speakers

The mono speaker is located on the bottom of the device adjacent to the USB port. Sounds are loud and of decent quality at about the 50 percent mark. Any louder, however, and static becomes very noticeable to the point where music and voices begin to crack. Bass is almost non-existent. The speaker is good enough as a loudspeaker during calls, but 3.5 mm earphones are recommended for media playback.
Note that while there are two sets of grilles on the bottom, sounds only emanate from the set closest to the microphone.
Battery Life
Runtimes are slightly below average at just over 6 hours of constant WLAN use at 150 nits brightness (about 50 percent setting). Competing 5-inch models like the Galaxy J5 and LG G4c can last longer despite having lower capacity batteries. Furthermore, the battery on the Xtouch is non-removable, which is uncommon on budget smartphones. Bluboo advertises 14 hours of Internet browsing, which is impossible even at the lowest brightness setting.
Bluboo Xtouch 3050 mAh | Ulefone Paris 2250 mAh | Huawei P8 lite 2200 mAh | Samsung Galaxy J5 2600 mAh | LG G4c 2540 mAh | HTC One A9 2150 mAh | Motorola Moto G 3. Gen 2015 XT1541 2470 mAh | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Battery Runtime | -1% | -10% | 49% | 18% | 8% | 44% | |
Reader / Idle | 756 | 953 26% | 715 -5% | 1292 71% | 955 26% | 1154 53% | 1364 80% |
WiFi v1.3 | 364 | 361 -1% | 351 -4% | 495 36% | 457 26% | 368 1% | 526 45% |
Load | 250 | 180 -28% | 194 -22% | 350 40% | 252 1% | 176 -30% | 264 6% |
Pros
Cons
Verdict
Inexpensive smartphones are getting better at incorporating features from the high-end category into more affordable solutions. The Xtouch fingerprint scanner works very well and the chassis is strong for the price. This is one of the better smartphones for under $200 if smooth multi-tasking is a concern due to its spacious 3 GB RAM.
The downside to the Xtouch is that its 1080p display is not as bright or as accurate as other mainstream smartphones. The integrated battery would have been easier to live with if battery life was made longer to compensate. The lack of 4G for U.S. carriers may be a deal breaker for some. We fully expect the potential Xtouch successor to focus on display quality and brightness to really make it an easy recommendation.
The Bluboo Xtouch is the manufacturer's flagship for good reason. It's well-made, well-designed, and smooth to use. It's a shame that brightness and color quality are just average at best.
Bluboo Xtouch now available at Gearbest.com and Geekbuying.com.
Bluboo Xtouch
- 12/02/2015 v4 (old)
Allen Ngo