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Vernee Mars Smartphone Review

Edge-less. The affordable mid-range model Mars by the Chinese manufacturer Vernee is furnished with a virtually edge-less design besides a very good configuration for the price range. According to the manufacturer, the lateral edges are just 1 millimeter in width. Find out in the report how the smartphone fares compared with the strong competition.

For the original German review, see here.

The smartphone label Vernee, relatively unknown in Germany, expands its portfolio by another 5.5-inch mid-range handset with its Mars model. Its narrow display edges make it quite compact with a size of 151 x 73 millimeters. The unibody casing and antenna strips on the back's upper and lower areas are very like the design of this year's Apple iPhone models.

The configuration for such an affordable mid-range smartphone is appealing at a street price of approximately 190 Euros (~$201) via importers (more information about importing smartphones can be found here). In addition to a Helio P10 processor, 4 GB of RAM, and a 13 MP camera including Sony's EXMOR sensor, Vernee's Mars also features a fingerprint scanner. It is also possible to expand the internal storage via an SD card or insert a second SIM card.

In addition to importing via importers, Vernee's Mars can also be purchased via "Vernee Germany" based in Kassel (280 Euros, ~$296). The company takes over responsibility for warranty, service, and support for the handsets sold via its online platform. However, it is not an official German representative of the Chinese manufacturer.

Potential rivals from this price range and also comparison devices listed in the test are Acer's Liquid Zest Plus, Coolpad's Modena 2, UMi's Max, Honor's 5C, Lenovo's Moto G4 Play, and ZTE's Blade V7 Lite.

Vernee Mars (Mars Series)
Processor
Mediatek Helio P10 MT6755 8 x 2 GHz, Cortex-A53
Graphics adapter
Memory
4 GB 
Display
5.50 inch 16:9, 1920 x 1080 pixel 401 PPI, capacitive multitouch, LCD, IPS, 2.5D Arc Screen, Corning Gorilla Glass 3, glossy: yes
Storage
32 GB eMMC Flash, 32 GB 
, 25.1 GB free
Connections
1 USB 2.0, Audio Connections: 3.5-mm stereo jack, Card Reader: micro-SD card (max. 128 GB), 1 Fingerprint Reader, Brightness Sensor, Sensors: proximity sensor, accelerometer, compass, gyroscope, OTG, Miracast, USB Type-C, App2SD, status LED
Networking
802.11a/b/g/n (a/b/g/n = Wi-Fi 4/), Bluetooth 4.0, 2G: GSM 850/900/1800MHz 3G: WCDMA 900/2100MHz 4G: FDD-LTE 800/1800/2100/2600MHz, Dual SIM, LTE, GPS
Size
height x width x depth (in mm): 7.6 x 151 x 73 ( = 0.3 x 5.94 x 2.87 in)
Battery
3000 mAh Lithium-Ion
Operating System
Android 6.0 Marshmallow
Camera
Primary Camera: 13 MPix
Secondary Camera: 5 MPix
Additional features
Speakers: mono, Keyboard: onscreen, Keyboard Light: yes, modular power supply, USB cable, wooden cradle, Vernee UI, 12 Months Warranty, SAR rate unkn., fanless
Weight
162 g ( = 5.71 oz / 0.36 pounds), Power Supply: 45 g ( = 1.59 oz / 0.1 pounds)
Price
190 Euro
Note: The manufacturer may use components from different suppliers including display panels, drives or memory sticks with similar specifications.

 

Case

Vernee's Mars is made of a unibody aluminum casing that is available in two colors: gold and gray. The just 7.6-millimeter mid-range smartphone is nice to hold and makes a high-quality build impression. The stability is also very good; even firm pressure hardly has an impact on the handset.

A lightly curved 2.5D glass front protects the 5.5-inch screen in Vernee's Mars. It is scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass 3. Thanks to the display's lateral edges of only 2 millimeters (measured), the screen-surface ratio is a good 75.5%.

The metal keys for volume control and power on the casing's right are easy to reach, hardly rock, and they have a pleasant pressure point. The physical keys can be discerned well thanks to their different surface structure. A fingerprint scanner is situated below the controls, which is a similar positioning as in some Sony devices.

The build quality and choice of materials of Vernee's smartphone are on a very good level for the price range, and they do not give much reason for complaint.

Size Comparison

154.3 mm / 6.07 inch 77.4 mm / 3.05 inch 9.8 mm / 0.3858 inch 175 g0.3858 lbs154.5 mm / 6.08 inch 76.5 mm / 3.01 inch 7.85 mm / 0.3091 inch 143 g0.3153 lbs150.8 mm / 5.94 inch 75 mm / 2.95 inch 8.5 mm / 0.3346 inch 199 g0.4387 lbs151 mm / 5.94 inch 73 mm / 2.87 inch 7.6 mm / 0.2992 inch 162 g0.3571 lbs147.1 mm / 5.79 inch 73.8 mm / 2.91 inch 8.3 mm / 0.3268 inch 156 g0.3439 lbs144.4 mm / 5.69 inch 72 mm / 2.83 inch 9.9 mm / 0.3898 inch 137 g0.302 lbs143.8 mm / 5.66 inch 70.2 mm / 2.76 inch 8.3 mm / 0.3268 inch 135 g0.2976 lbs148 mm / 5.83 inch 105 mm / 4.13 inch 1 mm / 0.03937 inch 1.5 g0.00331 lbs

Connectivity

The internal eMMC storage (5.0) has a capacity of 32 GB. The user only has 25.1 GB available in delivery state. A micro-SD card can be integrated into the internal storage or compatible apps can be moved to the storage card (App2SD). The installed micro-SD card slot thus supports the latest SDHC and SDXC standards and accepts cards with a capacity of up to 128 GB.

The strong 3000 mAh battery in Vernee's Mars is recharged via the modern USB-C port on the handset's lower edge using Quick-Charge Technology. However, transmitting data via the micro-USB port is performed in the 2.0 standard.

Wi-Fi Direct and Miracast are present for wireless video content transmissions. An FM radio, dual-SIM functionality, fingerprint scanner, and LED for incoming notifications are also installed.

SD Card Reader
maximum SDCardreader Maximum Transfer Rate
average SDCardreader Average Transfer Rate

Software

Vernee relies on the sixth generation of Android Marshmallow for its Mars smartphone model. It was shipped with the security patch from April 2016 at test time. The manufacturer covers it with its own user interface dubbed V-OS. The system interface looks only slightly modified compared with stock Android.

Vernee has announced an update to Android 7 Nougat for the Mars. This should make the mid-range handset the first Helio 10-powered smartphone that uses the newest OS version.

Communication and GPS

Fluctuations in transmission rates

Vernee's Mars uses LTE Cat.4 (150 Mbit/s downstream, 50 Mbit/s upstream) in the frequencies 800, 900, 1800, 2100, and 2600 MHz for connecting to mobile Internet. Consequently, the important LTE Band 20 for the rural areas of Germany is also supported. In contrast to many other smartphones, the dual-SIM smartphone's hybrid slot is not restricted to GSM speed when connecting to mobile Internet.

The integrated Wi-Fi module in the Mars supports the IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n standard, thus it not only transmits in the 2.4 GHz frequency range but also in the 5 GHz frequency range. Both its range and signal stability are very good. The Wi-Fi transmission rates of 82 Mbit/s (iperf server) and 39 Mbit/s (iperf Client) between the smartphone and our Linksys EA 8500 reference router are on a low standard. However, other devices from this price range do not do a much better job in our Wi-Fi test.

Networking
iperf Server (receive) TCP 1 m
Vernee Mars
Mali-T860 MP2, Helio P10 MT6755, 32 GB eMMC Flash
81.1 MBit/s
Honor 5C
Mali-T830 MP2, Kirin 650, 16 GB eMMC Flash
49.8 MBit/s -39%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
Mali-T720 MP2, MT6735, 16 GB eMMC Flash
47.6 MBit/s -41%
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
Adreno 306, 410 APQ8016, 16 GB eMMC Flash
45.6 MBit/s -44%
iperf Client (transmit) TCP 1 m
Honor 5C
Mali-T830 MP2, Kirin 650, 16 GB eMMC Flash
58.3 MBit/s +50%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
Mali-T720 MP2, MT6735, 16 GB eMMC Flash
50 MBit/s +29%
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
Adreno 306, 410 APQ8016, 16 GB eMMC Flash
46.7 MBit/s +20%
Vernee Mars
Mali-T860 MP2, Helio P10 MT6755, 32 GB eMMC Flash
38.9 MBit/s
GPS test, indoors
GPS test, outdoors

The GPS module in Vernee's Mars slowly yet reliably finds the present position with an accuracy of three meters. To evaluate the localization capabilities of our review sample in practice, we record a route with Garmin's Edge 500 GPS bike computer and the smartphone simultaneously for comparison. Roughly 280 meters separates the mid-range smartphone and the professional device at the end of the 6-kilometer route. This is due to minor inaccuracies of Vernee's Mars - the accuracy of the smartphone's GPS module is average in total.

GPS test Vernee Mars
GPS test Vernee Mars
GPS test Vernee Mars
GPS test Garmin Edge 500
GPS test Garmin Edge 500
GPS test Garmin Edge 500

Telephone and Call Quality

The call quality of Vernee's Mars is good, and we did not experience annoying disruptions or reception issues in the test. Voices are transmitted clearly, and our contact also characterized voice transmission as intelligible.

The phone app corresponds to the stock Android 6.0 design. Besides a quick-dial function, the application also has a call list and direct access to saved contacts.

Cameras

Front-facing camera

The 13 MP primary camera in Vernee's Mars has a resolution of 4224x3136 pixels in an aspect ratio of 4:3. The camera module has an aperture of f/2.0, and the installed image sensor comes from Sony (IMX 258). This CMOS sensor by the Japanese manufacturer is also used, for example, in Sony's Xperia XA.

The camera module provides bright, color-accurate photos with sufficient image sharpness in good light conditions. As usual for the price range, an optical image stabilizer is not installed. However, the photos of Vernee's Mars quickly blur even without OIS (see scene screenshots). It is quite possible to shoot good quality photos when holding the rear-facing camera long enough (see sample photos: woods). The blurriness is maintained in the lateral areas, though. Sony's sensor produces bright photos with very evident image noise and low sharpness in low-light conditions so that details are hardly visible.

The front-facing camera has a resolution of up to 5 MP (Samsung S5K5E2) and an aperture of f/2.2. The photo quality is satisfactory for the price range - but the photos also blur marginally and their reproduction is also hazy. Videos can be recorded with up to 1080p at 30 FPS. The recording quality decreases to 720p at 30 FPS using the 5 MP front-facing camera.

13 MP camera, HDR mode
13 MP camera
13 MP camera, HDR mode

Image Comparison

Choose a scene and navigate within the first image. One click changes the position on touchscreens. One click on the zoomed-in image opens the original in a new window. The first image shows the scaled photograph of the test device.

Scene 1Scene 2Scene 3
click to load images

Accessories and Warranty

Besides the smartphone, the review sample's box contained a wooden cradle, user's manual, USB cable, and a 10-watt modular power supply (5 V, 2A).

A 12-month warranty is included.

Input Devices and Handling

Vernee uses onscreen navigation in the screen's lower-third for its mid-range model. The capacitive touchscreen detects up to 10 fingers at a time and has a gliding-friendly surface. The multi-touchscreen responds very accurately up into the screen's edges.

The Chinese manufacturer preloads Google's stock Android keyboard for text inputting.

Biometric authentication via fingerprint can be used for unlocking Vernee's Mars. However, the active fingerprint scanner is below the physical keys on the side, making it more of a "nice to have feature" than a useful component, especially since attempts to unlock it via fingerprint failed in 70 to 80% of cases. The scanner does not provide any additional features.

Onscreen keyboard, portrait mode
Onscreen keyboard, portrait mode
Onscreen keyboard, landscape mode

Display

Subpixel grid

The LCD screen in Vernee's Mars has a diagonal of almost 14 centimeters (5.5-inches) and offers a Full HD resolution (1920x1080 pixels). This results in a pixel density of approximately 401 PPI and content is thus displayed sharply.

The IPS panel achieves a maximum of 367 cd/m² in our brightness assessment - a sooner average rate that only ZTE's Blade V7 Lite undercuts in the comparison field. In conjunction with the very good black level (0.14 cd/m²), the handset offers a high contrast ratio of 2462:1. We measured a much lower 280 cd/m² in the screen brightness evaluation with equally distributed bright and dark areas (APL50). The black level then sinks marginally to 0.13 cd/m², which also reduces the contrast ratio to 2154:1. That is, however, still good.

313
cd/m²
339
cd/m²
356
cd/m²
321
cd/m²
345
cd/m²
367
cd/m²
321
cd/m²
327
cd/m²
361
cd/m²
Distribution of brightness
LCD tested with X-Rite i1Pro 2
Maximum: 367 cd/m² (Nits) Average: 338.9 cd/m² Minimum: 14.8 cd/m²
Brightness Distribution: 85 %
Center on Battery: 345 cd/m²
Contrast: 2464:1 (Black: 0.14 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 7.1 | 0.5-29.43 Ø5
ΔE Greyscale 6.7 | 0.57-98 Ø5.3
99.3% sRGB (Calman 2D)
Gamma: 2.47
Vernee Mars
IPS, 1920x1080, 5.50
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
IPS, 1280x720, 5.00
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
IPS, 1280x720, 5.00
UMI Max
IPS, 1920x1080, 5.50
Honor 5C
IPS, 1920x1080, 5.20
Coolpad Modena 2
IPS, 1280x720, 5.50
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
IPS, 1280x720, 5.50
Huawei Mate 9
IPS, 1920x1080, 5.90
Screen
-20%
-15%
1%
-23%
-41%
-23%
10%
Brightness middle
345
412
19%
312
-10%
522
51%
515
49%
482
40%
414
20%
696
102%
Brightness
339
414
22%
302
-11%
498
47%
498
47%
468
38%
420
24%
680
101%
Brightness Distribution
85
94
11%
79
-7%
86
1%
93
9%
86
1%
94
11%
93
9%
Black Level *
0.14
0.42
-200%
0.15
-7%
0.23
-64%
0.49
-250%
0.63
-350%
0.33
-136%
0.42
-200%
Contrast
2464
981
-60%
2080
-16%
2270
-8%
1051
-57%
765
-69%
1255
-49%
1657
-33%
Colorchecker dE 2000 *
7.1
5.6
21%
8.2
-15%
6.9
3%
6.2
13%
6.5
8%
8.1
-14%
4.3
39%
Colorchecker dE 2000 max. *
13.9
9.7
30%
16.5
-19%
12.3
12%
11.4
18%
12.4
11%
13.8
1%
9.4
32%
Greyscale dE 2000 *
6.7
6.9
-3%
9.2
-37%
9.2
-37%
7.4
-10%
7.3
-9%
9.6
-43%
4.8
28%
Gamma
2.47 89%
2.4 92%
2.29 96%
2.38 92%
2.28 96%
1.91 115%
2 110%
2.33 94%
CCT
7711 84%
8422 77%
9017 72%
8687 75%
8664 75%
7249 90%
7754 84%
7255 90%

* ... smaller is better

The analysis with a photospectrometer and CalMAN software shows the shift common for the price range in the standard color temperature, i.e. 7.1 in color and 6.7 in grayscale reproduction. The measured color temperature of 7711 Kelvin is slightly above the ideal rate of 6500 Kelvin.

CalMAN Colorspace (target color space sRGB), color temperature: standard
CalMAN ColorChecker (target color space sRGB), color temperature: standard
CalMAN Saturation Sweeps (target color space sRGB), color temperature: standard
CalMAN Grayscale (target color space sRGB), color temperature: standard
CalMAN Colorspace (target color space sRGB), color temperature: vivid
CalMAN ColorChecker (target color space sRGB), color temperature: vivid
CalMAN Saturation Sweeps (target color space sRGB), color temperature: vivid
CalMAN Grayscale (target color space sRGB), color temperature: vivid
CalMAN Colorspace (target color space sRGB), color temperature: adapted
CalMAN ColorChecker (target color space sRGB), color temperature: adapted
CalMAN Saturation Sweeps (target color space sRGB), color temperature: adapted
CalMAN Grayscale (target color space sRGB), color temperature: adapted

Despite the mediocre brightness, the very good contrast ratio ensures good legibility outdoors as long as sunlight does not shine directly onto the screen. Vernee's Mars also does a good job with viewing-angle stability - colors do not invert thanks to the IPS panel and the reproduction barely changes in flatter viewing angles. We only observed minor backlight bleeding in our review sample.

Outdoors
Outdoors
Viewing angles

Display Response Times

Display response times show how fast the screen is able to change from one color to the next. Slow response times can lead to afterimages and can cause moving objects to appear blurry (ghosting). Gamers of fast-paced 3D titles should pay special attention to fast response times.
       Response Time Black to White
40 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined↗ 14 ms rise
↘ 26 ms fall
The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers.
In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 97 % of all devices are better.
This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (21.6 ms).
       Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey
62 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined↗ 21 ms rise
↘ 41 ms fall
The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers.
In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.2 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 96 % of all devices are better.
This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (33.9 ms).

Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)

To dim the screen, some notebooks will simply cycle the backlight on and off in rapid succession - a method called Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) . This cycling frequency should ideally be undetectable to the human eye. If said frequency is too low, users with sensitive eyes may experience strain or headaches or even notice the flickering altogether.
Screen flickering / PWM not detected

In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 18110 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 3846000) Hz was measured.

Performance

With the MT6755 Helio P10, Vernee installs a high-performance, mid-range processor. The MediaTek SoC (system-on-a-chip) is built in 28 nanometers and has eight CPU cores based on the 64-bit capable Cortex A53 architecture. The system is supported by 4 GB of LPDDR3 working memory and the ARM Mali T860 MP2 graphics unit.

The system runs smoothly in routine use and delays are rare. Vernee's Mars makes a convincing impression in the benchmarks and is at the top of the comparison field alongside the Honor 5C. Compared with the UMi Max powered by the Helio P10, Vernee's smartphone manages to retrieve a bit more power from MediaTek's SoC. The browser performance is both subjectively and objectively (benchmarks) very good for the price range and does not give any reason for complaint.

The measured read and write speeds of the internal eMMC storage of 256 MB/s and 72 MB/s are relatively high for an affordable mid-range handset. In contrast, the micro-SD card slot's access times that we test with our Toshiba Exceria Pro M401 reference card (max. 95 MB/s read and max. 80 MB/s write) are only average.

AndroBench 3-5
Sequential Write 256KB SDCard (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
24 MB/s
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
51.1 MB/s +113%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
12.62 MB/s -47%
UMI Max
18.07 MB/s -25%
Honor 5C
24.21 MB/s +1%
Coolpad Modena 2
18.25 MB/s -24%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
16.17 MB/s -33%
Huawei Mate 9
29.53 MB/s +23%
Sequential Read 256KB SDCard (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
44.5 MB/s
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
65.5 MB/s +47%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
22.77 MB/s -49%
UMI Max
36.64 MB/s -18%
Honor 5C
51.9 MB/s +17%
Coolpad Modena 2
35.59 MB/s -20%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
27.68 MB/s -38%
Huawei Mate 9
54 MB/s +21%
Random Write 4KB (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
15.77 MB/s
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
28.31 MB/s +80%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
8.26 MB/s -48%
UMI Max
10.91 MB/s -31%
Honor 5C
15.7 MB/s 0%
Coolpad Modena 2
6.79 MB/s -57%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
7.95 MB/s -50%
Huawei Mate 9
8.77 MB/s -44%
Random Read 4KB (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
21.66 MB/s
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
17.9 MB/s -17%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
18.24 MB/s -16%
UMI Max
26.66 MB/s +23%
Honor 5C
61.7 MB/s +185%
Coolpad Modena 2
23.03 MB/s +6%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
20.25 MB/s -7%
Huawei Mate 9
94.7 MB/s +337%
Sequential Write 256KB (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
71.6 MB/s
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
43.95 MB/s -39%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
70.3 MB/s -2%
UMI Max
69.5 MB/s -3%
Honor 5C
75.5 MB/s +5%
Coolpad Modena 2
42.56 MB/s -41%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
39.51 MB/s -45%
Huawei Mate 9
142.9 MB/s +100%
Sequential Read 256KB (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
255.9 MB/s
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
144.1 MB/s -44%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
187.3 MB/s -27%
UMI Max
257.9 MB/s +1%
Honor 5C
263 MB/s +3%
Coolpad Modena 2
147 MB/s -43%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
178.6 MB/s -30%
Huawei Mate 9
594 MB/s +132%
AnTuTu v6 - Total Score (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
51008 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
28399 Points -44%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
23822 Points -53%
UMI Max
49057 Points -4%
Honor 5C
53143 Points +4%
Coolpad Modena 2
24875 Points -51%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
30676 Points -40%
Huawei Mate 9
124087 Points +143%
Geekbench 3
64 Bit Single-Core Score (sort by value)
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
404 Points
Honor 5C
906 Points
64 Bit Multi-Core Score (sort by value)
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
1147 Points
Honor 5C
3914 Points
Geekbench 4.0
64 Bit Multi-Core Score (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
2903 Points
UMI Max
2701 Points -7%
Coolpad Modena 2
1274 Points -56%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
1588 Points -45%
Huawei Mate 9
5629 Points +94%
64 Bit Single-Core Score (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
729 Points
UMI Max
734 Points +1%
Coolpad Modena 2
459 Points -37%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
572 Points -22%
Huawei Mate 9
1947 Points +167%
3DMark
1280x720 offscreen Ice Storm Unlimited Score (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
10702 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
4432 Points -59%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
3070 Points -71%
UMI Max
10942 Points +2%
Honor 5C
11755 Points +10%
Coolpad Modena 2
3222 Points -70%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
4944 Points -54%
Huawei Mate 9
27364 Points +156%
1280x720 offscreen Ice Storm Unlimited Graphics Score (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
10685 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
3858 Points -64%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
2645 Points -75%
UMI Max
10612 Points -1%
Honor 5C
11319 Points +6%
Coolpad Modena 2
2789 Points -74%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
4333 Points -59%
Huawei Mate 9
35626 Points +233%
1280x720 offscreen Ice Storm Unlimited Physics (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
10762 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
9256 Points -14%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
7026 Points -35%
UMI Max
12239 Points +14%
Honor 5C
13588 Points +26%
Coolpad Modena 2
7061 Points -34%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
9768 Points -9%
Huawei Mate 9
15104 Points +40%
2560x1440 Sling Shot OpenGL ES 3.0 (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
602 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
53 Points -91%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
124 Points -79%
UMI Max
598 Points -1%
Honor 5C
563 Points -6%
Coolpad Modena 2
130 Points -78%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
209 Points -65%
Huawei Mate 9
2367 Points +293%
2560x1440 Sling Shot OpenGL ES 3.0 Graphics (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
523 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
42 Points -92%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
101 Points -81%
UMI Max
521 Points 0%
Honor 5C
480 Points -8%
Coolpad Modena 2
106 Points -80%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
172 Points -67%
Huawei Mate 9
2448 Points +368%
2560x1440 Sling Shot OpenGL ES 3.0 Physics (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
1100 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
716 Points -35%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
618 Points -44%
UMI Max
1239 Points +13%
Honor 5C
1418 Points +29%
Coolpad Modena 2
621 Points -44%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
831 Points -24%
Huawei Mate 9
2123 Points +93%
GFXBench (DX / GLBenchmark) 2.7
T-Rex Onscreen (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
18 fps
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
9.6 fps -47%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
8.2 fps -54%
UMI Max
17 fps -6%
Honor 5C
20 fps +11%
Coolpad Modena 2
8.9 fps -51%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
8.4 fps -53%
Huawei Mate 9
60 fps +233%
1920x1080 T-Rex Offscreen (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
17 fps
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
5.2 fps -69%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
4.9 fps -71%
UMI Max
17 fps 0%
Honor 5C
19 fps +12%
Coolpad Modena 2
5 fps -71%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
14 fps -18%
Huawei Mate 9
80 fps +371%
GFXBench 3.0
on screen Manhattan Onscreen OGL (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
7.6 fps
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
4.1 fps -46%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
1.8 fps -76%
UMI Max
7.1 fps -7%
Honor 5C
8.4 fps +11%
Coolpad Modena 2
4 fps -47%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
3 fps -61%
Huawei Mate 9
37 fps +387%
1920x1080 1080p Manhattan Offscreen (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
7.1 fps
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
1.8 fps -75%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
3.4 fps -52%
UMI Max
7.1 fps 0%
Honor 5C
7.9 fps +11%
Coolpad Modena 2
1.8 fps -75%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
6 fps -15%
Huawei Mate 9
34 fps +379%
GFXBench 3.1
on screen Manhattan ES 3.1 Onscreen (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
5.1 fps
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
1.2 fps -76%
UMI Max
4.7 fps -8%
Honor 5C
4.9 fps -4%
Coolpad Modena 2
1.2 fps -76%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
1.9 fps -63%
Huawei Mate 9
28 fps +449%
1920x1080 Manhattan ES 3.1 Offscreen (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
4.8 fps
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
2.5 fps -48%
UMI Max
4.7 fps -2%
Honor 5C
4.5 fps -6%
Coolpad Modena 2
2.9 fps -40%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
4.4 fps -8%
Huawei Mate 9
24 fps +400%
GFXBench
1920x1080 Car Chase Offscreen (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
2.5 fps
UMI Max
2.5 fps 0%
Honor 5C
2.9 fps +16%
Huawei Mate 9
fps -100%
on screen Car Chase Onscreen (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
2.7 fps
UMI Max
2.5 fps -7%
Honor 5C
2.8 fps +4%
Huawei Mate 9
14 fps +419%
PCMark for Android - Work performance score (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
4554 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
4283 Points -6%
UMI Max
4485 Points -2%
Honor 5C
5120 Points +12%
Coolpad Modena 2
3119 Points -32%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
3813 Points -16%
Huawei Mate 9
7403 Points +63%
BaseMark OS II
Overall (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
348 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
603 Points +73%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
448 Points +29%
UMI Max
341 Points -2%
Honor 5C
1225 Points +252%
Coolpad Modena 2
483 Points +39%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
192 Points -45%
Huawei Mate 9
2772 Points +697%
System (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
2291 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
1035 Points -55%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
801 Points -65%
UMI Max
2123 Points -7%
Honor 5C
2600 Points +13%
Coolpad Modena 2
909 Points -60%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
1090 Points -52%
Huawei Mate 9
3616 Points +58%
Memory (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
1005 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
741 Points -26%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
487 Points -52%
UMI Max
998 Points -1%
Honor 5C
1504 Points +50%
Coolpad Modena 2
598 Points -40%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
450 Points -55%
Huawei Mate 9
3850 Points +283%
Graphics (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
665 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
313 Points -53%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
174 Points -74%
UMI Max
666 Points 0%
Honor 5C
814 Points +22%
Coolpad Modena 2
178 Points -73%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
286 Points -57%
Huawei Mate 9
3939 Points +492%
Web (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
10 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
551 Points +5410%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
592 Points +5820%
UMI Max
10 Points 0%
Honor 5C
707 Points +6970%
Coolpad Modena 2
565 Points +5550%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
10 Points 0%
Huawei Mate 9
1076 Points +10660%
Octane V2 - Total Score (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
4073 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
2773 Points -32%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
1910 Points -53%
UMI Max
4231 Points +4%
Honor 5C
4188 Points +3%
Coolpad Modena 2
1975 Points -52%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
2697 Points -34%
Huawei Mate 9
11897 Points +192%
Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Total (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
9376 ms *
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
12953 ms * -38%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
19234 ms * -105%
UMI Max
9796 ms * -4%
Honor 5C
9111 ms * +3%
Coolpad Modena 2
19647 ms * -110%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
12910 ms * -38%
Huawei Mate 9
2734 ms * +71%
JetStream 1.1 - Total Score (sort by value)
Vernee Mars
27.1 Points
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
17.09 Points -37%
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
12.73 Points -53%
UMI Max
25.5 Points -6%
Honor 5C
27.93 Points +3%
Coolpad Modena 2
13.15 Points -51%
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
18.03 Points -33%
Huawei Mate 9
68.6 Points +153%

Legend

 
Vernee Mars Mediatek Helio P10 MT6755, ARM Mali-T860 MP2, 32 GB eMMC Flash
 
Lenovo Moto G4 Play Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 APQ8016, Qualcomm Adreno 306, 16 GB eMMC Flash
 
ZTE Blade V7 Lite Mediatek MT6735, ARM Mali-T720, 16 GB eMMC Flash
 
UMI Max Mediatek Helio P10 MT6755, ARM Mali-T860 MP2, 16 GB eMMC Flash
 
Honor 5C HiSilicon Kirin 650, ARM Mali-T830 MP2, 16 GB eMMC Flash
 
Coolpad Modena 2 Mediatek MT6735, ARM Mali-T720 MP2, 16 GB eMMC Flash
 
Acer Liquid Zest Plus Mediatek MT6735, ARM Mali-T720 MP2, 16 GB eMMC Flash
 
Huawei Mate 9 HiSilicon Kirin 960, ARM Mali-G71 MP8, 64 GB UFS 2.1 Flash

* ... smaller is better

Games

Up-to-date Android games, such as Dead Trigger 2 or Asphalt Xtreme, do not push the Mali T860 MP2 graphics unit in Vernee's Mars to its limit. The integrated position sensors and touchscreen's sensitivity function just as smoothly and allow accurate control.

Emissions

Temperature

The surface's idle temperatures climb to a maximum of 33.2 °C in the area of the onscreen buttons - which is an absolutely uncritical rate. The surface temperatures of up to 35.7 °C in the stress test scenario (Stability Test > 1 h) do not distract in routine use, either.

Max. Load
 34.7 °C
94 F
32 °C
90 F
34.5 °C
94 F
 
 35.7 °C
96 F
32.9 °C
91 F
37.2 °C
99 F
 
 34.1 °C
93 F
32.7 °C
91 F
35.6 °C
96 F
 
Maximum: 37.2 °C = 99 F
Average: 34.4 °C = 94 F
34.5 °C
94 F
34.8 °C
95 F
35.5 °C
96 F
34.5 °C
94 F
35.5 °C
96 F
36.3 °C
97 F
33.6 °C
92 F
35.2 °C
95 F
36.3 °C
97 F
Maximum: 36.3 °C = 97 F
Average: 35.1 °C = 95 F
Power Supply (max.)  38.3 °C = 101 F | Room Temperature 21.5 °C = 71 F | Voltcraft IR-350
(±) The average temperature for the upper side under maximal load is 34.4 °C / 94 F, compared to the average of 32.7 °C / 91 F for the devices in the class Smartphone.
(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 37.2 °C / 99 F, compared to the average of 35 °C / 95 F, ranging from 21.9 to 56 °C for the class Smartphone.
(+) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 36.3 °C / 97 F, compared to the average of 33.8 °C / 93 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 29.9 °C / 86 F, compared to the device average of 32.7 °C / 91 F.

Speaker

Pink Noise speaker test

The speaker on the handset's lower edge is sufficiently loud for everyday use, but it is also sometimes less powerful than that of direct rivals (Honor 5C) with a maximum volume of 81 dB(A). The sound quality is not at all bad for the price range, but it is not very convincing, either. As expected, not very linear mids and trebles characterize the sound image. The Pink Noise diagram clearly illustrates that bass is virtually inaudible. The sound makes an overall unbalanced impression and gets tinnier as the volume gets higher.

dB(A) 0102030405060708090Deep BassMiddle BassHigh BassLower RangeMidsHigher MidsLower HighsMid HighsUpper HighsSuper Highs2024.42924.42525.328.325.33125.826.125.84029.732.729.75029.531.529.56324.525.224.5802523.12510026.523.226.512536.631.436.616022.819.422.820024.320.424.325028.520.928.531536.923.636.940044.323.844.350050.920.850.963057.516.857.580063.517.563.5100069.219.769.2125069.118.969.1160068.516.368.5200067.916.167.9250069.414.769.4315071.615.371.6400075.114.975.1500070.614.270.6630064.213.764.2800060.913.660.91000058.713.658.71250058.313.958.3160004613.646SPL81.229.381.2N43.81.243.8median 58.7median 16.8median 58.7Delta14.13.414.136.331.432.436.334.429.331.334.431.632.231.731.635.134.12635.138.134.939.438.13132.536.23126.427.228.626.427.527.725.427.527.531.121.327.526.827.523.326.830.627.122.530.638.429.922.438.446.432.921.346.45240.318.45260.847.817.560.865.85517.565.870.661.817.270.67463.816.87473.96317.373.968.957.917.468.968.857.416.668.868.857.717.368.868.65717.668.668.255.217.668.268.453.817.768.469.85517.469.874.359.417.774.375.160.417.975.169.954.818.169.966.35118.166.382.670.729.882.653.425.61.353.4median 68.4median 55median 17.7median 68.49.910.41.79.932.537.232.432.532.733.631.332.723.531.231.723.530.833.52630.841.139.139.441.132.933.436.232.928.930.728.628.926.425.825.426.427.324.821.327.328.325.823.328.332.62422.532.638.624.722.438.646.432.421.346.454.537.518.454.55942.917.55959.549.517.559.562.750.117.262.766.952.516.866.971.155.517.371.175.358.217.475.379.162.916.679.180.463.817.380.479.162.217.679.177.660.117.677.675.357.417.775.374.657.417.474.674.356.517.774.372.354.517.972.364.145.818.164.146.227.918.146.287.971.229.887.964.123.81.364.1median 64.1median 50.1median 17.7median 64.114.313.61.714.3hearing rangehide median Pink NoiseVernee MarsZTE Blade V7 LiteHonor 5C
Vernee Mars audio analysis

(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (81.2 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 29.4% lower than median
(-) | bass is not linear (15.8% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(±) | higher mids - on average 8.5% higher than median
(±) | linearity of mids is average (10% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(±) | higher highs - on average 8.5% higher than median
(±) | linearity of highs is average (8% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(-) | overall sound is not linear (33.9% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 81% of all tested devices in this class were better, 2% similar, 17% worse
» The best had a delta of 12%, average was 38%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 91% of all tested devices were better, 1% similar, 7% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%

ZTE Blade V7 Lite audio analysis

(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (82.6 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 35.5% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (7% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(±) | reduced mids - on average 5.1% lower than median
(±) | linearity of mids is average (8% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 2.2% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (2.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (23.8% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 47% of all tested devices in this class were better, 9% similar, 44% worse
» The best had a delta of 12%, average was 38%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 67% of all tested devices were better, 7% similar, 26% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%

Honor 5C audio analysis

(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (87.9 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 30.9% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (8.1% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(±) | higher mids - on average 7.1% higher than median
(±) | linearity of mids is average (8.8% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(±) | higher highs - on average 12.1% higher than median
(+) | highs are linear (2.9% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(-) | overall sound is not linear (31.7% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 78% of all tested devices in this class were better, 3% similar, 19% worse
» The best had a delta of 12%, average was 38%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 89% of all tested devices were better, 2% similar, 9% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%

Frequency diagram in comparison (checkboxes above can be turned on/off)

Energy Management

Power Consumption

The energy management of Vernee's Mars is somewhat inefficient compared with the competition. The power consumption is too high particularly in full load conditions and increases to almost 7 watts.

Power Consumption
Off / Standbydarklight 0.14 / 0.31 Watt
Idledarkmidlight 1.02 / 1.69 / 1.82 Watt
Load midlight 4.39 / 6.79 Watt
 color bar
Key: min: dark, med: mid, max: light        Metrahit Energy
Currently we use the Metrahit Energy, a professional single phase power quality and energy measurement digital multimeter, for our measurements. Find out more about it here. All of our test methods can be found here.
Vernee Mars
3000 mAh
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
2800 mAh
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
2500 mAh
UMI Max
4000 mAh
Honor 5C
3000 mAh
Coolpad Modena 2
2500 mAh
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
5000 mAh
Power Consumption
23%
30%
22%
4%
3%
7%
Idle Minimum *
1.02
0.68
33%
0.63
38%
1.02
-0%
0.89
13%
0.64
37%
0.83
19%
Idle Average *
1.69
1.58
7%
1.37
19%
1.53
9%
2.07
-22%
1.96
-16%
2.06
-22%
Idle Maximum *
1.82
1.61
12%
1.71
6%
1.62
11%
2.15
-18%
1.98
-9%
2.08
-14%
Load Average *
4.39
3.36
23%
2.82
36%
2.91
34%
3.46
21%
4.99
-14%
3.53
20%
Load Maximum *
6.79
3.91
42%
3.36
51%
2.93
57%
5.18
24%
5.48
19%
4.49
34%

* ... smaller is better

Battery Runtime

The non-removable battery has a nominative output of 3000 mAh. The mid-range device places itself clearly behind its rivals with 7 hours and 7 minutes in our Wi-Fi test using a brightness of 150 cd/m². Regardless of that, the achieved battery life is throughout satisfactory.

Recharging takes about 1.5 hours via Quick-Charge Technology.

Battery Runtime
WiFi Websurfing
7h 07min
Vernee Mars
3000 mAh
Lenovo Moto G4 Play
2800 mAh
ZTE Blade V7 Lite
2500 mAh
UMI Max
4000 mAh
Honor 5C
3000 mAh
Coolpad Modena 2
2500 mAh
Acer Liquid Zest Plus
5000 mAh
Battery Runtime
WiFi v1.3
427
630
48%
517
21%
588
38%
584
37%
518
21%
815
91%

Pros

+ high-contrast IPS screen
+ decent system performance
+ 1080p resolution
+ casing quality and feel
+ dual-band Wi-Fi
+ USB Type-C
+ fast eMMC storage (for the price range)

Cons

- camera module could be optimized
- battery life and screen brightness could be better
- GPS module
- speaker

Verdict

In review: Vernee Mars. Review sample courtesy of Vernee.

Vernee's Mars is a good-looking, very well-built smartphone. At a present street price of approximately 180 to 190 Euros (~$190 to ~$201, importers), the affordable mid-range handset provides an attractive price-performance ratio and scores with a high-resolution, high-contrast IPS panel, decent system performance, and a lush configuration.

In return, concessions have to be made in speaker quality (compared with rival models) and GPS performance. Furthermore, it is relatively difficult to produce useful photos with the 13 MP primary camera - an optical image stabilizer would have been a great advantage here.

Vernee's Mars is a good smartphone in the medium price range, but it lacks a real unique selling point - Honor's 5C with a very similar device profile, for example, is available for the same purchase price in Germany. This at least makes it doubtful whether importing it is worthwhile.

Vernee Mars - 11/18/2016 v5.1(old)
Marcus Herbrich

Chassis
88%
Keyboard
63 / 75 → 84%
Pointing Device
91%
Connectivity
47 / 60 → 78%
Weight
91%
Battery
89%
Display
83%
Games Performance
25 / 63 → 40%
Application Performance
41 / 70 → 58%
Temperature
91%
Noise
100%
Audio
59 / 91 → 65%
Camera
66%
Average
72%
83%
Smartphone - Weighted Average

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Marcus Herbrich, 2016-11-23 (Update: 2018-05-15)