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Mara X summary of specs
- OS: Android 8 Oreo
- Release Date: October 2019
- Network Type: 2G/3G/4G
- Display: 5.5-inch, 720 x 1440 pixels resolution
- Processor: MediaTek MT6739
- Selfie Camera: 5 MP
- Rear camera: 13 MP
- RAM: 1 GB
- ROM: 16 GB
- Battery: 3500 mAh
- Related:
Mara X specification
Mobile Wireless Network and Software
- 2G mobile network bands: GSM, GPRS, EDGE 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 MHz.
- 3G mobile network bands: UMTS, WCDMA, HSDPA 850 / 900 / 2100 MHz
- 4G mobile network bands: LTE 1(2100), 3(1800), 5 (850), 7(2600), 8(900) 20(800), 38(2600), 40(2300)
- 5G mobile network bands: No.
- SIM Type:
- Software / OS: Android 8 Oreo (Go Edition)
Design, Form Factor, Appearance
- Dimensions : 150 x 70.5 x 8.59 mm
- Weight : 152g
- Display : 5.5 inches (13.97 centimetres), 720 x 1440 pixels, 18:9 aspect ratio, IPS LCD 2.5D glass with Corning® Gorilla® Glass and Oleophobic Coating.
- Colours : Black. Gold. Grey.
- Physical Build : Brushed Aluminium
Internal Hardware Specifications
- Processor Type : 64-bit, 1.5 GHz Octa-core
- Processor Name : MediaTek MT6739
- Graphics Processor : IMG PowerVR GE8100
- RAM : 1 GB
- Internal Storage : 16 GB
- External Storage : microSD, up to 128 GB (dedicated slot)
Photography, Video Recording
- Main Camera : 13 MP main sensor, autofocus, LED flash, 1080p@30fps video recording
- Front Camera : 5 MP, fixed focus, Face Recognition, 1080p@30fps video capture
Audio, Video Playback
- Music Support : PCM, AAC / AAC + / eAAC + / MP3 / AMR – NB / WB / APE
- Audio : 3.5 mm audio jack
- Loudspeaker : Mono speaker. Dolby Audio 5.1.
- Video Support : H.264/MP4/MPEG4 player
- FM Radio : Yes.
Phone Sensors
- Digital Compass : Yes.
- Accelerometer : Yes.
- Proximity Sensor : Yes.
- Ambient Light Sensor : Yes.
- Barometer : No.
- Pedometer : No.
- Heart Rate Monitor : No.
- Gyroscope (G-Sensor) : Yes.
- Fingerprint Scanner : Yes; rear-mounted.
- Face Unlock : Yes.
- Iris Scanner : No.
- Motion Sensing / Gesture Control : No.
- Voice Control : No.
- Intelligent Digital Assistant : Yes; Google Assistant.
- Infra-red Sensor : No.
Connectivity Options
- Bluetooth Version : 4.2
- Bluetooth Profiles : A2DP
- WiFi : Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, hotspot
- GPS : Yes, A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS
- USB : microUSB v2.0. USB-OTG.
- NFC : No.
Miscellaneous Specs and Features
- Battery Type and Capacity : Removable Lithium-Ion 3500 mAh
- Battery Charging : 10W charging
- Wireless Charging : No.
- Reverse Charging : No.
- Model Version/Number :
Launch/Release Dates and Information
- Announced : February 2019
- Release Date : October 2019
Mara X Prices by Country
- Rwanda : 120,250 Rwandan francs (about $130)
- Nigeria : ₦47,000
- Egypt : Egyptian Pound
- UAE : AED
- Kenya : Ksh.
- Ghana :
The above prices may change with time from country to country, as market forces and economic policies influence product price movements.
Is Mara X a 4G phone?
It supports 2G, 3G, and 4G mobile networks.
is Mara X battery removable?
The 3500mAh battery is removable.
Is Mara X good for gaming?
The MediaTek chipset is a mid-range model and supports mostly casual gaming.
Does Mara X support OTG?
The smartphone supports USB-On-The-Go.
How much is Mara X?
The selling price in Rwanda is 120,250 Rwandan francs (about $130).
Does Mara X have Google Play Store?
It supports Google Services and software applications, including Play Store and Maps, Gmail, YouTube, and others.
Will Mara X work in the USA?
This is a GSM phone and is supported on US GSM carriers like AT&T and T-Mobile and other networks riding on their networks. It does not support CDMA networks. Do make enquiries from your carrier to know what bands/frequencies are supported on their service.
MobilityArena Buyer’s Guide Verdict
Looking at the specs and features of the Mara X phone, it is difficult to justify its $130 price tag. The average Android Go Edition smartphone with 1 GB of RAM and 16 GB internal storage cost around $85.
You will be able to pick up an itel, TECNO, Infinix or even Samsung smartphone in the same class for $85 to $120. Those competing devices won’t have Gorilla Glass protection and an oleophobic coating on them though. But even at that, $130 is a tough amount to swallow for these specs and features.
The ₦65,000 price tag on Jumia is one of the most ridiculous we have seen. This is a smartphone with entry-level specs, after all.
Our Buyer’s Guide Verdict is a recommendation based on the specs of the device and a general guide to help you understand how much value a device offers for its price. It is not an endorsement of the device. Ask questions and use your judgement when buying any device; MobilityArena takes no responsibility for your buying decisions .
Mara X Phone Review Rating
Not available.
Author:InfoDesk
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The goal of the Android Open Source Project is to avoid any central point of failure in which one industry player can restrict or control the innovations of any other player. It is available to anyone and everyone to use as they please.
Unfortunately, mainstream smartphone manufacturers have largely ignored the AOSP and gone ahead to make themselves and their customers fully dependent on one industry player – Google. From Samsung to Sony, brand name smartphone manufacturers took the easy route and ceded control to one entity, though Android Open Source was available and presented them the opportunity to do much more.
I understand why they did it. It was just easier to go with Google’s services than to create something else. Those few daring individuals who tried the road less taken all failed. Microsoft and Nokia failed with Windows Phone. Sailfish has managed to stay afloat. eOS ( formerly eelo ) is still very niche and an enthusiast affair.
But the recent drama between the US government and Huawei which led to the latter being given the middle finger by Google, demonstrates how this dependence on one industry player is a bad idea.
What is the Android Open Source Project?
You may have heard that Android is an open source operating system for mobile devices. You heard correctly. What that means is that anyone can take it and use it as it is, or modify it and rename it, for use.
Modifying Android open Source is also known as forking, or creating a fork. For example, Sailfish OS is a fork of Android. It is a modified version of Android OS.
How has Google been able to keep the Android system dependent? By having key services that have become essential to many users around the world. Those services, like Play Store, Gmail, Maps, etc, are not part of Android Open Source. They are Google services, and any manufacturer that wants to include them in their software or smartphone must license them from Google. So, Samsung, Huawei, Nokia, Xiaomi, TECNO, Infinix, and all the other Android manufacturers license Google services for use on their phones.
Hopefully, you are getting the picture better. Are there any smartphone manufacturers who use Android OS without Google services? Plenty. But they are usually small, relatively unknown brands, mostly operating in China. You see, the average Chinese person does not use Google services anyway, so those phones sell like fresh, hot cakes in China.
If you have ever purchased an Android smartphone that didn’t have Google Play and all those other Google apps pre-installed, that was a phone running Android Open Source and without a license from Google. It is perfectly legal. As a matter of fact, that was the plan – the freedom to allow anyone use Android OS as they deem fit without any rerstrictions by anyone.
Google has no control over Android Open Source. No government can place any restriction on its use either via a ban. Everyone has unrestricted access to it.
Android Open Source Project
It looks like Huawei has forked Android OS
Over the last few years, Huawei has developed a mobile OS, which we are told is called HongMeng OS . The company’s CEO has said that the OS has Android app compatibility, which leads me to believe that it is a fork of Android OS. In other words, Huawei has forked Android. And that is a good thing. It means that using that OS, you will be able to install and use Android apps.
There is the problem of Google services being missing though. It is a problem that Huawei will have to bear, as it looks like mission impossible getting those services on any phone running the new HongMeng OS.
Chinese users will likely embrace HongMeng OS phones, both because they do not need/use Google services anyway and because they are likely to act in solidarity with Huawei. So, though Huawei will suffer some loss, it will not be on all fronts.
Google will lose too, and it may be big
This is not being mentioned a lot in the media, but Google stands at a crossroad too. With their hands forced by the order of the US government, this can quickly snowball and leave them with a bad taste in the mouth.
If there is anything that human history has taught us, it is that no empire gets so large and so strong and so dominant that it cannot come crumbling down. Even Google’s. Should other Android manufacturers see the writing on the wall and acknowledge that what has happened to Huawei can happen to them as well, they may decide to strike out too to protect themselves.
And the best way to do it is to form a coalition to create a fork from Android Open Source that they all can use. Huawei is the world’s 2nd largest Android brand. That is a huge number. If they switch to HongMeng, Google loses some users too.
Imagine a coalition that includes Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi, and OPPO alone adopting a common smartphone OS forked from Android Open Source. Those four together control over 60% of Android smartphones in the market. That will be a huge loss for Google. And it will be freedom for millions of users whose privacy is invaded daily by Google services.
I had a discussion with EyeBeeKay earlier today, and this was what he had to say:
A coalition will be the way to go. Maybe unite against Google and have s centralised app store that won’t be controlled by any one company or country. Also, new APIs/API changes will no longer be arbitrarily decided by Google or any one company alone helping interoperability in the process. But this could also have its attendant bottlenecks because of possible disagreements among the different companies involved.
I agree. A coalition is the way to go, but we know how things go with these coalitions . Anyone remember the Symbian Foundation, MeeGo, and Tizen?
On a final note, everyone who tried to fork Android and break Google’s monopoly before now was unable to pull the numbers. But that was before the Chinese became dominant players in the mobile world.
If anyone can do it, it is the Chinese. They have consistently pulled the rug from under the feet of everyone who underestimated them.
References
- Android.com .
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Author:Mister Mobility
Digital Skills and Communication Coach | Mobile Phone Connoisseur since 2001 | Tech Blogging since 2004
