Less than one week after introducing the R1 HD, BLU Products has announced another new Android smartphone.
The BLU Energy XL lives up to its name, offering a large 6-inch 1920x1080 Super AMOLED display on its face and a 5000mAh battery in its chassis. BLU is also including a quick charger with the Energy XL so that you can charge that 5000mAh battery in a hurry. Specifically, BLU says that you can get a 15 percent charge in 10 minutes or a 43 percent charge in 30 minutes.
Packed inside of the Energy XL’s 8.4mm-thick aluminum body is a 1.3GHz octa-core MediaTek MT6753 processor, 3GB of RAM, and 64GB of storage. It’s equipped with a fingerprint reader and USB Type-C port, too, along with a 13-megapixel rear camera and a 5-megapixel front camera with a wide-angle lens. The Energy XL runs Android 5.1 out of the box, but BLU promises that it'll be updated to Android 6.0 before the end of 2016.
The BLU Energy XL is being sold as an unlocked device with support for HSPA 850/1700/1900MHz and LTE bands 2, 4, and 7. BLU touts the Energy XL as being compatible with AT&T and T-Mobile, but it’s worth noting that the phone lacks support for LTE band 12, which T-Mobile uses for Voice over LTE and its Extended Range LTE, which T-Mo says can reach twice as far and penetrate buildings four times better than its other LTE coverage.
BLU’s Energy XL is now available on Amazon for $299.99 with Android 6.0 and your choice of gold or silver color options. With its 6-inch display, the Energy XL is likely only going to appeal to phablet fans, but thanks to its big battery and affordable price tag, it’s got more going for it than just a huge screen.