BLU has sent me a rather unusual device and it’s called the BLU Selfie. It’s a smartphone literally designed for those who love to take selfies, well mostly. It does have an octa-core processor in here with 2GB of RAM, a 4.7-inch 720p HD display and it does run Android 4.4 KitKat. But the big deal has to do with the camera. The BLU Selfie has a 13MP rear and 13MP front-facing camera sensor. In fact, both the 13MP front- and rear-facing camera sensors are Sony IMX135 sensors that shoot with an 88 degree wide angle to help you capture your entire frame. And the front-facing camera even has a flash. How cool is that?
This, of course, is an unboxing video so to get inside this box and get one step closer to our Selfie picture-capturing device, we need to slide off the top of the box to reveal what’s inside, which is the BLU Selfie sitting right on top. I’m going to get to the phone in a moment but we do have to take a look at what else comes included in the box because we have a number of items.
First of all, we have a SIM card ejector tool located directly underneath of the BLU Selfie. There’s a silicon protective case below that, which will provide your new device with some added extra protection right out of the box. So it’s always great to see a case included. We also have a pair of earphones with removable tips and music playback support. There’s a micro USB charging cable here in a tangle free flat design as well as a US wall wart, both of which will be used to charge the Selfie. A SIM Card Tray Removal Guide is also included in a multitude of languages. There’s a BLU User Manual and we also have a screen protector, which will add an additional level of protection to your BLU Selfie.
But let’s take a look at the BLU Selfie and take off all of that plastic. You’re going to immediately notice the larger than normal camera sensors. You’ll also notice a very unusual almost teardrop-shaped device, which is very unique at least. I haven’t seen any smartphone with a design quite like this.
If we take a closer look around the device though we will find a volume rocker on the left hand side, a SIM card slot and dedicated camera button on the right hand side, the power sleep on/off button is located up top next to the 3.5mm headphone jack with the teardrop design. I don’t really like the placement of this button already. The bottom of the Selfie is home to a micro USB charging port.
On the front, we have a 13MP Sony IMX135 sensor with a flash as well as an ambient light sensor above the 4.7-inch 720p display, which is also above three capacitive touch navigation buttons for the settings, home, and back navigation commands. On the back, we also have another Sony IMX135 with 13MP sensor with a Dual LED flash this time above a BLU logo and a relatively small speaker grill.
Some of my thoughts on this device is based off first impressions. I like the metal sides and the metal buttons. I don’t really like the curved top and bottom sides and the location of the power button is frustrating. But besides that, the device feels pretty alright in the hand. It’s just a very tall, narrow, kind of awkward looking device.
The software is another story. We don’t have an app drawer. All the apps are placed on the home screens and all the icons (minus the Google icons) have a rounded, rectangular theme to them so that’s kind of different. This is Android though so you can slap on Google Now Launcher if you like and this device will run very similarly to a stock Android device in that the settings makes the looks of stock Android running KitKat. This device is running Android 4.4.2 KitKat and it should be getting the Android Lollipop update fairly soon. I would give it a couple of months.
The octa-core processor makes it run pretty smooth though. The display is a little bit underwhelming based off first impressions. The resolution isn’t bad but the colors just aren’t bright or vivid. It looks a little bit faded and can actually use some more saturation and it just doesn’t appear to get very bright even though it does have BLU Nex Lens technology inside it that’s supposedly maximizes clarity and vividness of colors. Overall, based off first impressions, it’s alright. Some other features of the BLU Selfie include a Gorilla Glass 3 front cover, a Wolfson WM8918 audio chip and it also is a Dual SIM device so you can pop in two SIM cards, which is pretty awesome.
But I want to take a look at the selfie cam because this is, at least on paper, one of the better front-facing camera sensors we’ve seen on a smartphone, even on high-end flagship smartphones. I don’t think some of these big manufacturers like Samsung and Apple realize just how often humans like to take selfies. But thankfully, BLU understands that need of a high res front-facing sensor. I actually do really like the Glam Flash that BLU is calling it. It really does help capture more detail especially in areas with subpar lighting conditions. I’m going to be taking my selfie-picture taking game to the next level in my full review in which I test every area of this device in detail so you’re not going to want to miss out on that one.
But before I go, I have a question for you. Do you like to take a lot of selfies? Would you buy a smartphone just for the selfie-taking features? Let me know in the comment down below. This device and all its features and specs costs $249 off-contract by the way, which is a pretty competitive price. So let me know if you think it’s worth it.
