Wimbledon 2016: Behind the scenes with ESPN, 84 cameras and 120 members of staff

If you’re a tennis fan, there is a very good chance you’ve been glued to your phone, TV or tablet the last few days trying not to miss any of the highlights from the wonderfully British sporting event that is Wimbledon.

For those lucky enough to have got tickets in the ballot, or those crazy enough to camp in The Queue, you might have witnessed first hand defending champion Djokovic get knocked out, or Federer come back from two sets down in the quarter finals.

But for the rest of us, watching it on TV is as close as we will get to the action and so those broadcasters responsible for bringing that action to our screens really need to get it right. What you might not realise is how much it takes to ensure that’s the case.

We went behind the scenes at Wimbledon to the Broadcast Centre, which houses studios for networks from all over the world, but in particular ESPN and the BBC. While the BBC is responsible for making sure all the action is covered in the UK, ESPN is responsible for the other side of the pond.

When it comes to ESPN’s coverage though, it isn’t just about making sure every shot is covered, it’s about the drama too. From montages before the games begin to stats during and after a match, ESPN adds plenty of meat to an already juicy bone. What’s staggering is how much manpower and equipment it requires to produce that meat.  

The company uses a total of 84 cameras, 56 of which are shared with the BBC. There are 120 ESPN staff members involved in getting the 150 hours of TV programming perfect and it takes around three weeks to set all the equipment up. Crazy when you think we just press a button and watch.

We were certainly blown away by the amount of tech kit installed to bring the action to you, on screen and app. It’s an eye-opening experience just visiting behind-the-scenes, as you will see in our pictures of just one day at the Championships.

So if you want to see what’s behind Wimbledon’s blazers and Pimms, head to the gallery for a sneak preview behind the ESPN screens.

You can follow all drama as the final couple of days of Wimbledon unfold on ESPN.co.uk.

Hyundai Ioniq: Tesla might have shown us the way, but Hyundai’s likely to get us there

Hyundai has pulled the covers off the Ioniq in Europe, a new green car that uniquely provides the choice of three power options: hybrid, electric and plug-in hybrid.

The Ioniq is not only Hyundai’s first hybrid model, it’s also its first electric car, as well as being a gamble that one car style is going to appeal to those looking for an alternative to conventional combustion engines. This is as much a rival to Toyota’s popular Prius, as it is to Nissan’s Leaf. 

Like Toyota and Nissan, Hyundai is pitching the Ioniq to everybody. The Ioniq certainly makes hybrid and electric cars more accessible, undercutting the price of the established Prius, offering more practicality and appeal than the Leaf, while sticking to what Hyundai is known for – lots of standard features and long warranties, both on the car and the battery.

This makes the Ioniq more important than you might first think. It’s an increase in the hybrid and electric options available, and while it might not take the headlines that Tesla does with its Silicon Valley posturing, it’s likely to appeal to a good number of everyday drivers as brands like Hyundai and Kia enjoy increasing acceptability in the UK.  

Tesla may have done more to popularise electric cars than any other manufacturer, but it’s likely to be someone like Hyundai that puts an electric vehicle on an average drive, on an average street.

The first models to launch are the electric and hybrid versions, with plug-in hybrid to follow later in 2017. 

Ioniq: Electric or Hybrid?

The Ionic Electric has a 28kWh lithium-ion polymer battery and a 120PS electric motor which offers 295Nm torque, a range of 174 miles (NEDC) and 0-62mph in 10.2 seconds, dropping to 9.9 seconds in sports mode. It consumes 11.5kWh/100km.

For many this will be a numbers game, and much as Tesla has impressed with sports car performance and anxiety-defeating range, you can’t get that for the £28,995 (which should drop to £24,494 after the government grant) that Hyundai is asking. That also makes the BMW i3 look a little pricy, although, arguably, you’re paying for design panache from BMW, where the Hyundai is more modest.

For the Ioniq Hybrid you’ll find a 1.6-litre 105PS petrol engine mated to a 6-speed dual clutch automatic gearbox, with a 44PS, 170Nm torque electric motor and 1.56kWh lithium-ion polymer battery. The hybrid will hit 62mph in 10.8 seconds, but the important figure is 83.1mpg and CO2 emissions of 79g/km, with power recouped through regenerative braking.

The Ioniq Hybrid is competitively priced too, starting at £19,995 for the SE trim. With that you get aircon, autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane assistance, rear parking sensors and camera, Bluetooth, the 5-inch LCD touch display and plenty more. In that sense, this is a fully-loaded car even at that sub-£20k asking price. The Electric comes in Premium and Premium SE trim levels, so you get all that, plus things like wireless phone charging, heated seats, satnav, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay and more.

The Ioniq plug-in hybrid hasn’t been fully specified yet, but will boost the battery to 8.9kWh, letting you cruise for up to 30 miles on electric alone. Prices will be confirmed closer to launch in 2017. 

Both the Ioniq Electric and Ioniq Hybrid will be available from 13 October 2016, providing a good dab of practicality and affordability in the eco sector. 

What is Prisma and can it really make your pics look like famous art?

Forget about Instagram. A new photo app is all the rage right now, mostly because it’s loaded with some amazing, artsy filters.

These aren’t regular, old filters. They won’t add a nice glow to your skin in perfectly-setup selfies, nor will they make the backgrounds of your landscape photos really pop. These filters transform your images into artworks using the styles of famous artists, such as Munk and Picasso. There are other filters of famous ornaments and patterns, too, like Mondrian.

The app is called Prisma, and apart from its cool filters, which aren’t at all cheesy or cartoon-like as one might assume, its super minimalistic, clean, and easy to use. Here’s everything we know about Prisma, including how it works and where you can find it.

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Pocket-lint

What is Prisma?

Prisma is a new photo app, though it’s also being dubbed an “art filter” app. Russian programmer Alexey Moiseenkov launched Prisma in June. Ever since the app debuted, it’s been leading Apple’s App Store ranking in Russia, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Moldova, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. That means it’s beating huge apps like WhatsApp and Instagram in those countries, according to app-research site AppAnnie.

The app basically lets you add artistic effects to your photos, making them appear like famous works of art. You can take a picture of your dog, for instance, and then apply a Picasso-style filter. The transformation process take just a couple seconds, and voila! From there you can save the photo or share it to social networks, including Instagram, which is something even Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev does.

At the moment, we counted 33 filters available. According to Venture Beat, Prisma’s filter algorithm uses a combination of convolutional neural networks and artificial intelligence, and it doesn’t simply apply a filter but actually scans the data in order to apply a style to a photo in a way that both works and impresses. It all sounds pretty complicated – but hey, the end result is amazing.

Pocket-lint

How does Prisma work?

Take or select a photo

Download and open the Prisma app. There is no social or engagement element, so Prisma doesn’t ask users to create an account.
The main screen is split into two, with the top half displaying the camera view, and the bottom half displaying the capture button, camera rotate button, settings button, and thumbnail of your camera roll (you can either take a photo on the fly or grab one from your roll).

Edit the photo

Once you take or select a photo, you will be brought to a screen that lets you crop the photo or rotate it. Click “next” when done.
The final screen you’ll see is for all the filters. Again, it’s split into two, with the top half showing your photo preview, and the bottom half showing filters and share buttons. Much like Instagram, filters appear at the bottom in a carousel row, and you can swipe from left to right to browse and try them. The thumbnails displayed in the filter row aren’t live but rather examples of what the filter looks like/can do. You must tap a thumbnail to apply the filter to your photo, and you’ll see the processed result above.
While applying filters, slide your finger across your photo preview to increase or decrease the filter’s effect.

Share the photo

When your ready to share, simply tap the Instagram or Facebook buttons that appear above the filter row. You’ll also see a share menu, so you can share the photo via a messaging app, email, or wherever.

Get rid of watermarks

By default, all photos have Prisma watermarks in the corner. To get rid of those, go to the Settings toggle and shut off “Enable Watermarks”. You’ll also see options to save original photos, save artworks automatically, etc.
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Where is Prisma available?

Prisma is a free app available from Apple’s App Store. An Android version is scheduled for release in July 2016.

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Facebook Messenger adds end-to-end encryption… sort of

Facebook has introduced a new feature – mysteriously called “secret conversations” – for its Messenger mobile app.

That name is just fancy talk for end-to-end encryption. The company just started testing the security feature by making it available to a select group of people and only for select conversations, with the promise that it will become more widely available this summer. Facebook won’t turn it on straightaway for everyone, because it’s “putting a lot of thought into the design and implementation of this feature”.

In the wake of recent mass surveillance concerns, Facebook heard users asking for additional safeguards, so it began actively developing end-to-end encryption for Messenger. Keep in mind Facebook-owned WhatsApp introduced end-to-end encryption in April, but the feature works for all users and all messages, rather than an opt-in, conversation-by-conversation basis.

Messages sent using end-to-end encryption won’t support GIFs and videos, but Facebook users will be able to set timers on messages, enabling the threads to self-destruct after a set amount of time, just like snaps in Snapchat. Messenger’s encryption is also based on Open Whisper System Signal Protocol, which is whistleblower Edward Snowden’s preferred means of encryption.

Facebook’s “secret conversations” also only works from one phone, tablet, or computer. WhatsApp, similarly, can only work on one device at a time. This setup means Facebook won’t have to give out unique encryption keys to multiple devices. You can read about the technical details here.

So, Friday’s announcement is a small step, but it’s a step in the right direction.

YouTube Unplugged online TV service might launch soon with ESPN

YouTube has been working on an online TV service, and a new report makes it seem like it might finally be coming together.

According to The Information, YouTube is close to inking deals with ESPN, ABC, and CBS. If that’s true, those channels will be offered through YouTube’s upcoming service. The Google-owned video site is trying to get other major broadcasters on board, too. It’s supposedly considering passing on smaller networks though, such as HGTV, and will instead use similar channels with content culled from YouTube videos.

Reports have claimed the new service will be called Unplugged, and it should cost less than $35 a month, giving competitors like Dish’s SlingTV and Sony’s PlayStation Vue a run for their money. Unplugged will basically offer a core group of channels, and then customers will be able to buy add-on packages of smaller channels. And all this is expected to launch in six to nine months.  

That means by early next year you’ll have yet another online TV service to choose from. It’ll be interesting to see how YouTube tries to grab our interest, considering tonnes of other services, including SlingTV, already offer channels like ESPN, ABC, and CBS. CBS also has its own standalone subscription service. Plus, The Information made it seem like YouTube Red isn’t even doing well.

That service lets YouTubers sell their original content to subscribers who fork over $9.99 a month, but if it that can’t even catch on, it makes us wonder whether Unplugged will be able to find any traction either.

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Best TV catch-up on Freeview Play: Life Stripped Bare, T in the Park and more

Considering what was on last week, including a Super Sunday of tennis, footy and F1, with the British Grand Prix, Wimbledon and Euro 2016 finals, we decided to completely ignore it all and give you some prime alternatives in our weekly catch-up TV round-up.

All the programmes listed below are available on Freeview Play, so you can scroll backwards through the seven-day electronic programme guide on a supported TV or set-top-box. Choose one of the shows and it will instantly play through the channel’s respective catch-up app.

Freeview Play is soon to get Channel 5 and UKTV content in the EPG too, but in the meantime you can catch up with the former through its own Demand 5 application.

So sit back and enjoy our selection of top quality TV for the week we’ve just had.

• What is Freeview Play, when is it coming to my TV and how can I get it?

BBC

Forces of Nature with Brian Cox

BBC One (BBC iPlayer) – broadcast on Monday 4 July

Although Professor Brian Cox usually looks beyond our planet in his fascinating documentaries, this series instead examines spectacular sights and phenomena on Earth.

He scientifically explains how simple forces work their magnificent wonders to create our homelands.

BBC

United States of Hate: Muslims Under Attack

BBC One (BBC iPlayer) – broadcast on Tuesday 5 July

This documentary was originally broadcast on BBC Three in May but got a second airing on BBC One and we’re so glad it did.

At times uncomfortable viewing, others inspired journalism, it follows anti-Muslim hate group BAIR in an effort to understand what drives their spite and dangerous behaviour.

T in the Park

T in the Park

BBC Four (BBC iPlayer) – broadcast from Friday 8 July

Stone Roses headlined on Friday, Calvin Harris Saturday and the Red Hot Chili Peppers on the Sunday. The Beeb was there to bring each day’s highlights of the biggest music festival in Scotland.

Channel 4

Safeword

ITV 2 (ITV Hub) – broadcast on Thursday 7 July

Safeword is a comedy panel show presented by Rick Edwards and starring regular panellists David Morgan and Katherine Ryan.

It’s very much based around social media and the use thereof. Even trolling each other is turned into a game.

ITV

Minder

ITV 4 (ITV Hub) – broadcast on Monday 4 July

The original Minder was definitely of its time, but still well worth a watch to see what kind of thing we enjoyed back in the 70s and 80s.

And yes, Dennis Waterman did sing the theme tune and hummed the theme tune.

Channel 4

Life Stripped Bare

Channel 4 (All 4) – broadcast on Tuesday 5 July

Channel 4 took three young couples and literally stripped them bare. All of their possessions, their clothes, phones, furniture, the lot, were removed to see how they could cope without even the basics in life.

They could then win back one thing each time, over time – what would they choose?

Channel 4

Grand Designs

More 4 (All 4) – broadcast from Monday 4 July

We love a bit of Grand Designs. If nothing else, it shows us amazing homes that we cannot possibly afford, but with a few ideas that we could probably introduce into our own, more humble abodes.

Get catch-up and on demand TV for £0 per month with Freeview Play. Click here to find out more.

EE pay monthly customers now get BT Sport channels for free

It’s been a while since the BT Group acquired mobile network EE and now we’re seeing the fruit of that alliance. All EE pay monthly customers, new and existing, will be able to access BT’s sports channels for free for six months.

Access is through the BT Sport mobile app for phone and tablet. All of the channels are available to stream live through the application: BT Sport, BT Sport 2, BT Sport Europe and ESPN on BT Sport.

As long as you have a pay monthly handset, tablet or SIM only plan for iOS, Android or Windows you will be able to sign up for the free access. After six months, you can either cancel the subscription or carry on, paying £5 a month.

BT Sport has been busy signing up rights to show many different events and sports, including a whole stack of football, including 42 Premier League matches for the coming season, all UEFA Champions League matches, all UEFA Europa League matches, the FA Cup, the SPFL and more.

For those interested in other sports, BT has the rights to show Aviva Premiership Rugby, the European Rugby Champions Cup, America’s Cup, Moto GP and more.

EE told Pocket-lint that streaming live content through the app will use data from your allowance, but that it is adaptive to your device. At full resolution, that can mean up to 2GB for an entire football match, but it is unlikely to ever need to stream at the highest res, considering it will be shown on a phone or tablet screen.

We were also told that the BT Sport app does not support Airplay or Google Cast, so you can’t use it to stream to a separate TV. And there is currently no catch-up content, so you have to watch action live.

However, being able to watch sports on the move for free is a great incentive.

EE customers on pay monthly packages will be able to sign up to and use the BT Sport app for free from 27 July.

Best Amazon Prime Day deals 2016: What is it, when is it and what are the bargains?

Amazon Prime Day is the company’s equivalent of a Black Friday in July. It sees the online retailer hold a one-day sale featuring more than 100,000 deals worldwide just for Prime members.

It was created in 2015 to celebrate the Amazon’s 20th anniversary, and the company has decided to make it an annual event, thanks to last year’s successes.

As before, Prime Day deals will only be available to Amazon Prime members, so you’ll need to either be a paid up member, or on the company’s free Amazon Prime 30-day trial (which you can sign up to ahead of or on the day to capitalise on the bargains).

But how do you know when the deals are happening? What’s the best way to find those rock bottom prices without wasting your time, and are there any tips or tricks to get the most of the sale?

When is Amazon Prime Day 2016?

Amazon Prime Day is on 12 July 2016, starting around midnight the night before, in your local time. There will be thousands of deals available for Prime members in the UK, for example, with shopping deals starting just as the clock passes midnight BST, and then continuing throughout the day. Deals will appear as often as every five minutes.

Which countries will have Amazon Prime Day sales?

New and existing Prime members in the UK, US, Spain, Japan, Italy, Germany, France, Canada, Belgium and Austria will find deals across nearly all departments and categories on Amazon’s websites.

Amazon

How does Amazon Prime Day work?

To participate in Prime Day, users must be signed up to Amazon Prime, the subscription service that gives you unlimited one-day delivery, same day delivery on certain products, as well as the company’s services like Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Music, Amazon’s Kindle lending service, and unlimited photo storage for Prime Photos.

On Amazon Prime Day 2016 there will two types of deals: Lightning Deals and Deals of the Day. The Lightning Deals run for a fixed period of time with a set number available, while Deals of the Day run for the whole day. This year, Amazon has also been offering Countdown Deals in the run up to Amazon Prime Day. There are still plenty of deals to be had on Monday 11 July.

Get an Amazon Prime free trial to get the deals

Amazon Prime costs £79 a year. You can, however, sign up for a free 30-day trial to get the deals. A neat trick is that you are fully entitled to cancel your Amazon Prime subscription after once you’ve got your shopping deal.

• Amazon Prime free trial: UK
• Amazon Prime free trial: US

As long as you cancel the trial before the end you won’t be charged the £79 / $99 yearly subscription. Amazon hopes though that once you’ve enjoyed some of the benefits you won’t hit the cancel button.

Amazon

Amazon’s own Amazon Prime Day deals 2016

This year, Amazon is offering three deals in its Kindle range:

• The Kindle Fire, Amazon’s entry-level tablet, will be available for £34.99 (£15 off).
• The company’s smart TV dongle, The Fire TV Stick, will be just £19.99 (£15 off).
• The Kindle Paperwhite is also available for just £79.99 saving £30 on the usual retail price.

Other deals Amazon has promised on Amazon Prime Day

Amazon has also confirmed that Amazon Prime Day will be delivering a number of deals including a Lenovo Chromebook for less than £100, a Sony PS4 console bundle for less than £250, Xbox One consoles for less than £230, and Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (PS4) for less than £32.

Then there is up to 40 per cent off TVs from 22-inch to 65-inch, including 4k and smart models, a £130 saving on an Epson projector, and up to 45 per cent off Bang & Olufsen speakers and headphones.

There’s also the promise of more than 30 per cent off selected Microsoft Bands and off a Garmin GPS smart watch with sports apps.

More specific details have been promised to be confirmed at midnight BST in the UK.

Tips and tricks to get the best deals on Amazon Prime Day?

There are a number of tricks and tips to getting the most out of Amazon Prime Day 2016.

Don’t miss a Amazon Prime Day deal

Get the dedicated Amazon shopping app on your mobile and turn on notifications.  Within the notifications settings you can turn on “Watched” and “Waitlisted Deals” so you don’t miss it.

Save even more money on your Amazon Prime Day deal

Get £1 back by opting for No-Rush Delivery if you don’t need your new bargain straight away.

Make a list to get the best deals

Rather than going in with a scattergun approach, make a list before you go onto Amazon and be targeted about the products you want. It might be July, but Amazon Prime Day is a perfect chance to do your Christmas shopping on the cheap.

Ask Alexa for the best shopping deals

Amazon customers who order by voice in the States will have access to exclusive deals during their version of the online retailer’s Prime Day sale. Alexa users will receive a $10 discount on their first Amazon order using Amazon Echo, Echo Dot or Amazon Tap, July 8 through July 12.

Upload a photo to Prime Photos 

Upload a photo to your Prime Photos account before midnight on 12 July, and you’ll automatically be entered into a prize draw for a chance to win £3,500 in Amazon.co.uk Gift Cards.

Pocket-lint

What’s New for Prime Day 2016?

Amazon revealed it is offering even more deals this year, including offers on its digital services too: “Prime members can shop deals on all devices, across all categories, in all Prime countries,” it said.

Parents should be happy on Amazon Prime Day 2016 with UK Prime members being able to find plenty of toy deals throughout the day.

New this year is an update to the Amazon app that will allow you to track and shop any deal while at home or on-the-go.

There will be better category sorting to help you find the best deals quickly, and there are supposedly twice as many small business sellers around the world that are participating in Prime Day this year.

Prime members will find deals on TV series and popular blockbuster films to rent or purchase and instantly stream on Amazon Video.

Prime members in the UK can participate by playing select Prime Music playlists, each associated with a prize. Just visit amazon.co.uk/primemusic-prizedraw for more details and terms and conditions. There will be similar Prime Music Experiences taking place for Amazon customers in the US, Germany, Austria and Japan.

Flickr / Silus Grok

What deals will be apart of the Amazon Prime Day 2016?

We will be adding more deals as we spot them throughout Amazon Prime Day, but you can check out these popular deal pages on Amazon (UK) to see if there is a deal for you already:

• Best Computer and Accessories deals
• Best DVD & Blu-ray deals
• Best Electronics deals
• Best Kindle and Fire deals
• Best PC & Video game deals
• Best Software deals
• Best Sports Technology deals
• Best Toys and Games deals
• Best Watch deals

What Lightning deals are part of Amazon Prime Day 2016?

Lighting deals go as quick as they arrive and will be on throughout the days leading up to Amazon Prime Day, and on the day itself. It’s worth noting that Amazon Prime members also get early access to lightning deals ahead of regular customers. Check out links below for Lightning deals in key areas on the Amazon.co.uk:

• Best Computer and Accessories lightning deals
• Best DVD & Blu-ray lightning deals
• Best Electronics lightning deals
• Best Kindle and Fire lightning deals
• Best PC & Video game lightning deals
• Best Software lightning deals
• Best Sport Technology lightning deals
• Best Toys and Games lightning deals
• Best Watch lightning deals

Your help finding Amazon Prime Deals

If you’ve spotted a good Amazon Prime Day 2016 shopping deal that we’ve not listed, then let us know in the comments below. 

Pocket-lint Adventures: Eventing with the TomTom Bandit

Horse racing, horse riding, eventing, jumping, point-to-point. There are plenty of ways to enjoy riding horses, and for the most part it is one of those sports that not many are not able to do.

We visited Plum Park Farm in Northamptonshire, a riding school that also specialised in cross country events throughout the year, for the second in the series of Pocket-lint Adventures, taking the TomTom Bandit action camera with us to give to two riders to see what it is like from their point of view rather merely just from the side lines.

The TomTom Bandit offers a range of attachments that you can use, although it’s fair to say we couldn’t use the handlebar mount we used in our first adventure.

We opted for the helmet mount for one of the riders and the Pole Mount to give us a different perspective both on and off the horses and thanks to the quick release mechanism on the bottom of the camera, it is easy to switch from one to the other so you can mix up your shots with ease.

The action camera is built to be rugged with the mounts strong enough to withstand gallops, jumps, as well as the weather.

At the end of the adventure editing is a doddle thanks to the included mobile phone or desktop editing app.

The action camera automatically adds highlights of interest based on movement or a spike in your heart rate if you are wearing a heart rate monitor, and the app can even create a fully edited video for you with just a simple shake of the phone.

Those that want a little more control can easily select their own highlights from the footage they’ve taken before adding a soundtrack to enhance the footage. The proof really is in the pudding, we edited this adventure in about 20 minutes.

The TomTom Bandit has been a great partner for eventing giving us a new insight into what it is like to ride and jump on a horse. We’re now getting ready for our next Pocket-lint Adventure in a few weeks.

Vodafone Smart Ultra 7 review: Ultra value makes for one smart purchase

When looking for affordable devices, it can often be difficult to find a phone without too many compromises, especially at the lower-end of the scale. With the Smart Ultra 7, Vodafone is looking to give you as much for your money as possible, in a phone that costs just £135.

Like the higher-end Platinum 7, the Ultra 7 is essentially a rebranded Alcatel phone, albeit one fixed to Vodafone’s network. Could it be the Android phone to buy if your budget isn’t big?

Vodafone Smart Ultra 7 review: Design

As you’d expect, being a phone targeted at the low-end of the market means you’re not going to get luxury. In other words: you won’t find any premium anodised metal or high-end Gorilla Glass in the Ultra 7. Instead, it’s an-all plastic affair with a screen covered in a less expensive Dragontail glass.

Pocket-lint

Just because it’s plastic doesn’t mean there’s nothing to like about its design, as there’s the odd flourish of aesthetic appeal. The plastic frame around the edges has an attractive brushed metal-effect finish to it, while the glass on the front subtly curves towards the edges. A chrome finish around the phone’s edges ensures the home button stands out on the front, while the volume rocker switch and power button have the same textured finish we like on the more expensive Platinum 7.

READ: Vodafone Platinum 7 review: Power and elegance without the price tag

The actual home button doesn’t feel particularly well made, though, giving a spongey feel when pressed rather than a solid click. On either side of this button are capacitive back and recent apps keys which light-up when touched.

Similar to Samsung Galaxy S phones of old, the rear plastic shell is removable and gives access to the micro SIM card slot (note: it’s not the even smaller nano SIM variety) and the microSD card slot. The rear cover itself is pretty flimsy and is finished with a ever-so-slightly grippy, subtle geometrical pattern.

Pocket-lint

In theory it’s easy to remove: simply find the groove near the bottom edge, stick in a thumbnail and pry it away from the frame before pulling off the entire cover. In practice, it takes some effort, which does come as a reassurance that it’s very unlikely to just fall off during use, or if you happen to drop the phone. Thankfully, you shouldn’t need to do it all that often since the battery is not replaceable – it’s sealed inside its own metal casing with a clear warning not to attempt to remove it.

The only other minor complaint about the Smart 7’s design is that the bezel around the edges of the screen is quite thick, which makes the phone relatively wide and hard to use one-handed. Swiping across the screen with a thumb to dismiss notifications or Google Now cards can be particularly challenging.

Vodafone Smart Ultra 7 review: Display

With this being a low-end device, it’s great to see a large 5.5-inch Full HD display (1,920 x 1,080 resolution). To directly compare this to any high-end phones would be unfair, but it’s LCD rather than AMOLED which means you won’t get the same deep blacks, high contrast ratios or eye-popping colour. Instead blacks look dark grey and colours are a little understated.

Pocket-lint

There are compromises with the screen build too. The most noticeable is that the screen isn’t fully laminated to the front glass surface. That means you will notice a slight gap between the display panel and the glass. Thankfully, it doesn’t cause any major issues, but there is a slight warm tint when looking at the screen from an angle. Although, saying that, viewing angles are still good, with content viewable even from an acute angle.

When looking at the display head-on, it’s hard not to be impressed by the Smart 7’s sharpness and clarity. It’s brilliant for a device as affordable as this. Watching movies or playing the odd game on this screen is just as pleasant as on most phones.

Vodafone Smart Ultra 7 review: Software

Like its more expensive Platinum sibling, the Smart Ultra 7 comes loaded with some custom Vodafone apps and software. Apps like Call+ and Message+ plus help Vodafone customers take advantage of the carrier’s advanced phone and messaging services, while the Tips app helps get first-time smartphone users up to speed with how to use their new phone.

Otherwise it’s mostly a clean, stock Android Marshmallow operating system experience. Everything from the app drawer and settings menu to the recent apps screen and drop-down notifications are just as you’d find them in a Nexus or Motorola phone. Because of this, our early experiences using the device have been fast, fluid and responsive.

Vodafone Smart Ultra 7 review: Performance

In the past, budget phones have been forced to run with distinctly average processors to keep the cost of build down. Not so much in the Smart Ultra 7. While it’s not the most high-end of powerful mobile chips, the Helio P10 inside features eight cores. As a reminder, this is the same processor found inside the Oppo F1 Plus – a phone which costs more than double this Vodafone’s asking price.

READ: Oppo F1 Plus review: A flagship at half the price

Judging how good the Smart 7’s performance is depends very much on your expectations of a budget phone. Thanks to being a virtually clean version of Android, it gets through most daily tasks without breaking a sweat.

Still, fast-moving animations have a tendency to stutter slightly, while games do load slower than they might on a more premium smartphone. There’s the odd occasion when data loading pauses, before catching up with itself, but this is to be expected on the bottom-end of the smartphone market. The overall experience is decent, and certainly shouldn’t be bad enough to put you off parting with the modest amount of cash.

Pocket-lint

Again, there are compromises in the other hardware specs, but none that should affect daily use too much. It has only 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage (around 10GB of which is usable). You’re not restricted to 16GB, however, as you can expand using a microSD card – and you can even make use of Android Marshmallow’s ability to adopt microSD card storage as internal storage to save your app data and so on.

Other trade-offs include the lack of a fingerprint sensor or quick-charge support.

Vodafone Smart Ultra 7 review: Battery life

Since there’s no quick-charge it does take some time to fill up the Smart Ultra 7’s 2,960mAh battery. But with a battery of that capacity, Android Marshmallow’s optimisations and only having a 1080p display, a full charge will last you a full day without even trying. Indeed, even when we accidentally left navigation running on Google Maps one afternoon it still kept going until about 2am the next morning.

It’s reassuring to know that even budget phones like this can get through a full day with at least 30 per cent capacity remaining. With Google’s Doze mode baked into Android it’s also comforting to know it won’t lose more than a few per cent when left on standby overnight.

Smart Ultra 7 review: Camera

Like the rest of the Smart Ultra 7’s features, the camera should definitely be good enough for most users. It’s a 13-megapixel sensor with phase-detection autofocus (PDAF), which is also equipped with HDR (high dynamic range) and an f/2.0 aperture lens.

The camera’s results seems a far cry from the fuzzy, distorted and over-saturated photos we’re used to seeing in the ultra-affordable market.

Our first few shots show ample detail and great colour, at least in good light. Once light levels drop, detail starts to disappear, and image noise creeps in, leaving you with fuzzy looking images. Generally speaking, shots are good enough to share on social media with your friends. Just don’t go hoping to win any photography awards with it.

The most frustrating part about the camera experience is that unless there’s even light, it doesn’t like to focus too easily. If a close-up object has bright directional light reflecting off its edges somewhere, the autofocus gives up. At times, even when it does manage to focus, the image can come out with very harsh light levels and over-saturated colours.

If selfies are a big deal to you, you’ll be pleased to know the front-facing 5-megapixel snapper also comes with a dual-LED flash. But, again, its results are fuzzy.

Verdict

Combined with its clean software, powerful processor and long-lasting battery, the Vodafone Smart Ultra 7 is easily one of the best phones under £150. There simply aren’t many phones on the market at this price point with the same feature list, especially not with a large 5.5-inch Full HD resolution display.

It may not feel as nice in the hand as the new Wileyfox Spark X, but it is a better all-round phone. Plus it’s worth pointing out the obvious Vodafone tie-in, meaning you’ll need to be a monthly customer to use the phone. Or, alternatively, you could just buy the Alcatel equivalent outright and use it with any network provider.

So is the Smart Ultra 7 the Android phone to buy if your budget isn’t especially big? Well, its direct competition spec-wise is probably the new Moto G – which has a more refined design, better camera and smoother experience, but also costs at least £35 more. Every pound counts these days, so the decision lies in how much you appreciate the extra craftsmanship and quality.