Doogee HomTom HT5: wood back, massive battery, cool price

Chinese smartphone manufacturers are on a roll this year as they release more and more appealing smartphones that make internationally renowned companies frown with frustration. The Doogee HomTom HT5 is one of the most impressive new releases that encompasses everything that’s been missing from expensive flagships: removable battery, microSD card slot, wood paneling on the back panel, a massive battery with a weeklong battery life promised by the company, near-stock Android 5.1 Lollipop and of course, an affordable price.

The Doogee HomTom HT5 is now available for pre-order exclusively on GearBest, where you can buy it for only $120 unlocked. Don’t be fooled by the low price tag that suggests an entry-level smartphone, as this handset is closer to the mid-range genre than you would believe. It features a polycarbonate body with a grainy texture that mimics Ebony, to add a bit of that high-street feeling that Motorola and OnePlus made so desirable over the past few years. No need to buy styleswap covers or additional accessories, the wooden back panel comes included in the price.

When it comes to what the phone is all about, the Doogee HomTom HT5 is quite appealing. It touts a 5-inch IPS display with a 1280*720 resolution that has thin bezels and neat brightness that’s visible even in outdoor environments. Under the hood, the handset comes with a MediaTek MTK6735 CPU backed by 1 GB RAM and 16 GB internal storage. There’s a massive 4250 mAh battery on board, which the company says will handle 5 days of average usage. That’s not something many phones can do, so the bargain is clearly worth it.

The camera setup of the Doogee HomTom HT5 features an 8 MP sensor with flash and autofocus (interpolated to 13 MP ) on the back and a 2 MP camera on the front(interpolated to 5 MP). Android 5.1 Lollipop and LTE are also part of the deal, alongside two SIM card slots and a microSD card slot. If you want the Doogee HomTom HT5 make sure to get your order in until October 16, when the presale period ends and the phone starts shipping to customers across the world.