As one commenter put it “The Jiayu G3 has been a soap opera”. We have suffered delays, certification problems and now quality control problems! It’s become so much that many would be buyer are deciding to jump ship and buy something else, but which phones offer similar specification for relatively low-cost? Keep reading for 4 JiaYu G3 alternatives!
In my opinion JiaYu only really made one mistake with their G3 and that was the timing of their initial ‘leaks’. If they had postponed all their hype by about 3 months then we would all still be excited about this (still) awesome 4.5 inch Android phone with dual-core CPU! But they didn’t and with the ongoing saga many of you are looking for JiaYu G3 alternatives, well here are 3 you can check out.
The THL W3 has been on the market for a while and has always had an impressive specification, however with the introduction of the THL W3+ with dual-core MT6577 cpu we now have a suitable JiaYu G3 alternative!
THL W3+ Specification
To become a true JiaYu G3 alternative is no easy feat as JiaYu have managed to make a phone which has pushed the performance and price bar to the next level, thankfully the THL W3+ matches the infamous G3 in most respects while also already being widely available online!
Like the JiaYu G3 the THL W3+ has a 4.5 inch screen with a resolution of 1280 x 720 and IPS technology for improved viewing angles. Performance wise the W3+ has the same dual-core MT6577 CPU, 1GB RAM along with 4GB ROM for storing apps. Other highlights include dual-sim support (GSM 850/900/1800/1900MHz, WCDMA 850/2100MHz), GPS, front 2 mega-pixel camera, rear 8 mega-pixel.
Why should I still buy the JiaYu G3
After reading the specs on the THL W3+ you might be wondering what the point in waiting for the G3 is, well the W3+ has a battery of only 2000mAh while the G3 has a 2750mAh, then there is the price tag! The JiaYu G3 can be bought for about $180 online (international customers) while the THL W3+ is closer to $240!
The Bluebo L100 actually out performs and out screens the JiaYu G3, plus it looks like a Samsung Galaxy S3 clone, but make sure you opt for the Bluebo L100HD model and not the lower spec FW version.
Bluebo L100 HD specification
The Bluebo L100HD features a MTK MT6577 1.2GHz processor with a PowerVR SGX531 GPU, 1GB RAM, 5 mega-pixel rear camera and 1.3 mega-pixel front video chat camera. The lower cost FW model gets only 512mb RAM and a 480 x 854 resolution screen. Both look absolutely fantastic and could pass for a Samsung Galaxy S3 for all but the most savvy users.
Why should I still buy the JiaYu G3
Basically it’s only the price and the design which would keep you from choosing the JiaYu G3 over the Bluebo L100. The Bluebo costs around $220 in HD form and not everyone wants a larger 4.7 inch phone in their pockets.
Not only does the Sundance Kid boast one of the more imaginative names from a Chinese phone brand but it also offers great value for money and solid hardware, oh and the battery is huge!
Sundance Kid Specification
We’re back in 4.5 inch screen territory with the Sundance Kid and like the phones above this rather attractive Chinese phones has a resolution of 1280 x 720 plus the display is apparently from Japanese manufacturer Sharp, so we’re on par with the JiaYu G3 already! MediaTek are responsible for the MT6577 dual-core CPU and there is 1GB RAM on board too!
While the JiaYu G3 only offers 4GB of onboard storage the Sundance Kid supplies 8GB along with room for an SD card. Cameras are also on par with the JiaYu with the rear being an 8 mega-pixel model while the front is a 2 mega-pixel model.
Then there is the battery which is claimed to be a 3000mAh unit!
Why should I still buy the JiaYu G3
Again it is down to the style of the phone and the price, but then there is also the face the Sundance Kid has yet to be released and seems a little ‘to good to be true’.
More Sundance Kid details here
The UMi X1 is basically a thinner (more attractive?) JiaYu G3. It has the same screen, dual-core CPU and cameras but the body is much thinner, and it’s on sale tomorrow!
UMi X1 Specifications
4.5 inch IPS screen with a HD resolution of 1280 x 720 and 326PPi, dual-core MT6577 CPU, 1GB RAM, 4GB ROM, 8 mega-pixel rear camera with autofocus and LED flash, 2 mega-pixel front camera, 1750mAh battery and a thin 8.5mm body!
Why should I still buy the JiaYu G3
Well the battery on the UMi X1 is only a 1750mAh unit while the G3 has 2750mAh then there is the price which is currently $173 in China (possibly even more for international buyers). Then there is the design, I personally prefer the look of the Umi X1 which looks like a more slimmed down and aggressive Xiaomi M1S while others prefer the more angular JiaYu G3.
Conclusion
As you can see from the selection above there are plenty of phones which can match the JiaYu G3 and even surpass the hardware, but they all cost at least $20 more before shipping!
If you can find one of the above phones at a JiaYu G3 price snap it up now! If not and price is an important factor it might be worth waiting for a little longer for JiaYu to sort the G3 quality problems.
What do you guy’s think? have you bought any of the above phones? do you have any other JiaYu G3 alternative suggestions?
Hey guys, really bad news for JY’s fans, but I am still on it. I agree with RobertNL with him post in topic about the problems. I will wait few more weeks to see some reviews and news around JY.
Andi do you still want to buy JY, because I would be really happy to see a review from you.
Sorry for my English, Have a nice day 🙂
These above all seem great phones but they are either not here yet, or lacking 1 or more specs that the Jiayu G3 has.
Personally i don’t like knockoffs like the HTC and Samsung above to much. The UMi X1 looks great but has a to small battery and the Sundance kid is not there yet (and with its specs will be sold out fast).
Second of all of them are more expensive. If i can buy a phone with the specs of the Jiayu for 165 dollar* internationally shipped and some good looks it will be a instant buy.
But at this time the Jiayu G3 still seems the best option and worth waiting one or two more weeks before shipping.
*$165 is what i payed for the G3 (Group buy discount, ended 1 October)
I changed my Jiayu G3 order to an Amoi N820.
Good replacement? 🙂
Pretty much the same specs, except for the better screen res. and battery in the G3.
But for some reason, the N820 has a higher price tag :S
Thanks – now the big question is: Should I pick om of these ? Or should I wait for the great and possible fictive Samsung Galaxy Note II quad-core dual-sim ?
I think I will keep using my slow ZTE U960 until I know about the Samsung
And thanks for this fine source of info
Hi Andi, have you ever tried anyone of these phones? Is there any review made by you?
I read various times on other forums that people say that MTK6577 really does not support HD resolution, but it’s more than QHD resolution faked to HD.
Hello!
@Andrea
I own a Thl w3+ and I guarantee that MTK6577 can operate on a 1280×720 screen. Actually the only complaint I have with this phone is that being a tft screen at such a great pixel density it is slightly dim in the daylight. Indoors it is perfect.
The other aspect is that avi files can be a little bit jerky, mp4 hd are almost perfect, though.
I would like to see some side by side pictures with the above phones, that would allow to compare screen brightness. Tips, anyone? cheers
None of them, G3 and X1 have similar tempered glass by AGC for sure, most of the others have not.
Hi. I wrote to newsmy about gorilla glass. There is an answer:
It uses a 4.3 inch full view angle IPS 5-Point Touch screen, with QHD 960*540 resolution display.
The TP is G+G, which is a sensor glass + tempered glass cover structure capacity touch screen, the underlying is touch glass and the upper cover is tempered glass.
What is more, we can only provide you the black color then(around 2012-10-15) if you take 100pcs.
Let us keep contact continue.
Thanks
Umi X1 has some Japanese glass which seems to have same properties as Gorilla glass. Bluebo also seems to have Gorilla (see reviews on Youtube). I don’t know for sure about THL, I think I’ve seen a review on Youtube cutting fruits on its screen, but I’m not sure 🙂
Is tempered glass good how gorilla glass?
Is the tempered glass susceptible to scratches?
For some time on mediatek site is writed that MTK6577 SUPPORTS HD!!! And resolution cant be faked.
Andi, one of the best alternative is Star B92M, which is already out and costs below $200 for international customers.
Star B92M’s specs seems good. but ram is 512MB. very bad for this specs
Star B92M seems to have some impressive specs indeed 🙂 I doubt it has a real 12Mp camera though!
I’ve heard of the Star but I don’t know much about them. Has anyone got one?
rhs, do you have the Star B92M? And maybe you can tell us your impression of it. I searched a little and found that it has a 12MP camera, and almost the same characteristics as other below-$200 phones posted here, seemed a great phone to me, but I checked some sellers and they all say different things about its specifications, such as 1GB or 512MB RAM and TFT or SLCD screen. If you have it, where did you buy it?
my choice would be NEWMAN N1.
it’s the same as the phones you posted and it’s a lot cheaper
newman n1 costs about $185, so not cheaper and it has worse screen and battery. Star b92m is lot better.
Hi Andi,
A very interesting phone seems to be Zopo ZP300+, which has 720p screen from LG, MTK6577 CPU, 1GB RAM and 4GB ROM so very good specs but it’s rather pricy and has a smaller batery (1800 mAh if I recall).
My brother owns ZP300+, the phone has serious problems with GPS (both hardware and software), and many people around the world have the same problem. Camera is fake 8 Mp being real cheap 5 Mp interpolated. Smaller battery runs out quickly. I owned THL W3 and W3+. The first is very good phone, W3+ has too dim screen backlight. ZP300+ has the same screen, but very bright backlight wich eats up the battery in a glance. That’s why THL restricted the brightness in both HD models, and they use quite good auto regulation. ZP300+ uses crappy cheap light sensor and can not ajust the brightness right. The only good point of ZP300+ apart the screen is working compass, almost useless without working GPS though ^_^
If I understand correctly, the brightness is the highest on Zopo 300+, then Thl w3 and lowest on w3+. How long would the battery last on Zopo 300+ under full load I mean browsing continuesly on 3g? I get about 6hrs on my w3+. Wich phone you like the most? Thanks
I wonder if there is any kind of mod to maximize the brightness… There is also aanother phone, Hisense u950 that has 4,5′ screen and qHD res, but it hasn’t been realised yet.
The best but not the fastest out of this three is old good single core THL W3. I managed to reach 4 days of 2G (3G turned off) standby with quite rare 3D2D gaming and browsing (WiFi), around 30 minutes of talking a day. Backlight set to middle. W3+ lasts about 2 days in this mode with max backlight. ZP300+ less than one day with backlight at the middle. So it’s advantage (bright HD screen) is it’s weak point also. I wonder if G3 has real 2750 battery as long as it’s very important for such screen. Taking in account that tempered glass is less transparent than regular glass sensor so it needs more backlight. And all the G3 reviews we have seen for the moment are made in quite a dark environments where you can not judge on real luminosity.
Talking about brightness mod, there is hidden tweak application used by the manufacturer which can adjust some internal parameters of the phone electronics. Do not recall about W3+, but for ZP300+ there is definitely an option called backlight or something. Anyway I would not recommend changing anything unless you are ok with your phone dead on being hacked ^_o
Bought a htc one x clone from eastcom,first they told me is would work in USA then they say it doesn’T support 850/1900/2100 3G frequencies, only 900/2100 so it’s no use for me. Canceled the order and finally bought the Newman N1.
Anyway, Jiayu G3 seems to only have 2100 frequency so..
Someone has the newman n1 in hand ? did I make a good choice ?
I willing to buy BlueBO L100 HD tommorow, so buy buy Jiayu G3,
I really wanted G3 but i started to lost my patience.
All mtk6575/7 phones support same 3g frequences!!!!! So they all are same- jiayu g3, newman n1 or one x fakes.
Did anyone see a review about Umi X1? Is it such a mysterious phone that nobody made a movie about it? I’m really curious to see this phone in action 🙂
Why don’t you add Zopo Zp300+ as an Jiayu G3 Alternative ?
i dont have star b92m, but there is an exellent video on youtube- search for android b92m.
And it has 1gb ram, 4,67 inch screen, 10,3mm thickness(sellers saying that 9mm), 2000mah.
I wanted to wait for the quad-core phones with dual sim but I don’t want to wait untill the MTK6588 phones hit the stores in China (early 2013).
So I want to go the MTK6577 route.
I’m not sure if I should buy a 1280×720 phone or take one with 960×540.
With the smaller resolution makes the phone faster, games will work better and the display is a little brighter.
I have a MTK6516 with 800×480 with is pretty laggy, so I don’t want to take that risk again.
Whats your view on this? is the better resolution worth it to risk to risk having a laggy phone?
Oppo T29 looks interesting with its 3150mA battery and Jiayu like design
mtk6588 will be out next month! Not early 2013(that was thinked in June, but they managed things go faster)
The production of the MTK6588 starts or started this month.
The first phones are released next month, but I fear that it will take a long time untill I find them stocked in brick-and-mortar stores across China.
sighs…you just shows 3 out of 4 phones that still aren’t available except in extreme limits numbers – if at all… the only one on this a list that actual be avail is THL
I got the following message from the seller on aliexpress for my Jiayu G3 order
Dear Buyer
Today we have received 2 pcs of sample Jiiayu g3 from Jiayu factory
after we test it there is no problem so we will start to ship out all of the phones
from this friday
Thank you
just to be clear with everyone that look for an American Capable phone alternative
you can delete newman n1 from your list too…. someone called for me to the newman factory :
“hello,upon further checking with newman factory,only avaiable for 900+2100 for 3g.thanks”
no 850, no 1900..
I’ve had the THL W3+ for a week now and am really satisfied.
There’s a multilanguage ROM for it now as well, so don’t let the ‘English/Chinese/Traditional Chinese’ specs on several websites fool you. It comes with Spanish, German, Dutch and many more languages now =) I ordered mine at Pandawill with a discount when they said that the G3 delivery time was unclear. They even made sure the standard language was Dutch when they sent it to me in Holland, great service!
Only minor pitfall can be the brightness, there is not that much difference between the lowest brightness and the highest brightness compared to my good ol’ Galaxy S i9000. But then again, that was a LED screen, and even more important: I don’t really give a damn about the brightness as I always use the lowest for regular use. In bright sunlight the max brightness is doable but not great. In a not-so-sunny country as the Netherlands it will certainly do!
Battery seems to be pretty good, it lasts the day when using bluetooth, wifi and 3g, sometimes a bit longer(started the day at 8am and was playing HD MKV’s with the software encoder at night to finally get the battery empty at 3am the day after haha). Different dealers(like Pandawill) even deliver a second battery in the package.
Although somebody else here had problems with playing AVI files: I have not encountered this problem.
In short, I’m happy that I did not wait for the G3, although that might be an excellent phone as well when it’s finally there. The THL satisfies my needs NOW already, and that’s something that the G3 will not do for a while 😉