I want to introduce you to a smartphone that has been on the market for a while but that, until now, we have not had the opportunity to test. This time I present to you the review of the Sharp Aquos S2 that we bought at JoyBuy to check the seriousness of the store. The package arrived in perfect condition, and we had it in our hands in a month.
This smartphone comes in a white and red box with the name of the brand and model on top. At the bottom are two labels, one with the specifications and the other with the IMEI numbers. Both are in Chinese. Inside is the device protected by translucent paper. Below is a tiny envelope with the terminal start guide (in Chinese) and the “pin” to access the nano SIM. We can also find a transparent hard case, the Chinese version 5V to 2A power charger, a USB to USB type C cable, and a USB type C to 3.5mm audio jack adapter.
Despite not being the style of cover that I like, it is appreciated that it incorporates one; in this way, we can carry it a little more protected. Also, I wouldn’t say I like that they have removed the audio jack, but hey… at least they have had the consideration to incorporate the adapter.
Design and Screen
With a spectacular design and dimensions of 72.0 mm long x 141.8 mm high and 7.9 mm thick, this Sharp Aquos S2 will surprise you. It is a slim smartphone that weighs 140 grams. The sides are made of metal, and although the back cover is made of plastic, it cannot be disassembled or the battery accessed for replacement.
It has a 5.5-inch screen with Full HD + resolution (1080×2040 pixels) that occupies practically the entire front of the phone, with 79% of the valuable surface. The density of pixels per inch is 420. In addition, it has Corning Gorilla Glass protection. The screen and brightness are correct, and it looks good quite clearly.
Its design impresses its large screen, although it is not as significant as other smartphones with infinity screens from some manufacturers. It will be one of the few that does not reach 6 inches. With the Sharp screen, we will have to be careful, since seeing the comments of other users, it seems that it can be scratched or broken easily, so tempered glass is an excellent idea if you are going to get this mobile.
I describe the front of the terminal by saying that the call speaker is a fine line located just at the top of the terminal attached to the upper edge. Right next to it, it also has a little multi-color notification LED. Below is the camera in that famous “Notch” that many of the terminals are implementing, thanks to the contribution that the iPhone X design left us. Something that seems strange to me is that in the upper corners of the screen, it has like two minor cuts, which make the corners not round. You will understand better by looking at the pictures. At the bottom is the manufacturer’s name (Sharp) above a very narrow fingerprint sensor that works perfectly. It is fast and accurate.
The dual camera and the double two-tone LED flash located approximately 8 centimeters away are in the rear left part, placed vertically. I have to say that the photographic sensor stands out quite a bit compared to the rest of the terminal. I hope it has good glass to prevent scratches when supporting it.
On the right side is the typical volume up/down button and the lock button, both made of metal. On the other side, we find the nano SIM and microSD card slot. At the bottom is the micro USB type C plug, and on the sides, there are the speaker and the microphone, as is already very common in many smartphones. The top part has nothing. I’ve been looking everywhere to see if I could find the 3.5mm audio jack but no luck. It’s a shame that manufacturers are starting to remove it from their smartphones; I like being able to plug in headphones without any adapters.
Software
The Sharp Aquos S2 has a customization layer based on Android 7.0 Nougat called Smile UX. It does not have an application drawer, so you can have all the applications on the main desktop and manage them by folders. The operating system is very fluid and friendly, with some pretty icons.
Regarding the updates, comment that you plan to update to Android 8.0 Oreo, but these will arrive depending on the version of the ROM that you have in your Sharp. There is a Chinese version and the Taiwanese version in the English language.
This smartphone comes with the Chinese ROM version, without the apps and services. CIOs of Google. For this reason, installing a Taiwanese ROM with Google services already pre-installed is advisable. The terminal you will find in the offers is probably Chinese, so keep in mind that you will have to change the ROM to have Google services.
Change the ROM
First, comment that we are not responsible for what may happen or how this procedure is carried out. We have found two methods to install the ROM. I have seen the first one I have followed in the xda-developers forum; I leave you the link here. It is a slightly longer process. The second is faster and easier, as long as we do not update Android 8.0 Oreo. We have not tested this way, but some users say it works. I leave you here the link to this second method.
First method: The first thing we do is unlock the “bootloader.” For this, we have put it in “fast boot mode,” and since the second step has given us problems, we skip it and continue with the tutorial.
Next, from the link on the web, we download the program to flash the ROM and follow the steps indicated by looking at the image to avoid making any mistakes.
Suppose you want to put it in almost any other language. In that case, you can always use the “MoreLocale 2” application in the Google Play store. After a brief configuration of the application (search for the language), you will have almost any text on your Android translated. In addition, it doesn’t require superuser permissions; just execute a couple of commands with the mobile connected by USB following the program’s instructions.
