Jivi Banana 6 review: Cheap copy of original banana phone, the Nokia 8110

Priced at Rs 1,299, the Banana 6 is a feature-rich phone with Bluetooth and dualSIM support. It also offers wireless FM radio that broadcasts radio channels without plugging wired headset.

Jivi, a home-grown mobile phone brand known for budget phones, recently launched the Banana 6 at Rs 1,299. Replica of the Nokia 8110 feature phone, famous for its banana-shaped design and commonly known as the original banana phone, the Jivi Banana 6 is also a feature phone with a curved design and a slider on the front, covering the keypad.

In terms of design, the phone’s bright yellow colour pops out too much and might not go down well with everyone. The slider mechanism is reminiscent of the good old Nokia days when phones with sliders and flaps were common. However, the quality of the slider does not seem to be good. It feels out of the place while sliding down and requires constant efforts to keep it intact. The slider is used for unlocking/locking the phone and receiving calls.

The back of the phone has a removable cover with a battery, dual-SIM and microSD slot underneath. The phone is powered by 1,000 mAh battery. On the front, the phone has a 2.4-inch display covered with 2.5D glass. There are a T9 keypad and a trackpad for navigation below the screen. The keys are soft and have good haptic feedback. For charging, there is a micro USB on the bottom, along with a 3.5mm headphone jack for audio output.

The Jivi Banana 6 is a traditional feature phone, meaning it does not support modern features and applications such as Google Assistant, Google Maps, 4G, LTE Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi hotspot. These features are new in feature phone space and phones like Reliance JioPhone and Nokia 8110 support them. The Banana 6, on the other hand, has a traditional phone interface and a keypad to navigate and operate it.

In terms of value-added features, the Banana 6 offers wireless FM radio, Snake Cobra and Brick n Ball games, GPRS internet connectivity option, and mp3 player support for playing audio files saved in microSD card. The microSD card is also needed to store photos and videos as the phone does have limited internal storage that is mostly filled with the operating system and other system files.

The phone has a rear camera with a flash that can be used as a torch as well. The photos taken by the phone are basic and manage to look fine only in good lighting. The phone also has Bluetooth and dual-SIM support.

Business Standard