The Mintt 2020 smartphone range – the A5 ($229), X5 ($299) and the Y5 ($399) are at the top of their class – as its 2019 range was. We have all three for review, but that takes time, so here is an overview.
First, a little about Mintt
This time last year, Mintt, a south-pacific based smartphone company, entered the Australian market. Now enter the A5, X5 and Y5 – the annual model refresh. These show improved specifications over the 2019 range – that was pretty good anyway.
Last year Mintt was a minnow in the red ocean (a marketing term for dog-eat-dog). “How dare it pee on my turf?” said one smartphone company and went to work trying to discredit it. Some tame media lapdogs lapped up the bile directed at it.
GadgetGuy took a different tact. We took the bile and went to Mintt to verify or disprove. After all, we won’t risk our credibility on just any company.
The Queensland-based company came up clean. It was open, it had sought ACMA approvals and had SAR tested its products. What is more, it was using a new, online-only sales model with a genuine desire to bring quality to the mass-market price range. You can read more here but know that 2019 X3 scored 4.4/5 and the Y3 4.9/5.
It is nice to see Mintt made it through the first year. Even so, the 2019 Y3 is still a class leader with a 6.3″ LPTS GG5 screen, 4050mAh battery, 18W fast and Qi charging at $399!
Mintt advises us that it is now working with an Australian Distributor and its phones will soon be in more than 200 Australian shops. It also confirmed a new partnership with Boost, a major MVNO. The A5/X5 get a Sim starter Pack and the Y5 a $10 Sim pack.
Stay tuned as it begins its journey from the Red ocean to the Blue ocean.
Are Mintt smartphones any good?
The short answer is yes – they have great features and specifications for the price.
The only caveat is that it is currently an online-only model, so that means all communications are via its website.
If you have a warranty claim its automated help system (based on the industry-standard ZenDesk) is efficient, and it covers the cost of postage both ways.
If you have an issue, it could take a week or two to resolve it. Mintt reduces this by a swap warranty, but sometimes good old Australia Post (not) can add several days to the process.
Several of my friends use Mintt, especially the Y3 and have been totally happy. The only complaint from one is that the Y3 did not have ‘dual ring tones’ for dual-sim use. Few phones do, and we now test for this in all reviews.
BTW – Mintt has no relation to Mintt.com, Mint Mobile (mintmobile.com) or Mintt Flagship 1 in the USA that all have an appalling TrustPilot rating.
Mintt 2020 smartphone range
- Australian website here
- Price: A5 $229, X5 $299 and Y5 $399
- Free Australia-wide delivery on orders over $200 (limited time)
- Warranty: 12-months ACL which includes Mintt covering postage both ways
Mintt 2020 smartphone range specs
These are pre-release specs subject to change – E&OE
Chipset | MT6762D(A25) | Same | MT6771V/C(P60) |
GPU | IMG GE8300 1080p@30fps MP4/3GP/AVI/H.264/H.265 | IMG GE8320 same | Mail G72 |
RAM | 3GB LPDDR4X | 4GB LPDDR4X | same |
Storage | 32GB eMMC | 64GB eMMC | 128GB eMMC |
micro-SD | expandable to 256GB | same | same |
Screen | |||
Size | 6.088″ | 6.517” | 6.3” |
Resolution | 1560×720 | 1600×720 | 2340 x 1080 |
PPI/DPI | 282 | 269 | TBA |
Colour | warm | same | same |
Nits | 400 | same | TBA |
Ratio | 19.5:9 | 20:9 | 19.5:9 |
Protection | Panda | Panda | Gorilla Glass |
Build | |||
Size | 154.6×73.8×8.8 x198g | 164.64×76.57×8.8mm x182g | 157×75.1x 8.65mm x181g |
Colour | Black | same | same |
Frame | Plastic back cover Plastic frame | same | same |
LTE | |||
SIM | Dual hybrid with microSD | same | Dual sim standby |
UL (Mbps) | 50Mbps | same | TBA |
DL (Mbps) | 150Mbps | same | TBA |
Band | 1/3/5/7/8/20/28A/28B/38 | 1/3/5/7/8/12/13/17/28A/28B/40 | same |
Comms | |||
Bluetooth | BT5.0 | same | 4.2 |
Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi 5 AC dual-band | same | same |
GPS | GPS+GLONASS+Beidou+Galileo | same | same |
NFC | No | No | Yes |
Battery | |||
Battery mAh | 4000 | 4000 | 4050 |
USB | USB-C 2.0 OTG | same | same |
Charge | 5V/1.5A (7.5W) | 5V/2A (10W) | Supports 18W fast charge and QI Wireless charge |
Front Camera | |||
MP | 8MP | 13MP | 16MP but can bin to 4MP |
Sensor | GC8034 | S5K3L6 | OV16885-4C |
Focus | FF | same | Same |
Aperture | F2.0 | same | same |
Pixel size | 1.12um | 1.12um | 1.0um but can bin to 2.0 |
Flash | NO | same | No |
Rear Camera | |||
MP | 13+2+2MP | 16+8+2MP | 48+8+2MP |
Sensor | Samsung 3L6 / OV2680 / OV2680 | Samsung 3L6 / Samsung 4H7YX03 / GC2145 | S5KGM1/ 4H7YX03/ OV2680 |
Focus | AF/FF/ FF | AF/FF/FF | AF/AF/FF |
Aperture | F1.8/2.4/2.4 | F1.8/2.2/2.8 | F1.8/2.2/2.4 |
Pixel size | 1.12um /1.75um /1.75um | 1.0um/1.12um /1.75um | .8um (bins to 1.6um)/1.12/1.75um |
Flash | Single flash | same | Dual |
Sound | |||
Speaker | Mono | same | same |
Ω/W | 8Ω/1W | same | same |
Mic | Single MIC | same | Dual with NC |
Earphones jack | 3.5mm | same | same |
FM | YES | same | same |
OS | |||
Android | 10 | same | same |
Policy | TBA | same | same |
In the box
In the box | Phone | same | same |
. | Factory screen protector | . | . |
. | TPU bumper case | . | . |
. | Charger and USB-A to USB-C cable | . | . |
. | Earphones | . | . |
Competitors
Competitors | Motorola e6S 32GB $179 Nokia 2.3 $199 vivo Y12 $199 Alcatel 3x 65GB $199 OPPO AX5s 64GB $239 Samsung A11 32GB $249 Moto g8 Power Lite 64GB $249 | Realme C3 $269 OPPO AX7 $279 OPPO A52 64GB $299 Moto G8 $299 Nokia 5.3 64GB $299 vivo Y30 64GB $299 Samsung A21s 32GB $329 | OPPO A9 128GB $349 Moto G8 Plus $349 vivo X50 128GB $399 OPPO A91 128GB $449 Samsung Galaxy A31 128GB $399 |
GadgetGuy’s take – the Mintt 2020 smartphone range are good, honest value
This year’s range builds on last years – updates in processors, ram, storage and cameras. I kind of like the annual refresh when other makers feel the need to tart things up quarterly-or-half-yearly to revitalise sales.
Mintt also has a range of accessories for each model so you can get a leather case for $25.
Specs are just a start so look for our reviews. In the meantime, put Mintt on your shopping list if you are considering any of the competitor’s phones. The fact that a small Aussie company is up there on value and no spec compromises with the name brands is impressive.
My pick is the Y5 as it has NFC and QI wireless. But if you don’t need that the X5 and A5 look pretty competitive too.