Infinix Hot 30 review: Budget excellence

The Infinix Hot 30 is a delightful sleek surprise.

That’s it, that’s my summary of the device in a sentence.

You know, it’s been a while since I have used a budget smartphone that is so good. Coincidentally, the time I was reviewing the Hot 30 coincided with the time that Xiaomi unveiled the Redmi Note 12, a device that I believe goes toe to toe with what Infinix has to offer here and, from my experience using it, is equally as good.

The Infinix Hot 30 is fast, charges fast (though not as fast as other Infinix smartphones we have seen in the past), is sleek and ticks just about any boxes there may be to tick. The only stale thing is the software experience which largely remains the same. My review unit had yellow/gold-ish tones on the user interface; I don’t know if they are available on units that you can buy from the shops or are limited to the retail demos like the one I had (it came with the retail demo mode live).

The essence of the Infinix Hot 30 and, as a result of it the entire Hot series, from where I sit, is to provide users with an experience so good the only reason they’d go up the food chain and get the Note or some other device is because they can, not because they are lacking anything where they are. That is such a progression of the series that was once Infinix’s early entry-level. It’s now every bit in the later stages of the entry-level smartphone segment and the Hot 30 is the best poster child. It can be seen in every feature and detail on the device.

While relatively light, the device retains with it some significant heft that has it feeling very nice in the hand and handling a breeze. The boxy shape is neutered by the rounded corners. So much that you don’t have it feeling as slippery as it should considering that back. The protrusions at the back to accommodate the camera lenses and the flash mean that it will wobble when placed on a table or any other flat surface but can easily be countered using a case which should keep that clean back from any scratches, something I’d consider but probably not go ahead with given how good-looking the device is and how good it feels to hold it naked.

I like that Infinix kept just about all the connectivity options on this device. There’s NFC, which we’ve not been seeing as often on budget Infinix phones and the headphone jack that is increasingly becoming rare. That means that whether you’re a wireless head, like yours truly, or still with your wires, you are accommodated here. Everyone, obviously, will benefit from the fast data transfer speeds and fast charging facilitated by that USB Type-C port down below. 33W fast charging is a good balance. I know, we’ve spoilt when it comes to this but Infinix is reserving the faster speeds for the other devices up the chain.

The display is above average, par the course for a device in this segment and flush with a 90Hz refresh rate which, paired with the Helio G88 chipset from MediaTek ensures that you don’t encounter any of the occasional stutters that I met on the Smart 7 Plus. It helps that the Hot 30 has 8GB RAM and some more 8GB of swap memory available to lend a helping hand when that gets overwhelmed. If anything, using it, you get the feeling that it is meant for a lot more than the usual ordinary smartphone usage. This is the device to get your gaming groove on, if you’re the kind to pick up a pad from time to time. It will help compensate for that when you’re out and about with very little difference to what you can achieve on a larger scale and with better hardware.

The cameras on the Infinix Hot 30 do the device justice. They are good. The vividness and extra detail that I was lacking on the Smart 7 Plus, I got on the Hot 30. I am particularly a fan of the device’s front-facing camera. It manages to get the details right and colours almost natural, at least as far as skin tones go when you’ve removed any AI smoothing. Just don’t use it at night. What you should use at night is the main camera. The level of detail attained in the great outdoors is fantastic while that of low-light situations is one you can comfortably live with.

My retail mode demo situation aside, the software experience is largely the same as one would expect of an Infinix smartphone or as we have seen on Infinix devices we have reviewed in the past. It’s as functional (you get everything you are looking for and then some more) as it is annoying (very many unsolicited alerts from the pre-installed apps and services).

The Infinix Hot 30’s battery lasts an entire day and, that’s the most I was able to get from it. One should be able to get a second day with fair usage, though. Given that charging it up is a breeze with the charger that’s included in the box, when the need arises, that’s not much of an issue.

While the sound on the speakers of the Hot 30 is nothing to write home about, it’s network connectivity, cellular or otherwise, is excellent.

The lowdown

The Infinix Hot 30 is a sleek and sturdy entry-level smartphone that manages to offer the best balance of power and performance. It has a standout design and good looks, a display you can work with all the time, good cameras and good battery life. What else are you looking for in a budget device that’s not covered here? It also runs on Android 13, the latest version as of this time.

At a price point of Kshs 23,000, the Infinix Hot 30 is one of the best budget smartphones you can buy in Kenya by mid-2023. As usual, we recommend checking with some of our recommended merchants if you’re looking to purchase the device.