Kata X1 Review - Decent laptop under PHP 10K?

Laptops are usually starting around the PHP 17K range when they are brand new. That's actually stretching it. But, Kata has something budget friendly.

The Kata X1 Laptop is available for PHP 9,999

Enter the Kata X1 laptop which is an entry level laptop at under PHP 10K. This will be the full review of this laptop and let's see how it fared during our tests.

For our review part 1: Kata X1 Unboxing and First Impressions

Display Quality

Kata X1 has a decent 14-inch display

The Kata X1 has a 14-inch 1366 x 768 display with a 118 pixel per inch density. The display is decent enough to be usable. For an untrained eye, they can definitely say that there is no problem with it. However, if you are used to great displays, you will definitely notice the problem with viewing angles.

We could have let it slide if it is not one of the main parts of a laptop but it is essential for most tasks. If you veer to much to the right or left, you can't see the content you are working on anymore due to image distortion. 

It also does not help that the screen does not get too bright. You will have a hard time working in a place where sunlight gets in because the screen does not cope really well.

But, if you get past that and find the perfect spot, then the display is decently good. Color reproduction is good and images come out pretty sharp.

Audio Quality

Loud speakers!

The speakers on this laptop is surprisingly loud given that it is located at the bottom of the unit. It has dual stereo speakers on both sides. It was a joy to use it for Netflix and YouTube as the audio comes out pretty loud in a small to medium quiet room.

If you are looking to work on a busier area then a pair of headphones are recommended. Thankfully, it has a 3.5 mm headphone jack ready to welcome your headphones. Audio quality is what you would expect since there are no special DAC or enhancements.

The laptop's mic, however, leaves a lot to be desired. When I used it for a video call using Messenger the sound came out as garbled. At first I thought it was network shenanigans but it was not as we both have optimal connections.

Battery Life

The X1 laptop has an 8,000 mAh Li-Ion Poly battery that honestly surprised us. It lasts for more than 6 hours on normal work load such as browsing, typing and social media adventures. It goes down to around 4 - 5 hours when you choose to watch movies or YouTube videos on it.

We highly recommend that you let it rest while you are charging if you can as it can get pretty hot even on normal loads. Or if you really have to work while charging, put it on a table because it actually hurts when you put it on your lap.

Charging time plays around the 2 hour mark from 0 to 100 percent.

Camera

The camera is found at the top of the display

Ok, let me just say that the camera is not the main focus here. The VGA 0.3MP camera is not something you will use for selfies. Images come out as pixelated even on great lighting. It is functional for video calls though.

0.3MP quality

Performance

Geekbench scores

The combination of 1.8GHz Intel Z8350 quad-core processor, Intel HD GPU, 2GB of RAM with a 32GB internal memory will give you a limited yet functional performance. You have to remember that this is a PHP 9,999 laptop before you make any judgement.

OpenCL score

During my normal work load, I usually have around 8 - 10 Chrome tabs open during a busy day. However, I needed to limit myself to around 6 tabs max to make sure that I don't strain the X1 that much. We all know how memory hungry Chrome is and having 2GB of RAM will be a problem. There is also some hiccups during start up as sometimes it takes a bit of time.

It is running Windows 10 Home

Having that out of the way, the X1 laptop performed pretty well. Yes, I cannot do some of the stuff I need like Photoshop but that is negligible since that is not a usual load for the target audience of this product.

This laptop is obviously aimed for people who need to work on the go with a limited budget which covers the student demographic. A student will need a workhorse laptop that can handle paper work, research, presentations and even some spreadsheet. With those task in mind, this is an inexpensive choice.

After school, this can function as a media center for YouTube or Netflix. Just don't push it to play 60 fps videos since it will definitely stutter.

The only gripe I have for this is the limited 32GB of internal storage. Storage is important and hopefully in future iterations it can be improved. We suggest that you always bring an external drive with you so that you still have your files with you. Even with the 128GB microSD card expansion, you can easily run out of space.

Understanding the limitations of the X1 laptop, you will find that it can handle daily student tasks pretty well. Just don't expect to game or video edit here because the specs are not designed for that. Overall, I am satisfied with the performance.

The rest of the connectivity options like WiFi and Bluetooth works.

Pros - Great design, decent performance, great battery life, loud speakers, good value for money

Cons - Storage is too small, thermal management can be better, display can be better, track pad texture can be smoother

Verdict

For only PHP 9,999, the Kata X1 laptop is a great companion for younger students who would need it for projects and research.

It is fairly compact, it has decent performance and good design language. 

For Kata's first try for a laptop, we can say that it is a step in the right direction. The design and size of the laptop is great but the specs are a bit on the notebook side of the spectrum. 

That is the best description I can give here, it is a netbook in a laptop's body. 

Build / Design - 4

Display - 4

Audio - 4.5

Battery - 4.75

Camera - 2

Performance - 4

Average - 3.875 / 5