By Anuj Sharma

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS): The sub-Rs 10,000 smartphone market, currently dominated by Chinese vendors, now offers striking features at competitive prices. Tapping into the same strategy, Japanese player Panasonic has launched the Eluga Tapp smartphone.

The device comes with an add-on security feature, 'Android for Work', which allows users to segregate the business apps from personal apps while protecting their personal data.

Priced at Rs 8,990, the Eluga Tapp is in tough competition with Xiaomi Redmi Note 3, Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus and Meizu M3 Note.

Here is what works for the device.

When it comes to aesthetics, Eluga Tapp features minimalistic design and is not too fancy. Panasonic has tried to keep the design simple and clean.

At just 138 grams, Panasonic Eluga Tapp feels lighter in hand than the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 and Meizu M3 Note.

Be it browsing the web, watching videos or playing games, everything was smooth on the device. However, the full-HD display of Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus -- in the same price segment -- projected sharp colours on the screen.

The 1.25GHz quad-core processor in the Eluga Tapp is capable of smooth multi-tasking and ran various productivity tasks and apps, including Gmail and YouTube, with ease. Unless you push the smartphone to its limits, you will hardly notice a difference in performance.

The fingerprint sensor also worked fine in unlocking the device within seconds.

The 8MP auto-focus rear shooter is better for shooting when there is enough light and does not work well under low-light conditions. Clicking pictures with gestures also worked fine.

Once charged, the device can keep you connected for a day with moderate usage and can last for almost two days if you are using it just for calling, messaging and slight social media use. For heavy users, carrying a portable power bank will be advised.

Eluga Tapp addresses consumers' 24/7 connectivity needs with dual-SIM and 4G/VoLTE fast connectivity, ensuring a reliable and fast connection. Call quality was also good and we did not encounter any issues.

What does not work?

If there are heavy apps running in the background, the transition between apps was not smooth and we encountered delay while switching between them, which can be forgiven considering the price.

We found the build quality of Meizu M3 Note better than Eluga Tapp. The rear snapper also missed out detail while capturing images.

Conclusion: Like Panasonic's other affordable smartphones, Eluga Tapp is one of decent performing devices that comes bundled with specifications good enough for daily use.