Introduction
Mobile gaming isn't going away any time soon. It has been growing in popularity over the last few years, thriving alongside the smartphone revolution. App stores provide an accessible and convenient distribution channel for game developers and game graphics have been increasingly becoming "console-like" with every new chipset iteration.
That being the case we are perplexed by the nearly total lack of dedicated mobile gaming hardware in 2019. It really is baffling when you think about it - the raw performance is there and so are the increasingly complex and engaging mobile games, yet most mobile gamers have to settle for on-screen controls and various other limitations.
Not that long ago, the mobile gaming scene was buzzing with devices. Monumentally influential products like the GameBoy, Sony PSP, Nintendo DS, and many others, all were battling for the same niche which currently seems forfeited to smartphones (save for the Nintendo Switch). And indeed, the phone you already have might be all the hardware you need to spend countless hours of enjoyable gaming.
Even if that is the case, the portable gaming handheld void remains an indisputable fact. We haven't given up on the concept of physical controls and their clear benefit for gaming. Otherwise, we would all be swiping on touchscreen PS4 and Xbox controllers right now. So why doesn't anyone slap a few good buttons and a couple of analog sticks on an Android device? Is there a practical reason we are not seeing a whole ecosystem of devices like that?
These are some of the questions we approached the MOQI i7s with, since it is an exception to the rule - an Android platform wrapped inside a distinct gaming shell.
MOQI i7s
- Body: Plastic, 207 x 96 x 15mm, 280 grams, removable back cover
- Screen: 6.00" capacitive touch LCD display with 16:9 aspect ratio and Full HD (1920 x 1080 px) resolution; protected by Gorilla Glass 3 and a pre-applied glass screen protector
- Main camera: 16MP Samsung ISOCELL Bright S5K3P9 f/2.0 aperture; 1.0 micron pixels; 1/3.1"; Phase-detection autofocus; LED flash
- Front camera: 5MP OV5695, f/2.2; 1.4 micron pixels; 1/4"; Fixed focus
- Video capture: 1080p @ 30fps
- Chipset: Qualcomm SDM710 Snapdragon 710 (10 nm); Octa-core (2x2.2 GHz Kryo 360 Gold & 6x1.7 GHz Kryo 360 Silver) paired with Adreno 616 CPU
- Memory: 6GB RAM and 64GB/128GB of internal storage; expandable via microSD (dedicated slot)
- OS: Android 8.1.0 Oreo with many control mapping and input simulation added on top (MUCH UI)
- Battery: 6,000 mAh lithium-polymer battery (117 grams); user replaceable; Advertised 300 hours of stand-by time and 12 hours of gaming; Quick Charge 4+ support
- Connectivity:Dual Nano-SIM; LTE FDD/TDD Cat. 9 up; Bluetooth 5.0+HS; Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac; GPS + AGPS
- Audio: 3.5mm headphone jack (no video output), stereo rear-mounted speakers
- Misc: Magnetic, gravity, light and proximity sensors, USB-C 3.1 with OTG; 2 analogue sticks, 2 shoulder triggers (not analogue), D-pad, 4 physical buttons plus 2 capacitive ones on the front
In all fairness, the MOQI i7s is not the lone survivor in the Android handheld realm. There are others, but few and very far between. But the Moqi i7s stands out in this small crowd as one of the most well-equipped and powerful Android handheld consoles currently out there. We figured that alone makes it a good starting point for our investigation into why Android portable consoles aren't a thing in 2019.
Unboxing
The very first thing we noticed about the MOQI i7s was how premium and tastefully done the packaging is. Of course, that doesn't necessarily relate to the actual product itself, but it is still a nice indication of the level of attention and RnD that went into the handheld.
The retail package consists of the unit itself, positioned inside a snug plastic cradle (plenty of protection for the long journey from China), accompanied by a good-quality USB Type-A to Type-C data and charging cable. We were also pleased to find a charger inside. Not only that, but a slick looking and quality feeling black Quick Charge unit, perfectly capable of pumping out 18W.
Another neat little bonus thrown in the box is a second glass screen protector. Again, an appreciated addition since its shape is so irregular that you are unlikely to find a replacement. And yes, it is a second unit, since one was already pre-applied on the device - a bit poorly around the edges but still there - we appreciate these little gestures.
A case would have really made for a perfect 10/10 score in the bundle category since the handset is made entirely out of plastic and would benefit from the extra protection.
As for the tasteful styling we mentioned earlier, the box comes with a very pleasant soft-touch black coating and a single subtle snail logo. Seeing how a snail doesn't fit naturally on a gaming device, we looked into it, and it turns out that MOQI is not the brand here, but instead a device name. The company behind the MOQI i7s is Snail Digital (Suzhou Snail Digital Technology Co., Ltd.). It's a pretty reputable Chinese company that started way back in the year 2000, creating the country's first own 3D online game, then moving on to produce quite a few other games on both PC and mobile. It has a mobile carrier (Snail mobile) in its ranks and even a US branch. Long story short, that's where the cute little snail logo comes from.
Design and ergonomics
The MOQI i7s sports and unmistakably gaming-centric design and aesthetics. It's kind of hard to pinpoint exactly where it borrows inspiration from, but the Sony PlayStation Portable and its PS VITA successors do instantly spring to mind. The rounded corners and overall silhouette definitely point in that direction. The dual analog sticks and their position, however can't really be likened to Sony's ongoing design philosophy. Instead of having the pair level on the same height, the i7s has them offset - higher for the left and lower for the right. These will definitely feel more familiar to Xbox fans. Nintendo also has them in a similar configuration on the Switch.
Now, at the risk of threading into hot water, we tend to favor this offset approach mostly for its ergonomic benefits. Using the left analog stick together with the four primary buttons on the front seems to be the prevalent situation in most games. This leaves both your thumbs more extended and in an arguably more comfortable position. We definitely found the i7s more comfortable to hold and use than the PS VITA we also had at hand during this review. Props to MOQI in this regard.
Having said that, however, the MOQI i7s is far from a perfectly ergonomic device by our standards. Bear in mind that your mileage will likely vary depending on hand size and general preference, but we found the handheld a bit too thin for comfort. While that may sound counter-intuitive, hear us out before you light-up the comment section. There is a very particular and extremely difficult art to designing comfortable handheld devices. Especially controllers. Think about it. Despite having more than a few major design differences, both current generation top-dog PS and Xbox controllers have fairly bulky protruding grips to hold on to. These provide comfort for your palms and a secure grip. What they also achieve is to naturally position your thumbs far enough away from the actual controls.
While most handheld gaming consoles don't really have a similar design, they can achieve a certain level of similar ergonomic comfort through general "girth". Without beating about the bush any further, what we are trying to get at here is that the 15mm profile of the MOQI i7s certainly looks impressive in PR materials, but is thin enough to make it slightly strenuous to hold for prolonged periods of time. This could always be remedied through a "grip accessory" of some sort, like the one we have for the PS VITA or a thicker case.
Unfortunately, Snail doesn't seem to offer either and given the limited popularity of the i7s we understandably failed to find any third-party options as well. However, since we are on the subject of accessories, we did manage to track down a listing for the MOQI YY660 battery pack over at JD.com, just in case you are after a send pack for more versatility on the go.
Putting two and two together, Snail could have probably gone for a bigger battery and a bulkier, yet more comfortable body on the MOQI i7s. However, that would have also meant adding more weight. In its current state, at an advertised 280 grams, which we actually measured to be more in the 315 gram ballpark, the i7s is heavier than an Xbox One controller, but lighter than the slightly bigger Nintendo Switch. We'll leave it up to you to decide whether or not it could have taken on more heft.
Controls
While we might not entirely agree with some of the ergonomic aspects of the MOQI i7s and its control layout, we were genuinely impressed by the quality of said controls. The two analogue sticks, in particular, really stand out with their smoothness of motion and precision. Not too stiff and not too loose. Like a certain porridge Goldilocks enjoyed the most - just right!
The only real complain we have is the lack of a push click on the two sticks. Two extra buttons to map would have come in handy, especially when emulating certain consoles on the MOQI i7s.
That is not to say there is a shortage on buttons, though. The four main ones have slight odd labels - Sun, Moon, Water, and Mountain, instead of A, B, Y, X or some other familiar scheme, but that's about the only weird aspect about them. They feel really great - tactile and clicky. The exact same goes for the D-pad on the left-hand side as well as the two shoulder buttons.
In terms of wishes, again, analog controls would have been a real treat here, instead of the simpler trigger shoulder buttons the i7s has. Perhaps a bit of extra width to the buttons themselves. Maybe in a future hardware revision or successor. The last two special buttons on the MOQI i7s are start and select. These are capacitive and positioned on either side of the display. Detection consistency is great, so no complains here either.
As far as the rest of the more standard controls go, we can only praise the choice of position. The 3.5mm audio jack and USB Type-C port are both on the bottom frame, well-spaced apart and not near any of the edges. This leaves them out of the way so both can be comfortably populated while holding the MOQI. Sadly, neither of these can provide any video out functionality.
The pair of speakers on the back of the i7s is also thoughtfully positioned, even if not optimally so for multimedia consumption. At least it's not particularly easy to accidentally cover them up with your hands. These can get pretty loud, but aren't anything to phone home in terms of quality. Distortion starts to quickly come through at anything above 70% volume. We can't really imagine anyone will be using these much for music, though.
The same goes for the pair of cameras on the i7s - a 16MP one on the back and 5MP selfie on the front. As far as positioning goes, at least, both are logically placed. The front one could, potentially, facilitate some face-cam action for a gaming streaming, if you can live with the quality of its capture. Its microphone is on the front side of the device, which is good to see. But, more on that in the camera section.
Also, it is worth briefly noting that despite its odd form factor, the i7s still retains its functionality as a phone. The earpiece is positioned next to the D-pad, which means that you can, potentially hold it up to your ear without poking yourself with the stick and even have the microphone line up with your mouth. Your self-esteem might take a hit if you decide to do so in public, but it's still great to see that the option is there.
In fact, Snail even decided to fully utilize the dual-SIM functionality of the Snapdragon 710 chipset, exposing both nano-SIM slots under the back cover on the i7s. By the way, the latter is particularly hard to pry open, for what that's worth. Also under there is the huge removable 6,000 mAh battery and a dedicated microSD slot. Plenty of room to go around, so no hybrid solution here.
Materials
Speaking of the back cover, we definitely appreciate its sturdiness and the confidence it instills while coming off and going back on the device. That being said, Snail's choice of material and finish for the back side in particular is nothing short of horrible. That might sound a bit harsh, but it really is the worst kind of plastic coating that can never, ever be cleaned, let alone maintained in such condition.
On the flip side, literally, the rest of the body on the MOQI i7s has no such issues. The mat black on the front feels great and is a lot more grease and dirt repellent. Or rather unfriendly, depending on how you look at it. The middle frame on the unit is also plastic, but feels really sturdy. In fact, the whole device is very well put together and feels like it can take a few falls.
That being said, we are quite certain that the plastic will scratch. Especially the one on the back cover. Our review unit even has some marks on there despite having spent its entire rather short use cycle on top of soft surfaces and smooth desks. At least the display glass should be fine, considering the Gorilla Glass 3 rating featured in the official specs sheet and the extra layer of glass protection on top. Still, if you plan on lugging around the MOQI i7s, which is kind of its purpose, having a soft case or carry pouch of some sort would be a great idea.
Display
The MOQI i7s sports a pretty beefy 6.0-inch display in a standard 16:9 aspect ratio. Besides a hefty diagonal, one of its main selling points is the 1920 x 1080 resolution. While that may not sound particularly impressive in smartphone terms, where QHD resolution is not hard to come by, it is still great compared to most portable gaming device competitors currently out there.
The popular Nintendo Switch, for instance, which we have been referencing quite a bit, has a larger 6.2 inch LCD panel, but with a resolution of 1280 x 720. That makes for a less sharp image overall. And since we are sure this comparison is going to come up at some point as well - the GPD XD 2019 revision sports a smaller 5-inch panel with the same 1280 x 720 pixel resolution.
Now, to be fair, there are tangle benefits to running a lower native resolution, mostly having to do with less strain on the GPU and higher average frame rates. However, most Android games and game engines in general are very flexible and masterfully dial back and forth rendering parameters to match your device. Our point is that the MOQI i7s is powerful enough to handle FullHD and most apps are more than willing to play nice and lend a hand with internal optimization if and when the GPU strain becomes a bit too much. But more on that in the performance section.
| Display test | 100% brightness | ||
| Black, cd/m2 | White, cd/m2 | ||
| 0 | 646 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 645 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 637 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 620 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 607 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 542 | ∞ | |
| 0.605 | 537 | 888 | |
| 0.285 | 508 | 1782 | |
| 0.365 | 479 | 1313 | |
| 0.414 | 470 | 1135 | |
| 0 | 458 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 458 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 451 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 449 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 448 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 444 | ∞ | |
| 0.316 | 440 | 1392 | |
| 0 | 428 | ∞ | |
| 0.403 | 426 | 1057 | |
| 0 | 420 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 407 | ∞ | |
| 0.263 | 385 | 1464 | |
| 0.401 | 380 | 948 | |
| 0.251 | 300 | 1195 | |
The MOQI i7s panel might stand out in the very small crowd of portable gaming devices, but it is not really impressive in modern smartphone terms. Don't get us wrong, it's a decent LCD, no obscene air gap or horrible top surface. It is just not really impressive in any way. It does get decently bright, hitting a maximum of 538 nits, but no max-auto beyond that. A real bummer since a gaming handheld is likely to find itself outside in the sun.
Coupled with a pretty reflective surface on top of the panel (the glass screen protector isn't helping either), the MOQI i7s struggles outdoors. It's not a great experience.
Colors are nice and vibrant, but not particularly accurate. There are a total of three display modes to choose from - beauty is what you want to use to get the nice punchy colors in games. Nature mode just dials back the entire pallet and makes everything dull. You probably want to avoid Bright mode altogether since all it seems to do is crush greys leaving only a couple of shades. There is a color temperature slider as well, but without a proper custom white point setting, it didn't really help color accuracy much.
Display settings
Out of the box, we measured a pretty bad average deltaE of 11.9 and a maximum of 24.1. The cyan and blue colors, as well as purple being among the most over-saturated of the bunch. Putting on Natural mode and pushing the color slider very slightly to the cold end yields an average deltaE of 11.3 and a maximum of 19.9 and that's really the best we managed. Plus, like we already mentioned, you probably don't want to endure the dull colors this mode provides, so just put beauty mode on and learn to live with the panel.
Hardware
Circling back to the original point in this review, that Android gaming handhelds are a rarity - there might be more to add to this statement. If we have to be perfectly frank, it's the mainstream obscurity that strikes us the most. In reality, if you are willing to scour the internet and sites like Banggood, Geekbuying and Aliexpress, there is actually no shortage of gaming handhelds. Many of them running Android and even more models with custom OS and emulation software. The thing is that most of these tend to come with very low-end and often antiquated internals. More or less the bare minimum to run Android games.
One of the things that originally caught our eye about the MOQI i7s are its pretty decent and contemporary internals. Again, this is all relative to the particular market and competitors, but a Snapdragon 710 clearly stands out among the crowd. It is bundled with 6GB of RAM and 64GB or 128GB of expandable storage. Frankly hardware that could still fit perfectly fine in a budget 2019 Android phone.
A modern chipset also means other creature-comforts like a USB Type-C port, complete with Qualcomm's 18W Quick Charge technology. Since we are already on the subject, it is kind of a bummer that neither the Type-C not the 3.5mm jack offer any support for video output. GPD seems to have this covered across most of its handheld models.
Having said all this, there is another way to look at Snail's choice of chipset of the MOQI i7s and that has to do with GPU power. While definitely no slouch, the Snapdragon 710 has an Adreno 616 GPU at its disposal. Definitely better than anything currently on offer in Qualcomm's 600 lineup of chips and an upgrade compared to the MediaTek Helio X20 and Mali-T880 inside the old MOQI i7. What about an older 800 series Snapdragon and particularly the SD835? Its Adreno 540 looks a lot more capable, at least on paper. Would the i7s perhaps been better off with this chipset? Of course, we aren't in any position to say whether such a substitution was even possible or financially sound. Still, we can entertain the idea through some synthetic benchmarks in the next section.
Benchmarks
We don't really deal with dedicated gaming devices that often, the benchmark charts will be populated with a selection of smartphones instead. Since the MOQI i7s is running on a standard Qualcomm ARM chip and Android OS, it is still an apples to apples comparison. Plus, it is probably the most relevant comparison to make seeing how most people potentially in the market for a dedicated Android gaming handheld will undoubtedly be exploring the alternative approach of a conventional and potentially cheaper smartphone paired with a good gamepad.
In any case, we decided to pick a nice and wide selection of chipsets, mainly considering the GPU as a differentiating factor. That's definitely the potential bottleneck the Snapdragon 710 might encounter with intense gaming loads, since it is pretty well-stacked on the CPU side.
GeekBench 4.1 (multi-core)
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Mi 9
11181 - OnePlus 7
10768 - Honor Magic 2
9887 - Honor View 20
9530 - ASUS ROG Phone X mode (Fan on)
9406 - ASUS ROG Phone
9230 - Razer Phone 2
8923 - Xiaomi Mi 9T
6863 - Razer Phone
6728 - Honor Play
6696 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro
6620 - Samsung Galaxy A70
6584 - Motorola Moto Z4
6515 - Google Pixel 2 XL (Android 9)
6055 - Oppo F11 Pro
6020 - Xiaomi Mi 9 SE
6017 - Realme X
5915 - Realme 3 Pro
5881 - MOQI i7s
5855 - Samsung Galaxy S5e
5684 - Google Pixel 3a XL
5176 - Realme 3
4936
GeekBench 4.1 (single-core)
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Mi 9
3503 - OnePlus 7
3380 - Honor Magic 2
3316 - Honor View 20
3211 - ASUS ROG Phone X mode (Fan on)
2556 - Xiaomi Mi 9T
2537 - ASUS ROG Phone
2514 - Razer Phone 2
2424 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro
2404 - Samsung Galaxy A70
2391 - Motorola Moto Z4
2371 - Razer Phone
1931 - Xiaomi Mi 9 SE
1905 - Honor Play
1899 - MOQI i7s
1859 - Google Pixel 2 XL (Android 9)
1807 - Samsung Galaxy S5e
1631 - Google Pixel 3a XL
1615 - Oppo F11 Pro
1560 - Realme 3
1482 - Realme X
1475 - Realme 3 Pro
1471
Two + six cores (2.2 GHz Kryo 360 Gold - Cortex-A75 derivative + 1.7 GHz Kryo 360 Silver - Cortex-A55 derivative) are more then plenty to keep up with modern workloads, be it gaming or productivity. This setup is pretty much on par with the one inside the Snapdragon 670 and SD675.
Basemark OS 2.0
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Mi 9
5346 - ASUS ROG Phone X mode (Fan on)
4702 - ASUS ROG Phone
4614 - Honor View 20
4281 - Razer Phone 2
4163 - Honor Magic 2
4106 - Razer Phone
3492 - Google Pixel 3a XL
3328 - Honor Play
3294 - Google Pixel 2 XL (Android 9)
3293 - Xiaomi Mi 9T
3102 - Motorola Moto Z4
2975 - MOQI i7s
2778 - Realme X
2748 - Samsung Galaxy A70
2737 - Realme 3 Pro
2648 - Oppo F11 Pro
2232 - Realme 3
2020
The SD710 inside the MOQI i7s performs as expected and offers no surprises in terms of general productivity. So, let's move on to the more exciting GPU showdown. Going through the opponents we picked, we have the Qualcomm 712, which sports the exact same Adreno 616 GPU as the SD 710 and right above it the SD730, with its Adreno 618. In the 600 series - the SD670 is rocking an Adreno 615, while the SD675, oddly enough has an Adreno 612. And on the flagship side - the Snapdragon 835 - Adreno 540, SD845 - Adreno 630 and SD855 - Adreno 640. We also threw in the Kirin 980 with its Mali-G75 MP10 and the Kirin 970 with a Mali-G72 MP12. For good measure, the MediaTek Helio P70 is also on the chart, with just three of the same Mali-G72 cores at its disposal.
AnTuTu 7
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Mi 9
372006 - OnePlus 7
365085 - ASUS ROG Phone
290975 - ASUS ROG Phone X mode (Fan on)
288821 - Razer Phone 2
285051 - Honor View 20
275413 - Honor Magic 2
274466 - Xiaomi Mi 9T
211915 - Google Pixel 2 XL (Android 9)
206711 - Honor Play
204876 - Razer Phone
190271 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro
180754 - Xiaomi Mi 9 SE
180057 - Motorola Moto Z4
173234 - MOQI i7s
169232 - Samsung Galaxy A70
167750 - Google Pixel 3a XL
159110 - Realme 3 Pro
155647 - Samsung Galaxy S5e
152610 - Oppo F11 Pro
150218 - Realme 3
132764
Mind you, the devices we have picked to represent their respective chipsets vary in display and hence rendering resolution. So the off-screen performance tests are the ones to take into account here. Plus, you would be hard-pressed to even find a standard 16:9 FullHD phone nowadays, with the ongoing ultra-wide trend, making any on-screen comparison even more irrelevant.
GFX 3.1 Manhattan (onscreen)
Higher is better
- OnePlus 7
57 - Xiaomi Mi 9
56 - ASUS ROG Phone
54 - ASUS ROG Phone X mode (Fan on)
54 - Honor View 20
50 - Honor Magic 2
45 - Honor Play
36 - Razer Phone 2
33 - Realme 3
26 - Xiaomi Mi 9T
24 - Xiaomi Mi 9 SE
24 - MOQI i7s
24 - Razer Phone
22 - Realme 3 Pro
20 - Google Pixel 3a XL
19 - Google Pixel 2 XL (Android 9)
15 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro
15 - Motorola Moto Z4
14 - Samsung Galaxy A70
13 - Oppo F11 Pro
12 - Samsung Galaxy S5e
11
GFX 3.1 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Mi 9
70 - OnePlus 7
67 - ASUS ROG Phone
60 - ASUS ROG Phone X mode (Fan on)
60 - Honor View 20
53 - Honor Magic 2
53 - Razer Phone 2
51 - Razer Phone
42 - Honor Play
39 - Google Pixel 2 XL (Android 9)
30 - Xiaomi Mi 9T
27 - Xiaomi Mi 9 SE
26 - Realme 3 Pro
23 - MOQI i7s
23 - Samsung Galaxy S5e
20 - Google Pixel 3a XL
20 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro
17 - Samsung Galaxy A70
15 - Motorola Moto Z4
15 - Oppo F11 Pro
14 - Realme 3
13
That is actually a good point to make in favour of the MOQI i7s. As far as gaming is concerned, a standard 16:9 aspect is really the best way to go. You are not running the risk of bad compatibility, artifacting and performance issues on unoptimized or older titles. Plus, no extra load on the GPU to draw more pixels. If you are planning to play a lot of emulators, you are likely to even end up with a 4:3 window, since that is native for most older systems. All things considered, the standard aspect ratio of the panel gets a resounding nod from us.
Aztek Vulkan Normal (1080p offscreen)
Higher is better
- OnePlus 7
41 - Xiaomi Mi 9
41 - ASUS ROG Phone
36 - ASUS ROG Phone X mode (Fan on)
35 - Razer Phone 2
33 - Honor View 20
29 - Honor Magic 2
25 - MOQI i7s
13 - Samsung Galaxy S5e
11 - Google Pixel 3a XL
11 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro
9 - Oppo F11 Pro
8.4 - Motorola Moto Z4
8.2
Aztek OpenGL ES 3.1 Normal (1080p offscreen)
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Mi 9
43 - OnePlus 7
41 - ASUS ROG Phone
38 - Razer Phone 2
37 - ASUS ROG Phone X mode (Fan on)
37 - Honor View 20
30 - Honor Magic 2
30 - MOQI i7s
14 - Samsung Galaxy S5e
12 - Google Pixel 3a XL
12 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro
9.8 - Samsung Galaxy A70
9.1 - Motorola Moto Z4
9.1 - Oppo F11 Pro
8.7
To be clear though, looking at the synthetic benchmark numbers it is pretty obvious that the Adreno 616 is hardly a powerhouse. We are happy to see it perform just right and within expected margins on the MOQI i7s, alleviating any worries we originally had about poor software optimization from Snail.
What you get is a GPU that easily outpaces the typical MediaTek chips, found in other obscure Android gaming handhelds out there. That being said, if you are after the best possible performance for money Android gaming platform, the Snapdragon 710 can easily be trumped by slightly older flagship silicon.
Basemark X
Higher is better
- ASUS ROG Phone X mode (Fan on)
60171 - ASUS ROG Phone
59072 - Razer Phone 2
54750 - Razer Phone
51455 - Xiaomi Mi 9
45089 - Honor Magic 2
43562 - Honor View 20
43537 - Google Pixel 2 XL (Android 9)
39372 - Honor Play
32238 - Xiaomi Mi 9T
31318 - MOQI i7s
28671 - Realme X
28416 - Realme 3 Pro
27031 - Google Pixel 3a XL
25962 - Motorola Moto Z4
21197 - Samsung Galaxy A70
19341 - Realme 3
19157 - Oppo F11 Pro
16838
The older Kirin 970, for instance, as found in the Honor Play does roughly 50% to 60% better in GPU tests, with its 12 Mali-G72 cores. And then there is the Snapdragon 835, which can practically pump out twice the number of frames in certain scenarios. Both of these can now be had for a bargain due to their age - a lot more irrelevant of a consideration on a dedicated gaming device, which doesn't necessarily need extra goodies like the latest connectivity options.
3DMark SSE 3.1 Unlimited
Higher is better
- OnePlus 7
6058 - Xiaomi Mi 9
5816 - ASUS ROG Phone
4875 - Honor Magic 2
3599 - Google Pixel 2 XL (Android 9)
3237 - Honor View 20
3025 - Xiaomi Mi 9T
2329 - Xiaomi Mi 9 SE
2218 - Honor Play
2206 - MOQI i7s
1986 - Google Pixel 3a XL
1748 - Samsung Galaxy S5e
1723 - Oppo F11 Pro
1275 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro
1220 - Realme 3
1189 - Samsung Galaxy A70
1112 - Motorola Moto Z4
1044
So, in short, do we think that the MOQI i7s would have been better off overall with a Snapdragon 835, rather than a Snapdragon 710? Well, yes, probably so. But again, we can't really be sure that was even an option to consider on Snail's part. Plus, synthetics are fine and dandy, but what really matters is how well the i7s handles actual gaming loads, like the ones you would throw at it. Join us on the next page as we sample a nice selection of native Android titles and emulators to really test the i7s' gaming pedigree.
Gaming performance
So how good is gaming on the MOQI i7s? The short answer - pretty awesome. The longer answer definitely has us mentioning the sheer complexity of certain software goodies, like the extremely in-depth touch emulation overlay system. But that is both a blessing and a curse and some setup effort is expected with most every gaming device nowadays. More on that later.
To see just how well the i7s handles gaming loads we threw a nice mix at it. What we mean by that is a selection including some native Android games of varying complexity, like battle royals, console-grade platformers, going all the way down to some casual experiences. Then we moved on to emulators, just to see how far we could push the device.
PUBG settings
Getting actual performance readings off of an Android device is no trivial task. Luckily, GameBench offers everything you need via their root-free FPS counter and in-depth performance monitor. It is what we used for the bulk of our tests and there is now a free community version, which you can check out.
FPS and stability tests: PUBG • Rayman Adventures
Anyway, like you can see on the previous set of screenshots we ran PUBG at the maximum HD setting available for the MOQI i7s and made sure to disable the variable details and resolution option, so we can really see if the game becomes too much for the SD710 to handle. We had zero issues whatsoever practically sticking to PUBG's internal 30fps cap all the time.
On to a demanding console-quality platformer like Rayman Adventures - flawless experience once again. This game doesn't offer graphics options to tweak, but left to its own devices it maintained a solid 60fps. No slowdowns and no overheating. We observed the same great levels of performance in Grand Theft Auto San Andreas - an actual AAA game, now ported and available on Android.
This leads us to a pretty important point, which we keep bringing up - modern mobile game engines are extremely well optimized and scale masterfully from flagship to budget hardware. That being said, emulation is a whole other bucket of worms.
RetroArch running its beautiful XMB with game thumbnails
RetroArch is pretty much a de facto standard for emulation, or at least one of the most versatile options out there with an active community ready to help out. And mind you, you are likely to need help at some point, since the setup can get pretty convoluted, especially if you want goodies like thumbnails for all your games. There are simpler options in the Play Store, as well if you don't feel like wasting too much time for just a few quick ROMs you like. The downside being that you will have to deal with at least a few apps and their individual setups and control schemes
More retro emulations
Once you go through all this, however, you can expect nothing short of a great experience emulating any older console. When we say older here, we mean basically anything up to the Nintendo 64 and the original PlayStation. Even the more demanding arcade titles we tried ran with no issues on the MOQI i7s. As a nice little bonus RetroArch plays really nice with the hardware controls on the device simply mapping them internally by default. And not having to manually map controls on an emulator is nothing short of a godsend.
Dolphin emulator: Super Mario Sunshine • The Legend of Zelda Wind Waker • Super Mario Galaxy 2
What about emulating some more recent consoles then? Well, that's a mixed bag. We tried a few GameCube and Wii games, since the Dolphin emulator is now pretty well optimised. This is where the Snapdragon 710 started to hit its limits. Still, it all depends on the particular title and the amount of time you and the internet are willing to spend on little setting tweaks. The Legend of Zelda Wind Waker, for instance, runs beautifully on the i7s. Super Mario Sunshine is playable, but only after quite a bit of tweaking. Super Mario Galaxy, as well as most major Nintendo Wii releases are mostly out of the capabilities of the i7s. PS2 emulation is a no-go as well, despite our best efforts. To be fair, PS2 emulators are still not very mature on Android, plus the most popular one we could find has a minimum requirement of a Snapdragon 835.
On a more positive note, most every PSP game we tried ran wonderfully on the MOQI. The same goes for Nintendo handhelds form the DS family. Obviously not the Switch, though. The PS VITA might sound like a reasonable system to try, but emulating it on a x86 PC is still pretty early along, let alone ARM. That's just the fickle nature of emulation. Even so, the MOQI i7s does surprisingly well with this daunting task. Plus all the extra control mapping and macro options available in the OS really enhance the experience, but more on that in the software section.
Battery life
The MOQI i7s has a huge 6000 mAh battery pack at its disposal and pretty much manages to make the most of it. On the one hand, there is plenty of juice to go around. Then there is also the surprisingly lean and clear Android install, which is specifically set-up to limit background activity of any kind. When you install an app, regardless of whether it is via the Play Store or other means, the i7s restricts it from running in the background, automatically starting up and firing notifications. This makes for a great non-intrusive experience perfect for what is meant to be a gaming console and not just another bloated busy smartphone. Also, it practically limits the ability of typically batter-hogging apps to drain your battery.
All of this adds up to stellar battery life. We did put the MOQI i7s through its paces in out traditional battery test and it performed great across the board. That being said, the standby and talk times seem quite irrelevant since nobody is realistically going to be using the handheld in this way. The most logical thing to do in our opinion is simply have airplane mode on unless you specifically need network data. If you really insist on leaving the cell connection on all the time you are looking at about 400 hours of stand-by. A lot longer otherwise.
Battery screen
For web browsing on Wi-Fi you are looking at around 24 hours on a single charge and right about 20 hours of offline video playback. Not too shabby. Charging is nice and quick thanks to Quick Charge 4+ support at 18W. The MOQI i7s can replenish about 23% of its battery in half an hour. Or you can opt for an instant top-up thanks to the convenience of a user-replaceable battery pack. We did manage to find one over at JD.com.
Software
The MOQI i7s ships with an Android 8.1 ROM. It is both surprisingly vanilla in many aspects and chock-full of pretty custom features here and there. Quite an intriguing mix.
Two separate update interfaces
It appears that Snail has done a decent job of "implanting" its customizations into AOSP all under the MOCH moniker. That ships in a package of its own, with an updater of its own. Unfortunately, that does leave you with two separate update interfaces that you need to check from time to time. Realistically, however, we wouldn't expect many system updates, considering the obscurity of the product. That does mean you will likely be stuck on a Google security patch from October 2018. But since the i7s isn't meant to be your primary smartphone housing all your most sensitive info, perhaps it doesn't matter all that much?
Anyway, you could also root the i7s and attempt to patch it yourself. Snail appears quite responsive when it comes to such matters. A good thing too, since depending on the retail channel you acquire the i7s from it might not come with Google Play services installed at all.
Security isn't really up to date • Google Play services install packages • Google device registration
Thankfully, getting around that is quite easy. If you find yourself in this situation, look inside the root storage folder. You should find two archive packages about Google services. If those happen to be missing, contact Snail support to get them. After that, you need to boot into recovery and use the included Magisk to flash one of the two packages. If you don't need Google Play services and access to the Play store, flashing the uninstall package is a great way to save battery and remove what is essentially bloat in your use case.
There is one final step to the Google-install process. This one needs to be done even if your i7s came with Play Services pre-installed. Since the i7s' ROM does not pass current Google security certification, you need to manually register an exception in your account for this particular device. This will give you access to some apps and games that require elevated security. In order to do so, Moqi has an extremely streamlined Google wizard app. That being said, most games will install and run just fine without going through these extra steps. Just keep them in mind in case you find yourself unable to find or set up a particular app.
Settings screen • Settings screen • Settings screen • Notification shade
On the surface the MOQI Android ROM has a pretty vanilla look. All the custom bits just seem pretty well and seamlessly woven into the core OS. For instance, the on-screen navigation bar is custom, featuring a re-positionable back button, as well as a quick shortcut to the MOQI helper app - a veritable gaming hub, which we will describe in more detail in a bit.
A couple of floating icons (one for screenshots and one for the same MOQI helper) are also clearly not AOSP, along with their corresponding toggles and settings menus. The screenshot functionality seems to be completely re-written to include things like a watermark with custom position and color. Unfortunately, we didn't find a way to remove the watermark completely, which is why it is present on all the screenshots.
Entirely custom screenshot interface
Like we already mentioned MOQI tweaked quite a few aspects of default Android behavior for a better gaming experience. By better, we mostly mean distraction-free. By default, any app that gets installed is barred from pretty much all extra privileges. No background running allowed, no autostart, no notifications, not even the notification LED can be accessed freely. The Google Play store even shows an Enable button first after install, which you have to press before you can launch an app or game.
Apps get installed in a very locked-down state by default
While this behavior is great for games and emulators, it is not ideal for things like messengers and social network, which rely on background activity and notifications. In case you feel like running some of those, the Battery saver menu offers a per-app white list for all of the disabled functionality.
Battery saver features on a per-app basis
Snail even thought a step further. If you do allow certain apps to push notifications at will, but would still prefer a focused gaming experience, just add your games into the GameMode list, which will suppress all notifications at launch. Neat!
GameMode
To be fair, though, GameMode does sound a bit confusing at first, since it potentially suggests some performance optimization as well. Unfortunately, confusing titles, options, and texts are a common sight in the MOQI launcher. Most of the issues seem to stem from poor translation. Hopefully, most of these get cleared up soon since currently, specific in-depth settings have an additional learning curve only due to the language barrier.
Much Game Helper
Speaking of additional features, it's about time we finally got to these, since they actually represent a huge added value and truly make having the hardware gaming controls worthwhile. Thankfully all the really neat and important features are contained within a single app - the Much Game Helper. The first thing to check regarding the helper is the system settings menu, simply to decide how you want to integrate the helper into the OS. The floating icon is pretty convenient if you don't find it distracting.
Much Game Helper settings
We probably won't be able to cover all the options the Much Game Helper offers, since there are some in-depth and advanced things, like a selection of analog stick behavior types for on-screen control emulation. But, as far as the basics go, there are a few important bits. Depending on the game you are playing, some will make more sense than others. In titles with native gamepad support things typically just work as far as basic mapping. What you can do to further is define to key macros and combos and tie them to a particular button.
Setting up: Key combos • Key macros
Then there are games with on-screen only control schemes. This is where the MOQI mapping really shines. To be clear, we've seen similar implementations before, like on the Asus ROG Phone. Still, what Snail has in place on the MOQI i7s is nothing short of impressive in versatility and depth. Every button and both analog sticks can be mapped and its all done with a simple drag and drop, followed by a physical button press or size adjustment for the analogs.
Adapter schemes
The analog stick emulation, in particular, comes with ludicrous amounts of fine tweaking and a trio of emulation modes. Once you set everything up just the way you want it, it gets saved into what Snail calls an Adapter Scheme. You can have multiple of these for every title and switch them quickly on the fly.
Adapter schemes: local • cloud
But perhaps the most impressive bit of it all is the MOQI cloud repository for mapping schemes. We didn't think much of it at first, but it is kind of magic. So much so that for most of the touch-input games we launched on the i7s mapping physical controls came down to pressing allow on a prompt that tells you MOQI wants to analyze the current game's control scheme (color us impressed!). A few seconds later things just start to work! No joke. And if you don't find the particular map to your liking, the chances are that a quick pop into the Cloud Schemes menu in the hovering MOQI Helper UI can yield at least a few working and slightly different schemes.
MOQI help app is invaluable
Does the whole things look crude and in desperate need of some UI polish? Yes, very much so. Dare we say it is the most impressive, versatile, and powerful control mapping interface we have seen on an Android device to date? That would also be a resounding yes!
the only issue we have with the whole system Snail has in place is the steep initial learning curve it requires. Thankfully, there is a MOQI help app that does a relatively decent job of explaining everything. Sure, the level of English isn't amazing here either, but with enough perseverance, the payout is worth it.
KEY DIY is a great addition to the Adapter schemes
In fact, reading carefully through these help texts is the only reason we now know about the KEY DIY feature, which is also pretty awesome, particularly for DOS game emulation, in our case. What it allows you to accomplish is map any of the existing physical controls on the MOQI i7s to a different physical control instead of an on-screen one. This might sound confusing, but the simplest example we can give is to have one of the four main buttons simulate pressing the control key on a typical keyboard as if the latter were plugged into the device. Our DOSBox emulator of choice then simply picks this up as a native keyboard key press and passes it on to the game, which makes Commander Keen shoot without ever going near any confusing .bat mapping scripts. If this sounds familiar to you, then you already understand what a godsend KEY DIY is.
KEY DIY is amazingly versatile
Better still, KEY DIY operates on a per-app basis, so you don't have to worry about navigating the regular Android UI once you remap all of your keys to numpad codes for Mortal Kombat.
16MP main camera quality
The MOQI i7s has a single 15MP Samsung ISOCELL Bright S5K3P9, f/2.5 camera on the back. To be perfectly frank, we kind of took a quick gander at the MOQI i7s, its gaming nature and market intent and naturally expected very little of said camera. This prejudice was very much reaffirmed after seeing the camera app itself.
It can be described as basic, at best. While not necessarily an issue in itself, what we have here is a bunch of very crudely drawn, low-res icons that don't really function half on the time. The shutter key is dependable enough, but entering the settings menu never, ever happens on the first try.
Camera UI
Once in there we simply ended up confused by most modes. Just to run down a few of these - UbiFocus takes a total of 8 shots in succession all with varying focus points so you can re-adjust the focus after the fact. Sharp photo and Blur buster both claim to help in achieving a cleaner, sharper and blur-free shot. Most other modes simply tweak the exposure in a particular way to vaguely suit the suggested environment.
All and all - all of these should be baked into the auto mode to begin with. Still, we gave all of them a spin and will be including some samples in a bit. The short story of it, though, is that not one of them is particularly better than auto.
Camera settings
The actual camera settings menu offers up even more options. Some have been surprisingly buried way too deep inside menus, like exposure compensation and white balance. On the flip side, the video capture section appears surprisingly rich in options. You can select an audio and video encoder, among other things, some of which also need to be more prominently placed on the main camera UI.
So, clearly, on the surface, the camera is a bit of a confusing mess. However, moving on to actual camera quality, there is a little bit of a silver lining and it can be best summed up like so - the camera is not potato-quality.
MOQI i7s camera samples
Now this is not to say that the camera is particularly good. It isn't. Exposure is all over the place, focus is unreliable as well. Dynamic range is particularly bad. Even so, we wouldn't go as far as call it a "potato camera". There are some redeeming qualities. Colors, although a bit too saturated at times come out looking pretty nice. Detail is decent and the noise suppression is doing its job well enough.
MOQI i7s camera samples
These samples are all taken in auto mode, which you should probably stick to. Either that or Pro mode, if you know what you are doing. Another good idea is to use spot metering for exposure for every shot. Otherwise, you run the risk of the auto exposure fluctuating all over the place without much change in external lighting conditions. Like the samples below.
Fluctuating auto exposure
Just for the sake of completeness here are a few Blur buster and Sharp photo mode samples. Neither mode stands out particularly in our opinion.
Blur buster samples
Sharp photo samples
Bottom line here - if you really, really find yourself in desperate need to take a photo and the MOQI i7s is the only device you have on hand the old saying that "the best camera is the one you currently have" does apply without too many reservations. We just can't really imagine many of the already few potential MOQI i7s users will particularly care about this aspect of the handheld.
The same is pretty much true about video capture quality. Still, we wanted to be thorough, so we tried our best.
While still usable, video captured with the MOQI i7s is nothing to phone home about. Hardly a shock, really. Resolution tops out at 1080p, with a bitrate of around 20 Mb/s and a standard combination of VVC video and AAV audio (stereo, by the way), inside an mp4 package. The most outstanding issue seems to be exposure, combined with a limited dynamic range. Other than that, video capture is another case of not "potato quality" and simply usable, if need be.
Oh and just in case you were wondering, the image stabilization toggle within the video recording settings doesn't seem to do anything at all. No cropping and no EIS.
5MP selfie camera
Just like the main camera, we can't really imagine too many potential MOQI i7s owners are going to use or particularly care about its 5MP OV5695, f/2.2 selfie snapper. Pictures from it come out unimpressive, but just like the main camera - not unusably bad.
MOQI i7s selfie samples
The main problem in our book is the focus distance, which is set a bit too far for our liking, leaving the subject blurred more often than not. One thing that did spring to mind regarding the selfie camera is the potential to use in as a facecam while streaming your gaming sessions. It is certainly doable via apps like Mobcrush and as long as you are mindful about holding the MOQI i7s a bit further away from your face it actually works very well. The selfie camera is certainly in a great spot to facilitate such a use case.
General smartphone usability
Just before we finish things up, a few words about the general usability of the MOQI i7s as a smartphone seem in order. With two nano SIM slots and a decently positioned earpiece and microphone you could, theoretically, make phone calls on the i7s. Don't really expect to look respectable while doing so, but our unit did manage to hold a stable call, no issues. Both the microphone and earpiece sound good.
We did experience one notable issue, which we are fairly sure is specific to the particular unit. For some reason we only managed to get the second SIM slot working. It might be a hardware issue or simply a bad connection, since the SIM locking mechanism used on the i7s is a very old style push-down latch that is prone to malfunction.
Other that that the i7s has a truly modern connectivity load-out mostly thanks to the Snapdragon 710 chipset. Cat.4 LTE, Bluetooth 5.0 and dual band Wi-Fi are all part of the mix. As far as general Android usability goes, the i7s is just as versatile as any modern smartphone.
Competition
Like we mentioned earlier the portable gaming market might be short on many big-name players, but there are still a lot of options out there. Especially if you are not afraid to dig deeper into Chinese e-tailers. We pretty much covered why the MOQI i7s stands out thoroughly throughout this review specs and feature-wise, but that can also be said about its price. MSRP for the handheld seems to be about $399, although we did manage to find it for as little as EUR 250.
That being said, less powerful but still Android-based alternatives like the GPD XD Plus can be had for about $240, perhaps even less. You will be sacrificing some performance, but the versatility Android offers is still there. However, if you don't really care about Android games at all and are interested solely in emulating older consoles and playing them with good physical controls, there are decent options based around single board computers and Linux emulation cores for well under $100.
As far as name-brand options go, there is always the Nintendo Switch. Prices have gone down significantly and a new unit can be had for about $299. A good second-hand bargain might reduce that by as much as 40% or even 50%. What you get is a current console with plenty of first and third-party support a growing library of games and a surprisingly booming homebrew community. A pretty sweet deal. However, if you want to make the most out of the Switch you do need to invest a bit of effort into modding one. This is definitely a grey area for a number of reasons, but it will give you access to emulators. Ones already optimized, pre-mapped and configured for the Switch.
But as exciting as Nintendo's current portable offering is for many, not everybody is a fan of that particular ecosystem or the Japanese titan's library of exclusives and gaming franchises. For the Sony fans out there the ageing PS VITA remains a solid option. Pricing on these can be very speculative, but you need to remember that since March 1 2019 it is officially a discontinued console. If you are after one, our suggestion is to look around for a bargain and not got over the $100 mark. Since there are so many VITA units out there, good cheap ones are not hard to come by. And since it is such a mature console at this point, the modding and homebrew community has it mostly cracked wide open. Emulators shine on it and PSP backward compatibility is native. Plus, if you own a PS4 or even PS3 Sony offers remote play and tight integration between its TV consoles and the VITA as a joystick replacement, second display or remote streaming client.
Nvidia Shield: Portable • Tablet
Since we are already knee-deep in discontinued console territory, we should definitely mention the Nvidia Shield line of devices, mainly the Shield Tablet and Shield Portable. Both are pretty old at this point which brings about the standard set of caveats, like limited support, old Android versions and lacking recent security patches. However, Nvidia Tegra processors are still GPU beasts. All the versatility of the Android OS is accounted for, plus you also get access to a particularly intriguing set of Android ports of older AAA titles, specifically done for and only officially running on the Shield family of devices and the Tegra chips. If you really have to play Half-Life 2 on the go, this might be your best bet.
Last, but definitely not least, there is always the option to simply use your current Android phone or tablet, paired with a nice gamepad. Or perhaps even pick up a dedicated device for that purpose alone. This is definitely the most versatile option, especially if you already have or can find other uses for the device in question. It might also be the cheapest route to take, seeing how there are some excellent and affordable gamepad options out there. We are personally quite partial to IPEGA products.
Still, this is not a faultless solution either. Since what you are doing is essentially opting not to pay for an integrated, pre-made solution by a vendor, instead putting together one yourself. All the setup, mapping, software hurdles and potential Bluetooth connectivity issues are yours and yours alone to deal with.
Verdict
So, at the end of the day, would we recommend the MOQI i7s? Well, just like with most phones we review on the regular the answer is yes, but only if you are part of just the right crowd.
There is nothing really special or that unique about the i7s. It is simply a well put-together, thought-out and tightly integrated product. The components it is made up of are easily attainable and the experience replicable, given enough time and effort. But the MOQI i7s certainly rises above the sum of its hardware parts and delivers a commendable user experience. It is a great choice, but only for the right crowd.
For some users one of many portable gaming DIY roads might be more appropriate. For a larger number or gamers, still, even the MOQI i7s will be too much of a hassle, instead favoring a commercial console offer. If you think that a dedicated portable Android handheld is something you'd like to have, then the i7s is a great option, definitely worth considering.
Pros
- Great design, inspired by popular handheld consoles of the past and present and solid built.
- Pretty good and loud stereo speakers on the back.
- Decent display with an optimal aspect ratio.
- Modern Snapdragon 710 chipset, with contemporary connectivity options and 18 Quick Charge support. 3.5mm audio jack and USB Type-C are both a welcome sight.
- Outperforms most Android handheld competitors on the market and their MediaTek chipsets.
- Both native Android games and Emulators (Up to Sony PS1 and Nintendo 64) work flawlessly.
- Battery life is great and spare packs can be found online.
- The custom Android ROM is surprisingly clean and specifically set-up to limit distractions and extract maximum performance and battery life.
- The added Much Game Helper and its incredibly tight, versatile and robust control mapping, cloud settings repository and integration are a godsend for gaming.
- Both cameras are decent, albeit not impressive in any way.
Cons
- Ergonomics could use some extra work.
- No push-in action on the analogue sticks is an unfortunate omission.
- No video output is available.
- The finish on the back is particularly terrible.
- The display is a bit too reflective for pleasing outdoor use.
- The Android 8.1 ROM is a bit old and not running the latest security patches. The update potential is slim.
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