Kyocera Urbano L01: The great 2013 Japanese flagship exclusive

Quick specs:
2GB RAM / 16GB ROM expandable up to 64GB microSDXC
Snapdragon S4 Plus (2x@1.5GHz Krait) 28nm
Adreno 225
AnTuTu v7: 89,012
4.7-inch 1280 x 720 TFT LCD 60Hz (319 ppi)
13 MP rear / 1MP front
2,700mAh Li-ion battery (removable)
microUSB SlimPort 15W charging
Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean)
4G LTE / Wi-Fi 5GHz
FM radio / TV (One-Seg)

This phone is very unique in its own way. The slick green color way that shouts “premium” during its time, the slab-like form factor, the ultra-innovative face unlock feature, and the greenness is almost sickening with its vibrance, glistening like an emerald in the rough.

Launch in 2013, the Kyocera Urbano L01 I have was supposed to receive a major update from Jellybean to Android 6.0 Marshmallow, but I never managed to do it because of the phone being a Japan exclusive, and updating via VPN set in the country isn't no longer viable with its old, aging software.

The perils of using Android Jellybean is quite the challenge if you're used to well... using modern hardware. If you want to adjust the brightness—go to settings. If you want to adjust the wallpaper or customize— you need to go to settings. If you need to open Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, you can't just flick and go— you need to go to settings, at least for this device.

And while it is quite an annoyance today, I admire this old champ's smoothness, thanks to its dual-core Snapdragon S4 Plus, which still capable of running Facebook (Lite), YouTube (via NewPipe Legacy), Google, and more, so long as you install the last supported version for this Android version.

The single, pathetic speaker is tinny and almost muffled, the 1-megapixel front camera is really agonizing, and most widgets cannot work here. On the upside, the battery still holds quite a decent charge (left it on standby for 9 days from 100% and the phone still has 71% juice when I checked on it with Wi-Fi still on). Of course, there's the classic One-Seg TV function, but unfortunately, it can be only used in Japan. Charging is alright, about 1 hour and 45 minutes to charge the entire 2,700mAh capacity.

Whenever I feel like cutting down my smartphone usage (I know, it's a struggle when you have mountains and mountains of phones lying around), the Kyocera Urbano L01 is still snappy, but if I will describe it nicely, it would be “filled with patience” when loading something up.

Yes, it is snappy and responsive. But the loading times ranges from a snap to a couple of seconds to load, but when it does, it does work well.

For now, the L01 is my music player until I can buy the Moondrop M1AD 01. The screen is crisp and decent even for an 11-year old phone, the 5GHz Wi-Fi support is a godsend, and most importantly, it still works and looks like when it was launched in 2013.

Verdict: Lovely, but only for collectors.

Up next: Cherry Mobile Flare S8 Max or Honor Magic 2