ISSUE 64 • ANDROID ADVISOR 45REVIEWperfectly fine when the signal was strong. Despite
Vodafone supposedly having at least 99 percent 4G
coverage in the UK, we found the service to regularly
drop out, particularly outside of London. However, if
you do find somewhere with a strong signal, you can
easily use the device as a personal hotspot.
The Bluetooth connection worked consistently
well, but it doesn’t support the simultaneous
playback of audio from two different sources, as is
available on Bluetooth 5.0.
Our experience with the GPS was unreliable.
Navigating an unfamiliar environment using Google
Maps became frustrating, leading to wrong turns on
a number of occasions. This is something you should
bear in mind if you plan on regularly using your
phone as a satnav, although this may have been as
much to do with the software as the hardware.
Software
The Smart V10 comes with Android 9.0 Pie out of
the box, and we were prompted with an immediate
security update after setting up the phone. This is
impressive on such a cheap phone, but it remains
to be seen how long the device will be supported
or if it will get the upgrade to Android Q when it is
released later this year.
Vodafone typically sticks with ‘stock’ Android for
the most part, keeping bloatware to a bare minimum.
There are a few apps you will be encouraged to
download, but they are non-disruptive and can easily
be uninstalled. As with many Vodafone handsets,
the Smart V10 includes parental control options,