HMD Fusion review

The HMD Fusion is a brave new step into the modular smartphone world, at least sort of.  Forget magnetic attachments, this thing is all about snap-on "Outfits" that fundamentally bring more functionality. It's a concept we haven't seen truly embraced since the ill-fated Moto Z series. But is it a gimmick or a game-changer? Read on.

The Fusion itself, sans Outfit, is surprisingly sleek and understated. It's got a smooth, matte finish back panel that resists fingerprints like a champ, and the rounded edges make it comfortable to hold, even with its generous 6.56-inch display.

It's available only in black colour in India but the real deal of the Fusion is the exposed screws on the back and the six pogo pins. You see, this smartphone has HMD’s Gen2 reparability for user-friendly maintenance which means you can unscrew this thing on your own and replace any parts in the future. The industrial design is a clean, minimalist aesthetic that will appeal to those who prefer their tech understated. The six pogo pin connector at the back lets you connect HMD’s accessories called Outfits which we’ll get to in a bit.

The button placement is standard, with the power button and volume rocker on the right side. The power button also doubles as a fingerprint sensor, which is snappy and reliable.

This is where things get interesting and potentially divisive. The HMD Fusion's raison d'être is its compatibility with these "Outfits" - back panels with integrated hardware that add specific functionalities to the phone. Think of them as supercharged phone cases. Here in India, HMD has launched two interesting options to start.

The first one is the Gaming Outfit which is my personal favourite. This is essentially a gaming controller for your smartphone and it fits the HMD Fusion like a glove. The controller connects to the smartphone via the six pogo pins at the back and you’re ready to go. It’s a great quality controller with clickable buttons and an ergonomic grip. However, it’s not Bluetooth compatible so it only works using the Pogo pin connection. Secondly, it doesn’t have any software support for customisation so you can’t change touch controls to button input like you can with the Amkette EvoFox Deck. This means games like Genshin Impact on Android and BGMI don’t work with this controller since those games don’t have native controller support. There’s a USB Type-C port as well to charge your smartphone very slowly and a headphone jack for audio out. You can use the controller with your PC using the USB Type-C connection because it detects as a DualShock controller on Steam.

The second in the list is the Flashy Outfit which is probably a selfie lover’s dream come true. It’s a smartphone case with a foldable RGB LED flash ring that provides extra light while clicking photos. It’s a really interesting accessory and I can see many folks using this. Just like the Gaming Outfit, this too doesn’t require any wireless connection and doesn’t even have a battery. Simply slap it on the phone and it works via the pogo pin connection.

The camera quality of the 50 MP selfie camera is good but nothing too different from the other smartphones in this price range. It doesn’t manage highlights well but it gets the skin tone a bit better than most Chinese smartphones in the market. The Fusion might have a slightly less appealing camera module because there’s technically only a single 108MP Main camera with autofocus and EIS. The second lens in the module is a 2MP depth sensor.

The photos from the rear camera are done well. The colour and tone are judged really well and even the sharpness is done tastefully. It doesn’t look oversharpened like most 100+ megapixel smartphone cameras and probably it’s its best trick. It does, however, have a slower shutter speed than the rest of the smartphones in this price range.

Without any Outfits, the HMD Fusion feels a little underwhelming for the price It's powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 processor, paired with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. In day-to-day usage, I didn’t see any issues with performance on this smartphone. However, the competition is fierce in this price range and the Fusion doesn’t make a compelling case for itself with a slower processor.

I feel the value of HMD Fusion will be in B2B scenarios where you maybe want to build out personal outfits for your smartphone and 3D print the thing yourself. That’s the purpose of those pogo pins at the back. HMD is providing a  Fusion Developement Toolkit  on their website for geeks to really explore the true potential of this smartphone.

The HMD Fusion is a unique device with a lot of potential, but it feels like it's still in its early stages. The modular "Outfit" system is innovative, but the limited selection. Performance is adequate for everyday use, but the price point is ambitious considering the competition. It doesn’t even have an AMOLED screen. It’s an LCD display with HD+ resolution (720x1612).

The true value of the Fusion might lie in its potential for customization and development, making it more appealing to businesses and tech enthusiasts than everyday consumers.