Created: 15 August 2016 · Last edited: 19 September 2026

The Sharp FS8001 is the second phone launching in the South-East Asian market after the acquisition of the majority of Sharp shares by Taiwanese Hon Hai, a.k.a. Foxconn. The phone is released under the easier name Sharp M1 in Taiwan, Sharp MS1 in Singapore and Malaysia, and as Sharp C1 in Mainland China.

This appears to be a mid-range smartphone utilising a display technology never before seen on a Sharp phone.

The Sharp M1/MS1/C1 has a 5.5-inch Full HD 1080p LTPS (Low-Temperature Polycrystalline Silicon) display, which employs a 3D curved glass design. The front of the phone is covered with Corning Gorilla Glass, while the rear uses a curved glass design that gives the handset a rather distinctive appearance.

The device is powered by an octa-core MediaTek MT6753 Cortex-A53 processor clocked at 1.3 GHz, has 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of built-in storage memory, which can be expanded using up to 64 GB microSDHC cards. The graphics are handled by a Mali-T720 GPU.

What is particularly interesting about this new non-Japanese Sharp is its camera setup. It features a 13-megapixel rear camera and one 13-MP camera on the front, the latter apparently targeting the selfie maniacs. Both cameras support autofocus, with the front camera offering a 77-degree wide-angle view and the rear one an 80-degree wide-angle view. The rear camera also features optical image stabilisation and an LED flash. Considering the M1's price of 8,990 TWD (ca. 286 USD) in Thailand, this is a rather impressive feature.

The M1/MS1/C1 is clearly aimed at people who like taking selfies. The front camera's autofocus is particularly unusual for a mid-range phone of this period, while both cameras can record Full HD video.

The Sharp M1/MS1/C1 features a dual sound amplifier for "true sound quality" and a "natural sound" with deeper bass. It also has dual microphones with noise reduction.

The M1/MS1/C1 is a dual-SIM dual-standby smartphone using nano-SIM cards, although one SIM slot doubles as the microSD card slot. The radio module covers a fairly big range of frequencies:

• GSM: 850 MHz / 900 MHz / 1.8 GHz / 1.9 GHz
• 3G W-CDMA: 850 MHz / 900 MHz / 1.9 GHz / 2.1 GHz
• 4G FDD-LTE: 700 MHz (B28) / 900 MHz (B8) / 1.8 GHz (B3) / 2.1 GHz (B1) / 2.6 GHz (B7)
• 4G TDD-LTE: 2.3 GHz (B40) / 2.6 GHz (B38)

Other connectivity options include Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n with Miracast, Bluetooth 4.1, GPS/A-GPS with GLONASS, FM radio and USB OTG. The phone also has a 3.5-mm headphone jack and uses a micro-USB port for charging and data.

The battery is a mere 2600 mAh and we do not know as yet how many hours of operation it can provide, considering this isn't an energy-efficient IGZO display. The battery is non-removable.

The Sharp M1/MS1/C1 offers no ingress protection of any kind unlike Japanese phones, which are normally both water- and dust-resistant.

The dimensions are 155 mm × 77 mm × 7.6 mm, and weight is 151 grams. It is offered in Hanayome White and Pure Pink. The phone runs Android 6.0 Marshmallow out of the box.