Lenovo announced two new smartphones during its IFA 2014 press conference in Berlin, including the Vibe X2 that features some powerful specs and a tri-layered design to deliver a very colourful smartphone.

We got our hands on the new addition to the Vibe range at the show to see how the layered design worked in the flesh.

Lenovo has done a good job with the Vibe X2, offering something a little different in a market full of already great smartphones. It faces some tough competition from some beautiful devices but the Vibe X2 provides a new take on smartphone design.

The layered look won't be to everyone's taste but there is no denying its premium-looking solid build. The metal finish looks great and when you pick it up and hold it, you feel like you are holding a quality handset. It's not heavy either, even though it looks like it will be, weighing only 120g.

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We got our hands on the red, orange and silver colour combination but there are five options, one of which is a black, grey and silver variant, which means if you want something a little more subtle you can still get it. Or you could go all out and get the bamboo option depending on what you're into.

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It's a very rectangular design that is very flat with no rounded edges or curved back and it reminded us a little of the previous Sony Xperia Z smartphones in terms of shape. It's pretty slim though, measuring just 7.27mm so even though the layers make it look thicker, it will fit into a pocket comfortably.

The power and volume rocker on the right-hand side offer a slightly shinier finish that adds to the premium feel of this device and the SIM slot is subtle on the left hand side. It's a very simple but effective design and we liked the layering.

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Lenovo hasn't just stopped with the design though as the Vibe X2 comes with some powerful specs under its hood too. There is an 8-core MediaTek MT6595 processor that's 4G LTE capable and when we had a brief play with the device, we found it reacted quickly without any lag, as you would expect. 

The processor should mean the Vibe X2 will offer a high-speed performance without comprising on battery life, which we will test when we come to review it, especially as there is a Vibe Xtension option that provides a further 75 per cent more battery by adding a 5.1mm fourth layer to the phone, which is interesting.

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The 5-inch display features a 1920 x 1080 resolution that provides a pixel density of 440ppi and the colours were bright, the images were detailed and the viewing angles were good from what we could conclude during our short time with it. It's difficult to judge a display on a show floor though so we will make a proper judgement when we have it in for review but we weren't disappointed with it.

You'll get 32GB of internal storage and there is a 13-megapixel rear camera with auto-focus, along with a 5-megapixel front-facing selfie camera that comes with a wide angle lens, which can be set to take a photo using gestures.

The Lenovo Vibe X2 runs on Android 4.4 KitKat with the Lenovo Vibe 2.0 UI layered over the top, which the company claims offers improved everyday experiences and learns based on your interactions. There wasn't enough time to give the interface a proper test but the camera functions sound like great fun.

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From beautified selfies to instant shots by tilting and shooting, as well as a three-second self timer, saying cheese to take a photo or just blinking, there seems to be plenty to play with.

Lenovo claims the Vibe X2 has "Beauty, Brawn, Brains and Beyond" and we probably wouldn't argue. The design is certainly different, while the specs inside should deliver a promising handset, so we are looking forward to having a proper play with this one when it is released in October.