ZTE has launched its first smartphone in India under a separate brand Nubia. This new smartphone is Nubia Z9 Mini. I was at the launch event and spent around an hour with the smartphone. At the price of Rs. 16,999, this smartphone seems worth buy if you are looking for a camera phone.
In this post, I am expressing my first impression of the phone.
Design
Design of the smartphone is impressive. At front, it has three touch buttons below the screen. It has a 5 inches Full HD display. Display looks bright with colours looking vibrant and object looks sharp. It also has a glassy back panel which looks awesome. At the edges, it has metallic frame.
But the design is slippery and you may drop it if not properly in hold. Company confirmed that back panel is strong and can survive in drop test. Screen is also protected with Gorilla Glass 3.
It has volume rocker keys and power button at the left side of the device.
It has 3.5 mm jack at the top with a microphone.
At the bottom, it has a microphone, microUSB port and speakers. This is nice placing for speakers because speakers will not get blocked when it is on the table.
Processor, OS and RAM
It is powered by octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 processor with Adreno 405 GPU. It has 2GB RAM for better multi-tasking. I used the device for around an hour but couldn’t see any kind of lag. Opening many apps and switching between apps was smooth.
It runs Android 5.0 Lollipop with Nubia UI 2.8 skin on top. It does not offer any app drawer. So, all the apps icons will be at different screens on home. You can swipe left or right to access the apps. Custom UI is also responsive and does not lag in any where. Customizations in default Android Lollipop offers better user experience.
Camera
It has a 16 megapixel rear camera with Sony IMX234 Exmor RS sensor, f/2.0 aperture and LED flash. It also has a 8 megapixel front camera. Camera seems good in terms of performance. I tried capturing photos and recording videos with camera. See the photo sample at the end of the post. Due to lack of time, I couldn’t transfer all photos. So, I am only attaching one rear camera photo sample and one front camera photo sample.
Camera also comes with various manual controls for adjusting shutter and lens. Company claims that photographers can enjoy the photography with this phone if they are not with their camera.
Connectivity and Battery
It is a dual SIM phone and offers 4G connectivity in both SIM. It also has 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, microUSB, and GPS connectivity. It is packed with 2900 mAh battery.
Camera Sample
Click on photo to see full size original photo. Photos were captured in the averge light condition.
Rear camera video sample.
