Items tagged with zte
We must say, Chinese OEMs are really firing on all cylinders when it comes to delivering flagship-quality smartphones at attractive price points. Google was so impressed with Huawei that it let the company take the lead on last year’s Nexus flagship, the Nexus 6P, which launched to rave reviews (read the HotHardware review right here). Now ZTE is taking another shot at delivering flagship-quality hardware at price that undercuts big name competitors by hundreds of dollars. The ZTE Axon 7 makes a good first impression with its clean unibody chassis that’s the product of the Chinese OEM’s collaboration with BMW DesignWorks. It may look a bit too much like the HTC One M8 to our eyes, but we can’t...
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The past year has seen a number of high-end smartphones launch with 2GB of RAM, and with 64-bit SoCs to make a big splash in the future, it's sure to become a lot more common - even trickling down to lower-end models at some point. Of course, as is the way with technology, 2GB of RAM is going to feel small in the future, and to help kick-start that feeling is Chinese phone maker ZTE. It's being rumored that ZTE's next flagship, a revision of the recently-released Grand S II, will feature 4GB of RAM. Being that the Snapdragon 800/801 SoC used is 32-bit in design, 4GB of RAM is the effective cap; to go higher, vendors will need to adopt 64-bit chips, such as the upcoming Snapdragon 610 or 615....
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One of the tricky parts about CES is that while everything is eye candy, some things you see are exciting new products that you can buy immediately while others are merely half-baked, or simply an intriguing prototype, or (the big let-down)--a design concept. That’s what ZTE did to everyone with its Eco-Mobius modular smartphone concept phone, which looks amazing but is still just a shell. However, the Eco-Mobius does point to the future of mobile devices, and although at another point in time this design idea might have warranted little more than a passing nod of interest (which is all it got earlier this year), because of what’s happening in the industry right now, it’s far...
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It seems that every company is getting on board the smartwatch bandwagon these days. There are several on the market already of course, and offerings from industry behemoths such as Google and Apple appear to be just a matter of time at this point. Not to be left behind, China’s ZTE told the WSJ that it will have its own smartwatch hitting the market in the second quarter of 2014. The smartwatch either doesn’t have a name yet or the company isn’t sharing it, but in any case the target market segment is mainstream as ZTE wants to offer it for less than the Samsung Galaxy Gear is going for. Even so, ZTE wants to offer a similar feature set as more expensive options. ZTE's competition...
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After launching earlier this summer in Spain, Venezuela, and Colombia, the ZTE Open running the Firefox OS will be available in the U.S. and UK, as well. Starting “soon”, you’ll be able to snag an orange handset for $80 on eBay. “It is great honor to launch the ZTE Open Firefox OS phone worldwide through eBay,” said Mr. Dai Wenhong, VP of ZTE Corporation. “ZTE is devoted to providing more options for customers globally and enabling them to live better lives via advanced technology.” This product is a refreshing entrant into the mobile market, because it both offers a low-cost option for new smartphone customers and is also built on open Web standards,...
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We’ve been waiting to see a Firefox OS phone in the wild, and tomorrow that will become a reality with the launch of the ZTE Open in Spain. Service provider Telefónica says that this is the first commercial launch of a Firefox OS device; it will be available at Movistar stores for 69 euros, which includes 30 euros’ worth of prepaid talk time and a 4GB microSD card. “We believe that smartphones need to be more open and that the web is the platform for making this possible,” said Telefónica España CEO Luis Miguel Gilpérez. Consumers should not be locked to any one system but have the choice to consume the content they want and the flexibility...
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It's not too often you hear of a ZTE-built phone destined for American shores, but that's what is happening with the introduction of the ZTE Director. The smartphone will be hitting U.S. Cellular soon, running Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) and boasting a 1GHz processor, 3.5" touch panel, 4GB of built-in storage, an expandable memory card slot, 3MP rear camera and a 1500mAh battery. As the specifications suggest, this is a lower-end phone, but there's clearly a market for those given the crowd coming over from the flip-phone universe. Best of all, the phone will be sold for $0.01 on a 2-year agreement, or $200 contract-free. $200 for an Android phone with no strings attached? Now we're getting...
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ZTE is showing off its Grand Memo at this year's Mobile World Congress. This phablet features a 5.7-inch screen and LTE connectivity. Perhaps more noteworthy is the fact that the Grand Memo runs on a 1.5GHz Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor. This is the first time we've seen Qualcomm's new processor in a mobile phone. To keep the phone powered up throughout the day, the Grand Memo packs a 3200mAh battery. The Grand Memo runs on Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean and comes with ZTE's own user interface. Other notable features include 16GB of memory, 1GB of RAM, a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera, and a 1-megapixel front-facing camera. If you're familiar with Samsung's Galaxy Note 2, you may have a...
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Since NVIDIA announced its Tegra 4i chip with LTE integration at CES, we haven’t heard a whole lot of Tegra 4 news, but that’s changing; ZTE announced that it’s partnering with NVIDIA to release Tegra 4-based “super phones” in China, with models hitting the market by the middle of the year. ZTE says that the Tegra 4 chip will be a quad-core ARM Cortex A15 processor and offer 72 custom NVIDIA GeForce cores; certain models will also include the optional NVIDIA i500 modem which will enable worldwide 4G LTE voice and data support and fast networking, and ZTE is planning a phone based on the i500 LTE chipset, as well. ZTE Grand Era with Tegra 3 "We’re proud to continue...
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The U.S. Congress may not be so keen on China’s ZTE, but if European consumers like what they see from the company, ZTE set-top boxes for 3D TVs may be populating living rooms soon. According to a report from Bloomberg, ZTE will release set-top boxes running the Android operating system that will offer video calling and support HTML 5. Apparently, the systems will be aimed at customers of Switzerland-based Kudelski SA’s digital TVs, which reportedly has 70% of Europe’s cable TV market. ZTE headquarters (Image credit: China Daily) In the U.S., ZTE most recently made headlines because a House Intelligence Committee report indicates that ZTE (and Huawei) is a security risk; the...
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Tensions with China's government are already at an uncomfortable level, but who would have guessed that they would trickle into mobile? Yet that's exactly what's happening, following an investigation by a congressional panel into Chinese telecom firms Huawei and ZTE. According to the resulting House Intelligence Committee report, the two firms pose a security threat to the U.S. and therefore shouldn't be allowed to engage in any mergers or acquisitions within our country's borders. Before launching a formal investigation, the congressional committee said it performed a preliminary review, which set off red flags in terms of available information about the Chinese telecommunications sector, the...
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Back at the Mobile World Congress in February of this year, which seems like forever ago at this point, Intel and ZTE promised to deliver smartphones built around Intel's Medfield platform. That promise comes to fruition today with ZTE unveiling its first smartphone with Intel hardware inside, the ZTE Grand X IN. The Grand X IN is powered by an Intel Atom Z2460 processor with Hyper-Threading technology. It has a 4.3-inch qHD (960x540) touchscreen display, 1GB of RAM, 16GB of storage, microSD card slot, 8MP rear-facing camera, 0.3MP front-facing camera, HSPA+ support, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, Dolby Sound, DLNA support, and a 1,650 mAh battery. "The Grand X IN is ZTE's first flagship smartphone...
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ZTE may not be a well-known brand in the US yet, but the company is definitely beginning to gain traction as it introduces more and more devices. While we've seen some low-cost ZTE phones in the past with entry-level specs, the latest leak shows a high-end phone designed for Sprint. The purported ZTE Flash could be coming to Sprint as early as October 14, 2012. This smartphone is said to feature a dual-core 1.5GHz processor, a 4.5-inch HD (1,280x720 pixels) IPS display, 1GB of RAM, and a 12.6-megapixel camera with autofocus and LED flash. Other key features include LTE support for connectivity to Sprint's newest 4G network as well as Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. The handset is also said to...
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Furiously, the ZTE Fury is hitting Sprint. The carrier just announced that they'll soon have a sub-$20 (on contract) Android phone to choose from, giving smartphone holdouts even more reason to finally join in. ZTE isn't a major player in the U.S. market, but they're getting there. It'll ship on March 11th for $19.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate via reward card and a new two-year service agreement. he value-priced ZTE Fury comes equipped with all the apps and functionality busy parents and their children want, including a 3.5-inch capacitive display, 5 MP camera with LED flash and 3G hotspot capabilities. The device is also compatible with Sprint’s family services that give parents the tools...
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Nvidia and ZTE are both giddy as all get-out to unveil the latter's new Mimosa X, purportedly the world's first smartphone to incorporate both an NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor and the GPU maker's Icera modem, which comes fresh off of NVIDIA's acquisition of Icera in mid-2011. "The ZTE Mimosa X is exciting for a few reasons," said Michael Rayfield, General Manager of the Mobile business at NVIDIA. "The Mimosa X marks the first time NVIDIA technology powers all the major processors in a single smartphone, and also the first time a premium mobile computing experience is coming to the mainstream smartphone market." If you're reading this, you're likely already familiar with Tegra 2, which is a dual-core...
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ZTE announced a pair new LTE smartphones ahead of next week's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the PF200 and N910, both of which will run Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. The 1.2GHz PF200 has a 4.3-inch QHD touch screen and 8MP rear-facing and 1080p front-facing cameras as well as Bluetooth, GPS, WiFi, A-GPS, DLNA, and MHL for optimal connectivity options. The N910 (1.5GHz) has a WVGA (800x480) touch screen with a 5MP flash camera on the back and a 1080p front-facing camera in addition to GPOS, WiFi, Bluetooth, and DLNA. PF200 While the PF200 will run on all LTE, UMTS, and GSM spectrums, the N910 will run on LTE FDD, CDMA and EVDO. N910 ZTE to announce two new LTE handsets at Mobile World Congress...
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According to leaked reports on the web, a new tablet could be coming to Sprint early next month that features a $100 price tag. The information suggests the ZTE Optik tablet, which is powered by Android, will be available for this budget-friendly price provided you're willing to sign a two-year agreement and purchase a compatible rate plan. The ZTE Optik tablet is expected to feature a 7-inch display and a dual-core 1.2GHz processor. Other key hardware specs include 16GB of onboard storage as well as a microSD card slot, 1GB of RAM, a 5 megapixel rear-facing camera, and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. The Optik will run Android 3.2, aka Honeycomb. Rumor suggests Sprint's Optik will support...
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Sprint announced its first CDMA /GSM international mobile hotspot. The new hotspot by ZTE enables up to five Wi-Fi enabled devices to connect simultaneously while on a CDMA network. The hotspot also supports international mobile broadband access via GSM networks. When connected to a GSM network, the hotspot can only be connected to a single Wi-Fi device. The hotspot comes with multiple country adapters to make it easy to charge the device while you're traveling overseas. The International Mobile Hotspot measures 3.92 x 2.11 x .55 inches and weighs 2.8 ounces. Sprint claims you'll get up to four hours of active use from a single charge. Sprint International Mobile Hotspot fact sheet Sprint’s...
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Lawsuits, lawsuits, and a few more lawsuits. That really does seem to be the order of the month. With Apple, Samsung, HTC and countless others currently battling it out over Android, IP and all manner of patent troubles, InterDigital has found an opportune time to get into the mix. The company has recently announced that it will be filing a complaint against Nokia, Huawei and ZTE With International Trade Commission. Those are three very major companies, with huge stakes in the mobile arena. The complaint alleges that the Respondents have engaged in unfair trade practices by making for importation into the United States, importing, and selling after importation, certain 3G wireless devices, including...
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With Mobile World Congress going on this week, it's no surprise that loads and loads of new cellphones were introduced. But this is a surprise in its own right: ZTE will be bringing an Android phone to the world. In recent years, ZTE has been a company focused primarily on Asia, and not really on higher-end smartphones. But with the boom that's happening in the smartphone universe, the company has decided to go all-in at the year's biggest mobile event. ZTE has announced that their flagship Android phone, "Skate," will eventually end up rivaling those made by LG, Samsung, HTC and Acer. It'll use a 4.3" touch screen, Android 2.3, an 800MHz CPU and the Adreno 200 graphics unit. There's also a 5MP...
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The world is mighty big, but it's getting smaller every day with the boom of mobile communications. Cellphone use is skyrocketing, and there are now loads of facts, figures and research to prove that. IDC, a respected company in the research and analyst industry, has found that the worldwide mobile phone market grew 17.9% in the fourth quarter of 2010, a new quarterly high driven by smartphones. It's pretty incredible to think that even though mobile phone use was insanely popular a quarter ago, it still managed to grow nearly 18%. Smartphone adoption is obviously (in large part) to thank, with IDC's data finding that vendors shipped 401.4 million units in 4Q 2010 compared to 340.5 million units...
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Ever heard of a Mobile HotSpot? Chances are you'll be familiar with the MiFi if so, which has sparked a new revolution of devices. Novatel Wireless is the company that created the MiFi, and now they're upset that a couple of other companies have come out with products that are just too similar. These days, companies are suing the pants off of one another, and with technology advancing so quickly, it's no surprise that some companies are borrowing ideas rather than creating their own. Novatel has filed suit again Franklin Wireless and ZTE for infringing on five Novatel Wireless' patents related to key architecture and functionality of the MiFi family of Intelligent Mobile Hotspots. The suit was...
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