IFA 2016: ZTE Launches the AXON 7 mini
by Ian Cutress on September 3, 2016 4:45 PM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- ZTE
- Snapdragon 617
- Axon 7 mini
- Axon
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Pretty soon, IFA feels like it is going to overtake Mobile World Congress for smartphone and mobile type launches. With all the announcements already out, ZTE has one as well - a companion device to their recently launched flagship. The AXON 7 gets the AXON 7 mini as a smaller sibling, with the idea being that a number of the features of the AXON 7 are migrated down into a 5.2-inch form factor.
ZTE wants the mini to be a flagship killer, with specifications and price. The core design uses a 5.2-inch Full HD AMOLED display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 SoC (4x ARM Cortex-A53 at 1.5 GHz, 4x A53 at 1.2 GHz, Adreno 405) and a Cat 6 modem with FDD + TDD support plus carrier aggregation (bands listed below). The smartphone uses USB Type-C, and supports Quick Charge to rake it's 2705mAh battery from 0% to 50% in a rated 30 minutes.
ZTE is keen to point out that the design for the mini was a collaboration with BMWs Designworks division, known for its designs (PC users may remember their involvement in Thermaltake's Level10 chassis or Asrock's M8 barebones). This is pointed out as part of the metal unibody finish and 2.5D curved glass design, which seems to be a strong selection in a number of releases at IFA this year.
Rather than go into extensive depth on cameras (16MP PDAF+8MP), ZTEs focus was on the audio, with a collaboration with Asahi Kasei Microdevices (AKM) to adjust the audio. This includes Dolby Atmos and what ZTE calls a '7.1 surround sound hi-fi experience'.
| ZTE Axon 7 Series | ||
| Axon 7 | Axon 7 mini | |
| SoC | Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 2 x Kryo @ 2.15 GHz 2 x Kryo @ 1.60 GHz Adreno 530 |
Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 4x Cortex-A53 @ 1.5GHz 4x Cortex-A53 @ 1.2GHz Adreno 405 |
| RAM | 4 GB | 3 GB |
| NAND | 64 GB | 32 GB |
| Display | 5.5-inch 2560x1440 AMOLED | 5.2-inch 1920x1080 AMOLED |
| Dimensions | 151.7 x 75 x 7.9mm 175g |
147.5 x 71 x 7.8mm 153g |
| Modem | Cat 6 300/50 |
Cat 6 300/50 |
| SIM Size | Dual Nano-SIM | Dual Nano-SIM |
| Front Camera | 20MP, f/1.8, PDAF, OIS | 16MP, f/1.6, PDAF |
| Rear Camera | 8MP, f/2.2 | 8MP, g/2.2 |
| Battery | 3250 mAh | 2705 mAh |
| Connectivity | LTE Band 1/2/3/4/5/7/12/13/17/20/25/26/29/30/41 (USA) 1/2/3/4/5/6/8/19/20/28/38/40/41 (A2107G) |
LTE Band 1/2/3/4/5/7/8/12/17/20 38/40/41 |
| USB | USB 3.0 Type-C |
USB 2.0 Type-C |
| Launch OS | Android 6.0.1 | Android 6.0 |
| Launch Price | ~€450 | €299 |
The mini is set for Russia, Germany, Spain, Poland, Japan, Australia, India, Saudi Arabia and USA, with a price of €299 (that's including tax). Outside the US, the release date is set for the 7th of September.
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ChefJeff789 - Saturday, September 3, 2016 - link
Looks great, except... make the damn camera flush with the phone already. Sick of protruting lumps on these hi-tech devicesmindless1 - Sunday, September 4, 2016 - link
So it has inferior focus, or did you mean make the entire phone thicker to accommodate it?TheinsanegamerN - Tuesday, September 6, 2016 - link
make the phone thicker and put a bigger battery in it, since OEMS are allergic to replaceable batteries for some reason.Mavendependency - Monday, September 5, 2016 - link
This phone has a curved back, will wobble on table anyway, flush camera or otherwise. Only phones with camera module in the bezel have managed to have flush camera without making the phone uncomfortable.djayjp - Saturday, September 3, 2016 - link
"Flagship killer" with just A53... ha!serendip - Saturday, September 3, 2016 - link
They should have used a 650 or 652 in there instead of having a higher clocked A53 cluster. Even two A72 cores is enough to boost performance to near-flagship levels.amdwilliam1985 - Sunday, September 4, 2016 - link
yeah, 650 or 652 will totally suffice. That A53 is definitely no flagship killer. These company throws around these words to dilute their meanings.Shadow7037932 - Tuesday, September 6, 2016 - link
Hahaha it's so funny because the 652 beat the 820 in multithreaded benches: https://www.reddit.com/r/Android/comments/50fhry/g...Cliff34 - Saturday, September 3, 2016 - link
I am not sure why they don't use a better SoC for the mini. I thought they use a slower SoC bc the compact design of a smaller phone but the mini is not so mini (still have a 5 inch screen).sprockkets - Saturday, September 3, 2016 - link
Mini means we took .3 inch off the size of the screen. Sheesh.Hey, I like big phones but if you want to call it a mini, try 4", or 4.5".