nubia Z70 Ultra review

Competition

With the Z70 Ultra, nubia is iterating on a concept that seemingly no one else is keen to pursue, but that doesn't mean it's without rivals. Powerful high-end phones with a mix of gaming prowess and camera chops that hover a notch below ultimate flagships are plenty. We had a couple of these for review just recently, and another one is due soon, and 2024 is not nearly over yet.

The Realme GT 7 Pro was among the first Snapdragon 8 Elite phones to visit our test bench, and it proved as powerful as you'd expect, and perhaps even more so frugal with its, admittedly quite huge, battery. The Realme doesn't have quite as high cameraphone aspirations, but it does alright in many areas - neither option is flawless across the board, so more careful comparisons are due if the camera is your top priority. The nubia is probably the better bet for gaming.

The Oppo Find X8 looks like another option, geared slightly more towards picture-taking than gaming, possibly being an overall better cameraphone, unless you're after closeups - or, you know, a 35mm camera, but if you're that particular, perhaps you already know which phone you'll get. The Find's Dimensity chip is similarly powerful to the nubia's Elite, and battery life is comparable. The Find does offer an eSIM capability, if you're a globetrotter like that.

We're still expecting the OnePlus 13 around our parts of the world, and if you're not in a rush, you could entertain that possibility as well. On paper, it's more or less the Find X8 with a Snapdragon chip, ultrasonic fingerprint reader, and potentially slightly better endurance.

One distant relative of the above more closely related trio is the iQOO 13, whose global launch is expected later this week. Early indications point to some excellent battery life, and it's got goodies like an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor and a blinky camera surround, though it may be a little underequipped to take on the nubia in a camera battle.

Where's Xiaomi in all this, we hear you asking. Well, perhaps the 15 is a sensible option if you're looking for a capable cameraphone in a smaller package than the boxy Z70 Ultra. Or maybe even the 15 Pro if you are after more cameraphone - provided that it makes it outside of China.

Realme GT 7 Pro • Oppo Find X8 • OnePlus 13 • vivo iQOO 13 • Xiaomi 15

Verdict

With a few generations of 35mm cameras behind its back, the nubia Z70 Ultra remains an intriguing and rare type of cameraphone. It improves on the previous generation by adding a close focusing capability to its telephoto camera but is ultimately led down by interface oddities and suboptimal processing.

Two sides to another coin, the visually pleasing notchless display means less than ideal selfies, though we're a lot more on board with this particular pro-con balance.

A few more compromises can be spotted here or there. Battery may be good enough, but the latest competitors have been setting the bar higher. Missing eSIM support limits the options for cheap data when in roaming, while some display feature omissions make the nubia stand out in a bad way.

On the other hand, a hidden gaming excellence may be able to sway users with... more varied interests. The now-ubiquitous IP68/IP69 is another checkmark in the positives column, and we also appreciate the character that nubia's designers have managed to instill in the lineup when it comes to styling.

Ultimately, the Z70 Ultra is a cameraphone that does not quite live up to its camera aspirations, so we can't recommend getting it without some reservations.

Pros

• IP68/IP69 rating - pressure washing is a go, plus there's an underwater camera mode of sorts.
• Standout design, particularly striking in the Starry Night livery.
• Large and cutout-free OLED display with a 144Hz maximum refresh rate.
• A slider and a camera button - physical controls galore.
• No-frills general UI, wide-ranging gaming capabilities, particularly stable behavior under prolonged GPU load.
• Intriguing camera system; the 35mm main camera is still a key selling point.

Cons

• Battery life not as good as on key competitors.
• Some display shortcomings - limited HDR support, streaming compatibility woes.
• Camera UI gets in the way more than it helps, zoom levels are a mess.
• Video quality is unreliable.
• Selfies are hard to like, though we do appreciate what the UDC brings to the table.
• No eSIM support.