ZTE nubia Z20 review

14 Oct 2019


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    There is no yellow tint. It is a blue eye filter that you just turn off in the settings. I'm very pleased with my Nubia Z20 had the Z17 lite before and that was a bargain.
    I think if you like me like to have something a bit different then the Nubia phones are great. And my fully charged in under a hour at 27w

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      • Vikki
      • u7P
      • 02 Apr 2020

      Can anybody tell how to flash Nubia ui on Nubia z20 global rom

        • U
        • Ultranoob
        • uNe
        • 29 Oct 2019

        Anonymous, 25 Oct 2019Mix 3 (not 5g) hs sd845 and small battery. This is better t... moreWhat about xenon flash?

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          • Anonymous
          • uSZ
          • 25 Oct 2019

          Anonymous, 25 Oct 2019what is better oppo reno 2, xiaomi mi mix 3 or this phone ?Mix 3 (not 5g) hs sd845 and small battery. This is better than reno

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            • Anonymous
            • SwK
            • 25 Oct 2019

            what is better oppo reno 2, xiaomi mi mix 3 or this phone ?

              It's almost 2020 and no nfc, no 3.5 for 550 eur... Well, what can i say!

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                • Tix
                • n27
                • 16 Oct 2019

                Love the Community, 15 Oct 2019Ah. I wish companies like Audio Technica, Beyerdynamic, Sen... moreThis is pretty stupid... They would have left headphones jack!!!

                  Anonymous, 14 Oct 2019yellowish tint secondary screen is the default but you can ... moreAlright, the reviewer should mention that then. As some buyers might be turned off by that.

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                    • Love the Community
                    • Fv4
                    • 15 Oct 2019

                    Whackcar, 15 Oct 2019Who said anything about wireless? I use USB-C headphones an... moreAh. I wish companies like Audio Technica, Beyerdynamic, Sennheiser and the rest use USB-C as their port.

                    Better yet, phone companies should have TWO Type-C Ports. One to replace the headphone jack, one for charging. The speakers will be placed on the middle instead. Asus nailed it with the RoG Phone 2 for making two USB-C ports a reality. I wish Samsung would follow through.

                      Love the Community, 15 Oct 2019You want 32bit sounds but calling 3.5mm Jack not essential?... moreWho said anything about wireless? I use USB-C headphones and they sound damn good.

                      All recent LG, Samsung & Huawei flagships come with 32bit DACs. This includes new & all upcoming phones which come without a jack.

                      The industry has decided to get rid of the jack, so it is better to get used to life without it rather than dwelling on it.

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                        • Love the Community
                        • Fv4
                        • 15 Oct 2019

                        Whackcar, 15 Oct 2019Oh well, you ask what would be our ideal phone, so I'll tel... moreYou want 32bit sounds but calling 3.5mm Jack not essential? Bruh. There's no way that wireless can pull that off. The easiest way is with a QuadDAC included in the headphone jack port.

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                          • Anonymous
                          • g3t
                          • 15 Oct 2019

                          Whackcar, 15 Oct 2019Oh well, you ask what would be our ideal phone, so I'll tel... moreGreat list.
                          Although I'd say dual sim support, micro SD slot, IR Blaster are important to me and a lot of other people.

                          You could have listed peripherals and I/O : ROG Phone II

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                            • Desigan Duraisamy
                            • rJV
                            • 15 Oct 2019

                            I expect this in Xiaomi Note 10 Pro for 200 dollars. Not the SoC ofcourse.

                              Kangal, 15 Oct 2019Overall, the first device is more considerate of real-world... moreOh well, you ask what would be our ideal phone, so I'll tell you mine.

                              Body & build materials like the Essential Phone. (Titanium Frame, Ceramic Backpanel, Front Gorilla Glass). It is both more durable & more premium than the typical aluminium/glass combo.
                              Display like S10 (Ideal size IMO, and a high quality panel)
                              Front Design like Meizu 16s (No fugly holes and notches, and tiny top & bottom bezels)
                              Back Design like Honor View 20 (stylish, but not obnoxious)
                              Cameras like P30 Pro (perfect balance between quality & variation)
                              Specs & Battery like Rog Phone 2 (More is always better)

                              Other features i require include the following: IP68 certification, Fast charging + Fast Wireless Charging, custom android with advanced features (I'm not a fan of Stock), loud & crisp speaker (preferably dual), FP scanner (either UD or on back/side panel), USB-C Port, 32bit audio, etc.

                              Things that are not important to me: Dual-Sim Support, 3.5mm jack, SD Slot, Removable Battery (it is not even an option anymore), IR Port, 90hz display (it look good, but it's not essential to me).

                              So yeah, quite a heavily customized phone. Hehe.

                                Whackcar, 14 Oct 2019I'd say i don't agree with your perspective on what is prac... moreOverall, the first device is more considerate of real-world use and practicality. However, these are just labels and they are not important. What I would like to know is which device you prefer to use and purchase? Some people want to have something flashy, others want something that's consumer-friendly, and I'm interested in if GSMArena readers are more for one camp than another.

                                Firstly, thanks for your comment. I respectfully disagree with your points, and here's why:

                                1) An LCD screen can be better than an OLED screen, and vice versa. In general, the LCD screen is cheaper and has better brightness and colour accuracy. In general, the OLED screen is thinner and has deeper blacks and contrast. Battery drain depends on the content, for a screen with lots of Black and Red, OLED will use less power, whereas a screen with lots of White and Blue will drain less power on LCD. And there are different types of LCD screens and different types of OLED screens. The distinction I wanted to make was that OLED screens are disposable, they get worse after a while, whereas LCD screens don't deteriorate. I personally prefer OLED, but for an extended lifetime of a device I would opt for LCD.

                                2) I didn't say practical, I said affordable. A single camera with a large sensor will cost cheaper than multiple cameras with smaller sensors. It will take better photos for everything except for Ultrawide and Zoom, as post-processing features like Grayscale are easily achieved. Many people agree with me here, and I mean actual engineers and photographers, that is why DSLRs use a large sensor instead of multiple smaller ones.

                                3) I didn't say practical, I said Easy to Repair. Phones that have a removable battery eliminate 70% of repair issues for phones: the battery. And usually these phones can be made easier to access. I love waterproof phones, and it is mandatory for my purchases, only because we have lost the option to buy any phones with Removable Batteries. There have rarely been any phones with both Removable Battery and IP protection, and I would like to be realistic and say that will not happen again. OEMs don't want to make better phones. OEMs want to make more money.

                                4) 50W Super-Fast Charging is more practical than 18W Fast Charging+Wireless Charging. Yes, that is true and it is from my view. Even more practical is to remove the battery, and hot-swap it with another fully-charged battery. And a 50W Super-Fast Charger can charge a phone slower, I already do this by charging my phone slowly during the night, and charge fast when needed. But overall, Super-Fast Charging doesn't kill the battery, that is a myth, what kills the battery is Heat, Too Many Cycles, and Low Quality Chemistry. See the latest open-patents on Lithium Ion units.

                                5) I didn't say practical, I said extended updates. A StockishOS, especially AndroidOne, can get updates sooner and be supported for longer as opposed to a SkinnedOS. If people end up downloading a lot of Apps, well, at least they have the option. In SkinnedOS they usually cannot remove those features. I call these features as some are in-fact useful, but many would argue that they are simply Bloatware. I say this as someone who's had Android devices since 2009, the StockOS has come a long way. I would say there was an exceptional advancement in 2012 with Android 4.0.3 but I think StockOS has certainly surpassed many of the SkinnedOS with the release of 2017 Android 5.1 especially with the AOSP improvements Google personally made on Pixel 1 for ARM's big.LITTLE thread scheduling and management. Personally I prefer to use a Stockish Custom Rom (ResurrectionRemix), and prefer to have root access so I can take privacy and security into my own hands.

                                  I say this again and again and again:

                                  I really hope that this design would proliferate on all major smartphone manufacturers. This is by far the better, if not best, iteration of smartphone design compared to the notched/motorized/foldable counterparts.

                                  Upvote if you agree.

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                                    • Starsplash
                                    • StU
                                    • 14 Oct 2019

                                    Those that write negative comments don't know what they know without having a Nubia x or Nubia z20 in your hands. No compromise with style, seeing is believing. I like the z20 and I am sure many others on here will too.

                                      Melwis, 14 Oct 2019Nubia themselves states in the specs of this phone that the... moreIt seems Nubia wrote the wrong resolution but corrected the mistake a few hours later. That's why we, and probably others, used wrong information. Thanks!

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                                        • Starsplash
                                        • StU
                                        • 14 Oct 2019

                                        Anonymous, 14 Oct 2019yellowish tint secondary screen is the default but you can ... moreYes on the Nubia X the secondary screen as a yellowish tint but you can adjust the colour and brightness scheme on both front and back screens within the phones settings, there's lots on the phone you can tweak the same as the Nubia z20. I know because I own a Nubia x and the configuration is similar for the both screen settings.