ZTE is one of the prominent Chinese OEMs in the market at the moment and it has its smartphones to speak for it. One of its latest addition to its mid-range smartphones comes in as the ZTE Nubia Z18 Mini, which happens to pack quite a punch despite the ‘Mini’ moniker it carries. Featuring the latest innovations in design as well as top of the mid-range hardware, the ZTE Nubia Z18 Mini qualifies as a solid smartphone and a good buy it the price is right of course.
ZTE Nubia Z18 Mini Key Specs and Features
- 5.7-inch, IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen, 2160 X 1080 pixels (424 ppi)
- Octa-core Qualcomm SDM660 Snapdragon 660 CPU with 6GB
- 64GB/128GB built-in storage, up to 256GB with a memory card
- Dual 24MP + 5MP camera and an 8MP front camera
- 4G LTE
- Fingerprint sensor (rear)
- 3, 450mAh non removable Li-Po battery
Design and Display
Crafted in a way that makes the smartphone look more or less like a premium smartphone which is why the ZTE Nubia Z18 Mini is going to turn heads especially the light blue and purple coloured models.
Also, the smartphone has slim bezels a way of accommodating bigger screen size without being being out of proportion. The navigation buttons have been relocated on screen due to the slim bottom bezels. At the rear, there are vertically arranged cameras with flash as well as the fingerprint sensor positioned at the middle.
When the ZTE Nubia Z18 Mini lights up, you’ll be greeted by a nice display with impressive Full HD+ to go with. This is sort of the pinnacle for mid-range smartphones in terms of resolution apart from being an LCD screen by the way. With a size of 5.7-inch and a resolution of 2160 X 1080 pixels, the display produces rich colours as well as good viewing angle.
Battery and Camera
Taking power from a 3, 450mAh non removable Li-Po battery, the ZTE Nubia Z18 Mini has an expected duration of a day on full charge and on slightly engaging usage at that. Charging is also relatively easier with quick charge technology that translates to lesser time to reach full charge.
Photography is handled by a dual rear camera and a single one up front. Sounds familiar? Yes, this is because, this is sort of way-to-go for most Chinese and even Non-Chinese OEMs.
Having the combination of a 24MP and 5MP camera on the rear, the smartphone is capable of capturing 4k videos and impressive images. Also in the selfie department, an 8MP camera with f/2.0 aperture is stationed for wide angle selfies and nice portrait pictures.
Hardware and Software
Now to one the integral parts of the smartphone or should I say the engine where the ZTE Nubia Z18 Mini happens to go for top notch mid-range components. Starting from an Octa-core Qualcomm SDM660 Snapdragon 660 chipset cores clocking at 2.2GHz and 1.8GHz respectively. To an Adreno 512 GPU in place for rendering graphics.
Going further, you also have 6GB RAM going with a 64GB built-in storage space and an higher 128GB internal storage in place on a more premium model for ample space. If this is not enough, you could expand the storage up to 256GB with a memory card. Besides running Android 8.1 Oreo, you also have an integrated AI called NeoSmart with Nubia UI also in present.
Pricing and Availability
The ZTE Nubia Z18 Mini is available for sale for about 102, 000 naira for the 64GB variant while the larger 128GB model costs close to 120, 000 naira.
ZTE Nubia Z18 Mini Specs
Here are a few specs of the ZTE Nubia Z18 Mini:
General Features
- Platform: Android 8.1 Oreo
- Processor: Octa-core 4 x 2.2 GHz Kryo 260 & 4 x 1.8 GHz Kryo 260 (Qualcomm SDM660 Snapdragon 660)
- GPU: Adreno 512
- Memory: 6GB
- Colours: Provence Edition, Ying Yu powder, Celadon blue, Diamond black, Glacier White
- Dimension: 148 x 70.6 x 7.6 mm
- Weight: 153g
- SIM Type: Nano sim
- SIM Count: Dual sim
Display
- Display: 5.7-inch, IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen, 2160 X 1080 pixels (424 ppi)
- Screen Protection: –
Camera
- Rear Camera: Dual 24MP + 5MP camera, 2160 Video@30fps
- Rear Camera Features: Phase detection autofocus, LED flash, Geo-tagging, touch focus, face detection, HDR, panorama
- Front Camera: 8MP camera, 1080p Video@30fps
Storage
- Built-in Storage: 64GB/128GB
- Memory Card Support: Yes, up to 256GB
- Bundled Cloud Storage: –
Network Support
- 2G GSM: Yes
- 2G CDMA 1X: –
- 3G WCDMA: Yes
- 3G CDMA EVDO: –
- 4G LTE: LTE band 1(2100), 3(1800), 5(850), 8(900), 19(800), 34(2000), 38(2600), 39(1900), 40(2300), 41(2500)
Internet & Connectivity
- GPRS: Yes
- EDGE: Yes
- 3G/WCDMA/HSPA: Yes
- HSPA+: Yes, 42.2/5.76Mbps,
- CDMA EVDO: –
- 4G LTE: –
- WLAN: Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot: Yes
- Bluetooth: Yew, v5.0 with A2DP, LE, aptX
- NFC: –
- Infrared Blaster: –
- USB Port: USB Type-C 2.0
Messaging
- SMS/MMS: Yes
- Instant Messaging: Yes
- Push Emails: Yes
- Email Protocol: –
Entertainment
- Music Player: MP3/WAV/FLAC/eAAC+ player
- Video Player: MP4/H.264 player
- FM Radio: Yes
- Loudspeaker: Yes
- 3.5mm Jack: Yes
Navigation
- Navigation: Yes with A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS
- Maps: Yes
Sensors & Control
- Digital Compass: Yes
- Accelerometer: Yes
- Proximity Sensor: Yes
- Light Sensor: Yes
- Barometer: –
- SpO2: –
- Pedometer: –
- Heart Rate Monitor: –
- Gyroscope: Yes
- Fingerprint Scanner: Yes, (rear)
- Iris Scanner: –
- Face Unlock: –
- Intelligent Digital Assistant: –
- Motion Sensing / Gesture Control: –
- Voice Control: –
Other Features
- Video Streaming: Yes
- Active Noise Cancellation: Yee
- Wireless Charging: –
- Built-in Mobile Payment: –
- Water Resistant: –
- Dust Resistant: –
- Image Editor: Yes
- Video Editor: Yes
- Document Viewer: Yes
- Document Editor: Yes
Battery
- Battery: 3, 450mWh non removable Li-Po battery
- Talktime: –
- Standby Time: –
- Fast Charging: Yes
