Verdict
The ZTE Axon 40 Ultra presentation a sight of potential , offer up a streamlined design , an excellent screen , a top - tier central processing unit and good battery aliveness . However , the way-out under - display selfie tv camera is flat - out hapless .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
There are a multitude of flagship Android handset out there , fighting for your aid , from theSamsung Galaxy S22 Ultrato theSony Xperia 1 IVto theXiaomi 12 Proand more ; but could your ideal equipment really come from a lesser - cognise producer ?
ZTE might not be a name you ’re peculiarly familiar with , but the brand name has already released some excellent smartphones such as theAxon 30 Ultra , which we awarded 4.5 stars out of 5 . The Axon 40 Ultra sport an innovative design , with a hidden selfie camera that sits behind the display . The specs seem impressive , too , from aSnapdragon 8 Gen 1processor to a treble 64 - megapixel camera setup . So can this outsider add up out on top ?
Design and Display
There ’s a mickle to like about the Axon 40 Ultra ’s design . The mat black finish gives it a sleek and understated look that ’s practical too , since it does n’t attract unsightly fingerprint marks to the same extent as glossy phone often do . What ’s more , in your palms it also has a pleasing tactile feel .
However , the tumid photographic camera mental faculty certainly dominates the rear panel , even jam the position in which I ’d normally position my finger when I hold a sound upright .
In addition , the French telephone does n’t come with anIP rating , so we are n’t to roll in the hay how well the Axon 40 Ultra would handle itself if uncover to detritus or water , and there are n’t many optional spear carrier such as a 3.5 mm phone jack or an SD poster slot if you were hoping to use wire phone or extend the onboard store .
The most noteworthy affair about this phone ’s design is , of trend , the out of sight selfie television camera . When the covert is on , it ’s entirely invisible , hide beneath the show so that you get an totally continuous 6.8 - inch AMOLED to enjoy . This impression has been implemented very well ; even upon close inspection , it ’s difficult to find any giveaway of a camera ambush underneath . I was super - impressed by the visual execution .
However , the selfie photographic camera shew poor for unlock my phone with facial realisation . My face would rarely be recognised , and so I ’d advise you to expend the in - screen fingerprint scanner instead .
Even away from the knickknack of a out of sight camera underneath , the projection screen is telling . There ’s an auto - adjusting refresh rate that can switch between 60Hz and 120Hz , calculate on the content on your screen ; it can plump for smoother pace for apps that benefit from it , or else it drops down to conserve some battery life history .
The control panel ’s bread and butter ofHDR10+and over 1 billion colour imply that it ’s entrancingly intense to face at – and it ’s crisp , too , thanks to a 1116 x 2480 resolution . Nature documentary film were a joy to watch on this CRT screen , and video games were super - immersive as well . Generally speaking , I ’m not a Brobdingnagian fan of screen that arc at the sides as this one does , rather than lie prostrate , but it is n’t so exaggerated to be distracting .
Camera
The camera frame-up also appear telling on paper , consist three gamey - resolving power sensors that should provide a good deal of versatility ; there ’s a wide - angle television camera , an ultra - wide lens , and a telephoto sensor – and each one has a 64 - megapixel firmness of purpose .
The next three photograph were taken using each of the electron lens on their default scene , from the same position . We start with the ultra - all-encompassing , then the wide - slant camera , and in conclusion the telephoto sensor :
Results are n’t tough at all , with good level of detail and brightness – although greens can front a bit lurid on images catch with the ultra - all-inclusive lens in particular .
The plate above was captured with the main tv camera , and under these circumstances the detail suffers somewhat liken to those shot take outside , most likely due to the rough overhead lighting .
The above two pictures were take by the radical - all-encompassing and wide-cut - angle tv camera respectively ; manifestly , the radical - wide-eyed finds the lighting conditions a little trickier – and , once again , that Green River abide out . However , the result from the chief wide - angle camera are more pleasing .
Using the telephotograph lens I managed to get the guesswork of swans above , and it ’s certainly handy to have a 3.5x optical zoom in your pocket . However , it is n’t strong enough to rival the best zoom television camera such as theSamsung Galaxy S22 Ultra .
When shooting at Nox , I first claim an persona without Night mode applied – you’re able to see the result below .
As you may see , quite a lot of detail is lost when shooting in these status , with dingy results . Nevertheless , I still preferred this to shooting with Night musical mode applied , which rage up the inflammation but also entirely blew out the highlight .
Given the 16 - megapixel selfie tv camera ’s strange position beneath the screen , you might be wondering how well it performs as a tv camera as well . Unfortunately , this is an expanse where it becomes seriously unstuck . The timbre of selfies is simply atrocious , with image fuzzy and indistinct . If you like taking pictures of yourself with your sound , or view as picture call , opt for another one .
Given the poor quality of selfie pictures and the undependable facial recognition lineament , it seems that the front - facing photographic camera suffer quite significantly for its strange under - screenland aim , despite it looking well when the screen is in use . We can bear that the technical school has n’t been perfected yet , and we might have to wait a few years still before it trickles into the mainstream .
Performance
Although this telephone set sit comfortably timid of the £ 1000 mark , it still rocks the sameSnapdragon 8 Gen 1chipset that many top - category Android handset feature , including theOnePlus 10 Pro , Oppo discover X5 Pro , andXiaomi 12 Pro , to name but a few . This means it delivers plenty of index for the terms – but does it get as much out of the atomic number 14 as the ointment of the harvest ?
In short , the response is yes . Its grudge across benchmark tests show that it can keep up with many flagship devices ; scroll across the table below to see how it stacks up against the proficient Android handsets around . The Geekbench score refer to CPU ability , which dictates most of the speech sound ’s performance labor , while 3DMark measures the GPU ’s capabilities , which are important for gaming . take note that benchmarks do n’t always state the whole story , however .
Test Data
Nonetheless , I find twenty-four hours - to - day performance on this telephone set was snappish and dependable , while games were also speedy and well generate . I experienced no outcome in my time using the equipment – it keep up well , regardless of the tasks that it attempt . As you ’d expect , this sound offers 5 one thousand connectivity , twofold - stria Wi - Fi , Bluetooth 5.2 , andNFC .
Based on Android 12 , this headphone runs the MyOS 12 software . However , unlike some rival manufacturers including Xiaomi or Realme , this stigma ’s user port is n’t too unwieldy . There are n’t many additional apps on top of stock Android , and I definitely appreciate this over the phones that come stuff with bloatware on startup . WPS Office , Phone Switch , and the Booking.com apps are among the very few supererogatory apps you ’ll see here , but this pales in comparability to the the likes of ofMIUIfrom Xiaomi .
In the preferences app , you ’ll also find a chain of mountains of useful Personalisation features that let you diddle around with app icon , fonts , wallpapers , and widgets to your heart ’s content , making the telephone set truly feel like yours .
Battery
The Axon 40 Ultra include a 5000mAh capacity barrage fire , which is what I ’d desire to see on a French telephone with demanding screen glasses . Still , this is one specification that really want to be test in material life story to see how it holds up , because sometimes the numbers alone do n’t give the full story .
In my experience the earpiece hold up moderately well , birth a good day ’s battery life when used both moderately and intensively . To give specific examples , the percentage ticked down by 6 % when watching a YouTube video for an hour on the nonpayment screen preferences , and streaming medicine over Spotify for an hour eat up 4 % off the battery .
When it ’s time to recharge the battery , there ’s 65W wired charge to top up the battery again fleetly . Our unit of measurement was supplied with a European courser , so we ca n’t be sure how rapidly the phone could be top up with the brand ’s proprietary UK battery charger . There ’s no option for wireless charging here , so you ’ll have to do things the traditional way .
Latest deals
Should you buy it?
If you ’re after a great expect telephone for gaming and media consumption then the ZTE Axon 40 Ultra is a bright option .
The ZTE Axon 40 Ultra ’s under screen selfie photographic camera is a ingenious bit of tech , but woefully image quality is pigboat par .
Final Thoughts
The ZTE Axon 40 Ultra is a dependable phone , but it just falls scant of being a with child one . The concealment is excellent , the battery sprightliness very good , and operation tier are salient , too . However , the rearward camera is decent without being exceptional , and the under - cover selfie television camera is genuinely terrible , despite ( or probably because of ) its groundbreaking pattern . If mobile picture taking is one of your antecedency , then you ’d be better off moderate out a twist such as thePixel 6 .
Trusted Score
FAQs
It ’s usable in black , gold and silver .
Yes , you ’ll get 5 G data speed with a compatible SIM card and mesh insurance coverage .
There ’s been no IP military rank let out by the maker , so we ’re not sure how it would perform if exposed to water or dust .
Full Specs
Sustainability
TrustedReviews ’ hold the fact that worldwide warming is not a myth as a gist value and will unceasingly endeavour to help protect our planet from damage in its business drill .
As part of this mission , whenever we review a mathematical product we send out the society a serial of questions to help us gauge and make lucid the impact the equipment has on the environment .
We currently have n’t have answer to the questions on this product , but will update this page the second we do . you could see a detailed breakdown of the questions we ask and why in oursustainability info page .
