ZTE Iconic Phablet hands-on [VIDEO]
Have big hands? Want a ZTE phone? If both of those things are true, the ZTE Iconic Phablet might be the device for you. The Chinese company toted this big guy to Vegas with them for CES, so we did our due diligence in getting some hands-on time with it. The specs seem a bit underwhelming for a phablet at first glance:
- Unspecified dual-core Qualcomm processor
- 5.7-inch 720p display
- 1GB of RAM
- 3,200mAh
- Bleutooth 4.0
- 8GB of storage
- 8 megapixel rear camera with LED flash
- 1 megapixel front camera
- Android 4.3 Jelly Bean
That said, it could still be a very capable device if the price is right. Our early look at this thing’s software shows a very bare-bones version of Android with light customization by ZTE.
One element of their user interface tweaks is a multi-pane apps feature, not unlike the multi-view feature of Samsung’s latest smartphones. This allows you to run two apps at the same time, and it gives you the freedom to adjust the viewing area of each app at a moment’s notice. It seems to work rather well, though there wasn’t much else immediately noticeable that takes advantage of that 5.7-inch screen real estate.
CDMA and GSM radios — plus LTE — inside suggest this thing could launch pretty much anywhere. While we don’t see the likes of Verizon or AT&T touting this as a heavy hitting device here in the States, we wouldn’t be surprised if someone like Virgin or Boost Mobile offered this up as an affordable biggie-sized phone for those who want a massive display. Guesswork only gets us so far, though, so we’ll wait for more availability details from ZTE before we start making assumptions. Find the hands-on video above.