ZTE Render (aka Orbit) makes its way to US Cellular with Windows Phone 7.5

The timing seems a bit odd, but here it is, the ZTE Render is available on US Cellular. The Render is also known as the ZTE Orbit, which was announced way back in February.

For $179 on a two-year agreement before a mail-in $100 rebate, you get an understated design with a 4-inch WVGA screen, 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S1 (MSM7627A) processor, 5MP auto-focus camera, 512MB of RAM, 4GB of storage and Windows Phone 7.5 Tango. 7.5 Tango?

Yes, you read that right. US Cellular is launching this phone just in time for Windows Phone 8.  With the new Windows Phone OS around the corner, and US Cellular’s otherwise excellent line-up, it is difficult to grasp the timing for the ZTE Render.  It will complement their only other Windows Phone device, the sliding QWERTY HTC 7 Pro by offering a touch-screen only option.

Of course, we must not overlook that Windows Phone 7.8 upgrades will be coming to existing Tango devices, so these handsets will still have support down the road and not be completely out of date.  Based on the specs of the device, the pricing appears a bit too aggressive, but not completely unaffordable. For those US Cellular customers that want a touchscreen only Windows Phone, they now have that choice.

source: US Cellular via wpcentral