ZTE looking to fill Nexus void with an affordable stock Android phone?

The launch of the Pixel and Pixel XL marked an important moment for Google and the Android world as a whole. The Big G made a shift toward the hardware business, exercising control over every aspect of its new lineup — from hardware, to design, to software — bringing two excellent, premium Android handsets to the market. But now there is a void left behind, a void where once the Nexus line stood, offering fans affordable smartphones running pure Android and receiving regular, timely updates. The good news is that there are manufacturers out there at least toying with the idea to fill that niche with devices running stock, or at least close to stock, Android.

Somewhat in line with ZTE's crowdsourcing effort of August this year, when the company asked users to submit their ideas for features they would like to see in its next flagship, ZTE has now opened a community poll on their website to ask why/if its userbase prefers the stock Android experience over proprietary skins.

Although ZTE is not well-known for timely and regular updates, the company has begun working to change this with the Axon 7, which has been receiving monthly security patches and will get Android 7.0 Nougat by January next year. This, combined with ZTE's crowdsourcing efforts, is a clear indication that the company is at least listening to its users, but the outcome of the newest poll should not be interpreted as a set-in-stone “the new Nexuses are here” scenario. The results of the poll will be forwarded to ZTE's research and development team for further evaluation, who will then decide whether the company should experiment with a stock Android device.

With that said, here are the top 3 reasons of ZTE users for favoring the stock experience (in order of votes received):