ZTE Grand Memo hands-on

posted by PhoneArena Team / Feb 25, 2013, 9:20 AM

ZTE Grand Memo is pretty grand, and that's the first thought you come across when you take it in your hands, as we were struggling to operate it and had to resort to both palms for easier handling of the cheap-looking glossy plastic chassis, which, however, makes it feel pretty light for the phone's dimensions.

The Grand Memo sports a massive 5.7" 1280x720 pixels display that can't leave you unimpressed with its sheer size, especially if you like phones like the Galaxy Note II. Viewing angles are decent, and the pixel density seems enough despite the larger screen size. There's too much bezel on the sides, though, which adds to the unwieldy width of the device.

ZTE delivers a quad-core 1.7GHz Snapdragon 800 600 processor, the same we have already seen in other high-end devices like the HTC One.

There is 2GB RAM, 16 GB of internal memory, and a 13 MP rear camera. The best selling point besides the display and processor seems to be a huge 3200 mAh battery, which should keep you ticking heavily for a full day and change. Take a peek at our hands-on photos and video of the ZTE Grand Memo below.

ZTE GrandMemo hands-on

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19 Comments

1. redmd

Posts: 1917; Member since: Oct 26, 2011

not so well executed phablet. they coud have remove those bezels or opt to on-screen controls. oh well back to the drawing board.

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 9:27 AM 0

2. Dr.Phil

Posts: 2314; Member since: Feb 14, 2011

I was just reading Engadget and they are mentioning the Grand Memo as having the Snapdragon 800 processor. I don't know if that's another version of the phone or what, but it's interesting to note that there is a Grand Memo with a Snapdragon 800 processor out there.

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 10:04 AM 0

13. Dr.Phil

It looks like PA updated their article so ignore my comment.

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 2:14 PM 0

3. Potatoes

Posts: 5; Member since: Nov 03, 2012

The huge battery is because they didn't put energy efficient processor and display, like sony does. Not impressed.

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 10:16 AM 1

5. MistB

Posts: 581; Member since: Jul 07, 2012

720p not efficient over a 1080p, eh?? S4 Pro is the same processor plus it has a larger battery so I don't get it.

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 10:57 AM 0

7. MistB

S800* processor, if anything I'd say the processor is far too powerful for the low-ish resolution for this size, 2GB of RAM should be the minimum requirement for phablets going past 5.5 inches.

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 11:30 AM 0

4. jove39

Posts: 2143; Member since: Oct 18, 2011

Only 1GB of ram?

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 10:56 AM 0

6. g2a5b0e unregistered

I don't understand why they would put such a beast of a processor into a phone with a 720 display & 1 GB of RAM. The phone clearly doesn't need that kind of power to run properly. What a waste.

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 11:16 AM 3

14. g2a5b0e unregistered

Well, they amended the article to reflect that it actually has 2GB of RAM, but with a 720 screen, I still think the processor is overkill. I'd much rather see it in a device that has top-notch specs all aorund.

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 2:29 PM 0

8. Taksh.shines

Posts: 5; Member since: Feb 25, 2013

missing ......1080p .....thin bezel .....premium material and everything else gr8........

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 11:59 AM 1

9. prince34

Truly a waste of tech! How disappointing!

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 12:10 PM 0

10. Taters

Posts: 6474; Member since: Jan 28, 2013

The Qualcomm 800 one is supposed to be 1080p. If this has the Qualcomm 800, then Samsung better not use the 600 in the GS4. If the GS4 packed the Qualcomm 800 and a 3000 mah battery like the RAZR Maxx' then its game over for everyone else.

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 12:32 PM 2

11. tusshharish

Posts: 342; Member since: Oct 23, 2012

great phone........

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 12:34 PM 0

12. abd.champ

Posts: 7; Member since: Feb 09, 2013

sooo ... i can guess s4 will have snapdragon 800 instead of 600(according to rumors) :P

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 12:39 PM 1

15. kclgphilsbsa

Posts: 765; Member since: Jan 21, 2013

s800 is available,, so theres no need for sammy to get into s600

posted on Feb 25, 2013, 2:39 PM 0

18. Berzerk000

Posts: 4275; Member since: Jun 26, 2011

Samsung will probably use the 600 just for convenience of release. The 800 isn't supposed to be commercially available until June at the earliest, it's just sampling right now. If Samsung announces the GS4 with the 800 in March, that means it won't be actually released for nearly 3 months, which is much too long of a wait. Unless the 800 becomes commercially available earlier than expected, which I doubt, Samsung will use the 600.

posted on Feb 26, 2013, 4:12 AM 1

19. _Bone_

Posts: 2155; Member since: Oct 29, 2012

It will be available if Samsung says so simply because Qualcomm won't miss out on a 100.000.000 order. But if the 800 drains too much energy, Sammy might skip on it for that alone, and would be wise to do so, as after lag is completely gone, battery performance becomes more important than benchmarks with no notable difference to the user.

posted on Feb 26, 2013, 6:24 AM 1

16. SmartPhoneStream

Posts: 162; Member since: Jun 21, 2012

It is disappointing that such a capable processor is placed on a phone with a 720p display, the specs on this phone are amazing and then you see the 720p display. If the screen was 5 inches or smaller than it isn't a problem but at a size of 5.7 inches, a difference between 1080p and 720p can be distinguished.