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ZTE ZMAX Review

Name: ZTE ZMAX Review
Item: ZTE ZMAX
Rating: 8
Author: John V.

posted by John V. / Oct 03, 2014, 4:08 AM

Introduction

Being a household name takes a lot of work in the mobile space, especially when there are so many companies competing for a piece of the pie. That, of course, is something that has eluded ZTE tie-after-time here in the US market. In its latest quest to try and break free from that stigma, the company is banking that a run in the entry-level market with its new phablet smartphone in the ZTE ZMAX, will yield fruitful rewards in giving its name some substance amongst consumers. Even now, it’s still rare to find a budget oriented phablet, but the ZMAX surely gains attention with its outright cost of $252 – so will it be enough to get people to take notice of it?

The package contains:

microUSB cable
Wall charger
Start guide
User manual

Design

The ZTE ZMAX is as generic looking as they come.

Indicative of its low pricing, the ZTE ZMAX’s design doesn’t spark the imagination. Aesthetically, it’s pretty generic looking with its hard lined look, all-plastic black body, and tapered edges. Naturally, it’s a handful to operate due to its immense size, a quality that’s emblematic of any phablet, but the plastic material makes the phone rather slippery.

As for the placement of its physical buttons, they’re in locations that are ideal for a tablet – like how the power button is on the right side of the phone, and the volume controls on the left. Other ports around its body include its microUSB port, various microphones, SIM slot, and microSD slot. Interestingly, they’ve opted to outfit the phone with capacitive Android buttons, as opposed to having them incorporated into the interface.

View more + 12 images

Front view
Side view

To see the phones in real size or compare them with other models, visit our Visual Phone Size Comparison page

Display

Large in size, its specs might not impress, but it has enough pleasing qualities to like.

Sporting a massive sized 5.7-inch 720 x 1280 TFT display, there’s no denying that it fits the mold of what we’d expect to find in a phablet – where we’re given a sizable real estate to work with. Chiming in with 720p resolution, it might not appear super sharp upon close inspection with its pixel density count of 258 ppi, but it’s still nonetheless usable from a normal viewing distance. Meanwhile, there are other qualities about the screen that surprisingly give it a favorable tone – like its color temperature of 7000 K, 441 nit brightness, and 2.05 gamma value. However, there’s visible distortion at wide viewing angles, and it’s not entirely accurate with its color reproduction. For all intents and purposes, the display is usable and we’re genuinely pleased by the qualities produced by this affordably priced phone.

Display measurements and quality

	Maximum brightness Higher is better	Minimum brightness (nits) Lower is better	Contrast Higher is better	Color temperature (Kelvins)	Gamma	Delta E rgbcmy Lower is better	Delta E grayscale Lower is better
ZTE ZMAX	441 (Good)	13 (Poor)	1:801 (Average)	7000 (Excellent)	2.05	5.09 (Average)	5.91 (Average)
Huawei Ascend Mate 2 4G	457 (Good)	21 (Poor)	1:1189 (Good)	6554 (Excellent)	2.24	2.37 (Good)	2.75 (Good)
Samsung Galaxy Mega 5.8	430 (Good)	11 (Average)	1:1082 (Good)	8970 (Poor)	2.68	9.27 (Poor)	8.21 (Poor)
Sony Xperia T2 Ultra	508 (Excellent)	26 (Poor)	1:1473 (Excellent)	7071 (Good)	2.9	5.39 (Average)	7.47 (Average)

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The numbers below represent the amount of deviation in the respective property, observed when a display is viewed from a 45-degree angle as opposed to direct viewing.

	Maximum brightness Lower is better	Minimum brightness Lower is better	Contrast Lower is better	Color temperature Lower is better	Gamma Lower is better	Delta E rgbcmy Lower is better	Delta E grayscale Lower is better
ZTE ZMAX	75.1%	76.9%	63.5%	11.4%	4.4%	7.3%	49.2%
Sony Xperia T2 Ultra	85.4%	88.5%	99.8%	9.4%	1%	2.2%	4.7%
Huawei Ascend Mate 2 4G	86.2%	85.7%	82.2%	5.7%	10.7%	22.8%	156.4%
Samsung Galaxy Mega 5.8	No data	No data	93.3%	1.6%	67.5%	3.1%	118.1%

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The CIE 1931 xy color gamut chart represents the set (area) of colors that a display can reproduce, with the sRGB colorspace (the highlighted triangle) serving as reference. The chart also provides a visual representation of a display's color accuracy. The small squares across the boundaries of the triangle are the reference points for the various colors, while the small dots are the actual measurements. Ideally, each dot should be positioned on top of its respective square. The 'x: CIE31' and 'y: CIE31' values in the table below the chart indicate the position of each measurement on the chart. 'Y' shows the luminance (in nits) of each measured color, while 'Target Y' is the desired luminance level for that color. Finally, 'ΔE 2000' is the Delta E value of the measured color. Delta E values of below 2 are ideal.

These measurements are made using SpectraCal's CalMAN calibration software.

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8 Comments

1. bugsbunny00

Posts: 2251; Member since: Jun 07, 2013

better than xperia T2 ultra

posted on Oct 03, 2014, 4:32 AM 0

2. Telemike

Posts: 41; Member since: Nov 30, 2012

I can't believe it's taller than the Huawei. I have held the ascend Mate 2 and it's big and has a bigger screen at 6.1" for $50 more although you can't finance it thru T-Mobile and it doesn't have wi-fi calling

posted on Oct 03, 2014, 4:34 AM 0

3. Adrian38

Posts: 142; Member since: Nov 05, 2012

Such a shame that this device is only for T-Mobile. If they would have sold it unlocked, I would have definitely picked one up.

posted on Oct 03, 2014, 8:11 AM 0

4. Planterz

Posts: 2120; Member since: Apr 30, 2012

You can still buy one outright and have it unlocked, can't you? It just so happens to support AT&T's other LTE bands...

posted on Oct 03, 2014, 3:17 PM 0

5. Planterz

Thanks for the review John V. I'm only mildly interested in this phone (gonna save instead for a Nexus 6), but a friend of mine is extremely interested. He's not wealthy, and wants something BIG, but can't afford something like a Note 3. He just wants it for Netflix, some games (mainly emulators), etc. I think this is the perfect phone for him, and LTE is just icing on the cake. Are there plans to review the Samsung Galaxy Avant from T-Mobile? It's a well-priced low-mid end device, and the fact that you can download an app to carrier unlock it and use it on AT&T (or other North American GSM carriers) makes it an intriguing and slightly puzzling phone.

posted on Oct 03, 2014, 3:41 PM 1

6. griffin8r73

Posts: 1; Member since: Oct 19, 2014

Yeah, here's your review of the Avant. It's a piece of crap. It crashes at the slightest app taxation. Its battery capacity is worse than most flip phones. Garbage, garbage, garbage. Really a disappointment from a company like Samsung, as though they wanted to put out something that would make sure broke people wanted to over-extend themselves to get the good stuff, rather than make a decent phone for a mid-range price.

posted on Oct 19, 2014, 7:24 PM 0

7. MoonlitTear

Posts: 52; Member since: Jun 09, 2008

I feel kinda bad for as I got this phone for a steal. My Walmart sells Univision Mobile. A T-Mobile MVNO that just happened to carry the ZTE Max @199 dollars. But last week, we had a clearance fire sale of them. I picked this up for 58.43 after tax and 2 Yr Replacement plan. I LOVE it!! It is doing everything I need it too, and it's SOOOOO big. My only qualm is I think I am gonna have to root if I want Android 5.x on this. But overall I am thrilled with the phone, although getting it for only 58 bucks helps too. Check out your local walmart people! :D

posted on Apr 26, 2015, 10:49 PM 0

8. youngkim3000

Posts: 1; Member since: May 10, 2016

I have had this phone for over a year and I really like it. For the price, it is unbeatable. I paid only about $129. I like that it has a large screen, is very thin, and is quite reliable and sturdy. The battery lasts all day. Sure, maybe the iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy 6 is better, but they cost over 4 TIMES as much. Customer support is good too. I highly recommend it. Have a blessed day everyone! :)