It's getting harder and harder to find a bad phone nowadays. Phones like the OnePlus 3 and ZTE Axon 7 show that you don't need to empty your coffers for a flagship smartphone. Plus, phones like the Moto G4 Play and the Huawei Honor X5 show that you can get a fully-featured smartphone with little compromise for around $200.
But what if you venture even lower than $200? How about a phone that costs $100? For that price, you'd expect a potato of a smartphone, but ZTE managed to surprise us with its budget ZMax Pro smartphone.
After spending a week with the ZMax Pro, we've come to the conclusion that it's one of the best budget smartphones out there, but you're probably not going to buy it. Here's why.
ZTE ZMax Pro price and release date
The ZTE ZMax Pro is available now exclusively in the US from MetroPCS for $99. MSRP for the phone is $179. Unfortunately, the phone is not unlocked, nor is it available in the UK or Australia at the time of writing.
Design
- The ZTE ZMax Pro is made entirely of plastic but it doesn't feel flimsy
- The rear-firing speaker is easily covered up and doesn't get very loud
The ZTE ZMax Pro bears a striking resemblance to the Motorola-built Nexus 6 with its curved sides and similar button arrangement. The phone features a 6.0" Gorilla Glass 3 covered screen with a resolution of 1920x1080. On the front of the phone, you'll find a 5-megapixel front-facing camera, earpiece and backlit capacitive buttons. On the top, you'll find the trusty 3.5mm headphone jack. On the bottom is a USB-C port for charging.
On the rear of the device you'll find a 13-megapixel camera, flash, fingerprint sensor and ZTE logo. There are rose gold plastic accents around the phone, giving this budget phone a premium look.
The phone is made entirely out of plastic but it doesn't look or feel like a $99 phone. Soft touch plastic was chosen for the back, giving the ZMax Pro a bit of grip, though its plastic frame ultimately makes the phone feel slippery in the hand.
Interface and reliability
- ZTE went light on the Android customizations, making the phone feel close to stock
- The included MetroPCS bloatware is annoying
ZTE took the conservative route with its software customizations, resulting in a near-stock Android 6.0 Marshmallow experience. The biggest interface tweak is the translucent notification drawer, which looks nice but can be a bit difficult to read at times. Other ZTE optimizations include a custom camera experience with manual controls, modified quick settings drawer, Wi-Fi calling and options to swap the back and multitasking buttons.
Unfortunately, the ZTE ZMax Pro is loaded with MetroPCS bloatware. MetroPCS, for whatever reason, felt the need to include its own app store. However, it requires users to allow software installation from "Unknown Sources," defeating one of Android's security layers. Thankfully, you can avoid using MetroPCS's app store altogether by using Google Play.
Music, movies and games
- Dolby's sound enhancements make the ZMax Pro sound good, but not great
- The ZMax Pro's screen is dim, making it hard to see outdoors
Listening to music with the ZTE ZMax Pro is a decent experience. Since the phone still rocks the analog headphone jack, you won't have any issues with finding compatible headphones. However, the phone's internal amplifier is a bit weak compared to other like the Galaxy S7, iPhone 7, and the OnePlus 3. This means you'll have to crank up the volume more than you would on other phones.
Music sounded just average with Dolby's software tweaks turned off. It didn't do anything wrong, but music sounded a bit flat. Turning on Dolby's optimizations, which are basically EQ presets, the ZMax Pro sounded a lot more exciting. If the included EQs aren't to your liking, you can create up to two additional presets.
The speaker on the phone is definitely where ZTE cut corners. The speaker is located at the rear of the phone where it's easily covered up by your fingers, especially when you're watching video. The speaker sounds weak and flat, and doesn't get very loud. You'll want to stick to using headphones with the ZMax Pro.
Video looks good on its 6" Full HD resolution screen. Pixel density is rated at 367 pixel-per-inch, which is good enough for a screen of this size. You won't be able to see individual pixels with the naked eye. Although, without a higher resolution screen, the ZMax Pro falls flat when it comes to VR content.
We found the ZTE ZMax Pro's screen completely serviceable, though it's dim when using outdoors. Colors are also a bit muted and contrast is a bit low compared to nicer panels from the OnePlus 3 and iPhone 7. However, for the price, it's hard to complain too much about the screen.
Games like CSR Racing and Pokemon Go played just fine, though the phone would occasionally chug, dropping frames here and there. With its midrange processor and 2GB of RAM, the ZTE ZMax Pro won't wow when it comes to gaming performance.
Specs and performance benchmark explained
- The phone feels snappy despite its mid-range specs
- There's a small amount of lag from time to time
Performance, as you'd expect from a $100 phone, isn't great but it also isn't terrible.
The ZTE ZMax Pro rocks a mid-range Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 processor and 2GB of RAM, which yields a Geekbench 4 score of 706 for single-core performance and 2194 for multi-core performance. This puts it around the ballpark of the Nexus 5 for single-core performance and similar multi-core performance as the Nexus 5x.
The ZTE ZMax Pro stutters from time to time, but we didn't mind the minor hiccups too much. For example, apps will take a split second longer to launch than they would on a flagship phone like the Samsung Galaxy S7. Scrolling through web pages also showed some stutter, but you get used to the limited performance. It's by no means a deal breaker. We were surprised at how smooth the ZMax Pro felt despite its mid-range specs.
For storage, the ZTE ZMax Pro comes with 32GB of onboard, but you can expand that storage up to 256GB with a microSD card. The phone's SIM tray doubles as a microSD card holder, like that of the Galaxy S7.
Overall, the phone feels fluid in normal use. Unlocking the phone via the rear fingerprint sensor is quick and snappy and we weren't too bothered by some occasional stuttering around the interface. Applications open up quickly and 2GB of RAM was plenty to keep some apps opened hours ago in memory.
Other features missing from the ZTE ZMax Pro are NFC, wireless charging, waterproofing, and wireless AC support. These aren't deal breakers for this $100 phone, but it's a bit disappointing not being able to use Android Pay.
- Battery life is a highlight of the phone, lasting two days of light to moderate use.
- The ZMax Pro's camera struggles with dynamic range, making photos too dark.
One feature that makes or breaks a phone is battery life. The ZTE ZMax Pro rocks a massive non-removable 3,400 mAh battery. For the price, this is an amazing amount of juice for a phone. During our testing, we found the ZMax Pro would last two full days of light use, and a full day of heavy use without problems.
Android Doze, a feature introduced in Android 6.0 Marshmallow, helps the phone sip power when not in use. Android Nougat will improve this feature even more, but it's unknown how quickly ZTE will update the ZMax Pro with the latest software, or if it will ever come at all.
More impressive is the fact that ZTE managed to give the ZMax Pro Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0. Fast charging is usually absent from budget smartphones like this (see Moto G4 Play), so it's very nice to see it available. However, the phone only ships with a standard 5 volt, 2.1 amp charger, so you'll have to buy your own Quick Charge Charger to take advantage of the feature.
Camera
The rear facing 13-megapixel camera features a f/2.2 aperture, LED flash, phase detection autofocus. While it can't focus nearly as quickly as the laser autofocus of the Galaxy S7, we found it speedy enough. Videos max out at 1080p and 30 frames per second (FPS), which is fine for casual shooting.
Photos taken with the ZTE ZMax Pro look good, but a bit soft in dim to low light. In bright sunlight, we were impressed by the detail and resolution of its pictures. The camera doesn't have the best dynamic range and low-light performance is mediocre but it's hard to complain for the price. We expected ZTE to compromise most on the camera but the photos taken with the phone are actually quite nice.
ZTE's own camera app for the ZMax Pro allows manual controls, which is nice for more seasoned photographers. For casual shooting, auto mode does a find job of analyzing a scene and produced some good photos. HDR helps, but the camera still struggles to retrieve detail from dark areas.
We've included several camera samples on the next page and point out its high and low points compared to what other phones are capable of.
The font on the menu remains quite sharp but there's softness around the neon sign.
Subjects in direct sunlight look great, but notice the camera struggle to capture detail in the shadows. The ZMax Pro's camera struggles with dynamic range.
In lower light, the ZTE ZMax Pro produces usable shots with good detail, but the sensor can't keep up with the cat's head as she moves.
The camera shows again how it struggles with dynamic range. The trees and restaurant are blown out as the camera compensates to capture the details of the Alfa Romeo.
Details are crisp in this photo, but the camera fails to capture accurate colors, although they aren't too far off. The scene looks darker than it should.
The 5-megapixel selfie cam does an average job. Notice the softness in detail and on the face caused by the default "beauty" filter.
The ZTE ZMax Pro packs in a lot for just a little money, making it one of the best values for an Android smartphone. However, its slim availability means that few will be able to experience it. This begs the question...
Who's this for?
This is the phone for people who want a large screen but don't have a lot of money to spend. The ZMax Pro isn't meant to be a flagship killer, so don't expect niceties like NFC or wireless charging.
Should you buy it?
If you're already on MetroPCS, the ZTE ZMax Pro is an excellent buy. But let's be honest; you're probably not going to switch to MetroPCS just to buy this $100 smartphone. Or, for those in the UK, Australia and elsewhere, you won't be able to. But if ZTE decides to sell it unlocked for its full $179 MSRP, it'll be a great deal for those looking for a mid-range smartphone.
Competition
Moto G4 Play
The Moto G4 Play is a great choice for a mid-range smartphone for $149 (£129, AU$249.) Its 720p display might not be the best for video, but it nails the essentials. Plus, Motorola's light software enhancements mean the phone should get updates fairly quickly.
Honor 5X
The Honor 5X features a smaller, but better looking display for $199 (£190, about AU$275). You'll also get decent battery life from its 3,000 mAh pack. If you can put up with Huawei's rather ugly, bloated interface and cheap-feeling materials, the Honor 5X is a good budget smartphone choice.
Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3
The Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3 is a budget phone with flagship specs. For $250 (£270, about AU$328) unlocked, you get a vibrant 5.5" screen, solid battery life, dual front stereo speakers and decent performance. While the ZTE ZMax Pro offers a larger screen, trading half an inch of screen real estate for more features may be worth it for some.
