ZTE aims for 'high-end' market with launch of Nubia Z9 Max smartphone
Chinese smartphone marker Nubia, which prides itself on the quality of its phone cameras, launched the Z9 Max this week with an aggressive claim: that it can shoot better photos than the iPhone 6.
Chinese smartphone marker Nubia, which prides itself on the quality of its phone cameras, launched the Z9 Max this week with an aggressive claim: that it can shoot better photos than the iPhone 6.
The smartphone brand, a subsidiary of gadget manufacturer ZTE, is known for delivering high definition images with bright colours. China's First Lady Peng Liyuan was snapped using an older model, the Z7, to take photos during a visit to Germany last year.
Nubia hopes to go beyond just quality photos however. For its latest model, the firm hired electric-car maker BYD to make an aluminium shell that is lighter and stronger than previous phone bodies. The Z9 Max runs Android 5.0 Lollipop and supports two SIM cards.
"Chinese customers deserve high-end phones at an affordable price," said Nubia CEO Ni Fei at the product's launch.
"It should not be the case that only foreign brands occupy the high-end Chinese smartphone market."
The 16gb Z9 Max costs 2,499 yuan from the company's website. The phone retails for about half the price of an iPhone 6, but is around 25 per cent more expensive than rival Xiaomi's Mi 4 smartphone, which boasts similar stats to the Z9. Xiaomi's lower-end model, the Redmi, costs just 699 yuan.
