If you are fan of 5″ smartphones, you already know about the ZUK Z2. With its powerfull specs and elegant design, Z2 already became very popular among users and has many fan sites in a short time after it was released 2 months ago. With its $299 price tag it was already the cheapest Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 powered device and was strongest contender of Xiaomi Mi5 and LeEco Le Max 2 in this price range. Then we saw price cut of Le Max 2, being sold under $300, and now ZUK Z2 took this place, again, with the brand new Rio edition.

Specs are the same with ZUK Z2, except for RAM and ROM configuration which has been reduced to 3GB and 32GB. The original ZUK Z2 has 4GB RAM and 64GB ROM. Even the clock speed of the Snapdragon 820 stayed the same, 2.15GHz, not an underclocked version like we saw in Xiaomi Mi5’s 3GB/32GB version as 1.8GHz  ($329).

ZUK Z2 Rio Edition specifications

• 5-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Full HD LTPS 2.5D curved glass display
• 2.15GHz Quad-Core Snapdragon 820 processor with Adreno 530 GPU
• 3GB RAM with 32GB internal storage
• Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) with ZUI 2.0
• 13MP rear camera with LED Flash, f/ 2.2, 5P lens, ISOCELL sensor, PDAF, CAF dual-mode focus, EIS
• 8MP front-facing camera with 1.4μm pixel size, f/2.0 aperture, 78.9-degree wide viewing angle
• Dual (nano) SIMs
• Fingerprint scanner
• Dimensions: 141.65×68.88×8.45mm; Weight: 149g
• 4G LTE with VoLTE, WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4/5 GHz), Bluetooth 4.1, GPS, USB 2.0 Type-C
• 3500mAh battery with Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0

Oh yes the price, only 1599 Yuan, $240 for this power house ! However if Chinese customers choose to order through selected online stores they will receive a 100 Yuan price cut making the phone just 1499 Yuan ($224) starting August 2.

That’s insane price for a Snapdragon 820 flagship!

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Lenovo’s sub-brand ZUK was established last year to attract the younger generation crowd who would like to have the best specs at the best price. ZUK Z1 managed to capture all of our attention and with the ZUK Z2 Pro and ZUK Z2 models, the company has pretty much established that it is here to take on the market. The ZUK Z2 in particular, is an important flagship for the company as it takes on Xiaomi’s mighty Mi5. What makes ZUK Z2 interesting is that it’s cheaper than the Mi 5, yet comes with a faster clocked Snapdragon 820 processor @ 2.15GHz as well as 4GB of RAM on board. This gave the Z2 an edge over the few months old Mi5. Check out our full comparison with Xiaomi Mi5 from here.

The ZUK Z2 is quite popular in China at the moment, and within three days the company managed to get over 6 million registrations for the first flash sale that is going to be held tomorrow morning. Given that this is a major flagship, we managed to get an early sample of the ZUK Z2. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the time for a full-fledged unboxing or review of the device, but those videos should come up soon.

What we do bring today is a preview video of the ZUK Z2 in action. In case, you were wondering how the ZUK Z2 looked in real life, and performed, this video should give you a basic idea about the phone. Check out this 5-incher from down below.  Also, you can currently pre-order the ZUK Z2 from OPPOMART for $329. TThe phone starts shipping from June 20 and will come with google play services pre-installed on the device.

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Smartphones are a big deal in China, with almost everyone looking to get hold of the latest flagship in the market. We have seen Xiaomi phones getting millions of registrations for the flash sales of their flagship models, and looks like ZUK is joining the party as well. ZUK has just revealed that it has received over 6 million registrations for the first sale of ZUK Z2 smartphone in China. This is actually not that surprising given that the device is priced at 1799 Yuan ($273) and it is one of the cheapest Snapdragon 820 powered smartphones that you can buy right now! What’s even more impressive is that the company got so many registrations in just three days, and there are still three days left for the first sale.

ZUK Z2 will officially go on sale in the country on June 7 at 10:00 AM. I sure hope ZUK has prepared enough units to fulfill the immense demand for the new handset.

Looks wise, the ZUK Z2 is similar to the Z2 Pro, coming with a metal frame and glass body. The company says the 68.88mm width of the device is ideal for one hand operation. Specs-wise, the phone is really impressive, coming with Snapdragon 820, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage as standard. The ZUI 2.0 comes with a special overclocking feature which increases the clock speed of the chipset from 2.15GHz up to 2.3GHz. At the back, there will be a 13MP rear camera with LED flash, PDAF and CAF, while up front, you get an 8MP shooter. The battery is pretty large as well, measuring 3500mAh in capacity and with Quick Charge 3.0, filling it up will be a piece of cake. You can read more about the specs of the device from here.

We will have to wait and see how many more registrations the phone gets before its first flash sale. We should get this news in the next few days.

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Xiaomi didn’t announce the successor to the popular Xiaomi Mi4 last year. This meant that the new flagship smartphone that the company announced in 2016 had to be perfect, satisfying the needs of the millions of Xiaomi fans worldwide. In a way, Mi5 did fulfill the need for a cheap Snapdragon 820 powered flagship, offering pretty good specs for a price tag of just over $305, at least in China. While many manufacturers found it hard to match Xiaomi in terms of its cheap pricing for Snapdragon 820, ZUK came forward and made sure its new ZUK Z2 phone came out as another cheap Snapdragon 820 option. In fact, if we stop and think, the ZUK Z2 is actually meant to be the Xiaomi Mi5 killer. The company already had two ZUK Z2 Pro variants, which were only a few bucks pricier than the Mi5. But it went ahead and released the ZUK Z2, in a separate conference. This does tell us something about the company’s intention with its new device.

Since they are meant to be direct rivals, with similar specs and pricing, let’s take a look at the ZUK Z2 vs Xiaomi Mi5 comparison. We will see a lot of similarities in the design as well as the specs, but there will be a few differences as well. Let’s look at them in detail in the comparison down below.

ZUK Z2 vs Xiaomi Mi5

DESIGN:

Design wise, they are very similar looking smartphones. Both the companies decided to opt for a glass back and a metal frame on their smartphones. While ZUK Z2 features a flatter back, the Mi5 comes with a slightly curved back panel, which should help in the grip. Both have their camera modules placed on the top left corner on the back, and the front features a compact 5-inch (5.15-inch on the Mi5) display with a front home button enabled fingerprint sensor.

ZUK Z2 Measurements: 141.7 x 68.9 x 8.5 mm Weight: 149 grams

Xiaomi Mi5 Measurements: 144.6 x 69.2 x 7.3 mm Weight: 129 grams

As you can see, the measurements are almost the same, except for the thickness. Mi5 comes with a thin 7.3mm body, while the Z2 features an 8.5mm body. But there’s explanation to the increased thickness of the ZUK model, since it features a larger 3500mAh battery. On the other hand, the Mi5 comes with a 3000mAh battery. Since we are on the topic of battery, it’s important to mention that both feature Quick Charge 3.0 fast charging.

ZUK Z2 vs Xiaomi Mi5 Specs:

When it comes to the specs, both have very similar internals. Both the models are powered by Snapdragon 820 quad-core chipset. However, we are talking about the base variants, and the Xiaomi Mi5 standard version is underclocked to 1.8GHz. On the other hand, the ZUK Z2 is clocked at 2.15GHz, which can be overclocked further to 2.3GHz. So, on paper, the performance should be better than the Mi5. Then there’s the RAM on board. The base variant of the Mi5 comes with just 3GB of RAM, while the ZUK Z2 features 4GB RAM as standard. As for storage, you get 32GB on the Mi5 while the ZUK Z2 features 64GB. Both have non-expandable storages, so ZUK definitely gets a plus point in the memory department.

Coming to the display, the Xiaomi Mi5 sports a 5.15-inch 1080 IPS LCD display while the ZUK Z2 has a 5-inch IPS LCD display. But the screen to body ratio on the Mi5 is higher, 73.1 percent as compared to 70.6 percent on the Z2. It is confirmed that the Mi5 has Corning Gorilla glass 4 protection, while we are not sure about the protection on the Z2.

Coming to the camera department, the Xiaomi Mi5 seems to have an edge on paper. The phone features a 16MP rear f/2.0 shooter with 4-axis OIS, PDAF and dual LED flash. The camera has 1/2.8″ sensor size, and 1.12 µm pixel size. Coming to the ZUK Z2, it features a 13MP rear camera with f/2.2, EIS (electronic image stabilization), PDAF and CAF (Contrast Auto Focus) with LED flash. It has 1/2.6″ sensor size, and 1.34 µm pixel size. Both can capture 2K videos and slo-mo videos. Up front, the Mi5 comes with a 4MP f/2.0 camera while Z2 has an 8MP f/2.o sensor.

Other features common on both devices include dual-band Wi-Fi ac, Bluetooth 4.0, fingerprint sensor embedded into the home button and dual SIM card slots. In the connectivity department, Mi5 has NFC and Infrared but ZUK Z2 doesn’t. The battery is larger on the ZUK Z2 as mentioned above (3500mAh) as compared to Mi5’s 3000mAh. Finally, for software, the Mi5 comes with MIUI 7 based on Android 6, while ZUK Z2 features ZUI 2.0 based on Android 6.0.1.

Pricing & Availability:

When it comes to the pricing of ZUK Z2 vs Xiaomi Mi5, after the recent promotion of the device in China, the prices are almost similar. Xiaomi had announced the Mi5 at around $308 in China at the time of launch, but now, the pricing seems to have gone down. International customers can now purchase the Xiaomi Mi5 base model for just $308 and with shipping included it still is well under $350. Coming to the ZUK Z2, it has an advantage of cheaper pricing as it is priced around $273. So, even after the premium charged by retailers, the pricing should be around $300, which at present is almost the same as the Mi5. Adding express shipping should still limit the price tag to well under $350.

Availability is a different story though. Xiaomi seems to have stabilized the Mi5 stocks, and now, most retailers have the device in stock. As for the ZUK Z2, the phone is yet to go on sale, and the first sale is on June 7. Only after a few days will we know whether the Z2 is readily available for purchase in China as well as via third-party retailers.

So, that was the ZUK Z2 vs Xiaomi Mi5 comparison. It would really be hard to choose between these two devices, but if you were going to buy one, which one would it be?

We have already reviewed the Xiaomi Mi5. You can check it out from here.

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ZUK just announced its new flagship, the ZUK Z2 which is another good addition to the list of affordable flagships in the market. In fact, considering that the official price tag of the flagship is just around $279, it easily is one of the best smartphones under the $300 segment. However, considering that at present, the phone will only be sold in China (goes on sale on June 7 there), international customers will have to shell out a premium price for the device.

OPPOMART has just listed the device on its website and looks like the premium pricing is acceptable. The phone has been listed for $299, which is around $27 in addition to the original price. If this is the final price of the product, I am sure many of our readers would be happy to get one. But as of now, it is listed as out of stock and we don’t know when it will be available for pre-order/ purchase. Hopefully, pricing would remain the same as $299 for pre-order.

To recap, the ZUK Z2 comes with Snapdragon 820 chip with 4GB RAM, 64GB of storage, 13MP ISOCELL rear sensor, 8MP front shooter and a 3500mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0. Its a pretty good looking 5-inch flagship and you can check out the listing on OPPOMART from here.

Also, read more about the new flagship from down below.

ZUK Z2 Announced With SD820 & 4GB RAM

ZUK Z2 AnTuTu Test performance

ZUK Z2 Real Camera samples

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ZUK announced its second flagship smartphone this year, namely the ZUK Z2. This will be a slightly toned down version of the Z2 Pro model, but still it packs enough punch to take on mighty rivals such as the Xiaomi Mi5. In fact, ZUK Z2 is priced cheaper that the Mi5 and at just 1799 Yuan $273, it is also faster than the base version of the Xiaomi Mi5 which comes with just 3GB of RAM. Looks like Lenovo’s ZUK is all set to take on the upper mid-range market with its new device. Read on for more details about the phone.

The company is marketing the ZUK Z2 as a small screen flagship since it comes with a 5-inch display. This is smaller than most other flagships in the market and would definitely get the attention of compact smartphone lovers. As for the design, the Z2 comes with an aluminum alloy body frame with high strength glass to improve the looks as well as body strength. It will be resistant to stains as well as abrasion. Further, the body is just 68.88mm wide which the company says is ideal for handling the phone with one hand.

Under the hood, the ZUK Z2 comes with the powerful Snapdragon 820 chipset clocked at 2.15GHz. But the phone supports overclocking of the chip up to 2.3GHz. The company reveals that the Z2 managed to get a score of over 145K on AnTuTu, which is really high. But expect the real life scores to be lower than this figure. Now, if you are worried about over heating, the company says that the alloy frame manages to dissipate heat just fine making sure that the phone’s temperature is under control. There will be 4GB of RAM on board and 64GB of internal storage as standard.

At the back, the ZUK Z2 comes with a 13MP ISOCELL sensor with 0.1s fast focus (PDAF + CAF), EIS, f/2.2 aperture and 1.32um pixel size. The phone supports slow motion recording as well. Up front, you have an 8MP shooter with beauty mode. As for the battery, you get a 3500mAh capacity one inside, which is pretty large as compared to other 5-inch competitors. With 1080p resolution and small screen size, this battery should provide at least a day of usage on the device. Further, you can charge it from 0 to 80 percent in around 100 minutes, which is pretty good.

As for the software, the ZUK Z2 comes with ZUI 2.0. The company has promised Android N update for the device and you can even flash different ROMs such as CyanogenMod, ColorOS etc on the device.

You can make reservations for the phone from today on various retailers like Zuk’s own website, Suning and Lynx. The phone will go on sale from June 7 at 10:00AM in China.

For $273, the ZUK Z2 is really a beast! It looks like Xiaomi definitely has something to worry about.

What do you think?

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UPDATE: ZUK Z2 Announced! Cheaper Than Expected!

This afternoon, ZUK will officially take the wraps off its second smartphone in the past couple of months, called simply as the ZUK Z2. But before the release, a few posters of the smartphone have been leaked revealing most of the details of the device, including the specs and the design.

Looks wise, like we reported earlier, there will only be a few handful of changes between the ZUK Z2 model and the Z2 Pro that was announced last month. The camera will lie on the top left corner, instead of the center and there will be a few camera-centric features missing from this particular model. The Z2 will also be smaller, featuring a 5-inch display instead of 5.2-inch as found on the Z2 Pro. Also, it seems that the phone will initially come in two colors, black and white.

As for the specs, the ZUK Z2 will continue using Snapdragon 820 quad-core chipset as its elder sibling. Which means this model will be quite powerful as well. To support this powerful processor, the phone will come with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage.m The 5-inch display up front features 1080p resolution. At the back, you get a 13MP Samsung ISOCELL sensor with PDAF and Contrast Autofocus. The battery is quite decent as well, and with a capacity of 3500mAh, it’s larger than most other 5-inch flagships in the market right now.

As for the fingerprint sensor, the ZUK Z2 will come with UTouch 2.0, which is probably the same sensor as the Z2 Pro. This should mean that that the sensor will work even with wet hands. The new model is said to come with six special sensors. It should also support full netcom 3.0 standard. Pricing is expected to be around 1999 Yuan ($308), which, if true, will give tough competition to the Xiaomi Mi 5 flagship which starts at the same price tag.

Since the event is almost underway, we will get more details about the new ZUK Z2 phone in a couple of hours. So, stay tuned!

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ZUK CEO Chang Chen had revealed a few days back that the company was going to release a new flagship in the month of May, which would be called as the ZUK Z2. A surprise feature of the new ZUK handset was expected to be the Samsung Exynos 8890 chipset inside. However, after seeing the first teaser for the upcoming handset, we were all disappointed. The teaser showed that the phone was going to come with a Snapdragon chip inside. Then, we speculated that there could be a version which runs on Exynos 8890. But that’s probably not going to happen, given that ZUK Z2 has just passed through the TENAA certification website and it basically confirms the presence of Snapdragon 820 on board.

Before we move on to the specs, let’s take a look at the design of the handset. Not much will be different than the ZUK Z2 Pro version, except for the screen size, which is now reduced to 5-inches, instead of 5.2-inch on the Pro and the camera placement at the back, which is now on the top left corner instead of the center.

As for the specs, the ZUK Z2 model will feature the Snapdragon 820 chip clocked at 2.15GHz with two memory variants, 3GB + 32GB and 4GB + 64GB. The display will be of 5-inches with 1080p resolution. At the back, the phone will have a 13MP sensor while up front, you will find an 8MP shooter. The battery is decent, with a capacity of 3500mAh. The phone seems to be running on Android 6.0.1 version out of the box and comes with 4G LTE and dual-SIM dual standby support.

There is no mention of Exynos 8890 anywhere on TENAA, and we wonder why CEO mentioned this chip while talking about this new device. Another important question will be, how many of the unique features of the ZUK Z2 Pro will be retained by this model, which is expected to be cheaper. It is said that the phone will start at 1799 Yuan ($274).

ZUK Z2 will be officially unveiled on May 31. Stay tuned for details.

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It looks like the next few weeks are going to be pretty amazing for smartphone fans all around the world. We have already seen the innovative LG G5, Samsung Galaxy S7 and the Huawei Matebook 2-in-1 and there are a lot more announcements coming our way at MWC 2016. Further, the world’s first 6GB smartphone, Vivo XPlay 5 is all set to debut in March as well as this ZUK Z2 flagship, possibly with a rotating camera.

RELATED: ZUK Z1 REVIEW

Unfortunately, we haven’t received much news about the ZUK Z2 yet, but we can expect pretty powerful specs on the device. ZUK revealed via its official weibo page that the phone will come with innovative technology. It could be hinting at the rumored rotating camera or some other new tech. We will have to wait and see what this relatively new brand has in store for us.

Also, we hope that the ZUK Z2 is as affordable as the Z1. Since, its almost confirmed that the Z2 will launch in March, expect a lot more details about this upcoming flagship in the coming days.

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