Earlier this summer, ZTE announced the Axon 7 which appeared to directly compete with the OnePlus 3. Given that it was offering almost the same specs at the same price tag. However, not everyone wants a 5.5-inch smartphone, so the company has now launched the Axon 7 Mini, without even officially announcing it. The Axon 7 Mini is a 5.2-inch smartphone – which is only slightly smaller – and will be priced at €299 (or around $344 USD).
The Axon 7 Mini is decidedly a mid-range smartphone, although it is in the higher-end of the mid-range spectrum. Sporting a 5.2-inch 1080p AMOLED display, powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 617 processor with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage. Included is a micro SD card slot that supports up to 128GB. There’s a 2705mAh battery inside powering the show with Android 6.0 Marshmallow on the software front. For cameras, there is a 13-megapixel camera around back which supports recording in 4K, as well as an 8-megapixel front-facing shooter. Like the Axon 7, there is a fingerprint sensor included, which is located on the back of the device. Since this is running Marshmallow, you will be able to use that sensor for authentication in apps that support the Fingerprint API.
This is a dual-SIM smartphone, which means you’ll be able to use it on two carriers without needing to swap out your SIM cards. This is a good idea for anyone that travels frequently, or needs to use two networks if one isn’t quite good enough to give you coverage everywhere you go. The ZTE Axon 7 Mini also sports the same design as the Axon 7, which includes front-facing speakers. Something that is actually very rare currently, with smartphones.
At this point, it’s unclear whether the Axon 7 Mini will be heading over to the US. However if it does, it’ll likely be a bit cheaper. Considering the ZTE Axon 7 is currently being sold in the US for $399 (that’s for the 4GB/64GB model, as the higher-end 6GB/128GB model isn’t available in the US, yet), and with these lower specs and a smaller display, ZTE will need to price it lower than what it currently is in Europe.
