WEBVTT 00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:07.839 A little over two months ago, ZTE sponsored my trip to Beijing, China to 00:00:04.720 --> 00:00:09.519 attend the launch party for the Axon 7. 00:00:07.839 --> 00:00:14.080 Some stuff about their new flagship impressed me with the hands-on feel of 00:00:11.679 --> 00:00:18.720 the device and the jaw-dropping specs relative to the price being among them, 00:00:16.320 --> 00:00:22.960 but other things didn't. The speakers in my engineering sample couldn't go full 00:00:20.640 --> 00:00:28.880 volume without significant distortion. And the camera was a generation or two 00:00:25.760 --> 00:00:30.960 behind other top tier flagships, making 00:00:28.880 --> 00:00:36.719 it tough to call it a legitimate flagship killer, regardless of the 00:00:33.719 --> 00:00:38.719 price. But since that time, the software 00:00:36.719 --> 00:00:45.200 has been tweaked, the hardware has even been tweaked, and perhaps, just perhaps, 00:00:42.160 --> 00:00:49.120 my own opinion has been tweaked. Let's 00:00:45.200 --> 00:00:52.190 see by just how 00:00:57.000 --> 00:01:02.320 much Tunnel Bear is the simple VPN app 00:01:00.079 --> 00:01:06.479 that makes it easy to browse privately and enjoy a more open internet. To try 00:01:04.720 --> 00:01:10.640 Tunnel Bear for free, check out the link in the video description. So, I feel 00:01:08.799 --> 00:01:17.479 like I have a responsibility to open with this. The Axon 7 is not going to 00:01:13.680 --> 00:01:21.119 win every battle today, but it's 00:01:17.479 --> 00:01:24.080 $400 carrier unlocked with no contracts 00:01:21.119 --> 00:01:29.680 or other obligations attached to it with almost every other device that I'm going 00:01:26.880 --> 00:01:36.400 to compare it against coming in at $300 to $400 more than that for a 64 gig 00:01:34.000 --> 00:01:41.600 variant, which is the Axon 7's base model. So then with that aside, like 00:01:39.920 --> 00:01:48.399 pretty much every other flagship, it packs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 CPU, 4 00:01:44.640 --> 00:01:52.560 gigs of LPDDR4 RAM, and an Adreno 530 00:01:48.399 --> 00:01:55.520 GPU. The 3250 mAh battery is decidedly 00:01:52.560 --> 00:02:01.600 average given its 5.5 in screen size, but quick charge 3.0 know over a type-C 00:01:58.320 --> 00:02:03.840 USB port is very welcome, as is the 00:02:01.600 --> 00:02:08.479 satisfying tactile lock and volume rocker button arrangement, noise 00:02:05.759 --> 00:02:14.560 cancelling microphone, and an elongated SIM tray that can hold either a second 00:02:11.440 --> 00:02:16.800 SIM or a micro SD card for additional 00:02:14.560 --> 00:02:21.200 storage. None of the obvious cost cutting measures are here really. The 00:02:18.800 --> 00:02:26.080 outer chassis is an all aluminum affair that makes wireless charging impossible, 00:02:23.200 --> 00:02:31.920 but looks and feels good, albeit more slippery than I'd like in the hand. NFC 00:02:29.280 --> 00:02:36.800 and dualband AC wireless are accounted for. And the rear groove under the 20 00:02:34.080 --> 00:02:41.280 megapixel rear camera and dual LED flash is a fingerprint reader that while not 00:02:39.440 --> 00:02:45.599 in my preferred position on the front of the phone where I can reach it lying 00:02:42.879 --> 00:02:50.800 flat on a desk, is lightning fast and very accurate. Around front, under the 00:02:48.720 --> 00:02:56.800 aggressively noise reduced 8 megapixel selfie camera is the meat and potatoes 00:02:53.760 --> 00:02:58.879 of the Axon 7's standout features, 00:02:56.800 --> 00:03:04.000 including one that wasn't present when they gave me a pre-production device 10 00:03:00.720 --> 00:03:06.319 weeks ago. The 5.5 in screen is a 00:03:04.000 --> 00:03:11.920 fantastic looking Corning Gorilla Glass 4 topped 00:03:08.519 --> 00:03:14.720 2560x440 AMOLED that looks awesome from 00:03:11.920 --> 00:03:19.040 any angle in any conditions and may or may not contribute to the outstanding 00:03:17.120 --> 00:03:23.200 battery life that I experienced using this device as a daily driver, which 00:03:21.200 --> 00:03:28.319 I'll discuss a little bit more later. It's flanked on both sides then by some 00:03:25.519 --> 00:03:32.879 of the loudest and best positioned cell phone speakers that I have ever 00:03:30.680 --> 00:03:37.280 encountered. The last thing here then something that took me a couple of days 00:03:34.159 --> 00:03:40.239 to get used to then I absolutely loved 00:03:37.280 --> 00:03:45.040 is the capacitive buttons that replaced the onscreen buttons in the early 00:03:42.480 --> 00:03:49.519 sample. I mean, yes, yes, capacitive buttons have definitely been done 00:03:46.879 --> 00:03:55.280 before, but what makes these ones better than others is actually something quite 00:03:52.599 --> 00:04:00.040 subtle. Look what happens with another capacitive button equipped smartphone. 00:03:57.760 --> 00:04:06.400 There's almost nowhere to hold it in landscape, and others are even worse. 00:04:03.519 --> 00:04:10.319 ZTE gets around this maybe accidentally because they were trying to shoehorn the 00:04:08.319 --> 00:04:15.439 buttons in in the last month of product development by fitting them into a 00:04:12.879 --> 00:04:20.160 slimmer than usual strip that makes the chin bar a perfect size for comfortable 00:04:18.000 --> 00:04:25.040 typing in spite of that speaker placement and by squeezing them in 00:04:22.720 --> 00:04:30.160 towards the middle of the phone making accidental button presses much less 00:04:27.600 --> 00:04:35.680 likely while typing and holding the phone in landscape mode. It's a minor 00:04:33.040 --> 00:04:41.520 tweak, but it makes a huge difference in the day-to-day use. Well done. On that 00:04:39.280 --> 00:04:47.600 note, it's been a long time since I've rocked a 1M7 or a 1 M8, and it's easy to 00:04:44.880 --> 00:04:52.720 forget how much you miss nice loud front-facing speakers. Sitting on a desk 00:04:50.720 --> 00:04:57.199 next to me playing music, it actually doesn't make much of a difference. But 00:04:54.639 --> 00:05:02.320 when watching video, the Axon 7 holds its own against pretty much anything as 00:04:59.600 --> 00:05:06.800 a content consumption device. I'm a little disappointed that the last few 00:05:04.080 --> 00:05:10.880 volume levels are basically the same when listening to music due to some 00:05:08.800 --> 00:05:15.759 dynamic range reducing tricks that help with distortion, but at least they 00:05:13.120 --> 00:05:21.440 solved the distortion problem in some way. As for headphones, ZTE makes a lot 00:05:19.440 --> 00:05:26.800 of claims about the phenomenal 3 and a half millimeter output of the Axon 7, 00:05:24.639 --> 00:05:31.800 but I guess the S7 must be pretty good as well, since aside from being able to 00:05:28.960 --> 00:05:35.680 push volume levels further past comfortable, I really couldn't hear the 00:05:34.080 --> 00:05:41.199 difference even with a pair of Bayer Dynamic DT990 Pro 240 ohm headphones. 00:05:39.039 --> 00:05:45.680 Moving on, then this is my first experience with my favorite ZTE's 00:05:43.840 --> 00:05:50.479 Android skin. So, I've got some comments on that. Overall, I give it a B+. 00:05:48.479 --> 00:05:54.320 There's good stuff like right and left-handed modes for the nav buttons, 00:05:52.400 --> 00:05:58.479 the ability to uninstall apps directly from the home screen, the default 00:05:56.240 --> 00:06:02.160 setting configurator for a PC USB connection, so I don't need to be 00:05:59.759 --> 00:06:05.840 prompted every time, and the stellar default power management profile that 00:06:03.919 --> 00:06:09.759 managed to make the battery feel about 20% bigger in day-to-day use without 00:06:08.160 --> 00:06:15.440 affecting the way the device worked for me. And then there's mediocre stuff like 00:06:12.240 --> 00:06:18.160 the functional but slow auto call 00:06:15.440 --> 00:06:23.080 gesture and the clunky folder creation system for the home screen followed by 00:06:20.960 --> 00:06:28.560 some stuff that I would like to see addressed. The stock launcher is limited 00:06:25.680 --> 00:06:32.400 to a 4x4 grid size on the home screen. Please let me put my stuff on here. 00:06:30.240 --> 00:06:36.160 Thanks. The lock screen doesn't show notification details until you press a 00:06:34.560 --> 00:06:40.240 little bell way up in the top left corner. Something that isn't more 00:06:38.160 --> 00:06:43.919 secure. I'm not hiding my notification details. It's just more inconvenient 00:06:41.919 --> 00:06:47.680 because it's another button to press. Notification scrolling in landscape is 00:06:46.240 --> 00:06:53.280 kind of derp sometimes. And then finally, there's no fast launch camera 00:06:50.000 --> 00:06:55.520 gesture or configurable shortcuts at all 00:06:53.280 --> 00:06:59.759 for that matter. I don't care what the gesture is. Wiggle, double press, long 00:06:57.520 --> 00:07:03.759 press. Let me do something that doesn't require me to reach the lock screen and 00:07:01.840 --> 00:07:07.759 then press something in order to launch the camera. Which I guess leads us 00:07:05.919 --> 00:07:12.080 pretty well into the camera. Other reviewers are giving pretty mixed 00:07:10.080 --> 00:07:17.360 reports here and I think there are a few reasons for that. The specs are great. A 00:07:14.960 --> 00:07:22.240 20 megapixel sensor behind f/1.8 sapphire glass with optical image 00:07:19.400 --> 00:07:27.039 stabilization, 4K video capture, etc., etc. And still pictures under certain 00:07:25.039 --> 00:07:32.560 conditions are actually competitive with the Galaxy S7. I mean, it is easy to get 00:07:29.919 --> 00:07:36.960 some really nice comparative pictures out of this thing, especially with the 00:07:34.639 --> 00:07:41.479 manual mode finetuning. They just have some work to do when it 00:07:38.960 --> 00:07:47.280 comes to clear capture of moving subjects. These shots are from the 00:07:43.680 --> 00:07:49.599 Galaxy S7 and the Axon 7 in auto mode in 00:07:47.280 --> 00:07:54.479 the same lighting conditions. One of them is somewhat usable in a this is 00:07:52.800 --> 00:07:59.120 kind of crappy looking, but at least I captured the moment kind of way. And the 00:07:56.960 --> 00:08:03.599 other one is just kind of crappy looking. Not ideal if you're an avid 00:08:01.360 --> 00:08:08.879 shutterbug and most of your subjects, oh I don't know, say kids and pets are 00:08:06.000 --> 00:08:14.479 fastmoving objects. Which leads us then, I guess, to the bottom line. In a world 00:08:11.599 --> 00:08:20.800 where ZTE was the only Chinese brand targeting a similar experience at half 00:08:17.199 --> 00:08:23.520 the price of the Samsung's, HTC's, and 00:08:20.800 --> 00:08:28.639 Apples of the world, my conclusion would be very simple. Sure, it lacks water 00:08:26.879 --> 00:08:34.000 resistance, which is a key feature for me, but it carries a 2-year warranty, 00:08:31.280 --> 00:08:37.599 and it's an unbelievable piece of hardware for the price, as long as 00:08:36.159 --> 00:08:42.000 you're willing to compromise on the camera a little. What makes things more 00:08:40.159 --> 00:08:47.839 complicated is the existence of the OnePlus 3. So, it'll be up to you then. 00:08:45.680 --> 00:08:53.040 slimmer, sexier form factor with more polished software and from my 00:08:49.839 --> 00:08:56.720 experience, more usable camera or higher 00:08:53.040 --> 00:08:59.040 resolution, better screen, bigger sound, 00:08:56.720 --> 00:09:04.080 SD expansion, and phenomenal out ofthe-box battery management. That's not 00:09:01.920 --> 00:09:09.200 an easy decision for me, and I suspect it won't be for you either. So, I wish 00:09:06.720 --> 00:09:14.399 you the best of luck. Gee, Lionus, what was that great looking 00:09:11.440 --> 00:09:18.560 vinyl skin you had on the Axon 7 and some of the 00:09:15.480 --> 00:09:20.959 B-roll? Great question. You must be new. 00:09:18.560 --> 00:09:25.360 It's a Dbrand skin. Dbrand is your source for awesome vinyl skins. They're 00:09:23.440 --> 00:09:30.800 available for laptops, phones, tablets, consoles, game controllers, and more. 00:09:28.560 --> 00:09:34.800 The and more is like not a lot more. That's like most of what they do. and 00:09:32.959 --> 00:09:41.040 they use high quality authentic true textured 3M vinyl on every product. They 00:09:38.399 --> 00:09:46.399 feature unrivaled precision, great guides for how to put them on, and most 00:09:43.920 --> 00:09:52.000 importantly for people like me who have kind of a, you know, style flare. You 00:09:50.000 --> 00:09:56.959 know, we like to play around with different color combinations and see how 00:09:54.160 --> 00:10:00.240 great or how horribly they go together. Best thing is the Dbrand configurator. 00:09:59.040 --> 00:10:05.600 You head over to the site, that's dbrand.com. We've got it linked in the video description. And you just try out 00:10:04.000 --> 00:10:09.040 different skins and color combinations. You turn your device around. You look at 00:10:07.040 --> 00:10:13.200 what it's going to look like and boom, they ship worldwide. It's affordable. 00:10:11.360 --> 00:10:17.440 And once it's applied, it doesn't come off until you want it to. And when it 00:10:15.040 --> 00:10:23.040 does, it doesn't leave any residue. And it protects your phone from accidental 00:10:19.920 --> 00:10:25.360 dings and scratches while looking great 00:10:23.040 --> 00:10:29.279 or terrible. The choice is yours. So, check them out at the link in the video 00:10:27.320 --> 00:10:32.160 description. So, thanks for watching, guys. If this video sucked, you know 00:10:30.720 --> 00:10:39.040 what to do. But if it was awesome, get subscribed, hit that like button, or check out the link to where to buy the 00:10:35.120 --> 00:10:40.399 Axon 7 in the video description. Also 00:10:39.040 --> 00:10:44.640 linked in the description is our merch store, which has cool shirts like this one and our community forum, which you 00:10:42.959 --> 00:10:48.240 should totally join. Now that you're done doing all that stuff, you're probably wondering what to watch next. 00:10:46.880 --> 00:10:54.079 So, click that little button in the top right corner to check out our latest 00:10:49.920 --> 00:10:54.079 video over on Channel Super Fun.