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ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G Review—Gamers' Delight

Gaming smartphones are typically anticipated to be expensive because of their demanding hardware specifications. These specifications might include a fast processor, high memory, or ample storage to support a robust software environment and a wide variety of games. However, mobile gaming is usually patronized by younger consumers, many of whom might not have the required budget to buy expensive gaming smartphones. Understanding this predicament, ZTE has introduced the ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G (Z2352N)—an affordable gaming smartphone.

Like its predecessor, the ZTE nubia Neo 5G, the ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G sports a bionic mecha design, immediately suggesting the device has something to do with gaming. The bionic mecha design includes a robotic eye and lines to show a three-dimensional effect. The design is also reflected on the box matched with yellow coloring, reminding us of Transformers's Bumblebee. Apart from Sunfire Yellow, the ZTE nubia 2 5G is also available in Storm Gray and Frost Silver (the review unit) color variants. The phone package comes with a case, charger, and USB cable.

The ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G sports a 6.72-inch touchscreen display with 2400 x 1080p resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, and 92% screen-to-body ratio. With up to 120Hz refresh rate, the ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G also features a smart adaptive refresh rate, autoselecting the best screen refresh rate depending on the game or application running on the phone. The phone screen offers decent brightness and color quality for various activities.

Under the hood, the ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G has a Unisoc T820 octa-core chipset (maximum clock speed is 2.70GHz), consisting of a Mali-G57 GPU, 4× Arm Cortex-A55 at 2.18GHz, and 4× Arm Cortex-A76 at 2.30GHz processors. The chipset works with 8GB base RAM + 12GB extended RAM and 256GB onboard storage (there is no microSD slot). The ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G runs on Android 13. The phone's hardware is powered by a 6000mAh lithium-ion integrated battery that supports 33W fast charging. The ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G scored 474322 in the AnTuTu Benchmark.

As a gaming smartphone, the ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G comes preinstalled with Game Space 2.0. Opening a game through Game Space 2.0 optimizes the gaming experience by tweaking settings. The optimizations include edge accidental touch protection, three game performance modes (eco, balance, and rise), audio presets (default, shoot, music, and movie), and SD/HD video recording settings (15s, 30s, 45s, and 60s). The ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G also features dual gaming shoulder triggers that allow users to customize the shoulder button functions for optimized control and an enhanced gaming experience.

To test the gaming capability of the ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G, we ran Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, which is one of the most popular mobile games in the Philippines, on the phone. MLBB gameplay on the ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G ran smoothly without any undesirable issues, as shown in the videos published on TikTok (https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSYc5g82G/ and https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSYc5mM88/). The phone recorded a maximum of 120fps frame rate, 43°C CPU temperature, and 38°C battery temperature while running MLBB. Note that these temperatures are typical for smartphones.

For imaging, the ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G carries a 50MP main camera (f/1.8 aperture and autofocus) a 2MP depth lens on the back, and a 16MP front camera. The images captured with the ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G are decent and show relatively soft colors. The front camera also supports a bokeh effect for dramatic self-portraits. For connectivity, the ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G supports 5G (two SIM slots), Bluetooth 5.2, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, and USB-C. The phone does not have a 3.5mm audio jack. This means users have to use Bluetooth earphones/headphones or a compatible USB adapter for personal audio.

Priced at ₱9,999, the ZTE nubia Neo 2 5G is unquestionably one of the affordable smartphone models on the market that target gamers. The phone has all the essential features its audiences need, such as a good display, gaming-centric features, optimized hardware and software, and decent camera capabilities without breaking the bank.