ZTE Axon 20 Review - How good is the first under-display camera in a smartphone?
The ZTE Axon 20 is the first smartphone that hides its selfie camera under the display. This is made possible by a special OLED display technology that uses partially transparent areas of a panel.
Besides the 32 MP under-display front camera, the Axon 20 integrates a 6.92-inch OLED display, a quad-camera setup, 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of internal storage. The Chinese manufacturer relies on an exotic SoC, a Unisoc Tiger T618, as the processor.
Possible competitors in comparison
Rating | Date | Model | Weight | Drive | Size | Resolution | Best Price |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
77.2 % | 01/2021 | ZTE Axon 20 T618, Mali-G52 MP2 | 198 g | 128 GB eMMC Flash | 6.92" | 2460x1080 | |
81.3 % | 12/2020 | OnePlus Nord N10 5G SD 690 5G, Adreno 619L | 190 g | 128 GB UFS 2.1 Flash | 6.49" | 2400x1080 | |
82.1 % | 12/2020 | Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G SD 750G 5G, Adreno 619 | 215 g | 128 GB UFS 2.1 Flash | 6.67" | 2400x1080 | |
79.8 % | 10/2020 | Motorola Moto G9 Plus SD 730G, Adreno 618 | 223 g | 128 GB UFS 2.1 Flash | 6.81" | 2400x1080 | |
81.3 % | 10/2020 | Samsung Galaxy M51 SD 730, Adreno 618 | 213 g | 128 GB UFS 2.0 Flash | 6.70" | 2400x1080 | |
86.6 % | 07/2020 | Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro SD 865, Adreno 650 | 219 g | 128 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | 6.67" | 2400x1080 |
Case - ZTE Axon 20 without notch
With a casing thickness of 8 millimeters (~0.3 inches) and the slightly curved glass back, the very large Axon 20 lies relatively securely in the hands. The build quality is on a very good level, and the casing's stability also makes a decent impression, although the frame is made of plastic.
Thanks to the partially transparent OLED display and a new pixel structure, ZTE's phone does not need a display hole or a notch. However, the edges could have been a bit more minimalized, so the screen's ratio to the total front is only 84.8% despite the hidden selfie cam.
The ZTE phone does not offer protection against water or dust via IP certification.
Features - ZTE phone with Widevine L3
DRM-protected content from streaming platforms cannot be played in HD resolution with the Axon 20's DRM Widevine certification L3. Peripheral devices can be connected via the USB-C port using an OTG adapter. The USB interface uses the 2.0 standard for data transfer. Wireless image transmission of display content via Miracast also works without problems.
The internal eMMC storage has a capacity of 128 GB, but the user only has about 110 GB available in the state of delivery. If the storage space is not enough, it can be expanded with an additional microSD card. The exFAT file system is supported.
Software - ZTE Axon 20 with Android 10
The Chinese manufacturer installs the operating system Android version 10, which is supplemented by ZTE's own user interface MiFavor. The security patches are no longer up-to-date at the time of the test with September 2020.
Communication and GPS - ZTE phone only locates slowly
ZTE relies on Bluetooth version 5.0 for the Axon 20, and the built-in NFC chip also enables near-field communication. The dual-SIM smartphone uses the 4G standard for mobile Internet access and covers all relevant LTE frequencies for Germany, but only 8 LTE bands in total.
The integrated WLAN module supports the IEEE 802.11 standard according to a/b/g/n/ac and operates in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequency range. In combination with our reference router Netgear Nighthawk AX12, the mid-range phone achieves solid transfer rates of over 300 MBit/s for this price range.
Networking | |
iperf3 transmit AX12 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
iperf3 receive AX12 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Average of class Smartphone (last 2 years) | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus |
The GPS module finds the current position outdoors with a long delay and an accuracy of 3 meters (~10 feet). Indoors, positioning is not possible with the Axon 20.
To get a better overview of the positioning capabilities, we take our ZTE phone on a bike tour. The Axon 20 scores with quite decent route accuracy on the test route, and the deviations from the Garmin Edge 500 are within limits.
Phone features and voice quality - Axon 20 with VoLTE
The dual-SIM phone offers space for two nano-SIM cards and a VoLTE feature. The voice quality is not one of the Axon 20's strengths. The call transmission is distorted and the achieved volume via the earpiece is quite low. However, our calling partners attest the ZTE phone a good intelligibility.
Cameras - ZTE Axon 20 with triple cam
The big star in the camera department is the 32 MP under-display selfie lens - but only on paper. In everyday use, the photo quality of the Axon 20 is beaten by any low-budget phone because selfies with the ZTE smartphone are characterized by soft focus, overexposure, low contrast and low dynamic range.
The ZTE phone does not have a telephoto lens for zoom shots. The 64 MP main camera also hardly offers any dynamics and overexposed areas in the photos, but the sharpness and also the white balance are appealing in daylight. In dark surroundings, it is useless to reach for the Axon 20 in view of the low-light qualities.
The same applies for the ultra-wide-angle camera, but already in daylight. Neither the color reproduction nor the image sharpness is good here. With minimal backlighting, hardly anything is recognizable due to the poor dynamics anyway.
Image Comparison
Choose a scene and navigate within the first image. One click changes the position on touchscreens. One click on the zoomed-in image opens the original in a new window. The first image shows the scaled photograph of the test device.
Wide-angleWide-angleLow LightZoomUltra-wide-angleAccessories and warranty - ZTE phone with cover
Besides the smartphone itself, a USB cable, a silicone case, and a modular power adapter (18 watts) are included in the box.
The warranty is 24 months.
Input devices and operation - ZTE phone with high touch sampling rate
The capacitive multi-touchscreen with a touch sampling rate of 240 Hz pleases with precise operation in the test. Biometric identification via face is not available for unlocking ZTE's smartphone. However, an optical fingerprint sensor is hidden underneath the OLED panel. The recognition rate is good, even though the sensor is not really fast.
Display - ZTE smartphone with OLED panel
The OLED panel of the Axon 20 achieves a pixel density of 388 ppi at a resolution of 2460 x 1080 pixels and a diagonal of 6.92 inches, which ensures sufficiently sharp display content in normal use and viewing distances.
The maximum luminance of 404 cd/m² that we measured is (still) satisfactory for a mid-range smartphone, but the competition is sometimes much brighter in our measurements. Even the realistic APL50 test (Average Picture Level) with evenly distributed bright and dark areas does not change this (396 cd/m²).
The Axon 20 uses pulse width modulation, or PWM for short, with a relatively high frequency of 343-368 Hz to control the luminance, whichspeaks fora panel with a native refresh rate of 90 Hz.However, this is not noticeable in everyday use under the MiFavor UI, and ZTE does not advertise the OLED display of the Axon 20 with 90 Hz either - apps for reading the refresh rate indicate 60 Hz.
|
Brightness Distribution: 96 %
Center on Battery: 402 cd/m²
Contrast: ∞:1 (Black: 0 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 3.5 | 0.5-29.43 Ø5
ΔE Greyscale 5.1 | 0.57-98 Ø5.3
99.9% sRGB (Calman 2D)
Gamma: 2.33
ZTE Axon 20 OLED, 2460x1080, 6.92 | OnePlus Nord N10 5G IPS LCD, 2400x1080, 6.49 | Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G IPS, 2400x1080, 6.67 | Motorola Moto G9 Plus LTPS, 2400x1080, 6.81 | Samsung Galaxy M51 Super AMOLED, 2400x1080, 6.70 | Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro Super AMOLED, 2400x1080, 6.67 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Screen | 18% | 27% | 6% | 25% | 61% | |
Brightness middle | 402 | 450 12% | 606 51% | 390 -3% | 626 56% | 799 99% |
Brightness | 405 | 422 4% | 574 42% | 377 -7% | 632 56% | 801 98% |
Brightness Distribution | 96 | 89 -7% | 89 -7% | 93 -3% | 94 -2% | 97 1% |
Black Level * | 0.57 | 0.44 | 0.66 | |||
Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 3.5 | 2.67 24% | 2.4 31% | 3.39 3% | 2.88 18% | 1.46 58% |
Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 7.7 | 6.76 12% | 5.3 31% | 5.22 32% | 4.97 35% | 2.92 62% |
Greyscale dE 2000 * | 5.1 | 2 61% | 4.5 12% | 4.3 16% | 5.9 -16% | 2.7 47% |
Gamma | 2.33 94% | 2.274 97% | 2.21 100% | 2.506 88% | 3.441 64% | 2.237 98% |
CCT | 7480 87% | 6859 95% | 6224 104% | 6033 108% | 6415 101% | 6003 108% |
Contrast | 789 | 1377 | 591 |
* ... smaller is better
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
Screen flickering / PWM detected | 367.6 Hz | ≤ 99 % brightness setting | |
The display backlight flickers at 367.6 Hz (worst case, e.g., utilizing PWM) Flickering detected at a brightness setting of 99 % and below. There should be no flickering or PWM above this brightness setting. The frequency of 367.6 Hz is relatively high, so most users sensitive to PWM should not notice any flickering. However, there are reports that some users are still sensitive to PWM at 500 Hz and above, so be aware. In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 18110 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 3846000) Hz was measured. |
Due to the technology, the OLED display of the Axon 20 has a clear contrast advantage compared with IPS competition because organic displays show an "absolute" black even in a completely darkened room and at maximum brightness.
The analysis of the photospectrometer and the CalMAN software reveals somewhat high average delta E deviations to the P3 color space for the Axon 20 with 3.5 (colors) and 5.1 (grayscale), respectively, with an ideal range of values <3. The color temperature is clearly increased ex-factory with almost 7,500 K, measured against the ideal value of 6,500 K. The P3 color space is almost completely covered by the OLED panel.
Display Response Times
↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
---|---|---|
3.2 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 1.6 ms rise | |
↘ 1.6 ms fall | ||
The screen shows very fast response rates in our tests and should be very well suited for fast-paced gaming. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 9 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is better than the average of all tested devices (21.6 ms). | ||
↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
3.2 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 1.6 ms rise | |
↘ 1.6 ms fall | ||
The screen shows very fast response rates in our tests and should be very well suited for fast-paced gaming. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.2 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 8 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is better than the average of all tested devices (33.9 ms). |
Outdoors, the organic display of the ZTE smartphone performs well in winter sunshine. Content is readable in direct sunlight, even though the maximum luminance could be a bit higher.
The viewing angles are on a very good level. Even at very flat viewing angles, display content is shown relatively true to color and vividly. Color changes do not occur.
Performance - ZTE Axon 20 is exotic
ZTE relies on a rather unknown Chinese semiconductor manufacturer from Shanghai called Unisoc for its Axon 20. The chipset called Tiger T618 is manufactured in a 12nm process and combines two 2.0 GHz Cortex A75 cores with six 1.8 GHz Cortex A55 processors. Unisoc installs a Mali G52 MP2 as the graphics unit. The SoC also integrates a signal processor (VDSP) that processes AI functions.
The combination of Unisoc's SoC and 6 GB of RAM occasionally makes for a jerky experience in everyday use, but simple tasks like switching home screens run smoothly. Not only micro-stutters occur in multitasking or when processes are running in the background, but longer phases in which the Axon 20 cannot be used. The bottleneck of the system is the very slow memory, even for an eMMC type, which leads to long loading times.
The benchmark results show a similar picture. The Tiger T618 is more comparable with low-budget SoCs than with a mid-range processor from Qualcomm. In terms of performance, the chipset in the Axon 20 is based on the Chinese version of the Kirin 710A, which was manufactured by SMIC.
The very responsive navigation in the browser is striking. Even complex pages load quite quickly and can be used smoothly. The benchmarks also point in this direction. The Axon 20 is only 11% behind a Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G in WebXPRT 3.
Geekbench 5.5 | |
Single-Core (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 (365 - 393, n=6) | |
Average of class Smartphone (119 - 2138, n=211, last 2 years) | |
Multi-Core (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 (1229 - 1461, n=6) | |
Average of class Smartphone (473 - 6681, n=211, last 2 years) | |
Vulkan Score (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 (973 - 1076, n=5) | |
Average of class Smartphone (79 - 9992, n=89, last 2 years) |
PCMark for Android | |
Work performance score (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 | |
Average of class Smartphone (10884 - 19297, n=2, last 2 years) | |
Work 2.0 performance score (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 (82 - 6937, n=2) | |
Average of class Smartphone (9101 - 12871, n=4, last 2 years) |
GFXBench (DX / GLBenchmark) 2.7 | |
T-Rex Onscreen (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 (37 - 42, n=6) | |
Average of class Smartphone (22 - 165, n=177, last 2 years) | |
1920x1080 T-Rex Offscreen (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 (41 - 44, n=6) | |
Average of class Smartphone (19 - 791, n=177, last 2 years) |
GFXBench 3.0 | |
on screen Manhattan Onscreen OGL (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 (22 - 25, n=6) | |
Average of class Smartphone (6.8 - 165, n=178, last 2 years) | |
1920x1080 1080p Manhattan Offscreen (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 (26 - 26, n=6) | |
Average of class Smartphone (9.2 - 363, n=178, last 2 years) |
GFXBench 3.1 | |
on screen Manhattan ES 3.1 Onscreen (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 (13 - 15, n=6) | |
Average of class Smartphone (3.7 - 158, n=178, last 2 years) | |
1920x1080 Manhattan ES 3.1 Offscreen (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 (15 - 16, n=6) | |
Average of class Smartphone (6.2 - 279, n=178, last 2 years) |
AnTuTu v8 - Total Score (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 (173051 - 203961, n=3) | |
Average of class Smartphone (last 2 years) |
VRMark - Amber Room (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 | |
Average of class Smartphone (1010 - 10071, n=14, last 2 years) |
AImark - Score v2.x (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 (4659 - 4726, n=4) | |
Average of class Smartphone (1043 - 139804, n=54, last 2 years) |
Basemark GPU 1.2 | |
1920x1080 OpenGL Medium Offscreen (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 | |
Average of class Smartphone (7.65 - 13860, n=54, last 2 years) | |
OpenGL Medium Native (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average of class Smartphone (9.3 - 9309, n=53, last 2 years) | |
1280x720 Vulkan Simple Offscreen (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 | |
Average of class Smartphone (2.12 - 39496, n=54, last 2 years) | |
1920x1080 Vulkan Medium Offscreen (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 | |
Average of class Smartphone (7.51 - 15712, n=54, last 2 years) | |
Vulkan Medium Native (sort by value) | |
ZTE Axon 20 | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
Huawei P Smart 2021 | |
Average UNISOC T618 | |
Average of class Smartphone (10 - 14706, n=53, last 2 years) |
Jetstream 2 - Total Score | |
Average of class Smartphone (13.8 - 351, n=167, last 2 years) | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro (Chrome84) | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G (Chrome 87.0.4280.101) | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus (Chrome 86) | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 (Chrome 85) | |
Average UNISOC T618 (40.7 - 49.8, n=4) | |
ZTE Axon 20 (Chrome 87) | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G (Chrome 87) |
JetStream 1.1 - Total Score | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro (Chrome84) | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G (Chrome 87.0.4280.101) | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus (Chrome 86) | |
Average of class Smartphone (66.1 - 104.3, n=2, last 2 years) | |
Average UNISOC T618 (63.2 - 75.3, n=4) | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 (Chrome 85) | |
ZTE Axon 20 (Chrome 87) | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G (Chrome 87) |
Speedometer 2.0 - Result | |
Average of class Smartphone (14.9 - 445, n=151, last 2 years) | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro (Chrome84) | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G (Chrome 87.0.4280.101) | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus (Chrome 86) | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 (Chome 85) | |
Average UNISOC T618 (32.9 - 38.2, n=4) | |
ZTE Axon 20 (Chrome 87) | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G (Chrome 87) |
WebXPRT 3 - Overall | |
Average of class Smartphone (37 - 304, n=118, last 2 years) | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro (Chrome84) | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G (Chrome 87.0.4280.101) | |
Average UNISOC T618 (68 - 93, n=6) | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 (Chrome 85) | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus (Chrome 86) | |
ZTE Axon 20 (Chrome 87) | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G (Chrome 87) |
Octane V2 - Total Score | |
Average of class Smartphone (4633 - 89112, n=202, last 2 years) | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro (Chrome84) | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G (Chrome 87.0.4280.101) | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus (Chrome 86) | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 (Chrome 85) | |
Average UNISOC T618 (10787 - 14722, n=6) | |
ZTE Axon 20 (Chrome 87) | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G (Chrome 87) |
Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Total | |
OnePlus Nord N10 5G (Chrome 87) | |
ZTE Axon 20 (Chrome 87) | |
Average UNISOC T618 (2762 - 3432, n=6) | |
Motorola Moto G9 Plus (Chrome 86) | |
Samsung Galaxy M51 (Chrome 85) | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G (Chrome 87.0.4280.101) | |
Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro (Chrome84) | |
Average of class Smartphone (388 - 9999, n=165, last 2 years) |
* ... smaller is better
ZTE Axon 20 | OnePlus Nord N10 5G | Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | Motorola Moto G9 Plus | Samsung Galaxy M51 | Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro | Average 128 GB eMMC Flash | Average of class Smartphone | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AndroBench 3-5 | 361% | 519% | 287% | 305% | 1191% | 141% | 1312% | |
Sequential Read 256KB | 106.7 | 865 711% | 938 779% | 489.4 359% | 491.7 361% | 1634 1431% | 283 ? 165% | 1468 ? 1276% |
Sequential Write 256KB | 202.3 | 187.2 -7% | 463.5 129% | 186.2 -8% | 189.8 -6% | 722 257% | 192.9 ? -5% | 1078 ? 433% |
Random Read 4KB | 25.35 | 137 440% | 176.6 597% | 134.8 432% | 123.6 388% | 229.7 806% | 82.6 ? 226% | 242 ? 855% |
Random Write 4KB | 9.56 | 106 1009% | 162.3 1598% | 98.1 926% | 114.5 1098% | 226.4 2268% | 53.9 ? 464% | 266 ? 2682% |
Sequential Read 256KB SDCard | 80.4 ? | 86.5 ? 8% | 87 ? 8% | 85.3 ? 6% | 74.8 ? -7% | 78.1 ? -3% | ||
Sequential Write 256KB SDCard | 62.4 ? | 64.9 ? 4% | 65.8 ? 5% | 65.4 ? 5% | 59.4 ? -5% | 61.8 ? -1% |
Games - Axon 20 only conditionally suitable for gaming
The Mali G52 MP2 integrated in the Unisoc SoC sometimes reaches its limits in complex 3D games from the Android Play Store. PUBG Mobile is rendered with up to 40 fps in low graphics. Asphalt 9 can also be played smoothly on an Axon 20 with low details for the most part, but short drops in the frame rate have to be accepted again and again.
Older games, such as Dead Trigger 2, can even be played with high graphics at 60 fps - we determine the frame rate with the app Gamebench. The sensors and the touchscreen do not give reason for criticism during our gaming tests.
PUBG mobile
Asphalt 9 Legends
Dead Trigger 2
Emissions - ZTE Axon 20 with little waste heat
Temperature
The casing of the ZTE smartphone hardly heats up under permanent load. We additionally analyze the temperature behavior of the Tiger SoC under continuous load with the battery test of the app GFXBench. The respective scenarios are run thirty times in succession and various parameters are logged.
The Axon 20 only throttles marginally in the demanding Manhattan test (OpenGL ES 3.1). Thus, performance drops in everyday use, such as gaming, are very unlikely.
3DMark - Wild Life Stress Test Stability | |
Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G | |
ZTE Axon 20 |
(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 34.1 °C / 93 F, compared to the average of 35 °C / 95 F, ranging from 21.9 to 56 °C for the class Smartphone.
(+) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 33.4 °C / 92 F, compared to the average of 33.8 °C / 93 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 26.6 °C / 80 F, compared to the device average of 32.7 °C / 91 F.
Speaker
In everyday use, the mono speaker, which is located on the bottom of the case, performs a very high maximum volume of almost 94 dB. As expected, the sound image is dominated by tones from mid and high frequencies, which are rendered relatively balanced.
ZTE Axon 20 audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (93.8 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 26.1% lower than median
(+) | bass is linear (2.8% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(±) | reduced mids - on average 6.1% lower than median
(+) | mids are linear (4.7% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 4.1% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (5.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (17.4% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 8% of all tested devices in this class were better, 6% similar, 86% worse
» The best had a delta of 12%, average was 38%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 27% of all tested devices were better, 8% similar, 64% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%
OnePlus Nord N10 5G audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (83.3 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 68.7% lower than median
(+) | bass is linear (0% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(-) | nearly no mids - on average 68.7% lower than median
(+) | mids are linear (0% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(-) | nearly no highs - on average 68.7% lower than median
(+) | highs are linear (0% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(-) | overall sound is not linear (117.2% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 85% of all tested devices in this class were better, 8% similar, 7% worse
» The best had a delta of 12%, average was 38%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 95% of all tested devices were better, 2% similar, 2% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%
Battery life - ZTE Axon 20 quickly runs out of breath
Energy consumption
The Axon 20's battery has a capacity of 4,220 mAh and is fully recharged in about 135 minutes with up to 18 watts. In terms of energy consumption, ZTE's phone is exemplary, with slight deductions in idle withminimum brightness.
Off / Standby | 0.01 / 0.15 Watt |
Idle | 1.07 / 1.7 / 1.75 Watt |
Load |
3.97 / 5.77 Watt |
ZTE Axon 20 4220 mAh | OnePlus Nord N10 5G 4300 mAh | Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G 4820 mAh | Motorola Moto G9 Plus 5000 mAh | Samsung Galaxy M51 7000 mAh | Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro 4700 mAh | Average UNISOC T618 | Average of class Smartphone | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Power Consumption | -18% | -11% | -13% | 1% | -92% | -49% | -9% | |
Idle Minimum * | 1.07 | 0.9 16% | 0.5 53% | 0.8 25% | 0.8 25% | 2 -87% | 1.218 ? -14% | 0.894 ? 16% |
Idle Average * | 1.7 | 1.6 6% | 2.1 -24% | 1.7 -0% | 1.3 24% | 3.1 -82% | 2.86 ? -68% | 1.452 ? 15% |
Idle Maximum * | 1.75 | 2.1 -20% | 2.13 -22% | 2.2 -26% | 1.8 -3% | 4 -129% | 3.14 ? -79% | 1.632 ? 7% |
Load Average * | 3.97 | 6.2 -56% | 5.39 -36% | 5.3 -34% | 4.8 -21% | 6.4 -61% | 5.58 ? -41% | 5.55 ? -40% |
Load Maximum * | 5.77 | 7.8 -35% | 7.4 -28% | 7.4 -28% | 7 -21% | 11.6 -101% | 8.29 ? -44% | 8.23 ? -43% |
* ... smaller is better
Battery life
In our WLAN test, the Axon 20 shows a comparatively low runtime under practical conditions (display brightness: 150 cd/m², active WLAN module) - a OnePlus Nord, for example, lasts over 6 hours longer with a similarly strong battery.
ZTE Axon 20 4220 mAh | OnePlus Nord N10 5G 4300 mAh | Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G 4820 mAh | Motorola Moto G9 Plus 5000 mAh | Samsung Galaxy M51 7000 mAh | Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro 4700 mAh | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Battery Runtime | ||||||
WiFi v1.3 | 564 | 974 73% | 1096 94% | 968 72% | 1508 167% | 923 64% |
Pros
Cons
Verdict on the ZTE Axon 20 - under-display camera is neither fish nor fowl
Up to now, notch or punch-hole solutions as well as motorized pop-up solutions have been used to integrate the selfie camera into the smartphone's overall appearance in the most space-saving way possible. However, these approaches are not ideal because either display space is lost or mechanical errors can occur. ZTE is taking a new approach here, which should undoubtedly be the future. However, we should not expect too much from the under-display camera technology at the moment because the OLED panel's pixel structure in the area of the front-facing camera is anything but inconspicuous and the selfie's photo quality is poor to very poor.
Priced appropriately, the ZTE Axon 20 would be an insider's tip.
Otherwise, the Axon 20 is a really interesting multimedia smartphone that is unfortunately priced much too high in this country. Thanks to the large OLED panel, the good speaker and the appealing browser performance paired with a successful build, the ZTE phone would have been a nice alternative to the inexpensive mid-range competition in the price range of around 200 to 230 Euros (~$245 to $282). The camera modules are simply too bad and the Unisoc chipset too weak or the competition too strong for the currently called 350 Euros (~$429).
Price and availability
ZTE's Axon 20 is currently available for about 400 Euros (~$491), for example at Amazon. Besides the 4G version that we tested, the Axon 20 is also available with 5G support, for example at Trading Shenzhen.
ZTE Axon 20
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08/31/2022 v7
Marcus Herbrich