Nubia is a rather unknown quantity, but that hasn't stopped the Chinese manufacturer from announcing its latest phone, the Z17. If that name sounds a bit familiar to astute AP readers, that's because this is the first phone with Qualcomm's Quick Charge 4+. Who would have thought?

Other than the gorgeous color options (I love the blue one), what does this phone bring to the table? Here's what we know so far:

SPECS

Screen

5.5" 1080p IPS LCD

CPU

Snapdragon 835

Software

Android 7.1.1; Nubia UI 5.0

RAM

6GB/8GB

Storage

64GB/128GB UFS 2.1

Cameras

12MP/23MP f/1.8 2x zoom rear, 16MP wide-angle front

Battery

3,200mAh; NeoCharge (QC 4+)

Misc

USB Type-C, IR blaster, 3.5mm, Dolby Atmos, NFC

Measurements

 152.60 x 72.38 x 7.60mm; 173 g

Colors

Aurora Blue, Black Gold, Obsidian Black, Solar Gold, Flame Red

So it seems that Nubia is really pushing this phone as a photography beast, as most companies seem do these days. The dual 12MP/23MP setup both sit behind f/1.8 lenses which, when combined with Nubia's AI imaging processing technology and its new NeoVision 7.0 "image search engine," should make for some great night/low-light photography.

The Z17 is also waterproof, a first for the company. The phone itself is supposedly constructed from a "glass metal material that combines the robustness of metal and the smoothness of glass." Whatever that means, I am intrigued. What's quite disappointing is that the rest of the spec sheet is only vaguely touched upon; we only know that the screen is 5.5" without word on resolution or what display panel is being used, the details on the front camera are scant, there is no mention of a fingerprint sensor (even though I think I can make one out on the front of the phone), and we don't even know what version of Android this is shipping with (just that it runs Nubia UI 5.0, for what that's worth) — edit: looks like it's a 1080p LCD display, Android 7.1.1, a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor, and a 16MP front camera.

The other major thing about the Z17 is that it is the first device to launch with support for Qualcomm's Quick Charge 4+. I would have thought a more major smartphone player would have that honor (hell, even OnePlus), but who knows how this went down. Regardless, Z17 owners will be able to enjoy this via Nubia's NeoCharge technology (this company loves slapping the word "Neo" in front of everything), which is based around QC 4+.

The color options are quite nice and the storage/memory configuration is ridiculous. For RMB 3999 (~$587 USD), you can score a Snapdragon 835, 128GB of UFS 2.1 storage, and 8GB of RAM. That's not bad, though we have yet to see how the software handles. There will also be a 64GB/6GB model that will cost RMB 2799 (~$411) and a 128GB/6GB variant that will run RMB 3399 (~$499). All of these will be available on July 6 in China; no word on an international launch yet.

PRESS RELEASE

Source: Nubia