ZTE Axon 40 Ultra with UD selfie and triple 64MP cameras unveiled, Axon 40 Pro joins it

2022-05-15

The ZTE Axon 40 Ultra arrived on schedule and it is everything we thought it would be. ZTE is on its third generation under display selfie camera and this time it is confident enough in the tech to put it on the Ultra model. Previously, it was the Axon 20 5G and Axon 30 5G that had the UD cameras. Joining it today is a Pro model that misses out on the UD camera, but ups the display refresh rate.

ZTE Axon 40 Ultra

This generation we’re looking at a slightly smaller 6.8” AMOLED display (compared to 6.92” on the 30 5G) with 400 ppi pixel density (1,116 x 2,480 px resolution) and 120 Hz refresh rate (360 Hz touch sampling rae). By the way, the 30 Ultra had a 6.67" 144 Hz display. If that's what you want, check out the 40 Pro below.

Back to the Ultra. ZTE is using a new UDC Pro chip to drive the display and a new sub-pixel arrangement over the camera to make the area more uniform. This is a 10-bit panel with 100% DCI-P3 coverage, it is also quite bright with a peak of 1,500 nits a 1,440 Hz high frequency PWM dimming.

Like its predecessor, the Axon 40 Ultra brings a triple 64 MP camera, with the wide and ultra wide modules using a customized Sony IMX787 sensor. The selfie camera features a 16 MP sensor with 1.12 µm pixels (2.24 µm with binning).

The main camera has a 7P lens with a bright f/1.6 aperture and 35 mm focal length. This camera has optical image stabilization (OIS) and omnidirectional autofocus as well. The ultra wide module has a 16 mm lens (f/2.35) with autofocus, which allows it to capture macro shots at 4 cm distance. Again, both of these modules use a custom IMX787 sensor.

Moving on to the telephoto module, it has a periscope lens with 91 mm focal length and an f/3.5 aperture and OIS. Sitting at the end of that is another 64 MP sensor (unknown), 1/2” optical format. There is no fourth camera here, but that’s not the end of it either. There is also a 3D ToF sensor for focus assistance and a flicker sensor.

The Ultra pulls off a rare feat – it can record 8K video with all three of its rear cameras. Also, it can keep all three cameras active simultaneously, allowing you to quickly switch between focal lengths.

The ZTE Axon 40 Ultra is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset. It starts off with 8 GB of RAM, but you can also get 12 GB and even 16 GB (it’s LPDDR5 RAM). That last one is exclusive to the version with 1 TB of storage. 512 GB and 256 GB options are also available (UFS 3.1 storage). All of this is kept cool by a large 36,356 mm² vapor chamber.

The phone houses a large 5,000 mAh battery that supports 80W fast charging over USB-C. The Type C port also handle audio out. The Snapdragon Sound platform is tasked with handling the sound and there is support for DTS:X Ultra for the stereo speakers. An X-axis linear motor does the haptic feedback.

The Axon 40 Ultra is currently available for pre-booking at ZTEMall.com in China with a starting price of CNY 5,000 ($745/€710/?57,500) for the base 8/256 GB model and CNY 5,300 for the 12/256 GB option. There is a trade-in option that can drop the price by CNY 2,022. The first open sale will be on May 13 (Friday), although some color/memory combos may not be available until a week later (e.g. 12/256 GB in Gold is scheduled for May 20).

The Ultra will be available globally through the ZTEDevices.com site starting in June, prices are TBA. Also, there's no indication if and when the 512 GB and 1 TB versions will be available).

ZTE Axon 40 Pro

The ZTE Axon 40 Pro sticks with a punch hole for its selfie camera and has a 6.67” 144 Hz display that is similar to last year’s Ultra. It is a 10-bit AMOLED panel (curved) with 1,080 x 2,400 px resolution, 1,000 nits of peak brightness and 100% DCI-P3 coverage. Unlike the selfie cam, the fingerprint reader is under the display.

This model is powered by the old-but-gold Snapdragon 870 chipset, paired with 8/12 GB of RAM and 256/512 GB storage. Like with the Ultra, storage is not expandable and runs MyOS 12 (based on Android 12).

The Pro also has a different recipe for its camera. The main shooter is a 100 MP module with a 1/1.52” sensor and an f/1.9 aperture. Joining it is a fairly regular 8 MP ultra wide-angle module (120°), a macro camera (4 cm) and a depth sensor. On the front, a 16 MP sensor.

The Pro has preserved some of the goodies of the Ultra, including stereo speakers with DTS:X Ultra audio decoding. The battery is the same size at 5,000 mAh, though it drops to 66W fast charging.

There’s no word on the pricing and release date for the ZTE Axon 40 Pro yet.

Source (in Chinese)