14 DAY TRIAL // At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in February, ZTE came up with a new series of handsets running under Google's Android operating system, with the ZTE Skate among them, a device now available for pre-order in the UK at a quite affordable price tag.
Based on Android 2.3 Gingerbread and featuring a large 4.3-inch capacitive touchscreen display, the ZTE Skate is one of the most appealing mid-range devices in the world.
The handset packs an 800MHz application processor, with a 5-megapixel photo snapper on the back, and with a low price tag attached to it.
In the UK, the device has just made an appearance at Clove, which has it on pre-order for only £249.99, VAT included. The handset comes SIM free and is unlocked.
Moreover, the retailer notes that it might have the new device available for purchase as soon as September 19th, though the release date and pricing are subject to change.
However, this is not the first time we hear the ZTE Skate might be released with a low price tag attached to it, and chances are that it could indeed go as low in the UK.
“ZTE have been in the business of producing budget smartphones and feature phones for some time and the Skate is the top end device for a new range being released in 2011,” Clove UK explains.
“The Skate is manufactured with a neat black plastic finish to keep weight to a minimum at a skinny 120 grams, with both screen and Android hard keys sitting flush to the edges of the device and has the style to sit next to the big players it is competing with such as HTC and Samsung,” the retailer continues.
The specifications list of this device also includes support for Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g connectivity capabilities, along with Bluetooth and aGPS with Google Maps.
Moreover, it comes with a microSD memory card slot that can accommodate cards of up to 32GB in size. The handset measures 125.9mm x 67.8mm x 10.4mm and weighs in at 120 grams.