ZTE Skate user reviews

Aleksandar Grbic 14 December 2012

Good: big screen

Bad: low internal memory

Comment: I bought it in Germany in ALDI store named MEDION LIFE P4310 (SKATE) for 119 Euro. I`m using it almost 6 mount and my impresions is so far so good.

John Watson 15 July 2012

Good: Price, screen size.

Bad: Not a lot ( for what I bought it for

Comment: My skate is branded Orange and I paid £100 for it. Got it home wiped all the rubbish off and downloaded ZTE factory operating system. For me the differance was amazing and makes this an absolute bargain android phone that does everything I ask of it. Battery life was vastly improved by down loading a battery life extending app which is free in the app store

sonymad 21 April 2012

Comment: hello

sonymad 21 April 2012

Good: Mostly sturdy construct Android 2.3 OS Simple Android US 5 megapixel camera

Bad: Uninspiring display Poor battery life Sluggish processor

Comment: The ZTE Skate is one of the budget smartphone maker's first first own-branded handset in the UK, along with the ZTE Racer, sporting Google’s Android OS.

Packing Android 2.3 and sticking with the lower end markets which it has serviced in the past, the ZTE Skate is far from being an Apple iPhone 4S or Samsung Galaxy S 2 challenger with the heavily plastic construction and limited hardware capabilities seeing it rest firmly within the company of a selection of Nokia Symbian devices and the odd Huawei and budget HTC handset.

ZTE Skate: Design

While cheap can on occasion be cheerful, it is more often than not, clunky and less than appealing. Unfortunately the ZTE Skate has straddled these two sides of the fence with a predominately sturdy chassis let down by a selection of low grade components and uninspiring design characteristics.

The handset as a whole is relatively reassuring in the hand, with the lightweight 120g form offering little flex when under pressure despite its predominantly plastic construct, but the Skate’s physical buttons are low grade, fiddly and unnervingly loose within their housings.

Far from the slimmest handset on the market at 10.4mm thick, the ZTE Skate’s largely benign and standardised design features one large blemish in the form of the 3.5mm audio jack. Stuck to the device’s upper rear panel like a country home’s vintage chimney, the port is unnecessarily obtrusive acting as an eyesore to what is a largely smooth finish.

ZTE Skate: Features

Despite boasting a number of camera credentials which on paper sound impressive - 5-megapixel sensor, auto focus and LED flash - the ZTE Skate’s snapper is wholly disappointing. No matter whether the camera’s flash is on or off the device seems incapable of correctly detecting light conditions even in the most perfectly lit of environments.

The result of this lack of sensory skills is poor colour management throughout all pictures with ugly images offering little sharpness, depth of field or intricate clarity. Not without merit, however, and despite not offering a dedicated macro mode the Skate’s camera comes into its own when in close proximity to its subject providing focus and detail just centimetres from the camera’s sensor.

Disappointing in a number of key areas, the ZTE Skate’s 4.3-inch TFT display, with an 800 x 480p resolution, is grainy and lacking in clarity whilst the device’s 5-hour talktime battery life leaves a lot to be desired.

ZTE Skate: Performance

While there is little to be said about the now very familiar and increasingly dated unskinned Android 2.3 Gingerbread version of the Google mobile OS residing upon the Skate, with all Gingerbread devices, the Operating System offers a smooth and seamless user experience.

The easy to navigate Gingerbread OS is let down in part by the Skate’s clunky operational abilities, however. With an 800MHz processor and 512MB of RAM, the ZTE device is hardly breaking new ground resulting in slightly jilted homescreen transitions and more than a moment’s lag when opening up applications or returning to the main menu.

The least that can be expected from a budget smartphone is for the device to live up to its pocket blower credentials and offer acceptable audio abilities while in calls. Again, the Skate slips up on this front with the handset’s audio output lacking crisp notes and proving quite tinny.

ZTE Skate: Verdict

Judged against a selection of market leading smartphone powerhouses, the ZTE Skate is a laughable offering. Up against its closest and comparable competitors, it still falls slightly short of the mark, making it an unlikey contender for our list of the best smartphones to buy.

While a price tag in the region of the £200 - £250 mark is one clogged by a fleet of disappointing devices, there are a number that sparkle much brighter than the ZTE Skate, with sleeker designs, higherspecs and better performance.

itsnotme 3 April 2012

Good: everything

Bad: internal memory is a little short

Comment: best phone on the market for the money.

compared to other phones in the same price range, such as the samsung ace, the zte wins easily.

so why isn't it more popular?

Lee Gibson 19 February 2012

Good: It's cheap, it reliably runs at 998mhz (nearly 1ghz) and people are working on Ice Cream Sandwich for it.

Bad: No Near Field Communications (but what has?).

Comment: I bought mine from CeX for £82, if I want fast games I'll wait for the quad core tablets for that. This is fine as a phone. I went to modaco and being a software developer had it unlocked (for free), on there in one evening (working it out) rooted and the modaco version of Cyanogenmod version 7 in one hour the next evening. The best guide for unlocking is on Giff Gaff. I think of it as a budget Nexus, lesser processor and screen, half the memory and no NFC. But it supports micro SDCards and they are working on Android 4 Ice Cream Sandwich which is going well with a few changes needed. It's a good cheap phone and what the Blade should have been, but doesn't fit in your pocket like the blade.

Mitch Warburton 17 February 2012

Good: It's massive screen, good enough camera, very nice to use, 3G and Wifi and Tethering, can hold up to 32GB memory. Most importantly, ITS CHEAP PEOPLE!!!

Bad: Battery life (however for a smart phone with its screen size its really not that bad), touch screen isn't as responsive as the Iphone but is good enough

Comment: First note. The 800GHz processor and 512mb of RAM is MORE THAN ENOUGH power needed for what I demand my phone to do. I don't know why Cnet made an issues of this, I can listen to music, text and surf the web all at the same time without any problems! ITS DEFO fast enough. I think this phone is great, as a very social and phone loving 19 yr old this phone is spot on. I would recommend it to anyone of my age group looking for cheap BUT ACE smart phone. Texting on the touch screen is a breeze with such a huge screen, looking at pictures and videos is sick. I used to take my laptop to to bed with me to chill on Facebook on a evening, No more now I got this badboy, even tho it doesn't support flash I can still view most pages I need to.

What I like that this phone is something a bit different, seriously everytime I crack this sucker out at the pub /work/college people always seem interested in it. (Everyone has seen an Iphone by now). It makes for a nice change of scenery talk about a different phone for a change.

But most importantly with a average price tag of £100 from a lot of local places near me this smart phone is a steal! You will struggle to find a better balance of tec and price on the current market (Feb 2012). So if like me you understand money can be used on much more important things in life than being another apple loving individual go for this nice handset. No word of a lie, I was looking into buying an Iphone after xmas but with the money I saved(£300ish) with this (not so) little beauty I have booked a weeks holiday to Italy with some friends! :) All at the cost of my phone (which I will probably drop and break soon anyway) not having a symbol of an apple on the back)..... CHOOSE LIFE.

Nat Walker 9 February 2012

Good: Speed, looks, sometimes the camera, build quality and overall the fell of the device

Bad: OS gets a bit boring sometimes!

Comment: I do love C NET but this review is quite snobby when compared to an iPhone 4S. But this phone is truly brilliant. The performance is not weak or under powered. The specs may say that but one on its very nippy and no lag since i have had it. I Got it Christmas 2011 and its still very quick and up to my some would say high standards. Sure its made of plastic but once in the hand it doesn't feel it, besides you can put any case on it and it would feel very comfortable and very well built. the camera is the only thing, good in light however the flash is a bit on the bright side, however that's not to say you cant get a good shot out of it. The memory is on the low side and this can be a problem but if you do what everyone else does which is buy a memory card then you'll do fine. I don't suggest improving ROM as things can go wrong and could ruin and truly brilliant phone!!!! The screen is very smooth but the only thing you cant fix which is sometimes annoying is the sheer amount of fingerprints. Other than that its truly Brillllllllllllllll!!!!!!!!!!!

Vincent 19 January 2012

Good: Display

Bad: Bluetooth

Comment: I am now on my second Orange Monte Carlo, and I have a problem with the bluetooth. I have paired it up with various mobiles,laptops and the Archos Tablet. When trying to use it, it states paired but not connected and I need the bluetooth for handsfree driving. I have had it back to the orange shop and they get the same result as me. I also have been in touch with orange several times with their technical department and they have checked one of their monte carlo phones out with a blackberry and they have had the same problem as me. Does this bluetooth actually work ?

Humble Pie 16 November 2011

Good: -

Bad: -

Comment: "The 800GHz processor feels sluggish" I lol'd.