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Infinix has just announced their latest phone, the Zero 5G, it is the most powerful phone that Infinix has launched to date and their first 5G phone.
As usual for Infinix, this phone will likely launch in developing markets only. UK buyers may be able to buy it from grey importers.
As I have only had a brief time with the phone, these are my initial impressions, and I will extend the review when I have used it more.
Infinix ZERO 5G Specification
- 6.78” FHD+ Ultra-Smooth Display + 120 Hz
- Mediatek Dimensity 900 5G chipset
- 128GB Universal Flash Storage UFS 3.1 and 8GB LPDDR5
- 48MP + 13MP + 2MP Camera00
- 5,000mAh Battery with 33W Quick-Charge
- Heat Pipe Thermal Module 2.0
- XOS 10 based on Android 11
- Cosmic Black, Skylight Orange, Horizon Blue
Design
With the rear camera design, it is hard not to compare this phone to the OPPO Find X3 Pro. It looks good, but it is not quite as elegant as the OPPO, which costs over £1k. While the OPPO has a glass back, Infinix uses moulded plastic.
For the display, you have a flat IPS screen running at 2460 X 1080 with a 120Hz refresh rate and 250 touch sampling. By default, it uses an auto-switching refresh rate, but you can lock it at 120Hz.
The display itself is pretty good, colours look vibrant, and you can dial up the brightness quite high. It isn’t particularly sunny in the north of England during February, so I haven’t tested how much sunlight affects screen visibility.
Like many affordable phones, this has a 3.5mm headphone jack and a slot of a microSD card.
Unlike the previous Hot 10 S, this has USB-C, which allows the phone to take a 33W charge.
Performance & Benchmarks
I have done a more detailed analysis on the benchmarks of the Infinix ZERO 5G with its Mediatek Dimensity 900 in a separate post.
As for real-world performance, the phone is excellent. The Dimensity 900 has all the power you need for day to day performance as well as gaming. Of course, it won’t compete with flagship chipsets, but it can still run all your games with no significant drop in performance.
The 120hz display with 24Hz touch sampling helps keep everything snappy, with the overall day to day user experience being just as good as phones that cost far more money.
This is the first 5G phone from Infinix, and it is one of the big features Inifinix are advertising. Unfortunately, there is no 5G where I live, but I assume it performs the same as most other phones with mid-range 5G chipsets.
WiFI 6 works as expected. The phone connects to my Zyxel access point with a connection speed of 1200Mbps and achieves a LAN throughput of 830Mbps.
Camera
The information I have been provided doesn’t make the exact camera specification clear, but you have a 48MP primary sensor, then a 13MP 2x zoom camera and then what Infinix call a 2MP virtual camera.
I have absolutely no idea what the 2MP sensor does, and being virtual it makes it sound like it is just a fake lens. Most 2MP tertiary camera sensors on other phones don’t really provide any value and are there just for marketing purposes.
Infinix states that the camera can do 30X zoom, this is predominantly through digital zoom and like all other phones, the more digital zoom you use, the worse the quality photo. At 30x zoom, the quality of shots is predictably awful.
The primary camera has some mixed results. Taking two photos one after the other can result in two very different colour profiles, which I assume is a result of the AI features. This issue doesn’t seem to happen when you use the 2x zoom, and I haven’t experienced it since switching the AI portrait enhancer off.
Ignoring that issue, the 48MP camera does a good enough job, and it is significantly better than a lot of other affordable phones I have used in the past. The 13MP zoom lens produces more consistent results and is also quite good, factoring in the price.
Battery
With a 5000mAH battery 1080P display and mid-range chipset, you should be able to go multiple days using this phone. I charge every night, so I have not pushed it to its limits yet, but I have yet to end the day below 50%.
The 33W charge is also superb for a phone at this price.
Software
The Infinix uses XOS V10, which is a heavily modified version of Android 11, and the interface has changed quite a bit since XOS 7.6 that was used on the Infinix Hot 10 S.
I don’t hate the XOS skin, but it will certainly annoy fans of the pure Android experience. Everything seems to run well, and the overall performance is superb.
There are a few things I dislike, though. First of all, I hate it when phones run a security scan when installing apps from the play store. However, unlike some other brands, the Phone Master software doesn’t display adverts to me.
There is also a lot of additional software installed. This seems to be the norm for phones launched in Asian and developing markets, but Western phones seem to be a bit more slimmed down.
This list may not be extensive, but some of the random apps installed include:
- AHA Games
- Beez
- Boomplay
- CarlCare
- Folax
- InSync
- Magic Line
- Palm Store
- Visha Player
- Welife
- WeZone
- XArena
- XCard
- XClub
- XShare
- Xtheme
- YoParty
Price and Alternative Options
Infinix has not confirmed the price yet, but they are one of the most affordable brands on the market, and I would expect few phones to compete with the price you pay for the specification you are getting.
Other phones with the Dimensity 900 include:
- Vivo iQOO Z5x
- Tecno Pova 5G
- Oppo Reno 6
- Vivo T1x
All of these appear to be priced over $250.
Overall
It is always a bit hard for me to come to a proper conclusion about Infinix devices. They are not sold in the UK/EU, and my personal belief is that a device needs to be evaluated on how it performs against similarly priced phones.
In general, once you factor in the price, this is a superb phone. The overall performance is good enough that I could happily use it as a daily driver. The only thing I’d want personally is a better camera, but this is something that is restricted to premium-priced phones.
Infinix ZERO 5G Review Rating - Initial Impressions
Summary
Depending on how competitive the pricing is, the Infinix ZERO 5G is shaping up to be an excellent mid-range phone that should offer premium-like performance at a lower price point, ideal for the developing markets this will likely be launched in.
Overall
80%-
Initial Impression - 80%80%
I am James, a UK-based tech enthusiast and the Editor and Owner of Mighty Gadget, which I’ve proudly run since 2007. Passionate about all things technology, my expertise spans from computers and networking to mobile, wearables, and smart home devices.
As a fitness fanatic who loves running and cycling, I also have a keen interest in fitness-related technology, and I take every opportunity to cover this niche on my blog. My diverse interests allow me to bring a unique perspective to tech blogging, merging lifestyle, fitness, and the latest tech trends.
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48MP + 13MP + 2MP is indeed a great addition, plus the selfie camera is also very promising. And I am impressed by the fact that they have a Mediatek chipset in it.
I think this smartphone zero 5G by Infinix definitely deserves a try, and I can totally rely on the Mediatek dimensity processor.