Unannounced ZTE Nubia Z9 shown running Windows 10 at WinHec 2015

By John Callaham
last updated

The ZTE Nubia Z9, which hasn't been officially announced by the Chinese-based smartphone company, was spotted running a version of Windows 10 for phones at Microsoft's WinHEC 2015 hardware conference in China this week.

The ZTE Nubia Z9 was spotted by MyDrivers.com and, while it has yet to be announced by ZTE, previous leaks show that it was running Android. It's also a high-end device in terms of hardware. It has a 5.2-inch full HD display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage, a 16MP rear camera with object image stabilization, and even an 8MP front-facing camera.

The fact that the ZTE Nubia Z9 is running Microsoft's next OS may show that the company is planning to launch Android and Windows 10 versions of the same device, similar to what HTC did with the HTC One M8. There's also the "experimental" program that Xiaomi and Microsoft are working on to place a ROM of Windows 10 in the Mi 4. We should hopefully know more about ZTE's strategy for the Nubia Z9 in the near future.

Source: Mydrivers.com; Via: WMPU

138 Comments
  • FINALLY A HIGH END DEVICE !
  • Here here!
  • I hope it's not Chinese only...
  • Now that would be a major killjoy lol...
  • Import?
  • Wen in America?
  • lol
  • Excellent. Lumia or not I'm pulling the trigger on the first flagship running Win10. Bring it on.....
  • The camera on ANY ZTE phone cannot touch a PureView Lumia. 
  • The camera on ANY LUMIA phone cannot touch a PureView Nokia 808.
  • Don't get me wrong, I'm very happy windows is getting love from other OEMs, but I fail to see how this is essentially better than 930/1520. Just because it's newer doesn't make it better. Sure it has better processor and more memory but to it all sounds just incremental improvement. sort of like iPhone 5 vs 6. Not saying Z9 couldn't have some kick-ass features but as is, I'm not impressed  
  • TO ME, 1520 is still The Flagship. I know some dislike it due its size but I love it, I never carry my phone in my pants pocket anyways anymore (I'm back down to 920 since I royally screwed up and lost my beloved 1520 =/)
  • How do you lose something that big? Lol. Jk.
  • I know, right? =/
  • I agree. The Lumia 1520 is Microsoft's definitive flagship device. I love the 6-inch Full HD screen & slim design. I hope Microsoft releases a successor 1530 flagship device with a Snapdragon 810 (or equivalent), 3 GB RAM, 32 GB Storage, 1080p or 1440p HD Screen, & 3450 mAh battery. I can't go below a 6-inch screen after owning a Lumia 1520.
  • +1520
    +1520...
    +1530
  • I am ready for a 1520 XL
  • The main reason I'm waiting for and upgrade is so I can get a replacement 1520 for cheaper =) My only issue with it was that "phantom touch" even though it only occured a couple of times a day. Annoying nevertheless.
  • The problem with the 1520 is availability.  Never available in Canada, exclusive to AT&T in the states.  I believe that if the 1520 had been made available to a wider customer base, there would be far less of us sitting on pins and needles for a new phone.
  • What do uou need 1440p for? Like serious?
  • Bragging rights, keeping hands warm in the winter season...
  • I love my 1520, but I miss the built in pen I had on my Note 2. I hope MS adds a pen to the 1530/40 or a surface phone.
  • Typed this on my 1520 best phone I've ever had
  • My thoughts exactly. It'll be a little bit faster and last a little bit longer but on their own the specs don't really do anything special over my 1520. However its what people want so good to see nonetheless.
  • Yeah I agree. My Lumia 1520 is still a speed demon (its not perfect however), but I don't think I really need to upgrade this phone because of a new processor and more ram. Honestly Windows phone performs almost the same on ALL devices.
  • Yes. Any device with a 2.2 Ghz quad core processor and 2 GB RAM is future proof on Windows. A phone with 1/4 the power can run Windows 10.
  • I like how you ask hows it better and the next sentence specifically talk about how its better.
  • They start showing up. Can't wait for the 1020 upgrade.
  • Love my 1020
  • Oh, damn-- those are some serious specs!
  • Basically the expected averages for a flagship. Other than the FFC resolution, this doesn't offer anything over the competition.
  • By competition, do you mean like 3 phones? There's very little competition running a Snapdragon 810.
  • 1080p is enough.
    It doesn't have to have QHD to be a flagship ala the iPhone 6/6+ and the HTC One M9. A phone doesn't have to have the latest gadgets for it to be a flagship Posted via the Windows Central App for Android
  • Unless its an apple flagship ...specs are way lower on those. But no one cares.
  • For a WP device, I mean-- we've only had low-to-mid-end devices for a while.
  • Seriously awesome specs! No doubt it is faster.
  • "Near bezel less design." Music to my ears
  • Is it running the new Phone build?
  • It would have to, WP8 doesn't support the Snapdragon 810 or 3 GB of RAM either I believe.
  • Meanwhile owners of Microsoft's own Lumia "high end" devices still have to wait to get any TP build at all :O
  • Totally irrelevant
  • Not really. cause there are builds for other higher end hardware from Chinese OEMs yet there is nothing available for Lumia Icon/930/1520. Thought that MS cares about feedback from their "insiders"...
  • Builds? It's a display device. Nothing more.
  • Oh god.
  • Say what? It hasn't been even announced yet so saying "there are builds for... Chinese OEMs" is pushing it.
  • Employees are running on 1520 & 930 though
  • Sure, it's more powerful than my 930, but should I care? My phone is powerful enough to do anything that I would expect it to do, so there is no problem in having a ... "high end" phone.
  • Yes, that's the spirit. As long as it works great for what you use it for and it is lag free. Specs in themselves are not worth to be jellous about. We have come to a point where smartphones have enough CPU and GPU power to last a while, as long as the OS is built for the hardware. Right now, only Apple and Microsoft seem to do that properly. Google (Nexus) and Motorola (previously a Google company) almost do that properly, but I would rather call it a 98 percent success. Not quite the jackpot, because Android still is not as optimised in speed.
  • The battery will be better than what's in your 930, that's almost for certain. 
  • +920 still working like a champ, although memory is full and now I have to manage regularly.
  • They said they'd release a build ASAP. Whatever that means. The 928 is already showing its age on Denim.
  • What?? I have the 928 and it works perfect. It has its glitches sometimes. But for this to be a two year old phone it runs Dam# good!! I had a HTC ReZound and a iPhone 3G before than and within a year those phones were out of date. My 928 is still kicking with updates and improvements. People can say all they want about Windows Phone sucking, but to people that own them they love them because the quality of the OS and phones are getting better with age.
  • Shouldn't it be the Z10?????
  • High End Phone, Cheers to that
  • First high end device since the M8.
    ........
    And, those specs.... 810❓ 3GB ram❓ 8mpffc❓❓
  • How are 930 or 1520 not high end devices? I rally doubt better specs bring any significant improvements to the way windows runs on a phone
  • First... The 1520/920 came out way before the M8..
    Second... You guys said the same thing about quad core processors... Put a 1520 up against a 920, and see which one performs better... With WP we do see that higher specs translate into better performance...
  • Yea and M8 came out way before 435. By your logic, 435 MUST be better, right? I wasn't saying it won't be just a little bit faster, just doubt it'll be very significant. And, btw, I never argued against quad core processors.
  • No, that's not my logic at all.... Don't know where you're getting that..... My original point is fact.... The M8 is literally the last high end WP device to come out...
    That's all..
  • M8 is a high end Lumia? O.o
  • I'm guessing that was a typo, his original point is correct though.
  • Might as well be.... We wouldn't want it getting lonely out there by itself.
  • Please release in USA
  • Would definitely be nice.
  • Wen in USA
  • Europe pls
  • Ooh, now those are some tasty specs! Getting so amped about whats coming down the line in a few months time!
     
  • I'll take one!
  • Loving the specs! Now just give it a Lumia makeover and I'll buy it in a heartbeat
  • Exactly!
  • I'd seriously consider it of the camera is any good lol.
  • Yes, that's the point. I saw many high end sonys with much lower quality against my lumia 920... And today, there's no big difference between a lumia 535 and a lumia icon, except the camera for the icon and sd for the 435... And the price
  • There's a huge difference between the Icon and the 535...
  • Lets be honest, if your phone has 1gb ram, it can run every app out there. Games will feature the same graphics. The rest of experience is quiet the same, and on such small device, resolution difference is not that impressive for regular use. Only camera really differs devices imo.
  • Just about everything is better. Better screen for reading or playing videos, better camera (quicker, image stabilization, and more camera features), better framerates in games, better audio playback/recording, better touch sensitivity...
  • Dont forget ram aswell not that that matters much anymore
  • And it's OPTICAL image stabilization not object! LOL
  • Lol I was just about to ask about that
  • 5.2" 1080p screen, Snapdragon 810 and 3GB RAM. Yummy. I want that in a Lumia... Like, exactly.
  • why?
  • Would definitely buy!
  • Wow...thats all i can say..
  • That ffc tho!
  • Wow!! Awesome!!! :) ms hurry with a new lumia/surface phone!! :)
    I bet it's going to be a kick ass device, since they know that we expect only the best! :) and i hope they won't make Nokia's mistakes (low storage/no sd or no glance on high end...)
    Also led notifications (not flash) are very wanted, especially for those ever owning a e72 or blackberry...
  • my 1520 had 32GB, SD,support, glance..
  • Wow, that's some serious hardware right there!
  • I wonder why they call it the Nubia. This isn't part of that 4Afrika thing they announced a while about, was it?
  • Isnt that from starwars
  • Lol also, but it's also a historical region in Africa.
  • Nice specs hopefully we'll see it in worldwide release
  • Wow! That's what I was talking about
  • Zubia, Lumia? Lol
  • Snapdragon 810? Wow...
  • I really hope Microsoft do really well in china =)
  • Lets say WP10 is coming in June , that's along time to keep any one waiting
  • This is very unlike ZTE. They were totally into making low end hardware a couple of years ago. I guess they have started to broaden their portfolio :)
  • Still looks very low end.(no capacitive buttons)
  • The article says this device was running Android last time it was spotted, so that's why it's lacking capacitive buttons. 
  • Oh yes
  • If it has t-mobile or AT&T bands I'll buy it and bring it here.
  • is that transparency through tiles? so w10 will finally get it back?
  • First, that phone is clearly running wp8.1. Second, MS already told at the very beginning that both transparent and translucent backgrounds will be supported in w10 for phones.
  • first: so its my mistake that the article uses a photo with a phone running 8.1 and telling people it is running 10? second: read my sentece again, i used "finally". i already knew it would come back, im reading this website daily + forums. i just thought that it will happen sooner than later, something like next build. nex build which could very easy to be running on this z9, given that ms has internally more than one builds over the public one.
  • First: of course not your mistake. Wasn't supposed to blame you.
    Second: if you knew about it already, then fine :)
  • Awesome!
  • There were also Hisense, Koship and some other phones, but Windowscentral don't bother to write about them. As much as you guys didn't cared about Alcatel and some other phones at MWC...
  • That's a very nice looking device. I doubt it'll come to the US though so that's out of the question. It'll be for Chinese and Asian markets. Posted via the Windows Central App for Android
  • WTF is doing Lumia Beamer here?!
  • Is that really Windows 10? And what kind of build is that? It has Lumia exclusive apps running on a ZTE phone? And the look of the start screen looks exacly like the demo version in the Lumias 735,830 and 930 that are on display in my country. Even the background picture. And they're not running windows 10... Even Cortana looks like the 8.1 version, if we go to the source link and see the rest of the pictures. But is nice to see new Windows devices from different OEMs.
  • I want.
  • 3Gb? Damn it's almost capacity of RAM I have in my PC
  • 3GB or 50GB of RAM is probably the same speed on Windows Phone.
  • My Lumia 1520 sure could use WINDOWS 10!!!!!
  • Impressive specs but whatever flagship comes my way on AT&T better have Qi wireless charging and Glance. Only way I even consider giving those up is for a Surface Phone. And even then maybe not. Tired of phones going backwards and taking cool things away!
  • Still waiting the announcement for Galaxy S6 Edge with Windows 10
  • Read this news earlier today from another source and nothing indicated that this device was running Windows 10.
  • It is impossible for it to be running anything other than Windows 10.
    Windows Phone 8.1 doesn't support the 810 chipset.
  • That looks Damn good! Hope it makes it to the states Posted via Windows Phone Central App
  • Two-stage camera button? Looks unlikely...
  • Numbia? Really? China is famous for blatant copies, but Numbia vs Lumia is just a little much you think?
  • Nubia is a region in Egypt.
  • Omg I want it
  • It looks gorgeous... Really curious what MS brings on :)
  • Wow, Win Central posting stuff from (via) WMPU!
  • Ooooooo!!!!!!!
  • As thrilling as this news might potentially be, if it doesn't have MicroSD memory expansion slot, it won't be my choice. Being Subscribed to Xbox Music and naturally keeping 3-5 GB of essential photos within my handset (hey it the Lumia 1020 so this shouldn't be a surprise) along with a few favorite Music Videos (mostly off of YouTube), my sub-32GB device prevents me from acquiring new music from Xbox (except if I delete other music) and I never have more than 1GB free on it. Never again will I buy a handset from any manufacturer using any OS if there isn't at least 64GB capacity. ¿Are you listening Microsoft? I've decided to wait until at least August to possibly avail myself of a new high-end Windows Phone flagship running Windows 10, before forcing myself to consider either Google or Blackberry devices (as I already owned 2 iPhones (3G & 4S) and would seriously like to avoid returning to Apple's boring App layout and over-priced devices which subject me to their awful iTunes!
  • Awesomeeeee
  • 1530 come on!
  • I like what they doing.
  • Looks a bit like 830..
  • That's really high end.
  • Those are the specs of a phone, a mobile phone?
  • object image stabilization? Optical?
  • I quite like ZTE. The ZTE Tania was my first windows phone device.
  • This phone with those specs should easily get updates for the next 4 years! I can't even imagine the overall speed of this phone throughout the UI judging of my poor Lumia 630 :P ZTE is doing it right!
  • It looks more like Nubia Z9 Max with 5.5 screeen.
  • But it will ship with W 10!!!
  • I'm sure it's low end, that's Microsoft's specialty! Guess will start being considered low class citizens of we don't see something high-end soon. I know what this article days about it potentially being high-end, bit we've heard that before!