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The pocketable and prepaid Prelude (pictures)

Aio Wireless' ZTE Prelude is an entry-level handset that features a 3.5-inch display, a 2-megapixel camera, and Android Jelly Bean.

Lynn La
Lynn La covers mobile reviews and news. She previously wrote for The Sacramento Bee, Macworld and The Global Post.
Lynn La
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1 of 7 James Martin/CNET

ZTE Prelude for Aio Wireless

Though it flaunts an inexpensive price tag ($50 prepaid) and decent 3G speeds, the Prelude doesn't have much else going for it. Especially since it has a poor camera and a display that's difficult to view outdoors.

Read more about the ZTE Prelude for Aio Wireless.

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2 of 7 James Martin/CNET

A petite design

Compact at 4.6 inches tall, 2.4 inches wide, and 0.43-inch thick (116.84 x 60.96 x 10.92mm), the device is also lightweight at just 4.4 ounces (124.74g).

Read more about the ZTE Prelude for Aio Wireless.

zte-prelude-6486.jpg
3 of 7 James Martin/CNET

Some nice touches

The matte battery door's soft-touch coating does well at keeping fingerprints off, and I could appreciate ZTE's small design effort when it stylized the rear with gray, curvy lines.

Read more about the ZTE Prelude for Aio Wireless.

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4 of 7 James Martin/CNET

A barely viewable screen

The handset features a 3.5-inch TFT LCD touch screen, with a 320x480-pixel resolution. This low resolution means that images and menu icons will appear grainy The display is also difficult to view in sunlight. It has a very narrow viewing angle, so the slightest tilt will wash out the screen almost completely.

Read more about the ZTE Prelude for Aio Wireless.

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5 of 7 James Martin/CNET

The usual number of Google apps

The phone runs Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean and as such contains several Google apps: Chrome, Gmail, Search, Plus, Maps, Talk, YouTube, and access to the Play Store's Books, Movies & TV, Music, and Newsstand portals.

Read more about the ZTE Prelude for Aio Wireless.

zte-prelude-6499.jpg
6 of 7 James Martin/CNET

Meager camera specs

Though there is neither a rear flash nor a front-facing camera, the Prelude does have a 2-megapixel camera with VGA video recording capabilities.

Read more about the ZTE Prelude for Aio Wireless.

zte-prelude-6501.jpg
7 of 7 James Martin/CNET

An ultraslow processor

The 3G device is powered by a 1GHz processor and a 1.4mAh battery. You’ll also get 4GB of internal storage, plus up to 32GB of expandable storage via a microSD card slot, and 512MB of RAM.

Read more about the ZTE Prelude for Aio Wireless.

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