ZTE goes big with Grand Memo II LTE (pictures)

BARCELONA, Spain -- At a press conference today, ZTE introduced its new 6-inch phablet, called the Grand Memo II LTE. It will launch in China in April, and later roll out to other countries in Europe, North America, and Asia Pacific for about $300, unlocked.

The Memo II LTE sports a matte-plastic textured design, and its rear is decorated with a sheen tile pattern. Though I can do without these tilings, I welcome this unique look from ZTE.

According to ZTE's release, the Grand Memo II LTE is powered by a Snapdragon 400 processor. It's worth keeping in mind that last year's model sported two variants with either a Snapdragon 600 and 800 processor inside, so the fact that its sequel would don a 400 is an odd step backward.

As for its massive 6-inch HD display (a bump from its 5.7-inch predecessor), it sports a 720x1,280-pixel resolution, which comes out to about 245ppi. This does fine for displaying text and images, but it doesn't compare to other phablets available on the market.

The phone's top and bottom edges are rounded off, which adds to the device's standout aesthetic.

ZTE described the smartphone as "ultraslim," and at just .28-inch thick, it lives up to that description. However, because it also measures 6.33 inches tall and 3.26 inches wide, it felt a bit fragile in the hand.

The Memo II LTE runs 4.4 KitKat, the newest version of Android, that's overlaid with the company's upgraded interface, MiFavor 2.3.

A few new UI features include glove touch and the ability to shrink the screen down for easy one-handed use.

On the device's rear is a 13-megapixel camera, and on its front is a 5-megapixel secondary shooter.

With 5 megapixels under its belt, this a uniquely hefty front-facing camera, but we've seen ZTE handset's with powerful front shooters before, like the Nubia 5S and 5S Mini.

Additional features include a 3,200mAh nonremovable battery, 2GB of RAM, and 16GB of internal memory with no option to expand.