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Acer's raft of Android phones will suit selfie obsessives on a budget

Acer has a range of new Android phones, which boast high-resolution front-facing cameras -- and tiny price tags.

Andrew Lanxon Editor At Large, Lead Photographer, Europe
Andrew is CNET's go-to guy for product coverage and lead photographer for Europe. When not testing the latest phones, he can normally be found with his camera in hand, behind his drums or eating his stash of home-cooked food. Sometimes all at once.
Expertise Smartphones, Photography, iOS, Android, gaming, outdoor pursuits Credentials
  • Shortlisted for British Photography Awards 2022, Commended in Landscape Photographer of the Year 2022
Andrew Lanxon
2 min read

BERLIN -- Acer has taken a scattergun approach to its smartphone strategy, firing off a volley of new Android handsets at this year's IFA tradeshow here.

Sitting at the top of the range is the Liquid Z630, a 5.5-inch beast that's packing a 64-bit 1.3GHz quad-core processor and 2GB of RAM. A 5.5-inch display would typically make a phone somewhat on the bulky side, but its dimensions (156 by 77 by 8.9mm) don't seem too hefty -- presumably Acer has done some magic with narrow bezels.

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The back is made from plastic, with a brushed effect, which doesn't do much to make the phone attractive, based on Acer's publicity shots at least. A variant of the phone, called the Z630S (pictured below), has a more funky black and gold colour scheme as well as a more potent octa-core processor.

liquidz630sblackgold-2.jpg
Acer

Other features of both models include 8-megapixel cameras on the front and back, 4,000mAh batteries, 4G LTE and high-def 720p displays. The Z630 is due to go on sale in Europe in September for a very reasonable 210 euros (around £155, $235 or AU$340).

Up next, the Liquid Z530, which Acer proudly boasts is the "perfect selfie smartphone". That's a reference to the phone's wide-angle 8-megapixel front-facing camera, which comes with a range of software tweaks to help you get the best shot of you pulling horrific faces.

The Z530 also packs a 5-inch, 720p display, a 1.3GHz quad-core processor, 2GB RAM and up to 16GB of storage. As with the top dog, the Z530 is joined by a Z530S which comes with an octa-core processor. The Z530 goes on sale in October in Europe for only 149 euros (£110, $165 or AU$240).

Bringing up the budget end of the range is the Liquid Z330 and Z320, both of which are aimed towards those of you looking to take your first steps into the selfie-sharing world of the smartphone. Both handsets have 4.5-inch displays, with the Z330 packing the more potent Qualcomm Snapdragon 210 processor (the Z320 has a lesser chip inside).

Designs look to be pretty much identical too, with all-plastic bodies, button-free fronts and odd-looking circular discs on the back, which hide the speaker. The Z330 has 5-megapixel cameras both front and back, while the Z320 has a 5-megapixel rear camera, with a 2-megapixel variety on the front.

The Z330 will be hitting shelves in Europe and the UK in October, for 129 euros (which converts to £95, $145 or AU$210). US and Australian availability has not yet been announced for any of the phones, but we'll update this article when we hear more.

For the best of IFA 2015, see CNET's complete coverage.