ZTE Announces The Budget-Friendly Grand X Max+ Phablet

It seems that everyone is into phablets nowadays. Chinese phone maker ZTE has just announced its own phablet offering, the Grand X Max+. But whereas Apple, Samsung, and Google are offering phablets with premium price tags, ZTE is positioning its product with a distinct cost effective advantage.

Indeed, the 6-inch Grand X Max+ is offered via Cricket Wireless, a prepaid brand of AT&T, at an accessible price of $200 (no contract). In comparison, Apple's 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus normally starts a $750 off-contract, while the Google Nexus 6 device starts at $650 off-contract.

ZTE has always aimed for a wider market share in the United States. The company claims that it is already the fourth largest smartphone maker in America. As stated by Lixin Cheng, CEO of ZTE's US division, during a press conference at the Consumer Electronics Show 2015 (CES 2015), the Chinese phone maker has 7.8 percent of the American smartphone market. That is not gonna beat Apple's 40 percent market share anytime soon, but if ZTE can increase its percentage, it can establish its brand more firmly in the minds of US consumers.

And it is banking on new products like the Grand X Max+ to attract new customers to its fold. ZTE has actually tried venturing into phablets before. In September of last year, the company introduced the ZMax, a 6-inch phone sold via T-Mobile. And now that phablets are gaining in popularity (started by Samsung's launching of its Galaxy Note smartphone in 2011), ZTE's timing is just about right, joining Apple and Google in offering phablet choices for consumers.

Before releasing the Grand X Max+ device, ZTE had commissioned a survey. According to their findings, 83 percent of the people they interviewed stated they wanted to buy a bigger smartphone, but only 22 percent of them are actually willing to pay the premium price.

With the Grand X Max+, ZTE is offering a phablet without the high price. After all, ZTE (and loads of other Chinese phone makers) have done this before -- offering smartphones with some nifty features at very, very affordable pricing. 

But what about the Grand X Max+'s specifications? The device does not have the most high-end features, but it does have a 6-inch 720p display screen, a 13-megapixel camera on the rear, a 5-megapixel camera on the front, a 1.2 GigaHertz Snapdragon 400 processor (supported with 2 gigabytes of random access memory), 16 gigabytes of internal storage, a 3,200 mAh battery, and Android 4.4.4 KitKat (an Android 5.0 Lollipop update is coming soon). Grand X Max+'s specs may not be much for some, but with a price like that, it may be worth checking out.