MT6752 Kingzone Z1 review 2GB/OTG/NFC

In the China phone market, Kingzone isn’t much more than a pinky newborn. They have become well known within the China brand community rather quickly though and most shops now carry them. I will have a review unit next week and I’m very much looking forward to seeing how they’ve done with the Z1.mt6752-kingzone-z1-review-3

MT6752 Kingzone Z1 review SoC

One of the big pulls for the Kingzone Z1 is that it carries MediaTek’s new 64-bit MT6752 SoC. I was impressed with the 3D performance of the MT6732, and the 6752 should be a healthy step up from the MT6732 SoC in terms of 3D performance. While they both have the same Mali-T760 GPU, the MT6752 GPU is clocked at 700MHz as opposed to the MT6732 GPU at 500MHz.

MT6752 Kingzone Z1 review RAM / ROM storage

The Kingzone Z1 comes with 2GB of RAM which is more than enough for the average user and should satisfy most power users as well.

The storage is 16GB and supports external SD expansion cards up to 64GB. Again, assuming a decent internal partition size, the 16GB should satisfy most users.

MT6732 Kingzone Z1 review display

On paper there’s a whole lot to like about the Kingzone Z1

One of the interesting specifications of the Kingzone Z1 is the 720P resolution. The MT6752 SoC supports 1080P and indeed most phones coming with the MT6752 are coming with 1080P displays. While 1080P gives a truly retina experience, 720P is beyond adequate for a 5.5″ device.

There are several other benefits here. By going with the 720P display vs 1080P — the cost can be kept down, battery life and 2D/3D performance should be markedly improved, and last but not least, the temperatures of the phone will be kept down due to working only half as hard graphically.

MT6752 Kingzone Z1 review frequency support

Another highlight of the Kingzone Z1 is the frequency support. According to the specifications, the Kingzone Z1 will support worldwide 3G with 850/900/1900/2100.

In addition to worldwide 3G, the Z1 will also support 4G/LTE FDD-LTE 800/1800/2100/2600.

MT6752 Kingzone Z1 review battery other

The Z1 is also scheduled to support FM radio, OTG and have a 13MP rear and 8MP front camera. Likely the camera specs are interpolated, but for me this has never been an issue. The image quality is what I’m looking at, not the size.

With the small sensors on phone’s cameras, cramming 13MP is too much and results in degradation of an image. That is, given two identical sensors except for MP count, the camera with less MP will give a higher quality image. We see this with the recently released iPhone 6 which has bucked the “more MP is better” trend and gone with 8MP.

Discuss this phone on the forum

On paper there’s a whole lot to like about the Kingzone Z1. Worldwide 3G, 2GB RAM and the new MT6752 SoC with 720P display. I’m very excited to get into it with the Z1.

Comments

42 responses to “MT6752 Kingzone Z1 review 2GB/OTG/NFC”

  1. Paul Avatar
    Paul

    been following this model since it was first advertised few weeks ago, the design looks excellent but would love to know if the battery is good or not. sellers are selling the white and black version but nothing regarding the purple version. only $200 as well

    1. Damian Parsons Avatar
      Damian Parsons

      I’m curious as well Paul. Advertised as 3500mAh and if that’s the true spec it should be more than adequate. Looking forward to this one quite a bit.

    2. Larry Avatar
      Larry

      I was told that the phone only comes in purple and white. The purple is very dark almost looks black. Some show it dark blue.

      1. Paul Avatar
        Paul

        larry its only sold in white and black

  2. Paul Avatar
    Paul

    damian you should do a comparason on kingzone z1 and elephone p7000 as they both look like fantastic phones

    1. elmoel Avatar
      elmoel

      hi paul, u should review tcl m2u

      i already used jiayu s3 basic, mlais m52, and kingzone z1.. i think tcl beat them.. SOT can 8 hours

      sorry bad english

  3. Sorin Avatar
    Sorin

    Great review but you forgot to mention the battery life.
    I have one on order but the seller stood me up on the shipment date (was supposed to be 25.03) and told me they will get the phone only after 10.04.
    All the people that already got the phone say battery life is no where near the advertised 3500 mah. Because of this I’m really considering asking a refund an look for another model with better battery.
    The main characteristics that made me choose the Z1 (besides the looks) ware the battery combine with the more economical screen and the fingerprint scanner.

    1. Damian Parsons Avatar
      Damian Parsons

      Hello Sorin, I apologize, I haven’t gotten to the battery test yet.

      They are correct, it is nowhere near 3500mA. The phone would be significantly thicker if so. My guess is that the battery is about 2400mA. Should give you about five hours onscreen (WiFi / low brightness / chat / browsing / flipping around).

      re the fingerprint scanner, on my test unit, it was useless unless removing the back cover. It’s not a feature I use, but if it’s something that’s important to you, you may want to consider a different model.

  4. Sorin Avatar
    Sorin

    Thank you Damian,
    I’ll wait for the battery conclusion (I have at least 10 more days to claim the refund)

    1. Damian Parsons Avatar
      Damian Parsons

      Hello Sorin, I can tell you now that the battery is about 2400mA and will give you about five hours onscreen. If that’s not enough, I’d cancel the order before it ships to save yourself the hassle.

  5. Mee Avatar
    Mee

    “The Kingzone Z1 is one beautiful, slick, unique looking phone. iPhone users will cower in shame when you whip this piece out.” A bold statement Damian , but I agree! Considering that Z1 is about a quarter the cost of Iphone 6+. K1 is “better” looking.

  6. PjWeber Avatar
    PjWeber

    Hello.
    I would like to know the true size of the illuminated side of the screen.
    Without black frames under glass.
    Thank U!

    1. Damian Parsons Avatar
      Damian Parsons

      Hello PJ, it’s a 5.5″ display.

  7. Paul Avatar
    Paul

    fantastic phone but wont be buying due to the battery which you have confirmed damian

    1. Damian Parsons Avatar
      Damian Parsons

      Hi Paul, I will be doing a more definitive test within the next day, but 2400mA removable is pretty much standard for 5.5″.

      It’s not that Kingzone is cheap, its that this is what fits in a phone this size. I’m not saying Kingzone is doing a good thing by misrepresenting battery size. It is what it is.

      Five hours onscreen should easily get most users through the day. Heavy users interested in the phone can get an extra battery and battery swap as needed.

      I’m not saying buy it, I’m saying consider what’s been written by myself and written by other geeks and make an informed decision that seems right for yourself.

  8. Paul Avatar
    Paul

    thankyou, would like chinese firms to put the real battery instead of lieing

    1. Damian Parsons Avatar
      Damian Parsons

      Here is the issue. When one company does it, many follow suit to keep themselves in competition. If they don’t, they risk many sales. Also there’s no regulations to keep them from putting whatever they want on there — and no sanctions or fines if they misrepresent the truth. Many Western companies would do the same thing if they were allowed to.

      Take it all with a grain of salt and expect them to lie and be pleased when they don’t. For me, I consider it just part of the price we pay to pay the price we do. If you understand what I mean. People complain about China customer service, but in truth, the major brands aren’t much, if any better.

      I understand you man. I really do. They have improved vastly over the last year or two and some companies are posting true specs. So that’s a step in the right direction. Remember Kingzone is a freshy brand, not even around for a year yet, or at least not prominent enough to be known to the western community.

      Well, that’s what we’re trying to do with these reviews and at Chinaphonearena. Keep the consumer informed and keep the brands on their toes as much as we can. I have direct communication with a few reps and have relayed dissatisfaction with the false specs. Let’s hope they begin to catch on.

      1. Paul Avatar
        Paul

        thankyou i decided to go with the mlais m52 which seem gizchina are raving about and for $143 with coupon from gearbest shop as it has a 1.7 octa core, 2gb ram, 16gb rom which expands to 64gb and comes with android 5.0 later on and also has a 3200 battery

        1. Damian Parsons Avatar
          Damian Parsons

          Hi Paul,

          I have the MLAIS M52 and a review will be forthcoming. IMO the Kingzone Z1 is better in most all aspects, but also significantly more expensive. The MLAIS M52 is a very powerful phone at a great price, that’s for sure.

          1. Paul Avatar
            Paul

            cannot wait for your review of the mlais m52, do you know were i can get different battery covers for the device

          2. Damian Parsons Avatar
            Damian Parsons

            Hi Paul, mine was sent from Gearbest and came with 4 different battery covers. Not sure if it comes that way to everyone or not. The review should be up by Sunday. Possibly Saturday.

  9. alex Avatar
    alex

    Apparently, Damian charged the battery full (!) within 2 hours.
    He used the 1A charger.
    Thus, the battery capacity is for sure BELOW 1A*2hours=2000 mAh.
    Even 2400 mAh guess is a way too high!

    I would guess somewhere around 1700 mAh.
    i.e. Kingsone lie factor is about 2.

    But why Damian does not post the actual working time???

    1. Damian Parsons Avatar
      Damian Parsons

      Hi Alex, the phone was charged from 15%-100%. Not 0%. And not in 2 hours flat. In about 2 hours 10 minutes. Which gives us somewhere around 2400. It’s impossible to tell for sure without giving a steady discharge from 100% to 0%.

      This is a typical battery size for a 5.5″ phone this slim. The working time hasn’t been posted because I haven’t gotten to it yet. The test is running as we speak. Battery result will be posted in about 30 minutes. I can tell you this — If you need more than about 5 hours onscreen time and are unwilling to battery swap, this phone isn’t for you.

    2. burned out nerd Avatar
      burned out nerd

      battery capacity cannot be determined by charging profiles..especially blind ones. The charger is rated at 1A, meaning the maximum current fed into the pmic of the phone is 1A at 5V, which is converted to the proper parameters for charging. charging current is not constant either. at the last few % towards full, charging current decreases significantly to a trickle charge.
      Unfortunately, there is no way to measure discharge profiles either. we just have a black box of 100%, 0% and discharge time — nothing easily determined from this.
      With these types of issues, reviews like Damian’s are invaluable. It’s these guys that have the experience with countless phones (and their battery performance), so their judgement and assumptions hold a lot of water.

      it is certainly annoying to get faked specs from manufacturers, but all we can do is deal with it and buy wisely. read reviews and search forums for user complaints to find out what you’re getting into.

      —-
      Thanks for the honest review, damian

      1. Damian Parsons Avatar
        Damian Parsons

        Hello burned out,

        It can’t be determined exactly via charging, but if it’s an even, steady, strong charge, along with battery test results, it can be guessed at. And we can tell by charging that it’s not above 2700mA. It charges steadily up to 100% with a slight decrease in the last 15 minutes (see charging image). Trickle charging has nothing to do with this situation. This battery is between 2300-2700mA.

        A near exact true rating *can* be obtained. It requires a steady discharge at an even rate from 100% down to 0.

  10. Sorin Avatar
    Sorin

    Thanks for sharing some light on the battery life.

    1. Damian Parsons Avatar
      Damian Parsons

      No problem Sorin. Sorry I didn’t get to it sooner. If you didn’t see in the updated battery portion, it played 720P over YouTube app WiFi for nearly 7 hours. I will have more information regarding charging times and base approximate battery size off of the charge from 3.5V.

  11. mrsim Avatar
    mrsim

    well i for one want to get to the bottom of this debacle…and damien…you seem kind of not that bothered by this issue…i will bow down to your knowledge of china on this but surely a little bit more investigation and pressure from someone as influential as yourself may just get the company to admit they are wrong,i mean a oneplus one can hold a 3100mah battery and is approx the same size as this device

    1. Damian Parsons Avatar
      Damian Parsons

      Hi Mr. Sim, I do what I can. All these companies care about at the end of the day is profit. But some of them are starting to come arond and realize that its not what it looks like, but what it is that counts.

      Kingzone is really brand new and I think they’ve done a good job with this phone. Style wise its astonishing.

      Sooner or later the China brands will come around and realize they’re hurting themselves with fake specs such as seen here with the battery on Kingzone Z1.

      Still, I’m quite pleased with the battery test result. Regardless of the fake spec, nearly 7 hours of straight HD playback is a decent result and better than I’d expected.

      Re OnePlus One, this phone has a battery that needs to have the phone taken apart to be replaced. With this type of design, a bigger battery can be fit.

  12. Bruce S Avatar
    Bruce S

    Hi Damian; just want to say thank you for your review of the Kingzone Z1 and your very frank and open comments about the so called “negatives” or downsides of this phone.

    I’m not a power user; my current phone has a 2,700 mAh battery and that lasts me 3 days between charges. Simply, the battery “issue” you raise here is more about the integrity of Kingzone than anything else from my perspective. I liked this phone when it was announced; it ticks pretty much all the boxes for me and despite the battery / integrity issue I have just ordered one.

    1. Damian Parsons Avatar
      Damian Parsons

      Hello Bruce, thanks much for commenting. Unfortunately my frank reviews leads to less reviews, if you get my meaning, but the shops that are open to the bigger picture seem to not mind as much.

      7 hours straight onscreen running 720P over WiFi isn’t shabby at all. Yes, given light use the Kingzone Z1 should easily last several days.

  13. Bruce S Avatar
    Bruce S

    Hi Damian; can we interpret “less reviews” to mean companies who have something to hide? Perhaps you could start a “review refused” list as a potential “red flag” to your readers and a sin bin for less than straight manufacturers? Call it “Damian’s List”; not a good place to be!

    On the battery issue; I can certainly understand the anger and angst of those who’ve purchased the Kingzone Z1 in the belief that it had a 3,500 mAh battery. They’ve been deceived pure and simple and it’s certainly not a good look for a manufacturer to lie, especially when they know they’ll be found out anyway.

    My philosophy with Chinese smartphones is somewhat cavalier. One of the “name brands” would have cost 3-4 times what I’m paying for the lower shelf stuff yet the features and functionality are pretty much the same. So I’m still getting pretty good value for money despite one or two downsides.

    1. Damian Parsons Avatar
      Damian Parsons

      Hello Bruce, it’s not so much about something to hide, it’s more about making sales. Some of these things I mention could be considered nitpicks, or indeed not even noticed by 95% of users out there (including things such as the battery topic discussed here), but I know that there are also savvy users who frequent my site and count on these types of things from Gizbeat. Many sites, including some of the big ones, sell their soul just to have a discounted or free phone, so they’ll do whatever it takes to make sales for said shop / manufacturer.

      I agree with your philosophy, and I subscribe to it as well. If customer service was great, and hardware was perfect and powerful, and there was 100% transparency and perfect marketing, the phones would be at least double in price. Even the big brands such as Sony or Canon or Samsung have horror stories across the web. The reality is, these are inexpensive, budget phones purchased from overseas. And buying stuff like this simply isn’t for everyone. Literally the profit for the shops is sometimes $10 or so per mobile and they simply can’t afford to attend to every complaint and issue.

      That being said, part of Chinaphonearena and Gizbeat’s reason for existence is to make things as painless as possible and help in whatever way we can (to an extent of course). We’ve lost a sponsor due to a single issue that I felt absolutely needed to be handled properly. They refused. We cancelled them.

      In the case of reviews, we had one shop send us 3 phones and each one of the phones had some serious problem with them that I made public, needless to say, that shop no longer sends us phones and they’ve cancelled their sponsorship of the site. So there’s a price for the truth, because now there’s less phones to review and we’ve lost their support as a sponsor. Anyways, I’m perhaps being a bit long winded here and I could go on and on, but there it is for now. Regards Bruce.

  14. lawrie.h Avatar
    lawrie.h

    hi
    I have just placed an order for this phone yesteray that was after reading lots of really good reviews, then i came accross this review today and what a let down this is, I have now read some more reviews that are saying pretty much the same about battery and sound quality, gps etc. so I am sending a further email to cancel the order before it gets dispatched in the morning. I had no idea that they were allowed to make false claims on products, it’s a shame cos I really liked the look of this one, if there was a china phone that was worth the money what would you recommend?
    Thanks for your review and for saving me from a big mistake.
    Regards
    lawrie.

    1. Damian Parsons Avatar
      Damian Parsons

      Hi Lawrie, I like this phone. The battery lasted longer on the 720p video test than any of the recent phones I’ve tested, playing HD video for 7 hours. I wouldn’t let the possibility of false battery specs stop you from getting the phone.

      1. lawrie.h Avatar
        lawrie.h

        hi Damian
        Thanks for your reply but after reading all the comments listed on this review it looks like areally bad purchase, I got a china phone a number of years ago and after it fell from my pocket onto a carpet only from waist hight it never worked again so a bit warey of them.
        I watched this phone z1 for a few days and read a number of reviews they were all saying how good it was so I placed my order yesterday then today came across this review and it’s put me right off. I looked at some other reviews and some are saying the very same fualts so I have just cancelled the order about half an hour ago they will get it in the morning hopfully before they dispatch it.
        the most important things on any phone are sound quality, camera, gps and they are the things this review are saying are no good so Iwill have to look at other phones.
        thanks for your imput Damian.
        regards
        lawrie.

        i

        1. Bruce S Avatar
          Bruce S

          Hi Lawrie; I went ahead and purchased the Kingzone Z1 knowing that there were a few downsides. I am delighted with the phone; Im not a heavy user; no games just internet, e-mail, messaging and phone. The battery lasts me 3 days and even then I’m still at around 30% battery remaining. I use the OPEN Camera app on the phone and it takes brilliant pictures under most conditions.

          I agree that the sound isn’t brilliant, but I’ve never had a phone where it was. Most of them are single speaker phones designed for “phone quality” play back.

          GPS is still an issue; I have changed the datum for mine to reflect where I live and it has improved but it’s certainly not as good as a car GPS or some of the other phones out there.

          On the plus side; the phone works! Display is brilliant, the operating system is fast, responsive and stable. Kingzone are sending out over the air (OTA) updates to resolve issues; so at least they are attempting to support their product. I’ve installed an OTA update; the process was simple and flawless.

          So for a phone that costs less that $US 200 – this one works for me. I’d buy another one….or Kingzone’s rumored new K2.

          Good luck with your hunt for another phone.

          Bruce

          1. lawrie.h Avatar
            lawrie.h

            Thanks Bruce
            I can not believe yesterday all the reviews were saying how good this phone was and today they are totally different, a mobile phone with bad sound quality is no good to anyone but if that was not bad enough the camera is not what they claim or the sat nav I am sure that would put anyone off. I just don’t know what to do now, I have sent an email to cancel the order but really like the looks of the phone maybe I will change my mide in the morning and just let them send it.
            They should not be allowed to get away with false claims, they would not be allowed to do this in the uk.
            I thank you for taking the time to write and if I take the phone will let you know how it goes.
            Thanks Bruce.
            Regards
            lawrie.

  15. Bruce S Avatar
    Bruce S

    Hi Lawrie; one of the “joys” of buying Chinese phones is navigating the raft of specifications and trying to figure out what is real and what is not. You have done the right thing and read the reviews before buying. At least that way you can buy “fit for purpose” – in the same way I did.

    You have obviously read quite a few Z1 reviews; the only thing that seems to be consistent (and agreed after proper analysis) is that the battery is no where near 3500 mAh. A lot of the reviews I have seen about the camera quality do not bear out my experience; the camera works fine for me.

    If GPS accuracy is an imperative for you; then currently, this phone is not what you want. I use the in car GPS for navigation so not an issue for me; but I know some folks like to take long bike rides and walks etc – so their needs are different.

    Again; good luck with your search. Have you read Damian’s review of the ASUS Zenefone 2? Perhaps that is more aligned to your needs?

    Regards – Bruce

    1. lawrie.h Avatar
      lawrie.h

      Hi Bruce
      Thank you for your advice on this phone, I have now got an email confirming the order cancelled,
      it’s good to hear from someone that has bought the phone and gives an honest review so thanks for that Bruce.
      I will look at the phone you suggested among others and see what is available, I now know not to trust claims from chinaphones, they may not be true, I hope your Z1 gives many years of trouble free use. I may even reconsider the Z1 after what you have told me just need a bit of time to consider it after all it looks a really cool phone.
      Thanks again Bruce for taking the time to help with this have a great day.

      Best Regards
      Lawrie.

  16. Larry P Avatar

    I will try to keep this short and simple. I am in the USA, have bought Kingzone K1, N3, and now Z1 and I like the Z1 the best. I was disappointed after receiving the phone the 4G Lte has 4 frequency’s none would work in USA on AT&T BUT I found the sound is much louder than K1 or N3 because it is projected downward, out the bottom where the other two phones where out the back. I being a little hard hearing was a big thing. I can tell you that the battery 3500 ma issue is a minor thing to me. The Z1 will last much longer than the K1 or N3 and including my Samsung S5. The main issue should be which no where I have read it will not work on 4G LTE in USA.

    No where have I read just how the 3500 ma battery was calculated. I would believe that who ever build the battery would know and that is what Kingzone is basing there data on. I have not seen anyone yet compare this 3500 ma battery to other brands of 3500 ma battery. Are there other brands that have 3500 ma battery’s that are smaller or much larger? You can pick up a PC magazine and they will be comparing one processor to another to see which is faster. Who really give a big rat a??. 95% of the people using one will not be able to tell the difference other than price.
    Here is another, the K1 has a FHD and the Z1 has a HD screen no big deal this is just a telephone not a pix perfect movie screen. I do not find anything really wrong with the pictures the camera takes. They look great on my web site. It takes better picture than my professional 5 mp DLR camera.
    The bottom line the Kingzone Z1 is a very good phone for the size, number of bands and price so just buy one and I think you will be happy. No matter what brand you get it can break like my high dollar Samsung S5.

    LarryP

  17. Larry P Avatar

    Here is part 2 addressing purchasing from China vendors.
    1.0 There is no difference purchasing from China or from the USA as far loosing money.
    a.When you purchase from anyone that you don’t know only pay them with PayPal.
    b.Make sure the warranty includes if it breaks within first 30 days they pay the return shipping.
    2.0 The three phones I purchased above were from different vendors. Just make sure they are reliable establish business by using search procedures.
    3.0 I have been rip off more times in US than China. So stay protected using Paypal.
    Larry P

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