26 ANDROID ADVISOR • ISSUE 71
Translation issues abound in Nubia’s custom parts
of the OS – mostly devoted to the second screen
- meaning it’s very unclear what some settings will
do. One option lets me ‘select lamp efficacy’, while
‘Secondary screen space’ is the name of the part of
the settings menu devoted to managing multitasking
across the second display.
None of these are deal-breakers, of course, and I’ve
been using the phone with pre-release software, so
it’s possible that some things will have been changed
by the time you get your hands on the phone.
To be fair to Nubia, beyond those small flaws
there’s actually a fair amount to like from the software
here. The company has stuck fairly close to the stock
Android experience, mostly tweaking it only to add in
its own extra functionality. The phone even ships with
the stock Google apps for most things, and there’s no
pre-installed bloatware to deal with either.
Verdict
A dual-screen phone won’t be for everyone, but the
Z20 is the closest you’re likely to get to a second
display with mass-market appeal. A variety of settings
and options mean you can use the second display
as little or often as you like, while still enjoying all
the benefits of the main camera for selfies, but it still
feels a little awkward even at the best of times.
It’s just a shame that camera isn’t better, with
strong hardware let down by software that’s only
okay. Then again, factor in the price – and super
specifications – and the Z20 delivers plenty of bang
for its buck, competing surprisingly comfortably
