ZTE Confirms that it is Working on a Successor to the Axon 7

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The ZTE Axon 7 was released in 2016, and it became a major hit with consumers. It was one of the few smartphones which could credibly claim the title of a valid competitor for the OnePlus 3 (and later the OnePlus 3T). With a 5.5-inch QHD AMOLED display, Snapdragon 820, 20MP camera, metal unibody construction and excellent dual front-facing speakers, the Axon 7 had a great list of specifications. The execution of the hardware was done well and ZTE even supported the device with frequent updates. Although the Axon 7 suffered from a limited international release, it was nevertheless a candidate for one of the best affordable flagships of 2016.

In 2017, many consumers were hoping for a successor to the Axon 7, which would keep its hardware strengths and upgrade the list of specifications. However, what they got instead was the ZTE Axon M, which was announced in October and which became available for sale yesterday. While the Axon M is the first foldable smartphone to have compelling use-cases, it is still a foldable smartphone and by definition, it is a niche device. The time is not ripe just yet for foldable smartphones in general.

After the Axon M’s launch, consumers started wondering whether ZTE would ever launch a true successor to the Axon 7, as a back-to-basics flagship rather than experimenting with foldable displays. Android Wallace, a Twitter user, tweeted to ZTE USA inquiring about the launch of the Axon 7’s successor.

The company’s reply confirmed that they were indeed working on the successor to the Axon 7 as they stated that “there will certainly be a follow on to the incredibly successful Axon 7.”

Although this confirms that the Axon 7 successor is in the pipeline, we don’t know when the device would be released. It may be released later this year or in early 2018, but it’s too early to tell either way with the lack of concrete information. In any case, we are definitely waiting for the new device to launch as more competition in the affordable flagship space (which is currently occupied by manufacturers such as OnePlus, Honor and Xiaomi) is always good.