I've been using the 5S mini LTE for a few days and I've been impressed with both its performance and build quality. The design is attractive, without being outlandish, and although it's made of plastic, it feels solid and doesn't feel nearly as cheap as other plastic phones. The back cover has a matte finish, which makes it comfortable to hold and it resists showing fingerprints as much as glossy finishes. I also like how the 5S mini can easily be used with just one hand. It's not as much of an ergonomic miracle as the Motorola Moto X, but it's much easier to use one-handed than an HTC One or Samsung Galaxy S5.

The 720p display is quite impressive: it's bright, with great viewing angles and it's easy to see outdoors. It's not as high-resolution as the 1080p displays on higher-end phones, but I had no issues using it to browse the web, read articles in my Pocket queue, or watch Taylor Swift's new music video over and over. At this screen size, a 720p display still provides enough pixel density that I can't see individual pixels with my eyes, so I honestly didn't miss having a 1080p screen. The capacitive buttons below the display are more hit-or-miss, though: the left one was significantly dimmer than the right one, and there's no indication to what they actually do until you press them (by default, the left one is menu and the right one is back, but you can switch them in the phone's settings menu if you want).

The 720p display is impressive, with great viewing angles and easy outdoor visibility

The 5S mini LTE comes with Android 4.3 Jelly Bean and ZTE's custom software interface. ZTE's software isn't as heavy-handed and clumsy as it used to be, but like many software designs from Chinese companies, it still tries too hard to mimic Apple's iOS interface. I quickly installed Google's Now Launcher from the Play Store and was much happier using that than the iOS-style launcher ZTE installed by default. The company has announced that it will be preloading the Google launcher on its phones in the future, but it doesn't look like the 5S mini is one of those.

Performance with the mid-range processor in the 5S mini is fine for everyday tasks, such as browsing the web, using Twitter, and checking email. It's not the best for 3D gaming, you're going to want a higher-end phone for that, and there are points here and there where it stutters and slows down. But it's not slow enough to ruins the overall experience, and for someone looking to get a smartphone without spending a ton of money, it's more than adequate. I used the 5S mini on AT&T's network in and around New York City, and I didn't notice any difference between it and other LTE devices in the same area. Speeds were fast when AT&T's network was available, and the signal was as strong as any other device.