Nubia Unveils The World’s Most Affordable Folding Phone

ZTE’s sub-brand Nubia has unveiled its first foldable phone at MWC 2024 and it is also making headlines as the cheapest folding phone yet. Called the Nubia Flip 5G, it is a clamshell-style folding phone similar to the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip but cuts corners to keep its price down.

This device is, in fact, a rebrand of the ZTE Libero Flip, which was announced in Japan last week.

Design and Display

The Nubia Flip 5G boasts a 6.9-inch foldable OLED display, featuring a resolution of 1,188 x 2,790px and a smooth 120Hz refresh rate. Complementing the main panel is a circular 1.43-inch cover screen, offering a resolution of 466 x 466px.

This secondary display serves a multitude of functions, doubling as a camera viewfinder for capturing selfies with the device’s high-resolution primary camera. Additionally, it provides convenient access for making calls, managing media playback, displaying weather information, and performing various other everyday tasks with ease.

Internals and Software

Since it is a budget device, it is powered by the Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 SoC, meaning you cannot expect cutting-edge responsiveness or top-of-the-line gaming performance. There is no memory card slot for storage expansion, but you can get up to 128 GB storage and 6 GB RAM.

For software, it boots the dated Android 13.

Cameras

The circular ring on the back of the phone holds a 50MP main camera alongside a 2MP depth helper. This camera is capable of recording 4K videos as well as 1080p videos at 30 FPS.

The front-facing camera is a 16MP shooter and it can record 1080p videos at 30 FPS.

Battery and Pricing

The battery capacity on this phone is 4,310 mAh with support for 33W wired charging. In terms of pricing, Nubia has confirmed a starting point of $599, positioning the Flip 5G as the most budget-friendly option among folding phones currently available in the market.

Color options include black and gold, as confirmed by the company. Although specifics regarding the launch date and market availability are yet to be disclosed, Nubia assures that such details will be forthcoming in due course.

Nubia Flip 5G Specifications

• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 1
• CPU: Octa-core (1×2.4 GHz Cortex-A710 & 3×2.36 GHz Cortex-A710 & 4×1.8 GHz Cortex-A510)
• GPU: Adreno 644
• OS: Android 13
• Supported Networks: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE, 5G
• Display:
  • Primary: 6.9″ Foldable OLED with 1188 x 2790 pixels resolution, 120Hz
  • Secondary: 1.43″ OLED with 466 x 466 pixels
• Memory:
  • RAM: 6 GB
  • Internal: 128 GB
  • Card slot: No
• Camera:
  • Rear (Dual): 50 MP, (wide), PDAF
    2 MP, (depth)
  • Front: 16 MP, (wide)
• Colors: Black, Gold
• Fingerprint sensor: Side-mounted
• Battery: 4,310 mAh, 33W fast charging
• Price: $599