GSMArena Team,
11 November 2025.
1. Introduction, specs, unboxing2. Design, build quality, handling3. Lab tests – display, battery life, charging speed, speakers4. Software, performance5. Camera, photo and video quality6. Competition, verdict, pros and consZTE nubia Z80 Ultra specificationUser opinions and reviewsReview comments (9)
Design, build quality, handling
The Z80 Ultra is another installment in a lineup that’s seeing some quiet and subtle design evolution while maintaining a certain level of uniqueness and character in a market full of non-descript handsets.
For this generation the camera cluster has been rearranged once more, with the ultrawide moving up next to the main camera. The camera ‘deco’, as they call it, is now 13% smaller, though it remains a prominent design element, of course. The 35mm main camera remains hard to miss, a red accent ring adding a splash of color.
You may not necessarily need any additional color in your life if you choose the Starry Night blue colorway – nubia’s Van Gogh-inspired theme continues on this generation as well. It’s certainly a look like no other – well other than previous nubias. There’s a more incognito Black option as well as a White variant (our review unit; may also be called Silver in some markets).
nubia Z80 Ultra color options: Starry Night Blue • Black • White (Silver)
The Z70S Ultra’s leather-like glass back option is gone and all the colorways of this generation are extra smooth (still glass, though). The usual trade-off is here – you get no fingerprints, but also not much grip either.
Not much has changed with the physical controls and that means you get more than the ordinary number of buttons. In addition to the usual power button and volume rocker there’s a two-stage shutter release button on the right, now larger than before and maybe with a more distinct half-press.
The left side holds a slider that can be used to launch the camera (or flashlight, or gaming utility), or more conventionally, switch between ring and silent modes.
Two-stage shutter release on the right • Slider switch on the left
The fingerprint reader is well placed, like before, only now nubia has made the switch from the optical to the ultrasonic variety. It’s a welcome development, of course, and in our use it operated swiftly and reliably.
Another underdisplay bit is harder to see – the selfie camera. It’s one of the lineup’s characteristic traits and we do enjoy the uninterrupted OLED rectangle. It does mean lower quality selfies (more on that later), but we just might be perfectly okay with that.
The display is protected by second-gen Longxi Glass, same as on the Z70S Ultra and the Z70 Ultra before it. A satin-finished aluminum frame holds the innards between the two glass sheets. The handset comes with an IP68/IP69 rating for dust and water protection so it’s tested to withstand submersion down to 1.5m for as long as 30 minutes, and you could also pressure wash it with hot water (up to 80 degrees Celcius) if you’re into that – but don’t, really.
Dual nano SIM slot, but no eSIM option, sadly
Similarly to the previous generation, the Z80 Ultra can be outfitted with an accessory kit to make it look even more like an old-school rangefinder camera. It adds a couple of dials, a large shutter release button and a rocker switch, plus a cold shoe mount. There’s a filter adapter ring included too.
The kit comes in at €150, which is more than what they charged for the Z70S Ultra’s counterpart. Also, the pre-launch photos we saw include some adaptor lenses that don’t come bundled in the retail listing we’re looking at.
