Mobile Network Comparison

Zopo, the fast-growing Chinese smartphone company, recently announced a world-first. The new ZP998 will be first true 8-core smartphone to be released. This will their flagship product and looks set to break all previous benchmark records. With this outrageous CPU, it’s likely to be one of the most powerful phones currently available.

The ZP998 is the the follow-up to the previous ZP980 which is currently the highest-rated phone we’ve reviewed so far. But this new model has been vastly upgraded in almost every way.

This phone is based on another MediaTek chipset but this time it’s the MTK6592. This comes with an 8-core A7 1.7 Ghz processor which should be overkill for almost anything you can throw at a smartphone these days. It also means it includes the Mali-450 MP4 GPU to run the amazing full-HD 1080p screen running with a pixel density of over 400 ppi.

It runs Android 4.2.1 and has a 14 megapixel back camera with flash (and an amazing f/2.0 aperture). For more info about all its specs as well as the general look and feel of the phone and its form factor please check out our video above. We also discuss some of the new features Zopo are introducing with some marketing materials bearing slightly dodgy translations which we tried not to mock too much. (At least we were kind enough to ignore their awful music taste).

Let us know what you think about the ZP998. Do you think it’s worth having eight cores rather than just four? Do you think that any of the ZP998’s new features are worthwhile or just gimmicks? And do you know of any other high-end smartphones that offer as feverish value? Are you tempted to buy it?

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Up-and-coming Chinese mobile phone manufacturer Zopo have just dropped a bombshell – in just a few days time, they’re about to launch the world’s first true octa-core mobile phone. The new handset is going to be called the Zopo ZP700 and the official launch date will be 21 November.

Zopo are a relatively new mobile phone manufacturer and are currently pretty much unknown outside of China – after all, they have only been around for less than a year now and they are only marketing themselves in East Asia. However, they are already starting to make a name for themselves in the Chinese market and are already one of the most popular brands in the region.

Zopo also caught the eye of us with their recently-released and very impressive Zopo ZP980 Android smartphone which got out highest-so-far handset score in our comprehensive video review last month.

The newly-announced ZP700 model will be a significant step up from the ZP980. Like almost all Chinese Android smartphones, it will be based on a chipset from Taiwanese company MediaTek – the MT6592. This is the world’s first true octa-core system on a chip and will be able to leverage increased parallelisation in order to provide greater power efficiency and blazingly-fast processing speeds.

Existing smartphones on the market with octa-core CPUs can actually only activate half of their cores at once. In comparison, the MediaTek True Octa-Core allows for all eight of its cores to run simultaneously. In combination with the new 28nm die size, this will offer the ultimate combination of performance and power-efficiency.

The exact clock speed of the ZP700’s processor has not yet been announced, but we can’t wait to see the performance of this new chipset. We do know that the chipset is capable of running between about 1.7GHz and 2GHz per core – pretty impressive speeds we’re sure you’ll agree.

Not only will it come with that beastly eight-core CPU, but the new ZP700 phone will come with a complete set of technical specifications to die for. The latest rumours are suggesting that the device will have a screen larger than 5 inches with a 1080p full-HD resolution. The chipset will also likely boast ramped-up graphical capabilities as we have exclusive information that the graphics chip will be upgraded from the PowerVR SGX544MP to a much more powerful ARM Mali-450 MP GPU. Certainly great news for all you gamers out there 🙂

The other specs that we expect to see on the new phone will be a full 2GB of RAM and 32GB ROM as the internal SD card. Of course, it’ll have dual cameras including a stunning 13 megapixel main camera and, of course, dual-SIM capability. We also are hoping for an even higher-capacity battery to keep the phone running for days and days.

As for the design and form factor for the ZP700, it looks like Zopo will be aiming to take a leaf out of Apple’s book. The handset has a very iPhone 5C-type feel to it with a colourful pastel-shaded battery cover and a stylish and unobtrusive look to the whole phone.

How much difference do you think having a true eight core processor will make to the ZP700? Well Zopo finally break into the Western mainstream with the release of this phone? How much do you think it will cost, what scores do you think it will get on benchmarking software and how will it compare in real-world usage to current top-end smart phones like the HTC One, iPhone 5S and Samsung Galaxy S4? Stick around as we report all the latest view following the launch event on 21 November.

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How does the two year old £200 Samsung Galaxy S2 compare to the much newer £170 Zopo ZP980?

Sure the Zopo might have a 5″ 1080p full HD screen compared to the Samsung’s 4.3″ AMOLED. And it does have a quad-core CPU and higher-resolution cameras whereas the Galaxy S2 (i9100) is running the dated Exynos chipset and only has a dual core processor. However, the Samsung was the flasgship handset when it originally came out and it is running a Cortex A9 instead of a Cortex A7. Thanks to CyanogenMod, it’s also running Android 4.3 already while the Zopo is left lagging behind.

But can the S2 keep up with the new phone from China? Even though it still costs more to buy, is the Galaxy S2 actually any better than the ZP980? In the video above we subject both handsets to a rigorous benchmark test to check their processing speed, RAM performance and how good the graphics are on both their (very different screens).

For more information about the Zopo ZP980, please head over to check out our full in-depth handset review.

Which phone will win? Have the advances in mobile technology combined with the power of Android equalised the market so that Zopo can now compete evenly with Samsung? Has the Galaxy S2 had its day? Or is there still something to be said for the older device? Give us your predictions in the comments below then watch the video benchmark test for our full verdict.

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