Wave hello to the gesture-controlled ZTE Blade S6, which comes with Android 5.0

By Andy Boxall January 28, 2015

ZTE has announced the Blade S6, and it comes with Android 5.0 Lollipop installed as standard from the factory, which makes it one of the very first devices to do so. We’ve been following reports of Android 5.0 updates for existing hardware, but the Blade S6 is in relatively exclusive company at the moment, with only really the LG G Flex 2 confirmed to come with the OS from new.

While Android 5.0 is an extremely welcome feature, it’s not the only thing that’s interesting about the Blade S6. Set to go on sale soon for $250, there’s a Snapdragon 615 octa-core processor inside, and while we’ve seen it inside hardware such as the HTC Desire 820, this is the first time it’ll be paired with Lollipop. Why is this noteworthy? The Snapdragon 615 is a 64-bit chip, which should see the 64-bit supporting Lollipop perform at its best.

The ZTE Star 2 impressed us recently with its voice control system, and although it’s not a feature on the Blade, there are some intriguing gesture controls instead. There’s not much detail on the Smart Sense feature at the moment, but apparently it’ll operate everything from the camera’s shutter release to the flashlight app.

ZTE’s Blade S6 has a 5-inch display on the front panel, which shows the MiFavor 3.0 user interface installed over the top of Android 5.0. A 13-megapixel Sony camera is fitted to the rear, and a wide-angle 5-megapixel cam sits above the screen. On the memory side, there’s 2GB of RAM alongside the Snapdragon 615, plus 16GB of internal memory and a MicroSD card slot.

Other features include 4G LTE connectivity, dual-SIM support, Wi-Fi, GPS, and a 2400mAh battery wrapped inside the 7.7mm thick chassis. Two color options will be available at launch – a silver and a matt pink – and ZTE will be selling the Blade S6 globally through AliExpress.com, Amazon, and its own eBay store.

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Andy is a Senior Writer at Digital Trends, where he concentrates on mobile technology, a subject he has written about for…

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