nubia Neo 2 5G Unboxing and Review

Nubia Philippines has recently launched its latest addition to the nubia Neo series, the nubia Neo 2 5G. This new budget-friendly gaming smartphone serves as an upgrade to the nubia Neo 5G, with added and improved features that enhance its capabilities.

In this review, I will explore the features of this smartphone that will help you determine if it is the right one for you. Let us start with the unboxing process, shall we?

Unboxing the nubia Neo 2 5G

The nubia Neo 2 5G comes in a yellow-colored box with a gaming theme. The front part of the box showcases the phone branding and the latest campaign slogan "Better for All", while the top portion contains essential details such as the model number, IMEI number, serial number, color, RAM, and storage capacity of the device.

Inside the Box and Accessories

Upon opening the lid, you will find a white pack containing a SIM card ejector tool, a protective case, an quick start guide, and the warranty card.

Inside the package, you will discover the nubia Neo 2 5G smartphone, accompanied by a USB-C to USB-C charging cable and a 33W charging adapter. Please be aware that the nubia Neo 2 5G doesn't include a headset, so you will need to use your own.

Design and Walk Around

The nubia Neo 2 5G follows the distinctive design approach of its predecessor, featuring the Bionic Mecha. What sets this smartphone apart is its all-new 'Hero Eye' texture that showcases realistic 3D effects. However, the phone's glossy back is prone to smudging from fingerprints. Thus, it is recommended to purchase a protective case as soon as possible.

The nubia Neo 2 5G is available in three colors: Storm Gray, Sunfire Yellow, and Frost Silver. Mine is in Storm Gray.

The phone boasts a large 6.72-inch IPS display on the front. Additionally, there’s a centered hole-punch 16MP camera on the top, and the earpiece, which is also a speaker, is thin and discreetly carved above the display. The phone also comes with a pre-installed screen protector for added protection.

On the back of the phone, you will find two octagon-shaped camera modules. One houses the 50MP main camera, while the other one houses the 2MP depth lens and a single LED flash.

The volume rocker and dual nano SIM card tray can be located on the left side of the phone.

The right side of the phone features a side-mounted fingerprint sensor that is embedded in the power button and the dual gaming shoulder triggers.

The top of the phone is clean with only the secondary noise-canceling microphone present.

Located at the bottom of the phone, you can find the USB Type-C charging port, downward-firing speaker and microphone.

The nubia Neo 2 5G is 8.5mm thick and weighs 208 grams. The phone's design is well-considered, featuring a squared-off box-type build with rounded edges at the corners for added comfort and ease of one-handed use.

Display and Multimedia

The nubia Neo 2 5G is equipped with a large 6.72-inch IPS display with FHD+ (1080 x 2400) resolution and a refresh rate of 120Hz, this phone promises a smooth and responsive display that's perfect for those who value a seamless user experience. Alongside this, nubia designed the phone’s refresh rate to be adaptive to help the phone intelligently switch refresh rates to reduce power consumption

The IPS screen of the nubia Neo 2 5G accurately produces colors and provides decent viewing angles. Under direct sunlight, the screen can get bright, but it could use a bit more brightness to be comfortable for outdoor use.

The nubia Neo 2 5G's stereo speakers with DTS:X Ultra are decent and have the capacity to produce loud sound. This is a positive aspect given that most devices available in this price range have a single downward-firing loudspeaker. However, it is advised to use headphones or a Bluetooth-enabled external speaker to enjoy better quality audio.

Camera

Rear Camera

The nubia Neo 2 5G smartphone boasts a dual-camera system with a 50MP F1.8 primary camera featuring Phase Detection Autofocus (PDAF). Additionally, the primary camera is accompanied by a 2MP depth sensor that helps with portrait shots.

Although the camera is not the phone's primary feature, it performs surprisingly well under bright lighting conditions. However, the dynamic range requires improvement in some scenarios.

Indoor and low light photos can appear muddy in certain situations, but are still good enough for casual social media use.

Front Selfie Camera

The nubia Neo 2 5G is equipped with an 16MP front camera and is capable of producing decent-quality photos, particularly in well-lit conditions.

Video

The nubia Neo 2 5G can capture videos up to 1080p@30fps using both the main and front-facing cameras. However, the recorded video from the main camera can be shaky since it lacks image stabilization.

MyOS 13, Apps, and Security

The nubia Neo 2 5G uses a customized UI called MyOS 13, which is based on Android 13. This UI is easy to navigate and comes pre-installed with Google's standard app suite and some unnecessary apps.

To match the phone's design, there are more than 10 new super wallpapers that users can choose from to personalize their smartphones based on their preferences. The phone also features an all-new Live Island, which is an interactive capsule that displays various notifications, real-time activities, and reminders.

For gamers, the nubia Neo 2 5G boasts Game Space 2.0, which is an assistance tool with a professional gaming layout and powerful game optimization functions. It includes a feature called Game Performance Enhancement, which adjusts the device’s CPU and GPU resources to manage power and battery usage and ensure optimal game performance.

In terms of security, the nubia Neo 2 5G has a side-mounted fingerprint sensor embedded in the power button, as well as a facial recognition feature for device unlocking. While the fingerprint sensor works quickly and accurately, the face unlock feature may slow down in low-light situations.

Hardware and Performance

The nubia Neo 2 5G smartphone is powered by a Unisoc T820 processor manufactured using a 6nm process. It has a single Cortex-A76 core that can clock up to 2.7GHz, three Cortex-A76 cores that can clock up to 2.3GHz, and four Cortex-A55 cores that can clock up to 2.1GHz, along with a Mali-G57 MC4 GPU.

Despite its affordable price range, the nubia Neo 2 5G delivers smooth performance and can handle demanding applications with ease. It also provides an excellent gaming experience and supports a wide variety of games.

The phone features a multi-layer heat dissipation system that protects key components such as the battery and motherboard from overheating. However, even with this feature, the phone still feels hot when running demanding apps like games.

The standout feature of the smartphone is its upgraded gaming shoulder triggers, which users can customize based on their preferences for greater control and freedom when navigating and playing games.

Furthermore, the nubia Neo 2 5G supports Dynamic RAM technology, which allows users to virtually expand their phone's RAM by using the phone's internal storage. This feature enables the device to use up to 12GB of its internal storage, resulting in a total of up to 20GB of RAM.

The nubia Neo 2 5G is available in the Philippines in a single storage variant. Out of the 256GB storage, 25.08GB is used right out of the box, and it comes with faster UFS 3.1 storage. However, it's important to note that the device does not support microSD expansion.

Below are the benchmark scores from this device:

• AnTuTu v10.2.5 – 535,885
• AnTuTu Storage Test v10.2.5 – 97,314 (1,910.3 MB/s Seq. Read, 1,297.3MB/s Seq. Write)
• Geekbench 6.3.0 – 892 (Single-core), 2,333 (Multi-core)
• PCMark – 12,442 (Work 3.0)
• 3DMark – 3,523 (SSE – OpenGL ES 3.1), 3,453 (SSE – Vulkan)

Battery and Connectivity

The nubia Neo 2 5G is equipped with a massive 6,000mAh battery that can last a whole day with moderate usage. In the PCMark Work 3.0 Battery Life Test, the device managed to score only 9 hours and 51 minutes. Additionally, it comes with 33W fast charging and intelligent-power-saving technology.

Another feature that supports uninterrupted game time is the Bypass Charging. To use this feature, the user must connect their charging cable to the device. Once activated, Bypass Charging keeps the phone powered up without charging the battery, allowing the user to keep playing and the phone to work while reducing heat generation.

In addition to the battery and charger, the nubia Neo 2 5G also offers 5G dual-card intelligent switching, allowing gamers to switch to their secondary card if their primary card is experiencing low signals, providing uninterrupted playtime.

nubia Neo 2 5G Specifications

6.72-inch FHD+ (1080 x 2400) IPS display, 120Hz Refresh Rate
Unisoc T820 processor, 6nm
Mali-G57 MC4 GPU
8GB RAM (+12GB extended memory)
256GB of internal storage (UFS 3.1)
50MP F1.8 main + 2MP depth camera
16MP selfie camera
Dual-SIM (nano) / 5G Connectivity
WiFi 5 / Bluetooth 5.2
GPS/AGPS / GLONASS / GALILEO
USB Type-C / Dual Speakers
Dual shoulder triggers
MyOS 13 (Android 13)
6,000mAh battery w/ 33W Fast Charging
166 x 76.1 x 8.5mm (dimension)
208g (weight)
Colors: Storm Gray, Sunfire Yellow, and Frost Silver

Price and Availability

The nubia Neo 2 5G retails for Php9,999 (8GB+256GB). You can buy the phone at the local ZTE Device Philippines stores, or their official Shopee page.

Verdict

The nubia Neo 2 5G is an affordable gaming smartphone that offers impressive features. It boasts excellent battery life, dual speakers, a sleek design, a large and smooth display, and impressive gaming performance.

If you're looking for an affordable yet high-performing gaming smartphone, the nubia Neo 2 5G is definitely worth considering.