The new Axon smartphone is so important to ZTE that Lixin Cheng, the chairman and CEO of ZTE USA, served as the project manager.

"He was a part of this in every stage," N. Andrew Elliott, vice-president of strategic marketing for ZTE said Tuesday. "He is very proud of his role (as project manager)."

Cheng, Elliott and other company officials were in New York for the launch of the Axon, a Google Android smartphone that ZTE believes is as upscale as the Apple iPhone 6 Plus or the LG G4. ZTE describes Axon as an affordable premium phone.

It is available from ZTE directly for $449.98. The Apple iPhone 6 Plus sells for about $750, and the LG G4 is about $600. The Axon's pricing is not an accident, Elliott said.

"Historically, this is how we have operated here in the US. We recognize that we still have a ways to go in terms of brand recognition and awareness. This is going to enable us to play in a space that we currently aren't in," Elliott said.

ZTE USA, headquartered in Dallas, Texas, is a unit of ZTE Corp, a Shenzhen-based company that competes with Xiaomi Corp and Huawei Technologies Co Ltd for business in China, the world's largest handset market. ZTE USA is the second-largest prepaid handset vendor in the United States and has more than 20 million customers.

The Axon measures 5.5 inches and features a screen made of Corning Gorilla Glass 3 with a 2,560x1,440-pixel resolution. The handset is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 main processor and an Adreno 450 graphics processing unit. The device runs on the Android 5.1.1 mobile operating system.

The Axon comes with dual cameras, an 8-megapixel in front that can film 1,080p video, and a 13-megapixel camera in the back. Along with manual, panoramic and sports shooting modes, it can record 4K HD, time-lapse and slow-motion videos.

Jeff Yee, the vice-president of technology planning at ZTE USA, said the advanced video capabilities came from consumer input.

"Consumers told us that they wanted to take video of a basketball game and download it to social media without it appearing blurry, and that's what we have accomplished," Yee said.

Axon also features high-fidelity audio that includes two Asahi audio chips. It comes in three colors: blue, gold and silver.

Because ZTE remains a mystery to many smartphone shoppers in the US, the company is also rolling out an assurance package called Axon Passport 1.0. It will offer those who purchase Axon a two-year warranty, one year of free shipping, a 30-day refund period when the phone is first purchased, plus free updates to the operating system.

"This lets everyone know we stand behind our product," said Elliott. "We recognize that someone may like the phone, but is unfamiliar with ZTE. We think this will give them the confidence to try our phone."

paulwelitzkin@chinadailyusa.com

(China Daily USA 07/15/2015 page1)