Nubia Z70S Ultra Photographer Edition Review: Full Screen with a Vintage Flavor?

Nubia has always been daring in imaging: replacing the familiar wide-angle main camera with an equivalent 35mm standard focal length lens, combined with an ultra-wide-angle and periscope telephoto lens. This forms an imaging module that feels closer to a fixed focal length camera lens. Even more remarkable is that Nubia has continued to refine this set of modules, and we now see the Nubia Z70S Ultra Photographer Edition.

Still a rugged design, packed with camera elements
Compared to the regular version from six months ago, the Nubia Z70S Ultra Photographer Edition has seen more detailed changes in its appearance. The back cover prominently features a camera-like leather texture design, but this is not synthetic leather; it is a 3D micro-etched leather-textured glass. It feels rough, similar to leather, yet is extremely hard with a special texture. At the bottom of the body, a segmented design mimics the style of a camera.

In addition to the back cover, the upper part of the body also adopts the same leather-textured design, flush with the back cover, creating a more unified visual appearance. The top part returns to a metal-brushed look, giving the unique "camera feel" the Photographer Edition is known for. The layout of the imaging module remains unchanged: the familiar red-ring main camera with vertical striations, resembling an adjustable camera lens, and below, the periscope telephoto and ultra-wide lenses are aligned with a ring-shaped flash. This module covers about a third of the back cover, making it still very recognizable amidst the trend of "Oreo" camera modules.

On the side of the body, we see familiar elements like the subtly curved black frame, eye-catching red power button, slider key, and the two-stage photo button. On the front, the Nubia Z70S Ultra Photographer Edition still sports its signature "true full screen," with a seventh-generation under-display camera, which is virtually invisible. The screen resolution reaches 2688×1216, and the display quality is excellent. This time, Nubia has also equipped the screen with second-generation Dragon Crystal glass, greatly improving its drop and scratch resistance.

Upgraded sensor, imaging power enhanced
Now let's dive into the imaging capabilities of this "true full-screen camera." The Nubia Z70S Ultra Photographer Edition has seen further hardware upgrades. The 35mm-equivalent standard lens, paired with the custom-developed Master of Light 990 sensor, has been upgraded to a larger 1/1.3 inch size with an f/1.7 large aperture. Theoretically, its photography performance has seen significant improvement. It also includes the classic periscope telephoto and 13mm-equivalent ultra-wide lenses, forming a versatile triple-camera module. In terms of actual image quality, the new sensor delivers a noticeable improvement in sharpness and color saturation, especially in the "natural" color mode. The 35mm-equivalent focal length provides a very capable lens for daily life photography.

In low light scenes, compared to the previous sensor, this new one performs much better. When capturing dusk shots with a relatively bright sky, it captures great architectural silhouettes, and in later-night scenes, it can reproduce rich lighting from street lamps. The performance is overall very satisfying. The periscope telephoto lens also impresses, providing great detail at both the default 85mm and extended 140mm focal lengths. It also performs excellently in low-light conditions, and with a new minimum focus distance of 15cm, it supports telephoto macro photography. This makes it ideal for street photography and various other use cases.

In default settings, when switching to ultra-wide mode, the Nubia Z70S Ultra Photographer Edition uses a cropped 18mm focal length, and you need to click twice to switch to the full 13mm, offering a significantly wider field of view. This is one of the rare ultra-wide-angle options in newly launched devices this year. Additionally, Nubia has introduced new filters for this edition, including various humanistic filters and retro silver salt and classic silver salt filters, with options for coarse and fine grain. These filters allow for unique artistic expression in photography, adding emotional depth and style to moments, making it ideal for sharing in social media.

Full power performance, AI flagship
In terms of performance, the Nubia Z70S Ultra Photographer Edition continues Nubia’s commitment to high standards. It features the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, ensuring smooth gaming performance and excellent fluency in daily use, laying a solid foundation for emerging AI capabilities.

Massive battery, enhanced endurance
At the end of last year, the Nubia Z70 Ultra introduced the impressive 6150mAh second-gen Nanhai battery. Surprisingly, the Nubia Z70S Ultra Photographer Edition further improves upon this with a 6600mAh battery, providing even better endurance.

We tested the battery, and the results show excellent longevity. The device shows minimal power consumption when browsing Weibo and watching Bilibili videos, and even when running League of Legends Mobile at 144Hz, the battery still holds up. As for charging, the Nubia Z70S Ultra Photographer Edition supports 80W wired fast charging, allowing the battery to go from 1% to 100% in just 55 minutes, maintaining impressive charging efficiency and making the large battery even more reassuring.

Conclusion
The Nubia Z70S Ultra Photographer Edition stands out in terms of imaging, with significant improvements across several generations of Ultra devices. As the leader and explorer of the 35mm-equivalent main camera, it has achieved great results. At the same time, it's not just a "photographer's edition" phone—it's an interesting AI and performance flagship. With its diverse AI features, strong performance, and long-lasting battery life, this device offers a well-rounded flagship experience.