ZTE launches first Android 4.1 phone in China

Mobile maker ZTE is the first company to launch a smartphone running the latest version of Google’s Android 4.1 Jelly Bean operating system in China. The ZTE N880E features the 'Google Experience' version of the OS.

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Mobile maker ZTE is the first company to launch a smartphone running the latest version of Google's Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean" operating system in China.

The ZTE N880E smartphone is the third handset in the world to feature Android Jelly Bean and arrives just over one week after the official July 13 launch of the operating system (OS).

"ZTE has an excellent relationship with Google and this, combined with our extensive R&D capabilities and our experience of customising devices for partners around the world, means we are able to bring new technologies to market very quickly," said Mr. Kan Yulun, Vice President and CTO of the Handset Division, ZTE. "Our aim is to provide the best quality customer experience for the best value, and the N880E is a great example of this."

The ZTE N880E features the "Google Experience" version of the OS along with a 4" capacitive (480 x 800) WVGA touch screen, a 1GHz Qualcomm 7627A processor, 4GB of memory, a 1650mAh battery and a 3.2MP AutoFocus camera.

An earlier version of the N880E -- running Android 2.3 -- was launched in May 2012. The device has proven popular with consumers, selling more than one million units in the space of a few months.

Android Jelly Bean was first unveiled on June 27 during Google's I/O developers conference in San Francisco. Google's own Galaxy Nexus handset was the first smartphone in the world to receive an over-the-air update to the new software a couple of weeks ago, followed by the Nexus S.

Jelly Bean includes dynamic notifications, a more accurate keyboard with predictive text, faster voice typing that works even when you are offline, a completely redesigned search experience, and Google Now -- a game-changing feature that automatically predicts and shows you relevant information on your phone based on your actions.