Infinix ZERO 30 5G Review | Geek Lifestyle

Is the ZERO 30 5G another compelling mid-range entry from Infinix? Here's what we think.

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In our Infinix ZERO 30 5G review, we test out Infinix’s interesting new mid-range entry to see if it’s the next phone of choice in its segment.

Infinix is a brand that has made huge leaps over the past couple of years. Looking back to some years ago, chances are that most people aren’t even familiar with the brand. But now, Infinix has taken the lead to become one of the top-selling smartphone brands in the country. This is thanks to competitively priced budget and mid-range devices, the latest being the Infinix ZERO 30 5G.

This phone’s name may be ZERO, but there’s nothing zero about its features as it promises to be a great mid-range daily driver. This is thanks to its combination of display, processor, and cameras.

Of course, while it’s great on paper, specs aren’t everything. So, here in our review, we’re taking a look at Infinix’s next mid-ranger to see if it’s worth upgrading your older phone for.

Geek-sthetic

Before we get into performance and camera capabilities, let’s first take a look at its design. The review unit that we have here is in the “Golden Hour” colorway — a reference to the golden hour in photography where daylight appears in a golden hue. This name is a perfect match for the color as it’s very much a hue that’s reminiscent of sunset with its reddish orange look.

It may not look that striking in pictures, but it’s definitely an eye-catching phone in person, especially as the pattern of light on the back changes subtly depending on the angle. Plus, what we like about the phone’s back is that it has a matte finish, giving it a nice in hand feel.

What’s also interesting about the phone’s design is its camera module. While it shares the same core style as other mid-rangers, the camera module here is massive, giving the phone a distinct look.

The sides of the phone meanwhile are gold-colored which adds to its eye-catching design. This style may be a bit too “loud” for some, but the phone does at least come in other colors for those who want something a bit more subtle.

Whichever colorway you go for though, the ZERO 30 5G comes with a large AMOLED screen with curved edges. This helps give the phone a premium look. Even if the phone’s screen is curved, it shouldn’t be that delicate Infinix went with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection, meaning users won’t have to worry about scratching it.

On top of these, the phone has an IP53 dust and splash resistance rating which gives it the edge over other mid-rangers that aren’t rated for dust/splash resistance.

Binge-Watching Factor

The phone’s 6.78-inch AMOLED display isn’t just great to look at for everyday use. It also makes the phone an excellent partner for binge-watching movies and shows while on the go. As expected, the AMOLED screen has deep blacks and vibrant colors that noticeably enhance the viewing experience. This screen makes the ZERO 30 5G a nice device for users who often watch films or anime while on their daily commute or to pass the time while running errands.

As for audio, the phone packs a stereo speaker setup. Interestingly, while the top of the phone seems to have a dedicated speaker grill, the audio still mostly comes from the earpiece from that side. This means the audio from the bottom-firing speaker is louder. Still, for casual video-watching, the stereo speakers have pretty decent quality, though the audio does sound a bit tinny when at or near max volume.

For the best experience, as always we recommend getting a pair of headphones or external speakers. Take note that you’ll need a wireless audio device for this phone as the ZERO 30 5G does not have a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Gaming Prowess

The Infinix ZERO 30 5G is powered by a Mediatek Dimensity 8020 processor that’s paired with 12GB of RAM. These should give the phone good gaming performance. In our tests, we were able to confirm that the phone is indeed a capable phone for gaming, even if it’s not a dedicated gaming phone like Infinix’s own GT 10 Pro. In fact, we found the performance of the ZERO 30 5G to be quite comparable, albeit not as powerful as the GT 10 Pro.

For instance, the phone played games like Call of Duty: Mobile and Diablo Immortal smoothly at the High graphics preset, all while maintaining a stable framerate. Given this, the phone should be a great partner for playing your favorite multiplayer games.

What’s also great is that the ZERO 30 has 5G connectivity (as its full name implies). This means the phone can take advantage of 5G networks for faster download speeds and lower latency — this is key for mobile multiplayer titles.

For more demanding games like Genshin Impact, we weren’t really expecting much from the ZERO 30 5G, but we were proven wrong. The phone can surprisingly run the game at the Medium Graphics preset, though there were some framerate hitches here and there. So, we recommend lowering the graphics setting a bit. But this result is still impressive given that other mid-range phones struggle with this game.

As a bonus, while other mid-range phones with high refresh rate displays often fail with high framerate titles (some phone don’t seem to work at above 60Hz in games), the Infinix ZERO 30 5G did not have this issue. We were able to run high framerate games on this which was great given that it has a 144Hz refresh rate display.

What’s also impressive about this is even most flagship phones only come with 120Hz screens, so the ZERO 30 5G punches well above its price point in this regard.

Geek Photoshoot Capabilities

Infinix packed its new phone with a 108MP main + 13MP ultrawide + 2MP triple rear camera setup along with a 50MP main shooter at the front. We’re not really sure what the 2MP camera is, though we’re assuming it’s a depth sensor.

The 108MP main camera isn’t just great on paper though as we found out that it also delivers when it comes to photography.

In daytime, the phone is able to capture high quality images with a lot of detail, even in overcast conditions. Meanwhile, indoor photos are also pretty good as detail is retained while having a good brightness level.

 

 

Meanwhile, the Night Mode lets the phone capture nice images at night. While Auto Mode shots are already pretty decent, Night Mode preserves even more detail while having vibrant colors.

What’s interesting about the Infinix ZERO 30 5G is that it has a 13MP ultrawide, that’s better on paper than most other mid-range phones. The results speak for themselves as the images are noticeably better than other competing phones for ultrawide photography. Even the night mode shots are surprisingly good.

Finally, selfies are of good quality with the ZERO 30 5G. As you can see above, selfies in daytime are clear and sharp. At night, performance is surprisingly good, plus you can use Night Mode for selfies — this results in selfies with more detail even in low light. The extra detail can be more clearly seen in the background or when you zoom in.

Everyday Reliability

With the phone’s surprisingly good gaming performance, it’s no surprise that the phone is also a good performer for everyday use. As a daily driver, the ZERO 30 5G was reliable as it did not slow down during our review time. It managed to handle all of our daily apps with ease.

One thing that we would’ve liked to see improved is the OS. While Infinix’s XOS 13 (which is based on Android 13) is perfectly usable, the interface isn’t quite as clean as we would’ve liked. It also came with a lot of pre-installed apps, though at least it’s not the most egregious example of bloatware in this price bracket.

What we did like is its battery life and fast charging. Thanks to its 5,000mAh battery, we were able to make the phone last for a whole day of use on a single charge. You can drain it faster if you play games for hours or if you keep it in the fastest 144Hz refresh rate setting all the time, but most users should be satisfied with its battery life. At no point did we have to reach for a power bank while trying this out.

For charging, the phone supports 68W fast charging which fills the battery up to 80% in just around 30 minutes. This is great if you need a quick top-up as doing so will already give you hours of battery life.

Final Geek Lifestyle Verdict

The Infinix ZERO 30 5G has a compelling combination of features, including an excellent AMOLED display, great performance, capable cameras, and long battery life with fast charging. Thanks to these, the ZERO 30 5G is already a compelling smartphone to get, but what makes it even better is its price.

At PHP 14,999, the Infinix ZERO 30 5G undercuts many in its price range given its features. This definitely makes it one of the top contenders in the mid-range segment if you want a phone that delivers on all fronts while not spending too much.

Infinix ZERO 30 5G specs:

  • 6.78-inch (1260 x 2800) AMOLED display, 144Hz refresh rate
  • Mediatek Dimensity 8020 processor
  • Mali-G77 MC9 GPU
  • 12GB RAM
  • 256GB storage
  • Rear cameras: 108MP main + 13MP ultrawide + 2MP triple rear camera setup
  • Front camera: 50MP
  • 5G, LTE
  • Under Display Fingerprint scanner, USB Type-C port
  • Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot, Bluetooth
  • 5000mAh battery with 68W wired Fast charging
  • Android 13 with XOS 13

The Infinix ZERO 30 5G is available tomorrow, September 27, online through Lazada, Shopee, and TikTok Shop. The phone will then be released in offline stores on September 30, 2023.