The US gets its first Snapdragon 8 Elite phone with Android 15 out of the box

The US market is now getting its first Snapdragon 8 Elite phone. Although it’s no Galaxy S25, the Nubia Z70 Ultra is the first device to bring Qualcomm’s latest flagship chip to US buyers. The $829 phone can be purchased from Nubia’s website, which is also offering an introductory $50 off on the device. You can grab an additional $15 off the phone if you’re a new Nubia user.

Apart from the powerful Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, other standout features of the Nubia Z70 Ultra include a 50MP 35mm main camera, a unique Starry Night colorway, IP68 and IP69 ratings, an under-display selfie camera, a large 6.85-inch AMOLED display, up to 1TB of storage paired with 24GB RAM, and a 6,150 mAh battery. You also get an 80W charging adapter in the box, which is a rare find these days. Additionally, the phone runs Android 15 out of the box.

The company says if you order the Nubia Z70 Ultra today, you can expect the earliest dispatch on December 5. Now, Nubia is not really a household name like Samsung, but thanks to some early reviews, we’re hearing good things about the phone. That said, we can’t really vouch for it until we have a chance to check it out ourselves.

A Nubia exec recently said that many rival brands are launching downgraded phones that are actually “fake flagship products with only flagship chips.” They suggested that smartphone makers are “reducing configurations across the board” and copying designs. However, the Z70 Ultra also misses out on some key flagship features like wireless charging. The phone’s main camera is also the same sensor used in the mid-range Galaxy A55 5G, which isn’t ideal.