ZUK announced its first smartphone, the Z1, for China and today it held its international launch.

Yesterday, Cyanogen announced it was involved with Z1 smartphone.

For those who came in late, the Cyanogen OS, is a forked version of Android. It now has more than 50 million users.

It received more visibility when Chinese vendor OnePlus decided to use the OS on its first flagship smartphone – the OnePlus One.

That gained its own loyal fan base, while relations between Cyanogen and OnePlus soured.
OnePlus has since come out with its own modified versions of Android.

As for Cyanogen, the company teased in April that it was partnering with other Chinese smartphone vendors, but refused to say who.

The pitch was that Cyanogen OS could help the Chinese smartphone vendors gain some added brand visibility in international markets.

The ZUK brand's Z1 phone has a 5.5-inch 1080p screen, a large 4100 mAh battery, and a Qualcomm's Snapdragon 801 processor. It's fitted in a metal frame, has a fingerprint scanner, and uses a USB 3.0 Type C connector.

The phone is priced at US$299. The ZUK brand is targeting a September launch for Asia, Europe and the US.