The annual COMPUTEX Expo has not yet opened but ASUS has just unveiled three new smartphones during the Zenvolution event held here in Taipei. The Asus ZenFone 3, Asus ZenFone 3 Deluxe, and Asus ZenFone 3 Ultra have departed from the designs of the ZenFone 2 and have gone premium with glass and metal as materials used.
ASUS ZENFONE 3
The frame is made of metal while the front and back of the phone is layered with 2.5D Corning Gorilla Glass to make its edges smooth to hold. The screen display is almost bezel-less with a gap of only 2.1mm, giving it a screen-to-body ratio of 77% which translates to a bigger viewing display. The ZenFone 3 is the first smartphone in the world to have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor and is expected to deliver fantastic performance and battery life. It also sports a fingerprint scanner at the back of the phone for added security.
The Asus ZenFone 3 is really lightweight and regarding the build-quality, I really find it hard to believe that this is an Asus product. I can say the Taiwanese brand really stepped-up big time!
ASUS ZENFONE 3 SPECS
| OS: | Android 6.0 Marshmallow with ZenUI 3.0 |
|---|---|
| Processor: | 2.0 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 Octa-Core processor | Adreno 506 |
| Display: | 1080 x 1920 5.5" Full HD Super IPS+ Display with Corning Gorilla Glass |
| Wireless Connections: | LTE, Bluetooth 4.2, WiFi 802.11 a/c, A-GPS, GLONASS |
| Memory: | 32/64 GB Internal Storage expandable with a Micro SD Card, 3GB/4GB RAM |
| Connectors: | Type-C USB |
| Cameras: | 16 Megapixels (Sony IMX298) with OIS f/2.0 and 2nd Gen Laser Autofocus (Main Camera), 8 Megapixels f/2.0 with 85" wide-angle view (Front) |
| SIM Card Slots: | 1x Nano SIM Card, 1x Micro SIM Card required (Hybrid) |
| Battery: | 3,000 mAh |
| SRP: | starts at $249 |
ASUS ZENFONE 3 DELUXE
This is my preferred ZenFone among the new phones. The Asus ZenFone 3 Deluxe is made of an all-metal unibody with invisible antenna design so that radio waves can pass through this tough material. The ZenFone 3 Deluxe’s display lives up to its name, bumping the size to 5.7 inches with a Super AMOLED Display on Full HD!
The premium ZenFone 2 including its Deluxe series were powered by an Intel processor. Asus switched to Qualcomm this time and picked the fastest processor (Snapdragon 820) for its most premium smartphone to date.
Just like the Asus ZenFone 3, the volume rocker was removed at the back of the ZenFone 3 Deluxe and was replaced with a fingerprint scanner. The camera boasts of a next generation Pixelmaster 3.0 with a 23 Megapixels sensor, 92 MP super resolution technology, and ultra-fast laser autofocus. It promises shake-free photos and videos thanks to its four-axis Optical Image Stabilizer (OIS) and a three-axis Electronic Image Stabilizer (EIS.)
ASUS ZENFONE 3 DELUXE SPECS
| OS: | Android 6.0 Marshmallow with ZenUI 3.0 |
|---|---|
| Processor: | Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor | Adreno 530 |
| Display: | 1080 x 1920 5.7" Full HD Super AMOLED Display with Corning Gorilla Glass 4 |
| Wireless Connections: | LTE, Bluetooth 4.2, WiFi 802.11 a/c, A-GPS, GLONASS |
| Memory: | 256 GB Internal Storage expandable with a Micro SD Card, 6GB RAM |
| Connectors: | Type-C USB 3.0 |
| Cameras: | 23 Megapixels (Sony IMX318) with 4-axis OIS 3-axis EIS f/2.0 and 2nd Gen Laser Autofocus (Main Camera), 8 Megapixels f/2.0 with 85" wide-angle view (Front) |
| SIM Card Slots: | 1x Nano SIM Card, 1x Micro SIM Card required (Hybrid) |
| Battery: | 3,000 mAh |
| SRP: | $499 |
ASUS ZENFONE 3 ULTRA
Now if you thought that the ZenFone 3 Deluxe is the biggest of them all, wait till you see the ZenFone 3 Ultra! It boasts the world’s first smartphone with a dedicated display processor similar to those 4K UHD (Ultra High Definition) TVs. Asus ensures that every pixel is optimized to deliver contrast and sharpness for true-to-life images. This Phablet (or Tablet?) has a large 6.8-inch Full HD IPS Display and I foresee those who love watching videos or playing mobile games will go for this model.
I don’t think you will have issues with the weight of the ZenFone 3 Ultra but you might have a hard time placing this inside your pants pocket.
The Asus ZenFone 3 Ultra comes with a large battery capacity of 4,600 mAh and can also double as a powerbank for other devices when needed. Everybody’s question now is how fast will its battery drain?
ASUS ZENFONE 3 ULTRA SPECS
| OS: | Android 6.0 Marshmallow with ZenUI 3.0 |
|---|---|
| Processor: | 1.8 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 Octa-Core processor | Adreno 510 |
| Display: | 1080 x 1920 6.8" Full HD IPS Display, Tru2Life+ Technology (World's 1st with 4K TV processor) with Corning Gorilla Glass 4 |
| Wireless Connections: | LTE, Bluetooth 4.2, WiFi 802.11 a/c, A-GPS, GLONASS |
| Memory: | 128 GB Internal Storage expandable with a Micro SD Card, 4GB RAM |
| Connectors: | Type-C USB 3.0 with HDMI Display support |
| Cameras: | 23 Megapixels (Sony IMX318) with 4-axis OIS 3-axis EIS f/2.0 and 2nd Gen Laser Autofocus (Main Camera), 8 Megapixels f/2.0 with 85" wide-angle view (Front) |
| SIM Card Slots: | 1x Nano SIM Card, 1x Micro SIM Card required (Hybrid) |
| Battery: | 4,600 mAh |
| SRP: | $479 |
ASUS ZENFONE 3 PRICE
So far, the prices announced are $249 for the Asus ZenFone 3, $479 for the Asus ZenFone 3 Ultra and $499 for the Asus ZenFone 3 Deluxe. Please note that we do not have prices for the Philippines yet. Also, we still have to verify with Asus Philippines about which variants will be sold in our country.
