Asus ZenFone 4 series is finally official. The company has announced ZenFone 4 series in Taiwan after accidentally listing the device on its French site. With the new ZenFone 4 series, Asus is joining the growing list of smartphone makers supporting dual camera system on their mobile devices. The new ZenFone 4 series includes five devices: ZenFone 4, ZenFone 4 Pro, ZenFone 4 Selfie, ZenFone 4 Selfie Pro and ZenFone 4 Max Pro. Asus had released ZenFone 4 Max in Russia a few weeks back and the company has confirmed that all the devices will get the Android O update.
The Asus ZenFone 4 Pro is a flagship and it features a 5.5-inch full HD AMOLED display and Snapdragon 835 SoC. It also features a dual 12MP rear camera setup with one wide-angle lens and another telephoto lens capable of 2x optical zoom. The primary camera comes with wider f/1.7 aperture, optical image stabilization and uses Asus's proprietary image processing engine to enhance low-light images. It also combines Qualcomm's Spectra 180 ISP for enhanced camera performance and features like portrait mode and shallow depth of field effect. It also offers an 8MP phase detect autofocus front camera with f/1.9 aperture and 88-degree wide angle lens.
The ZenFone 4 Pro can be configured with up to 6GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. The handset is backed by a 3600mAh battery and is priced at $599 (around Rs 38,500).
The ZenFone 4, on the other hand, opts for a 5.5-inch 1080p LCD display and uses either Snapdragon 660 or Snapdragon 630 depending upon the configuration. It also offers dual rear cameras with one 12MP wide-angle lens with f/1.8 aperture and secondary 8MP sensor with 120 degree super wide-angle view. The ZenFone 4 can also be purchased with up to 6GB RAM but internal storage is limited to 64GB storage. Asus ZenFone 4 will start at $399 (around Rs 26,000) and misses out on premium features of ZenFone 4 Pro.
With its ZenFone 4 Selfie series, Asus is taking a direct shot at Oppo, Vivo and Gionee's selfie-centric camera smartphones. While ZenFone 4 series features rear dual camera system, the company is moving that to the front for its selfie series. Asus ZenFone 4 Selfie Pro, the premium of the two devices, sports a combination of 12MP and 5MP dual front camera setup. The primary 12MP sensor supports dual-pixel autofocus and can reproduce 24MP selfies using oversampling technology. The second sensor is a 5MP one capable of 120-degree wide-angle selfie. The rear camera here is a 16MP unit with f/2.2 aperture.
The ZenFone 4 Selfie Pro features metal unibody design and is powered by Snapdragon 625 chipset coupled with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage. The handset is backed by a 3000mAh battery and will be available in red, gold and black colour options at a starting price of $379 (around Rs 24,500).
The mid-range ZenFone 4 Selfie sports a 5.5-inch 720p LCD display and uses Snapdragon 430 chipset. The handset comes with 4GB RAM and 64GB internal storage with support for expandable storage via SD card slot. The smartphone features a combination of 20MP and 8MP dual front camera setup with the primary sensor capable of 69-degree wide angle selfies and a secondary sensor capable of 120-degree super wide selfies. It also features a 16MP rear camera and will start at $279 (around Rs 18,000).
Asus ZenFone 4 Max Pro, as the name implies, is aimed at consumers looking for a smartphone with a large battery. The handset packs a beefy 5000mAh battery and is considerably thicker at 8.9mm. The smartphone is powered by Snapdragon 425 chipset but will launch in India with Snapdragon 430 mobile chipset. It offers a 5.5-inch 720p display and offers a 16MP camera both on the front as well as the rear. The selfie camera is restricted to 5MP and offers 4GB RAM and option for either 16GB or 32GB or 64GB internal storage. There is no word yet on its price.
Asus is aiming for both the mid-range flagship and entry level segment with its newest ZenFone 4 series. The ZenFone 4 Pro seems to be the most promising of the lot and will compete with OnePlus 5 when it becomes available here. Asus has not shared details on the India availability or pricing of ZenFone 4 series yet.