Asus’ Zenfone flagships have always been on a cheaper side with latest and greatest internals but the software used to be a letdown for most of the people. This time, the new Zenfone 6 brush aside Asus’ previous mistakes and offer improvements over aesthetics, both on the hardware and software level.
The Zenfone 6 looks clean at the front — no bezels and notches. The glaring front sees a 6.4-inch LCD display that offers a 92% screen-to-body ratio and supports DCI-P3. The phone manages to keep it clean, thanks to the rotating camera at the back (which we’ll talk afterward). However, there’s no any in-display fingerprint scanner, rather it has a normal one at the back.
Talking about the back, you’ll see a dual-camera that looks weirdly placed at first sight. But it has a trick up its sleeve. While brands like OPPO and OnePlus went for pop-up cameras, the Zenfone 6 has a flipping mechanism. This mechanism host a duo of 48MP Sony IMX586 sensor with an f/1.8 lens combined with a 13MP ultra-wide sensor with a 125-degree field of view.
The sensor is capable of recording videos at 4K 60fps with Electronic Image Stabilization built-in. Same goes for selfies as well, since you’re practically using the same sensor. That’s a smart trick. What’s smarter is the flip-up mechanism’s well-thought use; it is capable of motion tracking to keep a subject in a frame or an ability to shoot a panorama automatically. On top of that, Asus has implemented the HDR+ Enhanced and Night Mode, both of which relies on multi-frame synthesis for better image processing.
Asus claims that the rotating mechanism is well tested with up to 100,000 flips. But the mechanism gets some cautionary features to prevent it from breaking. Although the module is made from Liquid Metal, which is lighter and 4x stronger than Stainless Steel, it will automatically close in case of accidental drops.
Now let’s talk about what the phone has to offer internally. Asus has always been known for packing top of the line specs and the Zenfone 6 is no exception here. The device rocks a Snapdragon 855 chipset that has up to 8GB of RAM and 256GB of UFS 2.1 storage which is expandable via microSD card.
For audiophiles, the phone has dual amplifiers and is Hi-Res Audio certified. Also, you get a 3.5mm headphone jack and a Hi-Res headphone out of the box to tune into music right away.
Powering all these things is a humongous 5,000mAh battery inside. It gets an 18W fast charging support and can stay in the “constant current” mode for longer. Meaning, it will be able to charge 3,300mAh battery in less than an hour, similar to what would see from a 27W charger. There’s no wireless charging support, but it is not a deal breaker for most people.
Asus in the past have been bogging down its phone by constantly chucking ridiculous amounts of bloatware in its ZenUI, but this is not the case anymore with the Zenfone 6. The device gets a clean and refreshed version of ZenUI 6 — based on Android 9 Pie — which looks nearly stock and has basically no bloatware. Thankfully enough, Asus will prioritize the phone for the Android 10 Q update and so forth.
The Asus Zenfone 6 will be available for €500 starting from May 23 in Europe, while rest of the market will get it later on.
There are some news circulating about Asus arriving in Nepal but we are not sure if the Zenfone 6 will be on that list. Nonetheless, sooner or later Nepali consumers will be able to get their hands on this phone, albeit for a high price.
