Smartphone manufacturers, nowadays, seem to outrun one another, majorly in terms of camera, processor, and battery. Of course, there are unique design choices as well but Asus, like always, has gone out of the syllabus.
First off, we have the Asus Zenfone 8 with just a 5.9-inch display; smaller than that of the Xperia 5 III and Snapdragon 888 processor. It’s also the first-ever smartphone from Asus to get the IP certification and has pretty much every other flagship-grade feature.
Next up, the Asus Zenfone 8 Flip, which as the name itself suggests carries a flip-up camera. It has a total of three camera sensors — wide, ultrawide, and a 3x telephoto and thanks to the flipping mechanism, doesn’t require a dedicated selfie unit.
Here, we will take a detailed look at both the smartphones followed by their prices and availability.
Asus Zenfone 8
The vanilla model has a 5.9-inch Super AMOLED Samsung E4 panel with 2400 x 1080 pixels resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+, and 1100 nits peak brightness underneath Corning Gorilla Glass Victus layer. Also, the back is made up of glass with Gorilla Glass 3 protection whilst the frame is built with aluminum.
Running on ZenUI 8 atop Android 11, the Zenfone 8 is powered by a Snapdragon 888 processor coupled with 6GB or 8GB or 16GB of RAM and 128GB and 256GB of UFS 3.1 onboard storage. An Adreno 660 GPU takes care of the graphics.
Onto the cameras, we are looking at a dual-camera setup at the back with an f/1.8 64MP wide and an f/2.2 12MP ultrawide sensor while a single f/2.5 12MP standard lens with dual pixel PDAF for selfies.
The rear module is capable of recording 8K videos at 24fps, 4K videos at 30/60/120fps, 1080p videos at 30/60/240fps, and 720p videos at 480fps. Similarly, the secondary camera is able to capture 4K videos at 30fps and 1080p videos at 30/60fps.
Connectivity option includes Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.2, GPS, NFC, FM radio (market/region dependent), USB Type-C 2.0, USB On-The-Go, and a 3.5mm audio jack. And sensors incorporated include an under-display optical fingerprint scanner, accelerometer, gyro, proximity, and compass.
The Asus Zenfone 8 has a 4,000mAh cell with 30W fast charging that can charge it from o to 60% in 25 minutes and 0 to 100% in 80 minutes as advertised. It also supports USB Power Delivery 3.0 and a reverse charging tech.
Specifications
- Display: 5.9-inch Super AMOLED display, 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+, 1100 nits (peak), Corning Gorilla Glass Victus
- Resolution: 2400 x 1080 pixels resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio (~446 ppi density)
- OS: Android 11, ZenUI 8
- Chipset: Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G (5nm)
- CPU: Octa-core (1×2.84 GHz Kryo 680 & 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 680 & 4×1.80 GHz Kryo 680)
- GPU: Adreno 660
- Memory: 6GB/8GB RAM, 128GB/256GB UFS 3.1 internal storage
- Rear Camera: Dual — 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.73″, 0.8µm, PDAF, OIS + 12 MP, f/2.2, 112˚, 14mm (ultrawide), 1/2.55″, 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF
- Front Camera: Single — 12 MP, f/2.5, 28mm (standard), 1/2.93″, 1.22µm, dual pixel PDAF
- Sensor: Fingerprint (under display, optical), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass
- Battery: Li-Po 4,000mAh, non-removable, 30W fast charging; charges 60% in 25 min, 100% in 80 min as advertised; USB Power Delivery 3.0; reverse charging
- Color: Obsidian Black, Horizon Silver
Asus Zenfone 8 Flip
The Asus Zenfone 8 Flip is built with glass on both the front and back while the frame is made up of aluminum. It comes with a 6.67-inch Super AMOLED display with a 90Hz refresh rate, HDR 10+, and 1100 nits peak brightness lying underneath Corning Gorilla Glass 6 layer.
Like the non-flip model, this one also boots on ZenUI 8 on top of Android 11 while powers on a Snapdragon 888 processor paired with 8GB RAM and 128GB or 256GB UFS 3.1 internal storage expandable via a dedicated microSDXC slot.
As for optics, the smartphone flaunts a triple camera setup housed in a motorized flip-up module including an f/1.8 64MP wide, an f/2.4 8MP telephoto, and an f2.2 12MP ultrawide lens. Now, the same module flips in front turning into a selfie shooter as well.
The camera supports dual-LED flash, HDR, and auto panorama. Regarding video, it’s capable of recording 8K videos at 30fps, 4K videos at 30/60/120fps, 1080p videos at 30/60/240fps, and 720p videos at 480fps.
For connectivity, it gets Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.2, GPS, NFC, USB Type-C 2.0, though lacks a 3.5mm jack. Also, sensors included are under-display optical fingerprint scanner, accelerometer, gyro, proximity, and compass.
The Asus Zenfone 8 Flip carries a 5,000mAh cell with 30W fast charging and USB Power Delivery 3.0 to keep its lights on.
Specifications
- Display: 6.67-inch Super AMOLED, 90Hz refresh rate, HDR10+, 1000 nits (peak), Corning Gorilla Glass 6
- Resolution: 2400 x 1080 pixels, 20:9 aspect ratio (~395 ppi density)
- OS: Android 11, ZenUI 8
- Chipset: Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G (5nm)
- CPU: Octa-core (1×2.84 GHz Kryo 680 & 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 680 & 4×1.80 GHz Kryo 680)
- GPU: Adreno 660
- Memory: 8GB RAM, 128GB/256GB UFS 3.1 internal storage
- Rear Camera: Triple — 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.73″, 0.8µm, PDAF + 8 MP, f/2.4, 80mm (telephoto), PDAF, 3x optical zoom + 12 MP, f/2.2, 112˚, 14mm (ultrawide), 1/2.55″, 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF
- Front Camera: Triple — Motorized flip-up main camera module
- Sensor: Fingerprint (under-display, optical), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass
- Battery: Li-Po 5,000mAh, non-removable, 30W fast charging, USB Power Delivery 3.0
- Color: Galactic Black, Glacier Silver
Price and Availability
The Asus Zenfone 8 is available in the European and Taiwanese market in Black color starting at €600 as an early bird price and could rise up to €670 (around NPR 95,000 in Nepal) as we reach the end of May. However, there is no information regarding its availability in other parts of the world for now.
The Asus Zenfone 8 Flip is up for pre-order in both the European (for €799) and Taiwanese markets starting 12 May 2021 via the official website of Asus. And the international availability is yet to be announced as well.
