As promised, ASUS today has unleashed its latest range of smartphones which are grouped together under the new ZenFone 4 series. While a massive leak has revealed plenty of details regarding these smartphones and might have steal of the thunder away from the company, it still couldn’t beat seeing the real thing.
Let’s start with the device that bears the series name: the ZenFone 4 which interestingly, not the flagship device of the series. Instead, the phone can be considered a mid-range device give its Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor or Snapdragon 630 in selected markets. It also carries a 5.5-inch full HD Super IPS+ display alongside up to 6GB of RAM and 64GB internal storage.
On the rear of ZenFone 4, ASUS has implemented a set of two cameras with one of them is designed for general photography and features a 12MP Sony IMX362 sensor as well as a F1.8 83-degrees lens with PDAF feature, optical image stabilization system (OIS), and color correction sensor. Made for wide-angle photos, the second camera carries an 8MP Omnivision 8856 sensor and f/2.2 120-degrees lens.
Completing the ZenFone 4 photography hardware is its front camera which features another 8MP Omnivision 8856 sensor that is paired together with f/2.0 84-degrees lens. The smartphone also comes with the support for DTS Headphone:X 7.1 virtual surround system and Hi-Res audio output in addition to the NXP smart amp for its dual speakers, and 3,300mAh battery.
As for the actual flagship model of ASUS 4th generation ZenFone release, it is indeed the ZenFone 4 Pro. Equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor, 6GB of RAM and up to 128GB internal storage, the smartphone still has a 5.5-inch full HD display although it comes with AMOLED panel instead.
Despite having the same 12MP Sony IMX362 sensor, dual PDAF feature, color correction sensor, and OIS on its main rear camera just like a standard ZenFone 4 model, there are other additional parts that helped increased its capability. That includes its f/1.7 lens, laser auto-focus system, Qualcomm Spectra 180 image signal processor, and ASUS own SuperPixel Engine.
The phone also carries another rear camera that features 16MP Sony IMX351 sensor and f/2.6 lens with 2x optical room. Users can be pushed the camera’s zoom even further at up to 10x total zoom. The ZenFone 4 Pro is also equipped with 3,600mAh battery.
Moving on, ASUS has also launched two new Selfie models today after opting not to release a new Selfie model last year. What made these two devices rather different from other models within the ZenFone 4 series is that their dual cameras are located on the front rather than at the back as per other ZenFone 4 models.
Not only that, these cameras are made for different tasks as one of them is designed for selfie while the other one which also features 120-degrees lens is crafted for group selfie or better known as wefie. While their general objectives are the same, most of the components within ZenFone 4 Selfie and ZenFone 4 Selfie Pro are rather different from each other.
For starters, the Selfie Pro is powered by Snapdragon 625 while the lower-end standard Selfie model runs on Snapdragon 430 even though they come standard with 4GB of RAM, 64GB internal storage, and 3000mAh battery. Both devices are equipped with 5.5-inch display although the Selfie Pro features a full HD AMOLED panel while the standard Selfie model settles for a HD IPS panel.
ASUS has also implemented different sensors on all the cameras on these Selfie models as well. For example, Selfie Pro’s main front camera features a 12MP Sony Exmor RS IMX362 that can be set to produce 24MP output which the company referred to as the 24MP DuoPixel feature within the phone’s camera setting. Additionally, it is also accompanied by a f/1.8 lens.
As for Selfie Pro’s second front camera, it is equipped with an 5MP Omnivision 5670 that is paired with a f/2.2 lens. On the phone’s rear camera is a 16MP Sony IMX351 sensor with f/2.2 lens. ASUS has also implemented its SuperPixel Engine into Selfie Pro to handle all the processing needed for all three cameras.
For all standard Selfie models regardless of their screen size, ASUS has included 20MP Omnivision 20880 sensor with f.2/ lens on the main front camera while being accompanied by an 8MP Omnivision 8856 and f/2.4 lens inside the second front camera. Inside their rear camera is a 16MP Omnivision 16880 sensor and f/2.0 lens.
Last but not least, there is also the ZenFone 4 Max Pro which is almost an exact copy of ZenFone 4 Max that was released in Russia last month. The main differences between both models are their camera sensors since the Max Pro carries high resolution sensors in the form of 16MP Omnivision 16880 for its main rear camera and front camera as well as a 5MP Omnivision 5675 for the phone’s wide-angle secondary rear camera.
With the exception of ZenFone 4 Pro which its release status for our market is not yet known at the moment, ASUS Malaysia has confirmed to us that all the models we have mentioned above will be making their way to our market starting from 25 August. Check out our subsequent article for more information regarding their imminent arrival of ZenFone 4 devices in Malaysia.
