The Zenfone 3 starts at Rs 21,999, and this phone could very well be Asus’s response to the likes of the Moto G4 Plus and other phones priced around the Rs15,000 price point.Asus announced the Zenfone 3, Zenfone 3 Deluxe and Zenfone 3 Ultra at Computex but are these phones worth your money?
With the new Zenfone 3, Asus brings a good looking metal unibody design without antenna bands, 64-bit Snapdragon 625 octa-core processor, fingerprint scanner and Android Marshmallow OS. But how does it fare against the Moto G4 Plus, Redmi Note 3 and LeEco Le 2?
Earlier this week, Asus launched its Zenfone 3-series smartphones in India, along with ZenBook 3 and Transformer 3 Pro. One of the key highlights of the new Zenfone 3 series smartphones is the all-metal unibody design without the ugly antenna lines, 2.5D curved glass display, fingerprint scanner at the back for biometric authentication. The Zenfone 3 series smartphones also come with Android Marshmallow 6.0.1 OS out of the box. Price wise, the ZenFone 3 is placed in upper mid-range bracket, whereas specifications wise, the likes of Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 and LeEco Le 2 are available for much cheaper and Moto G4 Plus for mid-range. We pitted all Four smartphones based on their price, specifications and feature, and here’s how they fare.
Price: The Zenfone 3 is offered in two different variants – ZE520KL with 5.2-inch full HD display and ZE552KL with 5.5-inch full HD display. While the 5.2-inch variant will set you back by Rs 21,999, Asus hasn’t disclosed the price of 5.5-inch variant yet. The smartphone is already available to purchase on major e-commerce sites, and will be available to purchase at offline retails stores by end of this month. The Moto G4 Plus is priced at Rs 14,999 to purchase on Amazon India. The LeEco 2 is priced at Rs 11,999, and available to purchase on exclusively on LeMall and Flipkart. The Redmi Note 3 (3GB), on the other hand, is also priced at Rs 11,999 and available at Mi.com/in, Flipkart and Amazon India.
Display: While the Zenfone 3 features a 5.2-inch full HD (1080p) display covered with 2.5D curved glass and Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection, the Moto G4 Plus, Redmi Note 3 and Le 2 feature a slightly larger 5.5-inch full HD displays.
Processor and RAM: Under the hood, the Zenfone 3 is powered by Qualcomm’s 64-bit Snapdragon 625 octa-core (Cortex A-53 cores) chipset clocked at 2GHz. It is paired with 3GB of RAM and Adreno 506 GPU. The Moto G4 Plus is powered by 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 octa-core 1.5 GHz processor paired with 3GB of RAM. The Redmi Note 3 is powered by 64-bit Snapdragon 650 hexa-core processor (two Cortex A-72 cores and four Cortex A-53 cores), paired with 3GB of RAM and Adreno 510 GPU. The Le 2, on the other hand, is powered by a 64-bit Snapdragon 652 octa-core processor (four Cortex-A53 cores and four Cortex-A72 cores) paired with 3GB of RAM and Adreno 510 GPU. Le 2 has a slight advantage with four Cortex-A72 cores over others.
Storage: With 32GB of onboard storage, the Zenfone 3 also comes with a microSD card slot with support for up to 2TB. The Redmi Note 3 and Moto G4 Plus features 128GB onboard storage and a microSD card slot with support up to 32GB. While the Le 2 also features 32GB storage, the microSD card slot is missing from the same.
Camera: In the camera department, all three smartphones feature 16-megapixel rear camera of aperture f/2.0 with PDAF and LED flash. While video recording on Redmi Note 3 and Moto G4 Plus is restricted to 1080p, the Le 2 and Zenfone 3 can record 4K videos too. The Zenfone 3 also gets laser auto-focus feature and 4-axis optical image stabilization (OIS), which is something that is missing from the other two. Up front, the Redmi Note 3 features a 5-megapixel selfie camera of aperture f/2.2, whereas the Le 2 and Zenfone 3 features an 8-megapixel camera of aperture f/2.2.
Battery: Asus has equipped the Zenfone 3 with a 2,650mAh battery, the Moto G4 Plus and Le 2 features a 3,000mAh battery with Quick Charging feature, whereas the Redmi Note 3 features a slightly larger 4,050mAh battery.
Operating system: Both the Moto G4 Plus, Le 2 and Zenfone 3 run on Android Marshmallow 6.0.1 with respective over the top customizations in the form of EUI and ZenUI, respectively. Moto G4 Plus runs on Android 6.01 Lollipop-based GUI. The Redmi Note 3, on the other hand, runs on Android 5.1 Lollipop-based MIUI 7. And update to Android Marshmallow 6.0.1-based MIUI 8 is also due to arrive in the next week.
Connectivity: Connectivity wise, all smartphones feature dual SIM card slots, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, and Bluetooth same as Moto G4 Plus. The Le 2 and Redmi Note 3 also feature VoLTE connectivity for HD voice calling. Asus and Le Eco have switched to USB Type-C port, whereas the Redmi Note 3 and Moto G4 Plus comes with microUSB port. LeEco has also gone one step ahead by dropping the 3.5mm headphone jack, and audio is routed via the USB Type-C port.
Overall, we feel Asus Zenfone 3 priced 22,000 could have a tough competition compared to Moto G4 Plus, Le Eco Le 2 and Xiaomi Redmi Note 3, all of which are priced under Rs15,000, Rs 12,000, which is Rs 10,000 less.
I almost never buy phones that have just been released as the prices drop so quickly.It will be important to see how the ZenFone 3 holds up after a few months of daily use, and since it was just released we really have no way of knowing. But I am keeping my fingers crossed.
Comparison
Table:
Features
|
Asus Zenfone 3
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Xiaomi Redmi Note 3
|
LeEco 2
|
Motorola Moto G4 Plus
|
Display
|
5.2-inch full HD (1920×1080 pixels)
|
5.5-inch full HD (1920×1080 pixels)
|
5.5-inch full HD (1920×1080 pixels)
|
5.5-inch full HD (1920×1080 pixels)
|
Processor
|
Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 octa-core
|
Qualcomm Snapdragon 650 hexa-core processor
|
Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 octa-core
|
Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 octa-core
|
RAM
|
3GB
|
3GB
|
3GB
|
3GB
|
Storage
|
32GB (expandable)
|
32GB (expandable)
|
32GB (non-expandable)
|
32GB (expandable)
|
Rear Camera
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16-megapixel with PDAF, laser auto focus, OIS and
dual LED flash
|
16-megapixel with phase detection auto-focus and
dual LED flash
|
13-megapixel with phase detection auto-focus and
dual LED flash
|
16-megapixel with PDAF, laser auto focus, OmniVision Sensor
|
Front Camera
|
8-megapixel
|
5-megapixel
|
8-megapixel
|
5-megapixel Wide-angle lens with display flash
|
Battery
|
2,650mAh
|
4,050mAh
|
3,000mAh
|
3000 mAh battery
|
OS
|
Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow wrapped under Zen UI
|
Android 5.1.1 Lollipop wrapped under MIUI 7
|
Android 5.1 Lollipop wrapped under custom EUI
skin
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Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow under GUI
|
Price
|
Rs 21,999
|
Rs 11,999
|
Rs 11,999
|
Rs 14,999
|
Samsung will be the big benefactor from this pricing scheme circus of Asus. They got really ambitious at an early stage. What a joke! :P
ReplyDeleteI bought Zenfone2 because I’m not willing to pay the Note or S prices of Samsung even if i wanted their specs and I can afford them for the simple reason that these smartphones become obsolete 2-3 months after purchasing. It seems so pointless. So Zenfone2 appealed to me because it offered flagship specs at a mid-range price, and a good brand – Asus. But with Zenfone3’s prices, I now find myself considering buying Note 7 more than Zenfone3. Or not buying anything since it’s just a 15 month old phone. Personally I’m bummed because phone companies think smartphone consumers are sheep. Just because we bought your previous model and loved it doesn’t mean we’ll buy the next. Gradually increasing your prices every iteration doesn’t mean we won’t notice that you’re simply jacking up the price to meet the flagship prices of established brands eventually. So I guess this means there’s a new vacuum in the market. There are other brands who positioned themselves similar to what Asus did but don’t have the strength as Asus’ brand. I’m not about to buy a Xioami or O whatever. So yeah, this pricing move compels me not to buy Zenfone3 but finally something from the Note or S line of Samsung. This is my personal opinion and experience, some of you may disagree and some may agree. Let’s not troll the comments section.
ReplyDeleteHmmm... Me too dont think the Zenfone 3 is worth its price... Somewhere around 15k would have been affordable.
ReplyDeleteThis is how to destroy your core fans asus. You sealed your fate asus. You deserved our hate.
DeleteI was a ZenFone lover. After the release of ZenFone 3, ASUS is the number 1 brand i hate in mobile and tech. Bye bye ZenFone....
ReplyDeleteIt’s not expensive, it’s OVERPRICED! Even their Asus Zenfone 3 Laser is too much for a Snapdragon 430, since online stores made Xiaomi Redmi 3S and 3X available for purchase which cost like a little few hundreds to 8K, same SOC bigger batt at 4000mAh smaller and less denser IPS panel and at 3gb ram, even Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Pro and Mi Max are still better value for money. They say that the Zenfone 3 targets other companies midrange offering. Vivo’s V3 Max can easily outsell what ASUS is offering. Their flagship offering as well is a big thumbs down. Ive read somewhere that there are lotsa hate on ASUS right now, its not really hate, lets just say that people who have waited patiently just for the release of their products are sooo disappointed at the prices across the board, its not the fault of the consumers, it was ASUS who posted the pricing from the beginning, and if there would be adjustments on the prices, consumers dont expect those at skyrocket pricing +50% especially on the Deluxe and Ultra.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree. Zenfone 3 is way overpriced! Don’t get me wrong, I’m not an Asus hater but actually an asus fan. I’m endorsing this brand to my friends but for now i’m having second thoughts.
ReplyDeleteI beg to disagree with you, Mr. John Nieves. I visited GSMARENA and compared the specs of this phone against Galaxy S7 edge and Ipone 6 plus. S7 edge has some advantages over this phone like, this phone has no IP certification to claim, meaning, no protection from dust and water. Low screen resolution (full hd only) while S7 is already 4K. ZF3 de luxe has no active cancellation during calls. LTE connectivity and internal memory are the only significant advantages of ZF3 over the 2 phones I can see but for USA variants, S7 edge is already CAT 12. There are quite more advantages of Samsung’s S7 edge over ZF3. Here is the link of comparison.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?&idPhone2=8129&idPhone3=7243&idPhone1=7945
But practically, would you ever need a 256GB on your mobile device? Add another 256GB on microsd card then you have 512GB total memory. So large and I don’t think you can fill them up to the brim. I can’t even fill up my 64GB memory card.
So, I will boldly say that ZF3 is overpriced. I agree that it may be above the 30K mark but it should have not overtaken S7 and its edge variant and Iphone 6 plus in pricing.
Just saying…
I rather choose Samsung S7 Edge than Asus Zenfone Deluxe. They have almost the same price. Add little more for Samsung Note 7 and you’ll get the best camera, best display and best performance you can find in a smartphone.
ReplyDeleteRIP Asus India
I’m an Asus zenfone 2 owner and was looking to upgrade to zenfone 3. But with the announced pricing I guess I’ll have to go with another brand. Asus is pushing its loyal customers toward samsung with the zenfone 3 pricing. 34k for the deluxe, 44k for deluxe with snapdragon 821 and 30k for the ultra are really outrageous given that the models are only full HD screen compared to quad HD on samsung s7 and Note 7. Both samsung models are also ip68 certified with the note 7 even having an iris scanner. For people willing to spend upwards of 30k a few thousand more won’t keep them from choosing samsung over Asus. Specs wise and prestige both models trump that of Asus deluxe. The availability of premium accessories is another plus for Samsung. You can hardly find any for Asus. As for the regular zenfone 3 models with snapdragon 625 priced between 16k to 18k, you will be better of buying the vivo V3 Max which has a better snapdragon 652 chipset priced at 17k. I doubt Asus Zenfone 3 will have the same success as before.
ReplyDeleteWe building products not for charity but profits. Certainly now days we don't need middle class beggars instead we targeting high-end users. That is our affairs non of your business. For others, if you have any doubts on ZenFone 3 you can freely contact us : 1800-2090365
ReplyDeleteRemember, "Don’t pour away your water due to a mirage."
DeleteDid ASUSTek really replied to this thread? If that is the case, the statement the ASUSTek representative had written is so derogatory in nature. Calling your customers and the rest of consumers as beggars is profanity. Shame on you ASUSTek...
DeleteWhat a shame asustek! Even high end users will not consider your shitty phone! It's game over for your brand! Full of empty promises!
Delete20-30K phones are fast and lite, who ever complaining about ZenFone 3 should know, It's not a budget phone anymore.. It's a premium product, and if you have money in your hand then you can buy it! else go for Chinese wastes.
DeleteI’m afraid that their higher pricing might impact their chances of success. ASUS had good devices. But bad pricing might have put them at the losing end of competition from the likes of Lenovo, OnePlus, Xiaomi etc. ASUS might be competing with Samsung with Deluxe and Ultra. But no matter how popular the previous ZenFones were, ASUS is not Samsung yet in smartphone segment. If a person in India wants to spend 50k on a smartphone, Samsung and Apple devices would still take precedence over ZenFones in his or her choice.
ReplyDeleteGreat devices at exceptional prices was the strength of ASUS ZenFones. That is what made ZenFones so popular. With the higher pricing of ZenFone 3 range, they may have lost it. Being a big fan of ZenFones, I think this is a great loss.
Amen to that...
DeleteAmen to that...
DeleteThese weeds are not upper-midrange phone. Its midrange phone at upper-midrange prices!! Feeling: ASUS gotta screwed up :D
ReplyDelete