Asus reveals the Zenfone 4s

May 11, 2017 Categories: 4s, News, Zenfone 4s by 0 Comments

Here is another nice Zenfone nugget dropped by the Q1 2017 investor conference. A slide displays the Zenfone 4s logo branding alongside the other top of class Zenfone models. Thus, the Zenfone 4s will not be mid ranged at all by the looks of it.

It’s not clear from the slide whether we’ve seen the last of the Deluxe line and whether it will be replaced by a 4s series. Obviously this is just breaking and next to no information is available at this time. We are just awaiting an English translation of the webcast to see if Asus CEO sprinkles in some juicy information along with the Zenfone 4s slide.

I think we can have fun with this one. How much RAM can Asus put in it? How big of a battery? And at what price?

Asus has been looking at delays for the Zenfone 4 rollout because of supply shortages. These shortage may also be affecting the next Apple iPhone so this is not just an Asus problem. The question is when will we realistically see a Zenfone 4s and will it be that model that comes out after the first batch of models. We have questions and not much more than that at this time.

Stay tuned for more details!

[source: Asus Q1 2017 Investor Conference]

World’s first Zenfone 4 Max (ZC554KL) image

May 11, 2017 Categories: News, ZC554KL, Zenfone 4, Zenfone 4 Max by 0 Comments

Big news here breaking from Asus themselves? You might have heard about some Zenfone 4 Max but now we have an image to go with the rumors and speculation.

There are some definite take aways from this first ever image. Okay, we can admit that high detail is something that we didn’t quite get here. Yes it’s an image. However it’s not exactly something that you would take home to your mama. But this is what we have from Asus and let’s chip away at some key features.

First, it has a similar build to the Zenfone 3 Zoom. It has a headphone jack and dual rear cameras. No fingerprint sensors on the back which is not common for the Zenfone series, but clearly Asus put the sensor on the front of the Zenfone 4 Max. We aren’t fickle and frankly a front facing sensor is far more handy for those times when you have your phone face up on a table.

What we can also say is that the Zenfone 4 Max may be coming with one of the recently announced Snapdragon 600 series processors. Qualcomm claims they are more energy efficient and can provide up to 2 hours longer battery life than a similar device with a Snapdragon 653. In addition, the new Snapdragon 626 and Snapdragon 660 come with Quick Charge 4.0 which is being marketed as getting 5 hours of battery life from a 5 minute charge.

However we are speculating on the possible processor. We’ve seen some recent benchmark results of a mystery X00ID which shows with Snapdragon 430 and another result with Snapdragon 425. With the price friendly max, perhaps the new Snapdragon processors will make their way into the main Zenfone 4 models. At this point, everyone can guess because that’s all we’re doing here. The Max series is the lowest price of the line-up so having the latest processor from Snapdragon may indeed be unrealistic.

So we don’t know yet the release date but clearly the Zenfone 4 Max is coming out first. With the 5,000mAh battery in the Zenfone 3 Zoom we wonder if Asus is going to blow the doors off what’s possible. Do they dare go above that 5,000mAh battery? They tend to exceed their own expectations so anything is possible.

Stay tuned. We’re all over this!

[source: Asus 2017 Q1 Investor Conference]

 

 

India gets new Zenfone Go 5.5-inch (ZB552KL)

May 11, 2017 Categories: India, News, ZB552KL, Zenfone Go by 0 Comments

India is now just getting a new Zenfone Go release which is exclusive to Amazon India. We’re talking about the 5.5-inch ZB552KL model which comes in either black or gold. It’s available for Rs. 8,499 and you can check the listings out here.

Quick Specs:

  • Operating System: Android 6.0 Marshmallow with ZenUI 3.0
  • Display: 5.5-inch HD (720p) IPS | 500nits brightness with Bluelight Filter for Eye Care
  • Processor: Qualcomm 410 (8916) quad core @ 1GHz with Adreno 306 GPU
  • RAM: 2 GB
  • Internal Storage: 16 GB; expandable up to 128 GB with microSD card
  • Front Camera: 5MP | f/2.0 aperture
  • Rear Camera: 13MP | f/2.0 aperture | Dual-LED real tone flash
  • Battery: 3,000mAh
  • Size: 153.4 x 76.44 x 10.95mm
  • Weight: 168 g

[source: Asus India]

Zenfone 3 Zoom just $329 USD – Pre Order Details – Where To Buy

May 9, 2017 Categories: News, Price, Shopping and Deals, US, Where To Buy, ZE553KL, Zenfone 3 Zoom by 0 Comments

Asus is a bit sneaky on this one. With an original price rumored at $399, Asus has brought the Zenfone 3 Zoom (ZE553KL) to the US market with a price of $329 USD. If you’re from Canada it’s $479 CAD. Keep in mind that some US retailers ship to Canada and B&H.com (see info below) offer free shipping to Canada on orders over $99. It may be cheaper to buy out of the US for Canadians but the exchange rate is far from ideal right now.

Canada shoppers need to be aware that this Zenfone 3 Zoom (ZE553KL) does NOT have the LTE band 66 which is required for 4G LTE on Freedom Mobile (Wind Mobile). You can of course use this on the Freedom Mobile 3G network.

Something to note here is that it’s a different SKU than what was first rumored. So there is some compromise with the RAM and storage. Where there is no compromise is on the whopping 5,000mAh battery, the AMOLED display and the dual rear cameras. That’s a triple threat.

So 1GB less RAM and 32GB storage rather than 64GB gets you a much cheaper device. In my view, it’s a winner. Price wins out. I think 4GB of RAM is relatively unproven as a necessity for most smartphone users. The storage situation isn’t a problem simply because keeping gigabytes of photos and video on an easily lost or stolen device is never a good thing. In addition you can make use of the expandable microSD card slot with up to 2TB more storage.

In case you were wondering just how impressive the 5,000mAh battery is, Asus put out a head-to-head comparison against the almighty iPhone 7 Plus. The Zenfone 3 Zoom destroyed the iPhone in battery tests. This is a must watch if you are undecided about the Zenfone 3 Zoom. Watch the video here.

If you want to shop, you can buy via the links below. If you are outside of the US or Canada, B&H offer international shipping which they pride themselves on. Of course check the network compatibility for your country!

Shopping Links:

US/Canada/International

$329 USD – In Stock, Shiping Now! Amazon.com with Free Shipping

$329 USD – B&H.com-International Shipping

$329 USD – Newegg.com – Free Shipping and IN STOCK

 

Canada

$479 CAD – Amazon.ca – Free Shipping

$479 CAD – Newegg.ca – Free Shipping

$479 CAD – NCIX.com

 

Also being sold at Newegg.com:

Software update comes to Zenfone 3 Ultra (ZU680KL)

May 7, 2017 Categories: News, Software Updates, Zenfone 3 Ultra, ZU680KL by 0 Comments

This is quite a substantial and somewhat confusing update for the Zenfone 3 Ultra. There are a LOT of release notes some of which look an awful lot like the Android Nougat update notes. Our understanding is that the Zenfone 3 Ultra has already received the new Android 7.0 Nougat update. That said, give this update a whirl and let us know in the comments.

Version: ZU680KL_WW_14.1010.1703.42

Release Date: 2017/05/05

Release Notes:

  1. Remove “Share Link”
  2. Please use the following alternative solutions:
    – If you want to share files across LAN, you can use ASUS file manager’s Network place and wireless transfer function.
    https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.asus.filemanager
    – If you want to use WiFi hot spot to share files to Windows 10 PCo r Android devices, you can also use “ZenLink” which is compatible with Share Link. This app is expect to be on the google play in December http://www.zenui.com/zenlink/
  3. Remove redundant app shortcuts “Audio Wizard”, “Splendid”, “System update”and “Flashlight” from all apps menu.
    > How to turn on Audio Wizard? (System settings >Sound& Vibration > Audio Wizard or Quick settings > Add Audio wizardtile)
    > How to turn on Splendid? (System settings > Display> Splendid)
    > How to check system update? (System settings >System Update)
    > How to turn on flashlight? (Quick settings >Flashlight)
    > For users who upgraded from Android M to Android N and have upgraded ASUS Flashlight from Google Play Store before (Flashlight APK still exist in theirdata partition), they can still launch ASUS Flashlight from all apps menu.
  4. Remove ”PC Suite” (CD ROM)
    > Remove “Tap and hold to show menu” form Settings> ASUS customized settings > Touch key setting.
    > Add “Tap and hold to activate Multi-window ” in Touch key setting.
    > Quick Settings supports multiple pages, user can swipe left to right to see more quick settings if using more than 12.
    > User can enter edit screen by tap the edit button on top right corner to determine which settings enabling or disabling.
  5. Split “Ringtone& Notifications” volume bar into “Ringtone” and “Notification” volume bars on “Volume Panel” and “Sound & Vibration” Settings. Users can apply this feature by disabling “Sync volumes” from “Settings”-> “Sound & Vibration”.
  6. ZenUI Keyboard added New Unicode code 9.0 emoji and skin tone
  7. Remove Shake from ZenMotion.
  8. The preloaded Holo Spiral, Bubbles, Black Hole,and Phase Beam live wallpapers are not compatible with Android N and will beremoved after system update.
  9. Add bundled notifications switch. (Settings >Notification > Configure notifications.
  10. When multiple notifications for a single app are received, they can be bundled together into a single group. This group can be expanded to see the individual messages.
  11. Update the home work space
  12. For user who upgrade from Android M to Android N and do Factory reset, the home  workspace will be updated to the new layout.
  13. For user who use Easy mode, a Launcher app menuwill show on the screen after upgrading
  14. Fix that the number of CPU cores are displayed incorrectly.
  15. Fix Russian string issue.

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