Smartphone makers seems to be getting pretty much serious with the entry level premium smartphone space, considering the fact the number of players rolling out their flagship devices in the market. After OnePlus introduced their flagship model in the space, Asus India was not too far behind in rolling out its flagship smartphone - The Zenfone 5z. Though, OnePlus has sealed the position of Flagship Killer with back to back successful products. However, Asus looks to break the deal with its newest flagship product which is not only affordable but also feature loaded. Can Asus Zenfone 5z prove its mettle for being called as a true flagship model? Let’s find out!!

Asus Zenfone 5z Design: The main noteworthy aspect Asus Zenfone 5z is the overall design that the smartphone neatly carries with a 2.5D glass back with metal casing carved of aerospace grade aluminium. Rounded Edges on the unibody phone looks appealing and feels comfortable too. Further enhancing the overall appeal are the exciting shades - Meteor Silver and Midnight Blue, though we reviewed the one offered with the latter option that felt a premium smartphone offering the moment it was held. Sporting a metal body, Asus’s newest flagship smartphone can certainly withstand couple of drops. Asus Zenfone Max Pro M1 6GB Variant Review: A Value for Money Mid-Range Smartphone With Max on Battery & Performance.

Asus Zenfone 5z (File Photo)

Asus Zenfone 5z Display: Counting on the specifications offered would not do justice to the device. However, the Zenfone 5z comes with a 6.2-inch Full HD+ Super IPS display with something that is quite popularly seen on a smartphone nowadays – A notch. The display features a tall aspect ratio of 19:9 similar to the one seen on OnePlus 6. Offering best-in-class protection to the screen is the Corning Gorilla Glass, which comes with resolution of 2246X1080px providing bright and deep colour output even in outdoor conditions. Another best part of the screen is that it supports 10 points multi-touch along with glove touch.

Asus Zenfone 5z (File Photo)

Asus Zenfone 5z Performance: Being dubbed as a flagship device, the new Zenfone 5z does tick all the boxes out here on the specification checklist. Under the hood, the smartphone packs a Qualcomm’s flagship chipset – Snapdragon 845 processor. As we reviewed the 64GB variant, the smartphone worked pretty smooth event during heavy usage as well as multi-tasking. Moreover, heavy games such as PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) performed really well without any hint of lag whatsoever even in high graphics. The 3330 mAh battery on the phone really surprised us as it survived throughout the day even after heavy usage of numerous calls, messaging, social media, gaming sessions, capturing actions in the camera and more.

Asus Zenfone 5z Camera Shot (File Photo)

Asus Zenfone 5z Camera: Another highlight of the smartphone is its high-end camera which is a dual camera module at the back. The setup comprises of 12MP Sony IMX363 sensor and an 8MP secondary camera. The images captured on the smartphone via rear camera in the broad daylight and dusk emerged as pretty daunting. However, low-light photography was a bit let down with lights in the background.

Asus Zenfone 5z UI & Software: On the other hand, the smartphone continues to astonish us with its power-packed performing with the custom ZenUI 5.0 that is based on Android 8.0 Oreo. However, we personally believe that it could have been slightly better considering the fact that it is a flagship product from Asus. When compared to OnePlus 6’s OxygenOS that provides the users with stock Android giving a better UX. Another let down was the notification panel which occupied the entire screen when pulled down. Also, the ambient display could have been an added advantage here which is quite disappointing.

Asus Zenfone 5z (File Photo)

Verdict: In spite of some limitations, Asus Zenfone 5Z is beautifully attractive and astonishingly remarkable. However, the smartphone does not outperform its arch rival - OnePlus 6 in departments like UI and low light photography, but it is definitely an affordable alternative to OnePlus 6. With prices of the smartphone start from Rs 29,999, the customers looking for an affordable phone with flagship experience, Asus Zenfone 5z is a definite buy. Also, another plus point here is that even the base variant gets microSD slot for memory expansion.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 29, 2018 05:49 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).