After almost a year and a half with the Zenfone 2 and its multiple versions, ASUS has finally announced its successor – the new Zenfone 3 smartphone. In this comparison, we’re going to take a look at what has changed in the specs department.
| Zenfone 3 (ZE552KL) | Zenfone 2 (ZE551ML) |
|---|---|
| 5.5-inch Super IPS+ LCD @ 1080x1920 pixels, 401ppi | 5.5-inch IPS LCD @ 1080x1920 pixels, 401ppi |
| Corning Gorilla Glass 3 | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 |
| 2.0GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 quad-core processor | 1.8GHz Intel Atom Z3560 quad-core processor (2GB RAM model) / 2.3GHz Intel Atom Z3580 quad-core processor (4GB RAM model) |
| Adreno 506 | PowerVR G6430 |
| 3GB / 4GB RAM | 2GB / 4GB RAM |
| 32GB / 64GB internal storage | 16GB / 32GB / 64GB internal storage |
| Expandable via microSD, up to 128GB (uses SIM 2 slot) | Expandable via microSD, up to 128GB (dedicated slot) |
| 16-megapixel f/2.0 laser autofocus rear camera w/ OIS (4-axis), dual-tone LED flash | 13-megapixel f/2.0 autofocus rear camera w/ dual-tone LED flash |
| 8-megapixel f/2.0 front-facing camera | 5-megapixel f/2.0 front-facing camera |
| Dual SIM (Nano + Micro-SIM) | Dual SIM (Micro-SIM) |
| LTE Cat6 | LTE Cat4 |
| Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac |
| Bluetooth 4.2 | Bluetooth 4.0 |
| GPS w/ A-GPS, GLONASS | GPS w/ A-GPS, GLONASS |
| - | NFC |
| TBC | FM Radio |
| Fingerprint scanner | - |
| USB Type-C, v2.0 w/ fast-charging support | Micro-USB, v2.0 w/ fast-charging support |
| 3000mAh Li-Ion non-removable battery | 3000mAh Li-Po non-removable battery |
| Android 6.0 Marshmallow w/ ZenUI 3.0 | Android 5.0 Lollipop w/ ZenUI (planned upgrade to 6.0) |
| 152.6 x 77.4 x 7.7 mm | 152.5 x 77.2 x 10.9 mm |
| 155 g | 170 g |
What has changed:
- Improved display panel
- Latest processor from Qualcomm
- Better GPU
- Higher megapixel counts for both front and rear sensors
- Additional camera enhancement, i.e. OIS (4-axis), laser autofocus
- Faster LTE connectivity
- Newer Bluetooth version
- Fingerprint scanner
- USB Type-C
- Updated Android OS and ZenUI version
- Slimmer and lighter
What’s the same:
- Screen size
- Gorilla Glass 3
- Maximum RAM and internal storage option
- Still up to 128GB microSD
- Wi-Fi connectivity
- GPS radios
- 3000mAh battery capacity
From the table and list above, ASUS did improve a lot of aspects for the new Zenfone 3 but what’s noticeably unchanged is the screen size which probably because they have the Deluxe and Ultra versions for those who want a bigger display. The camera department also received an upgrade with larger megapixel count and better AF system. Also, the design language of the 3 is top-notch.
In a nutshell, Zenfone 3 is definitely a better smartphone and a good upgrade from its predecessor. It’s like having all the flagship features in a more affordable package. Check out our first impressions here.
Guys, I dunno but I hope Yugatech does have a proper comparison…. Maybe not based on spec sheets and a real freaking Comparison Article or better yet video… Oh, and you might want to check out the Huawei P9 Lite which would only cost about 12,490 and gizguide.com already hs a review about it.. The only downside I see against Zenfone 3 (base edition with 3GB RAM 32 GB Rom and 2600mAh batt) is no OIS and 16GB base storage… Other than that I think this would be a great clash between Midrangers