Asus Zenfone 4, The Selfie Pro
Dual cameras have been a key feature defining the smartphone industry
all this year. But Taiwanese electronics major Asus takes the
dual-camera game to the next level with the Zenfone 4 Selfie series –
three selfie-centric smartphones, two of which have dual front camera
set-ups.
While one variant of the Asus Zenfone 4 Selfie and the premium Zenfone 4
Selfie Pro have dual front cameras, the Zenfone 4 Selfie also has a
single-front-camera variant. The Pro version has a dual 24-megapixel
plus 5 MP shooter on the front, along with a soft flash and features
like the portrait mode and wide-angle shot.
Read More on: Asus Dual Front Cameras
Read More on: Asus Dual Front Cameras
Design
The metal-clad smartphone with dual front cameras looks premium from
all sides. At 147 g, the device is light, and its 6.85 mm chassis makes
it slim and comfortable to hold. But, for a 5.5-inch device, the Zenfone
4 Selfie Pro looks quite big because of its extended top and bottom
bezels. The side bezels are slim and the curved Gorilla Glass on the
front adds to the overall aesthetics of the smartphone.
On the back, a grainy metallic body with Asus engraved right below the
primary camera unit looks premium. Overall, the Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro is a
good-looking smartphone with a rugged build and slim chassis.
Display
The Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro’s 5.5-inch AMOLED screen boasts a full HD
(1920 x 1080) resolution. The screen looks sharp in the default setting
but colours seem over-saturated – something seen with most OLED screens.
However, the screen colours can be optimised in settings. There are
three modes – Super colour, Bluelight filter and Standard, and there is
also an option to customise the screen’s hue and saturation.
The screen is bright and easy to read under direct sunlight. The auto
brightness setting works flawlessly and the phone bumps the brightness
even more in bright outdoor conditions, making it easier to view the
content on the screen.
Camera
This camera-centric smartphone has a major focus on front-facing
cameras. The Zenfone Selfie Pro has a 24-megapixel camera lens and a 5MP
wide-angle lens on the front and a 16MP one on the rear.
The dual selfie cameras in the Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro work in tandem to
take very good shots. The front-facing dual camera set-up of the
smartphone is as good as the back dual-camera set-ups that we have seen
in several devices this year.
For selfie lovers, the addition of a portrait mode makes it convenient
to click DSLR-type shots, focusing on the subject and an enhanced bokeh
effect blurring out the rest of the objects in the frame. The wide-angle
lens increases the field of view to accommodate more people in the
frame.
Besides selfie wizardry, the Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro allows video
recording in 4K resolution using the front-facing cameras. The quality
is not exceptional but a future update might resolve this issue.
As for the rear camera, the primary 16MP lens is not bad, either. The
focus is fast and the captured shots have a lot of detail and limited
noise. Even in low-light conditions, the rear camera captures
satisfactory shots with optimum detail and balanced colours.
The camera interface for both front and back has several options. These
might stuffed to those who do not like fiddling with the default
setting, but with all settings almost visible within the camera
interface, it is easy to tweak the performance for desired results.
Hardware and software
The Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro is powered by the ageing Qualcomm Snapdragon
625 processor, an octacore SoC, coupled with Adreno 506 graphic
processing unit. The performance is not spectacular, but satisfactory.
The heavily customised Zen UI 4.0 over Android Nougat puts a lot of
strain on processor. And bloatware, the default apps that cannot be
deleted, are another disappointment. The smartphone does feel smooth
during normal use, with no signs of a lag or stutter, but on heavy tasks
like playing Asphalt 8 or Need for Speed, it shows some stress on the
processor.
The smartphone offers 64 GB of internal storage and 4GB RAM, enough to let you multitask like a pro.
Battery
The smartphone packs a 3,000 mAh battery with fast charging
capabilities. The battery delivers more than a day’s back-up, thanks to
an energy-efficient processor and proper optimisations at the operating
system level.
Processor-intensive tasks and regular use of cameras, however, drain
the battery faster than other processes and the smartphone runs out of
juice after about 10 hours.
Verdict
Priced at Rs 23,999, the Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro seems to be on the
costlier side. But if you are always on the go and like to capture a lot
of photographs, it could be a good bet for you. With its premium
design, top-notch camera performance and durable battery, the smartphone
is a fine product.
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