Official video shows Zenfone 3 Ultra unboxing and hands-on

October 15, 2016 Categories: Video, Zenfone 3 Ultra, ZU680KL by 0 Comments

If you aren’t thinking of buying the Zenfone 3 Ultra, this video may change your feelings. Obviously at 6.8-inches it’s going to be considered too big by many, however it’s going to give you a much more enjoyable experience. More screen is just going to make things look better and easier to interact with.

It’s hard to say what the shortcomings are of the Zenfone 3 Ultra. The build quality is looking pretty dapper here. It’s quite possibly the nicest looking of all the Zenfone 3 models, but it’s hard to judge from afar.

The video has a quick unboxing and shows the contents which includes a headset and the charging cables/charger. There is a light overview of the specs, but take note of the expandability of 2TB via microSD card. That’s going to let you store tons of video for those times when you need some entertainment. The battery is also noted at 4,600mAh which is large, but it’s not widely known yet how good the battery life is on the Zenfone 3 Ultra.

So far so good! We love the looks of this one but too bad there is no news about a North American release!

Watch the unboxing video and hands-on:

Asus firmware update(s) for Zenfone 3 Deluxe improves camera image quality

October 13, 2016 Categories: News, Software Updates, Zenfone 3 Deluxe, Zenfone 3 Deluxe Special Edition, ZS570KL by 0 Comments

It’s tricky to read reviews and trust what is being said. Sometimes details are missed or features are simply not mentioned. When it comes to smartphone reviews, photo quality is a big part of most reviews and most reviews feature some comparisons to other top smartphones. As it turns out, many of the Zenfone 3 Deluxe reviews may misrepresent the camera capabilities.

The Zenfone 3 Deluxe photo quality from earlier reviews may not be accurate for one reason. It’s called firmware updates. Asus has listed “Update camera to improve image quality” in almost every firmware update since early September!

The following firmware updates all list updates to the camera to improve image quality:

  • Version WW_4.11.40.928 – September 2, 2016
  • Version WW-4.11.40.983 – September 20, 2016
  • Version WW4.11.40.1085 – October 3, 2016

With this information, you should careful not to misjudge the quality of the photos that the Zenfone 3 Deluxe is able to take. If you are viewing an article showing sample photos from the Zenfone 3 Deluxe, it might be worth checking the date of the article and cross referencing with these firmware updates. Better yet if you see articles that list the firmware version on the Zenfone 3 Deluxe being used when taking the photos. It’s a detail that you will likely find missing however.

A lot of the photo samples online will be from early firmware versions which may in fact short change the phone’s capabilities. Early review units for early reviews mean the photos will likely be worse that what you would get today from the same camera. Many of the photo comparison articles are outdated from what we’ve seen. How outdated? In a funny way, the only way to see the improvements from the firmware would be to do a side-by-side comparison with a Zenfone 3 Deluxe running an early firmware version vs. a newer firmware version. In other words, it’s very difficult to know just how much better the image quality is thanks to these updates. After three consecutive updates though, I think it’s safe to say it should be better now than it was at launch.

Based on the top listing in the firmware for “Update camera to improve image quality”, Asus is taking the quality issue seriously. With the Sony IMX 318 sensor inside the Zenfone 3 Deluxe, the photo quality should be among the best from a smartphone. What we hope for are reviews of the Zenfone 3 Deluxe that are utilizing the newer firmware versions. Only then you will get a true idea of photo image quality. At that point, doing photo comparisons is actually representative of the differences among the other top photo taking smartphones on the market.

[source: Asus.com]

 

Canada Price Battle: Google Pixel XL vs. Zenfone 3 Deluxe

October 12, 2016 Categories: Canada, Comparisons, Price, vs. Zenfone 3 Deluxe, ZS570KL by 0 Comments

Canadians do (not) get to enjoy an inflated price for products in comparison to the US market. This is life for Canadians but the exchange rates have meant even more of a divide in terms of prices.

So for our Canadian visitors, let’s look at the Zenfone 3 Deluxe vs. Google Pixel XL price comparison. This is relevant now because Canadian retailers will be shipping the Zenfone 3 Deluxe very soon and pre orders have begun at some retailers.

We see Canadian pre orders for the Zenfone 3 Deluxe available at NCIX and Amazon.ca right now. US pre order details are here.

We’ve done a vs. article for the Zenfone 3 Deluxe versus the Google Pixel XL. Barring reading that article, here are the main differences spec wise between the two phones.

  • The Pixel XL has the slightly faster Snapdragon 821 vs. the Snapdragon 820 in the Deluxe.
  • The Pixel XL in this comparison has 32GB which is less storage (although you can pay a lot more money for the 128GB model) than the 64GB that comes with the Deluxe. Also consider the Deluxe has expandable microSD card storage and the Pixel XL does not.
  • The Pixel XL does have a better camera, although give the Deluxe some time to iron out the software because it packs the newest Sony sensor. As it is, Pixel XL has top of class camera but don’t discount the quality of the Zenfone 3 Deluxe camera either.
  • The Pixel XL comes with 4GB of RAM and the Deluxe comes with 6GB of RAM.
  • The Pixel XL of course can tout the “pure” Android experience and the quick OS updates. That’s fine, however consider that Google is only offering 2 years of updates to their phone and 3 years of security updates. So essentially after three years, it appears you cannot use the phone. The question is what Asus will provide in terms of support with OS and security. We are efforting to find out what Asus is going to say publicly about their term of support for the Zenfone 3 Deluxe. I’ve had the Nexus 5 and I can honestly say that the pure experience is no longer a selling point or at least it’s not worth paying a premium for in my opinion.
  • The design of these two phones is something that may or may not sway your decision. People have been quite critical of the Pixel XL design because of its thickness. Yes the Pixel XL doesn’t have the camera bump but it is wedge shaped as a result. The all metal design with the invisible antenna line design is a premium looking design.

Google Pixel XL (32GB) – CAD 1,049

google-pixel-xl-price-canada-vs-zenfone-3-deluxe

Asus Zenfone 3 Deluxe (ZS570KL) – CAD 699

zenfone-3-deluxe-canada-price-cad

[Note: If you’re from the US, price for the Google Pixel XL is USD 769 and the Zenfone 3 Deluxe is USD 499. A difference of USD 270.]

Summary: So consider the $350 additional costs for the Pixel XL and whether it’s worth buying a phone with less storage and less RAM but a slightly faster processor. Is the pure Android OS experience and better camera worth an extra $350?

I’m just wondering if not having expandable storage and being tied to wifi would limit the use and enjoyment of the device. You can’t view your photos and videos if you’re outside a wifi zone. More than that, it’s a lot harder to put your movies or TV shows on the phone to watch while in transit or traveling.

You will have to pay another $130 to get the 128GB Pixel XL but to increase the Zenfone 3 Deluxe to 128GB, you would need to buy a 64GB microSD card which costs around $40 to $60.

If you care about price, then you need to look at the pros and cons for each device and decide what sacrifices you’re willing to make. You need to decide how much the features are worth to you.

The reality is the price difference is very substantial. Perhaps you can find a compelling reason to spend $350 to $480 for the Pixel XL, but it’s safe to say the Asus Zenfone 3 Deluxe offers the best overall value.

If you’re intersted in buying the Zenfone 3 Deluxe in Canada, pre orders are available at NCIX and Amazon.ca right now. If you are from the US, check our article here.

India gets Zenfone 3 Laser in stores for INR 18,999 – Cheap enough?

October 12, 2016 Categories: India, Shopping and Deals, ZC551KL, Zenfone 3 Laser by 0 Comments

India now has availability of the Zenfone 3 Laser (ZC551KL) for INR 18,999. For one month it’s available as an exclusive with Flipkart and then will be more widely available after that.

zenfone-3-laser-zc551kl-official-image-1

The initial feedback from the India market wasn’t favorable towards the Zenfone 3 pricing, so according to Peter Chang, Region Head and Country Manager for India, the Zenfone 3 Laser is the “perfect blend of affordability and luxury”.

Based on prices around various global markets, the Zenfone 3 Laser does seem to balance price with features and specs. It’s a 1980 x 1280 HD display with a size of 5.5-inches. It’s packs 4GB RAM, Snapdragon 430 processor @ 1.4GHz, Adreno 505 GPU, 3,000mAh battery along with the solid performing cameras.

There are not a lot of reviews out there yet for the Zenfone 3 Laser, but we expect to read more soon. As a more affordable option, it does seem good for what you get. It’s not the fastest processor out there, but for a lot of people it’s going to perform just fine. The display is good quality which should be taken into account. It’s a nice looking phone with a solid display.

Model Number: ZC551KL-4J038IN (Silver)

Do you live in India? If you do, please participate in our poll.

Romania gets their official Zenfone 3 launch

October 12, 2016 Categories: News, Price, Release Date, Romania by 0 Comments

It has taken a while, but Asus has now officially launched the Zenfone 3 series in Romania. The first question you might want to know is how much do they cost? We can tell you that the phone are priced between RON 379 and RON 3,349. Asus is hoping that they can gain a market share above 10% with this launch which would mean around 200,000 phones sold.

There is some interesting stats though from the Romania smartphone market. This goes along with what some markets have been commenting on which is the increased price of the 3rd generation Zenfone vs. the 2nd generation. Asus suggests that within Romania, seventy percent of smartphones are priced below RON 1,000. So let’s take a closer look what Asus is bringing to Romania and how their prices look. (Note: easier said than done, we still can’t find the actual retail prices yet!)

Models coming to Romania:

  • Zenfone 3 Deluxe (ZS570KL)
  • Zenfone 3 (ZE552KL / ZE520KL)
  • Zenfone 3 Ultra (ZU680KL)
  • Zenfone 3 Max (ZC520TL)
  • Zenfone Go

zenfone-3-launch-event-romania

[source: Asus Romania Facebook / Techinstyle.ro]

 

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