Asus Zenfone Max Pro M1 first impressions: the new budget king?

Asus has today launched a new smartphone dubbed as the Zenfone Max Pro M1 at an event in New Delhi. The phone has been launched after it was announced at an event last week that the company hosted with its online sales partner Flipkart. So, as expected the phone will be available for sale on Flipkart from April 24 at a starting price of Rs. 10,999.

Asus has already revealed at the Flipkart event that the phone will be powered by the Snapdragon 636 SoC, and apart from the processor, the other key specs of the phone are 18:9 FHD+ display, stock Android Oreo, dual rear cameras and good battery life with 5,000mAh battery. This is the global debut of the ZenFone Max Pro M1 in India.

Asus Zenfone Max Pro M1 Specifications

Key Specifications	Asus Zenfone Max Pro M1
Display	5.99-inch IPS LCD
Screen Resolution	FHD+ 1080×2160 pixels
Operating System	Android 8.1 Oreo
Processor	Octa-core
Chipset	Snapdragon 636
GPU	Adreno 509
RAM	3GB / 4GB / 6GB
Internal Storage	32GB / 64GB
Expandable Storage	Yes, up to 256 GB
Primary Camera	Dual: 13MP + 5MP, phase detection autofocus, LED flash
Secondary Camera	8MP, LED flash
Video Recording	2160@30fps, 1080p@30fps
Battery	5,000mAh
4G VoLTE	Yes
Sim Card Type	Dual SIM (Nano-SIM)
Price	3GB – Rs. 10,999 4GB – Rs. 12,999 6GB – Rs. 14,999

Physical Overview

The Asus Zenfone Max Pro M1 is a budget phone from the company, but it features a good design element. The metal unibody design phone comes with a metal body at the back, 2.5D curved glass 18:9 display at the front. The phone, despite being a 5.99-inch device is easy to hold because of its sleek design and lightweight.

As usual, the metal back has antenna bands running at top and bottom. There is a dual rear camera setup at top left corner and a fingerprint sensor and Asus branding in the middle.

The top has microphone and bottom sports a 3.5mm earphone jack, micro USB port and a single speaker. The right side of the phone sports a power button and volume rockers. The left side sports a SIM card tray which also has a dedicated spot for microSD card.

Display

The company has been lately following the latest trends when it comes to design and display. The Zenfone Max Pro M1 also features the latest 18:9 display panel. The 5.99-inch IPS LCD display is an full HD+ display with a screen resolution of 2160 x 1080 pixels and ~403 PPI pixel density. The display is good from all viewing angles and is clearly visible even in daylight.

Camera

The camera is one of the unique selling point of the Zenfone Max Pro M1. The phone sports a dual rear camera setup. The primary rear camera is 13MP which comes with features like LED flash, EIS and PDAF and the secondary camera is a 5MP sensor for depth effect. In our initial testing, the cameras seem to offer good pictures at least in good lighting conditions.

Up front, there is an 8MP selfie camera with features like portrait mode and beautify. The front camera also performs well if the lighting is good. It can record HD videos at 1080p.

Camera Samples

Hardware and Performance

The device is powered by the powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor which is clocked at 1.8 GHz. The chipset comes with Adreno 512 GPU for graphics rendering. The octa-core CPU is good enough for moderate usage that includes gaming as well.

In terms of memory, the device comes in two variants – 3GB RAM + 32GB internal storage and 4GB RAM + 64GB internal storage. The device comes with a dedicated microSD card slot for storage expansion up to 256GB. Additionally, the company will soon launch a device with 6GB RAM and 64GB internal storage.

If we talk about software, the phone runs the latest stock Android Oreo 8.1. Asus has for the first time ditched its ZENUI and the phone comes with stock experience in India too. Overall, performance wise the phone is showing good results and there has been no sign of lagging in moderate usage.

Battery and Connectivity

The battery is the highlight of the phone and Zenfone Max Pro M1 comes with a massive 5,000mAh Li-ion non-removable battery. The bigger battery means more juice. Apart from Fast charging, the device also comes with reverse charging.

If we talk about connectivity options, the phone comes with usual features like Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Hotspot, GPS etc. and the good thing about connectivity is the 4G VoLTE supporting phone comes with a dedicated slot for microSD card.

Conclusion

The Asus Zenfone Max Pro M1 is the latest budget phone that comes with some latest features such as an 18:9 display, a dual rear camera and stock Android Oreo 8.1. The massive battery of 5,000mAh capacity is another plus point of the phone. Overall, with such specs, it will directly compete with the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro. However, with its features like stock Android and a bigger battery, it could be the better buying choice among the two.

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