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Asus hasn't had a serious smartphone offering for quite a while now (that's if we don't count the Padfone, and we don't), but it seems like the time has finally come for the manufacturer to unleash a brand new handset line. Enter the ZenFone! Asus' latest family of smartphones includes three models - the ZenFone 4, ZenFone 5 and ZenFone 6, none of which being particularly high-end, but the 5" and 6" models shaping up as quite decent upper mid-range packages with their 720p displays and Intel CPUs.
Anyways, let's take a look at how Asus' new ZenFone 5 — which can be considered the most mainstream product of the trio — fares against some formidable opponents such as the Galaxy S4 and the G2. Naturally, since we're comparing it to two flagship devices, the ZenFone 5 will understandably lag behind its opponents in the specs race, but if you think about it, that's still going to be quite an interesting comparison, as it's going to give us a hint of just how close to last year's premium experience one can get with this new crop of affordable Android smartphones. After all, the ZenFone 5 is expected to be priced at $149 off contract, making it quite an alluring proposition.
Asus ZenFone 5 vs Samsung Galaxy S4 vs LG G2
| Design | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| OS | Android (4.4, 4.3) | Android (4.4.2, 4.3, 4.2.2) | Android (4.4.2, 4.2.2) |
| Dimensions | 5.83 x 2.87 x 0.41 inches (148.2 x 72.8 x 10.3 mm) | 5.38 x 2.75 x 0.31 inches (136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9 mm) | 5.45 x 2.79 x 0.35 inches (138.5 x 70.9 x 8.9 mm) |
| Weight | 5.11 oz (145 g) the average is 4.8 oz (137 g) | 4.59 oz (130 g) the average is 4.8 oz (137 g) | 5.04 oz (143 g) the average is 4.8 oz (137 g) |
| Body material | Polycarbonate |
| Display | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Physical size | 5.0 inches | 5.0 inches | 5.2 inches |
| Resolution | 720 x 1280 pixels | 1080 x 1920 pixels | 1080 x 1920 pixels |
Pixel density
Pixel density - The pixel density of a display represents the number of pixels over an area of one inch. It’s measured in “pixels per inch”, or ppi. The higher the number, the more detailed and good-looking the display is. | 294 ppi | 441 ppi | 423 ppi |
Technology
Technology - There are two main screen technologies currently used in phones and tablets: LCD and AMOLED. The former usually features a light source and liquid crystals, while the latter is based on organic light-emitting diodes. Newer LCD variations like IPS-LCD and Super-LCD allow for very accurate color reproduction and very wide viewing angles, where no significant image quality loss is observed. Current AMOLED screens differ in such a way that they can exhibit much more saturated colors (sometimes too much) and incredibly high contrast levels, which is due to black color being completely black in AMOLED displays. | IPS LCD | Super AMOLED | IPS LCD |
| Screen-to-body ratio | 63.84 % | 71.91 % | 76.28 % |
| Colors | 16 777 216 | 16 777 216 | |
| Peak brightness | 450 cd/m2 (nit) |
| Camera | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Camera | 8 megapixels | 13 megapixels | 13 megapixels |
| Flash | LED | LED | LED |
| Aperture size
Aperture size - The aperture of a camera is the opening through which light travels before it reaches the camera sensor. The smaller the number is, the bigger this opening is, allowing for more light to pass. | F2.0 | F2.2 | F2.4 |
| Focal length (35mm equivalent) | 31 mm | 29 mm | |
| Camera sensor size | 1/3.06" | 1/3.06" | |
| Camcorder | 1920x1080 (1080p HD) | 1920x1080 (1080p HD) (30 fps) | 1920x1080 (1080p HD) (60 fps) |
| Features | Digital image stabilization | Optical image stabilization | |
| Front-facing camera | 2 megapixels | 2 megapixels | 2.1 megapixels |
| Video capture | 1920x1080 (1080p HD) (30 fps) | 1920x1080 (1080p HD) (30 fps) |
| Hardware | |||
|---|---|---|---|
System chip
System chip - Most modern handsets use an advanced chip that includes many of the device’s hardware modules like the processor, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and sometimes even the wireless radio. This field shows what particular system chip (or System-on-a-Chip) is used in the phone. | Intel Atom Z2580 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 APQ8064T | Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 MSM8974 |
Processor
Processor - The processor is the main computing component of a phone and is a major factor when it comes to the overall speed of the device. Some more powerful smartphones use dual-core and quad-core processors designed to deliver greater performance. | Dual core, 2000 MHz, Saltwell | Quad core, 1900 MHz, Krait 300 | Quad core, 2260 MHz, Krait 400 |
| Graphics processor | PowerVR SGX 544MP2 | Adreno 320 | Adreno 330 |
System memory
System memory - System memory, or RAM memory is the type of memory that the device uses to temporarily store data from the OS or currently-running apps. The more RAM available to the device, the better the performance will be when multiple or heavier programs are running. | 2048 MB RAM (Dual-channel, 533 MHz) / LPDDR2 | 2048 MB RAM (Dual-channel) / LPDDR3 | 2048 MB RAM (Dual-channel, 800 MHz) / LPDDR3 |
| Built-in storage | 8 GB | 64 GB | 32 GB |
| Storage expansion | microSD, microSDHC, microSDXC | microSD, microSDHC, microSDXC |
| Battery | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Talk time | 34.30 hours the average is 11 h (682 min) | ||
| Stand-by time | 34.4 days (826 hours) the average is 20 days (475 h) | ||
| Talk time (3G) | 17.00 hours the average is 15 h (886 min) | ||
| Stand-by time (3G) | 15.4 days (370 hours) the average is 23 days (543 h) | ||
| Stand-by time (4G) | 13.3 days (320 hours) the average is 22 days (518 h) | ||
| Music playback | 62.00 hours | ||
| Video playback | 11.00 hours | ||
| Capacity | 2110 mAh | 2600 mAh | 3000 mAh |
| Type | Li - Polymer | Li - Ion | Li - Polymer |
| Not user replaceable | Yes | ||
| Wireless charging | Optional |
| Technology | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| GSM | 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz | 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz | 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz |
| UMTS | 850, 900, 1900, 2100 MHz | 850, 900, 1900, 2100 MHz | 850, 900, 1900, 2100 MHz |
| FDD LTE | 800 (band 18), 850 (band 5), 900 (band 8), 1800 (band 3), 2100 (band 1), 2600 (band 7) MHz | 800 (band 20), 900 (band 8), 1800 (band 3), 2100 (band 1), 2600 (band 7) MHz | |
| Data | HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s, UMTS, EDGE, GPRS | LTE Cat 3 (100/50 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s, UMTS, EDGE, GPRS | LTE Cat 4 (150/50 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSDPA+ (4G) 21.1 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s, EDGE, GPRS |
