The unusually compact and affordable Asus ZenFone 8 with 5G is now available in the US
Despite the relatively low popularity of last year's iPhone 12 mini that could prompt Apple to ditch the 5.4-inch screen size as early as 2022, one company still believes in the potential of diminutive mobile devices, aiming to "redefine portable designs."
Of course, the Asus ZenFone 8 is not quite as small and as lightweight as the aforementioned pint-sized member of the iPhone 12 5G family, and its 5.9-inch Super AMOLED display would have been considered outright gigantic just a few years ago.
But compared to many of the best phones money can buy in 2021, this Snapdragon 888 powerhouse is indeed pretty compact, squeezing those 5.9 inches of 120Hz smoothness into a premium glass-and-metal body measuring 148mm in height, 68.5mm in width, and 8.9mm in depth while tipping the scales at 169 grams.
Formally unveiled last month, the ZenFone 8 is now up for grabs through its manufacturer's official US e-store, which is a pretty good regional turnaround for a company that's not exactly a household name stateside.
Get your Asus Zenfone 8 right here
Technically, the GSM unlocked handset comes with a recommended price point of $629.99, but Asus will knock 30 bucks off if you order this bad boy in a single 8GB RAM/128GB storage configuration by July 13 without having to make any extra effort.
At $599.99, the Asus ZenFone 8 is almost affordable enough to rival the best budget 5G phones out there, and at least on paper, you do get 5G support here as well. Obviously, you won't be able to use this thing on Verizon, but we have good reason to hope the handset is compatible with AT&T and T-Mobile's low and mid-band 5G networks in addition to good old fashioned 4G LTE technology.
Apart from its top-shelf overall performance, compact body, and outstanding display, the 5.9-inch device was also praised for its decent cameras and solid battery life in our in-depth review last month.
On top of everything, the Asus ZenFone 8 comes with a trusty old headphone jack and water-resistant design as well, looking like the ideal device for cash-strapped Android power users who don't feel bigger necessarily equals better.
Too bad the phone doesn't have better US availability at the moment, with no words on a future release at Best Buy, B&H, or Amazon either.
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