Most smartphones nowadays are all about size. If it’s a flagship device, it has to be big in everything — big screens, more cameras, powerful chipsets, large RAM and storage, and huge batteries. ASUS did that with the Zenfone 8 Flip. But in the case of the Zenfone 8, the company decided to keep things compact while maintaining the power under the hood. Check out our first thoughts on this device below.
When you take the Zenfone 8 out of its box, you will immediately notice how compact it is. It’s narrow at 68.5mm and thin at 8.9mm but a bit tall at 148mm. It’s not as compact as, let’s say, the iPhone 12 mini, but compared to other Android devices we’re accustomed to, the Zenfone 8 will snug pretty well in your hands.
We can attribute the small footprint to the 5.9-inch screen. It uses a Super AMOLED panel so you’re getting punchy colors and deep blacks, has a Full HD+ resolution for a pixel density of 446ppi and has a 120Hz refresh rate for smooth animations and transitions. Mounted on top of it is Gorilla Glass Victus.
It has noticeable bezels, though, which give off an old-school look. In addition, it has a hole punch on the upper left for the 12MP selfie camera and earpiece/loudspeaker in the top bezel.
On the right, we have the volume rocker and the power/lock button that also doubles as a smart key for quickly launching apps and features, like the camera app or Google Assistant. The buttons are solid and clicky, and given the dimensions of the Zenfone 8, they’re easy to reach.
Up top, we have the 3.5mm audio jack and secondary microphone.
Down at the bottom are the dual-SIM (nano) slot, main microphone, USB-C port, and main loudspeaker.
Flip it on its back, and you will see the protruding camera module that houses the 64MP main shooter, the 12MP ultra-wide, microphone, and LED flash. Right in the middle is the “ASUS Zenfone” branding.
The unit we have is the Obsidian Black model that uses a new anti-glare frosted-glass finish. It looks really sleek, hides fingerprints and smudges, and has a nice texture to it. It looks and feels premium, has a decent heft, and thanks to the 3D curved back and frame, it’s easy to grip. Users will also appreciate its IP68 dust and water resistance, which is a feature the Zenfone 8 Flip doesn’t have.
The Zenfone 8 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G SoC with a 2.84GHz octa-core CPU, Adreno 660 GPU, up to 16GB RAM, and up to 256GB UFS 3.1. For the battery, it has a 4,000mAh battery with support for 30W fast charging, while for software, it runs on ZenUI 8 based on Android 11. We tried AnTuTu v8, and we got a score of 729,752.
The ASUS Zenfone 8 8GB + 128GB is priced at PHP 34,995, while the 16GB + 256GB model is at PHP 39,995. We’ll know more about this device’s performance in our full review, so stay tuned.
ASUS Zenfone 8 specs:
5.9-inch FHD+ (2400 x 1080) Samsung AMOLED display
120Hz refresh rate, 1100 nits
HDR 10, HDR10+ certified
Corning Gorilla Glass Victus
Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G
Adreno 660
6GB, 8GB, 12GB, 16GB LPDDR5 RAM
64GB, 128GB, 256GB UFS 3.1 storage
Dual-rear cameras:
• 64MP Sony IMX686 F1.8 (wide)
• 12MP Sony IMX363 (ultrawide)
12MP Sony IMX663 front camera
5G, 4G LTE
Dual-SIM (nano)
WiFi 6/6E
Bluetooth 5.2
GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO, QZSS, NavlC
IP65/IP68 rating
Dual stereo speakers w/ Dirac HD Sound
Multi-magnet stereo speakers with dual Cirrus Logic CS35L45 smart amplifiers
Triple microphones with OZO Audio Zoom & ASUS Noise Reduction Technology
ZenUI 8 (Android 11)
4,000mAh battery w/ 30W fast charging
Obsidian Black, Horizon Silver, Moonlight White
148 x 68.5 x 8.9mm
169g
