ASUS will be announcing a speculated newcomer to the mid-range segment that follows the 18:9 aspect ratio trend of smartphones this year. Let’s check out what it can do against the Huawei Nova 2i in our Specs Comparison. Let’s start!
The ASUS Zenfone Max Plus M1 is a smartphone that has the battery and screen display power. It has a 5.7″ 18:9 FHD+ IPS LCD display with 2160 x 1080 resolution, a MediaTek MT6750T processor, a 32GB internal storage, a 4GB RAM, a 16MP + 8MP (wide-angle) AutoFocus(AF) rear cameras with LED flash, an 8MP front camera with screen flash and face unlock, and a 4,130mAh battery.
The Huawei Nova 2i is one of the most popular mid-range smartphones out on the market this year. It has a 5.9″ 18:9 IPS LCD display with 2160 x 1080 resolution, a Kirin 659 processor, a 64GB internal storage, a 4GB RAM, 16MP + 2MP rear cameras, a 13MP + 2MP front cameras, and a 3,340mAh battery.
Here are their detailed specs:
| ASUS Zenfone Max Plus M1 | Huawei Nova 2i |
|---|---|
| 5.7-inch FHD+ IPS display @ 2160 x 1080px | 5.9-inch 18:9 IPS LCD display @ 2160 x 1080 pixels |
| 2.5D curved glass | 2.5D curved glass |
| MediaTek MT6750T 1.5GHz Octa-core 64-bit | HiSilicon Kirin 659 2.36GHz octa-core |
| Mali-T860MP2 GPU | Mali-T830 GPU |
| 32GB internal storage | 64GB internal storage |
| 4GB RAM | 4GB LPDDR3 RAM |
| expandable via microSD (dedicated) | expandable via microSD up to 256GB (uses SIM2) |
| Dual 16MP f/2.0 + 8MP f/2.4 wide-angle AF rear cameras w/ LED flash | 16MP+2MP rear cameras, f/2.2 with LED Flash |
| 8MP front camera w/ screen flash, Face Unlock | 13MP+2MP front cameras, f/2.0 |
| 4G LTE | 4G VoLTE |
| Dual SIM (nano), Dual standby | Hybrid Dual-SIM (nano+nano/microSD) |
| WiFi | WiFi 802.11 b/g/n |
| Bluetooth 4.2 | Bluetooth 4.2 |
| GPS, A-GPS | GPS with aGPS support, GLONASS |
| Gyroscope | - |
| Fingerprint scanner | Fingerprint scanner |
| Facial Recognition | - |
| ASUS ZenUI 4.0 (Android 7.0 Nougat) | Android 7 Nougat with Huawei EMUI 5.1 |
| 4,130mAh battery | 3,340mAh Li-Ion battery |
| 152.6 x 72.7 x 8.8 mm | 156.2 × 75.2 × 7.5mm |
Here are the advantages of each smartphone:
ASUS Zenfone Max Plus M1
+ Better performing GPU
+ Dedicated microSD card slot
+ Higher secondary camera resolution
+ Front screen flash
+ Gyroscope
+ Facial Recognition/Face Unlock
+ Larger battery
Huawei Nova 2i
+ Larger screen size
+ Better performing CPU
+ Larger internal storage
+ 4G VoLTE
Table of Contents
DISPLAY
Both smartphones have the same display specs except for their screen size. The Zenfone Max Plus M1 has a 5.7-inch screen size while the Nova 2i has a larger 5.9-inch. Viewing experience-wise, both are already decent, however, a larger screen size is always favorable when watching videos.
CPU AND GPU
There is a significant difference between the performance of the CPUs of both smartphones. The Zenfone Max Plus M1 has an MT6750T processor while the Nova 2i has Kirin 659. Based on our review of the Doogee BL5000, which has the same processor as the former, the Antutu benchmark score that it yielded is only at 43k whereas the latter’s is 63k. As for their GPU, the Zenfone Max Plus M1 has the upper hand with its Mali-T860 compared with the Mali-T830 of the Nova 2i. In terms of gaming potential, the former has a better chance of playing high graphics games.
CAMERA
We have not taken sample shots for the Zenfone Max Plus M1 but its camera show promising specs. It has a dual rear camera setup with a wide-angle secondary camera. The front camera has a facial recognition feature that can be used as face unlocking mechanism. The Nova 2i, on the other hand, has a quad-camera setup which means that it has dual rear and front cameras. Here the sample shots that we took from the device.
BATTERY
A Zenfone Max wouldn’t be complete without its large battery capacity. The Plus M1 has a 4,130mAh battery. The Nova 2i has a 3,340mAh battery which lasts for 8 hours and 46 minutes when tested in the PCMark Battery test. We have not tested the former’s battery life but we can safely assume that it would last longer than the latter.
OTHER FEATURES
The Zenfone Max Plus M1 has a Gyroscope sensor, facial recognition, and a dedicated microSD card slot. The Nova 2i, on the other hand, has 4G VoLTE.
PRICE
The ASUS Zenfone Max Plus M1 is said to be priced below Php13,000 while the Huawei Nova 2i is priced at Php14,990.
What do you guys think? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
