ASUS Launches Zenfone 8 in US: Starting at $599
by Andrei Frumusanu on July 2, 2021 9:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Mobile
- Asus
- Smartphones
- Zenfone 8
Following the phone’s initial announcement mid-May, this week ASUS has officially launched their new ZenFone 8 in the US starting at a price of $599. The ZenFone 8 is a bit unusual in the market as it is trying to fit itself in the niche of a small flagship device – at least in terms of performance.
| ASUS ZenFone 8 Series | |||||
| ZenFone 8 Flip |
ZenFone 8 |
||||
| SoC | Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 1x Cortex-X1 @ 2.84GHz 3x Cortex-A78 @ 2.42GHz 4x Cortex-A55 @ 1.80GHz Adreno 660 @ 840MHz |
||||
| DRAM | 6 GB LPDDR5 | 6/8/16 GB LPDDR5 | |||
| Storage | 128GB UFS 3.1 + microSD |
128/256GB UFS 3.1 | |||
| Display | 6.67" AMOLED 2400 x 1080 (20:9) 90Hz 200Hz Touch |
5.9" AMOLED 2400 x 1080 (20:9) 120Hz 240Hz Touch |
|||
| Size | Height | 165.08 mm | 148.0 mm | ||
| Width | 77.28 mm | 68.5 mm | |||
| Depth | 9.6 mm | 8.9 mm | |||
| Weight | 230 grams | 169 grams | |||
| Battery Capacity | 5000mAh 30W charging (PD3.0) |
4000mAh 30W charging (PD3.0) |
|||
| Wireless Charging | - | ||||
| Rear Cameras | |||||
| Main | 64MP IMX686 0.8µm pixels (1.6µm 4:1 16MP) f/1.7 |
64MP IMX686 0.8µm pixels (1.6µm 4:1 16MP) f/1.7 w/OIS |
|||
| Telephoto | 8MP 3x optical zoom f/2.4 |
n/a | |||
| Wide | 12MP IMX363 1.4µm pixels Dual PDAF 113° FoV ultra-wide f/2.2 |
||||
| Extra | - | ||||
| Front Camera | Flip-camera Design Front cameras = Rear cameras |
12MP IMX663 1.22µm |
|||
| I/O | USB-C | USB-C 3.5mm headphone |
|||
| Wireless (local) | 802.11ax WiFi-6 Bluetooth 5.1 LE + NFC |
||||
| Other Features | Triple-function Power Button w/ Capacitive Fingerprint Sensor | IP68 Dual Speakers Under-screen fingerprint sensor |
|||
| Dual-SIM | Dual nanoSIM | ||||
| Launch Price | 21,999 TWD (USD~748, EUR~626) |
starting $/€599 | |||
Today’s US launch now also confirms the pricing of $599 for the 128GB variant, and $699 for the 256GB variant, lining up with the European prices (tax normalised) that were disclosed a few weeks back. ASUS’ launch window and availability seems to have improved compared to past generation ZenFones, which usually had taken several months to see wider spread availability.
We had briefly reviewed the ZenFone 8 back in May, and refer to the article for more in-depth coverage:
We found the ZenFone 8 to be an interesting device which strengths as well as drawbacks. The performance of the phone is great given the Snapdragon 888 chipset as well as the 120Hz refresh rate screen, both packing a punch for a device of this smaller form-factor. Possible deal-breakers for users are the lacklustre camera quality which hasn’t seen much improvements versus its predecessor. While the ZenFone 8 is a step-up for ASUS’s mobile portfolio, it still has troubles in terms of representing itself as a good value alternative to devices such as the $699 Galaxy S21, even at a $100 lower price point.
The official US variant ZenFone 8 can be ordered off ASUS’s own online store.
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Operandi - Friday, July 2, 2021 - link
I like as close to stock Google as possible and don't know anything about how Asus does Android but this about the size of phone I'm looking at which would by default put it on my short list but the lack of wireless charging is a hard stop. I've been using it since the Nexus 4, I'm not going on without it.deskjob - Friday, July 2, 2021 - link
I think you'll like it. Asus in recent iterations are pretty much stock android but with some actually useful additions. I really like the battery management stuff where it helps minimize battery degradation.If I wasn't on Verizon right now, I would totally jump at the zenfone 8. Pretty much my dream phone!
sonny73n - Saturday, July 3, 2021 - link
Whateverrabidpeach - Monday, July 12, 2021 - link
both lg g8x i recently used and oneplus have optimized charging feature, perhaps it is recent android thing, not an assssus thing. with fast charging on oneplus i dont miss wireless myself. the real question is how many people will run to this when samsung with better camera is just +$80 ...neogodless - Friday, July 2, 2021 - link
The camera is literally the only showstopper for me here. However, I wonder if it's like the OnePlus 7 Pro I have... the camera is good, but if I sideload the Google Camera, I get photos competitive with a pixel. It's not the hardware but the software that lets it down. I'll have to scour some forums and see if others try this once it lands in consumer's hands. (But I don't want to be the guinea pig.)The screen, specs and overall size are really nice. Would buy in a heartbeat if the camera rocked.
Drazick - Friday, July 2, 2021 - link
Is there a non root way to install Google Camera on OnePlus 7 Pro?iphonebestgamephone - Tuesday, July 6, 2021 - link
Root isnt needed atleast not for just the main cam. I think you can even use the other cams too now.Thud2 - Friday, July 2, 2021 - link
I like to see the headphone jack and also as someone who uses my phone at my desk all day I like to see a front side fingerprint sensor. Back side sensors for desk users is like putting one of the keys on my keyboard under the bottom of the keyboard.Silver5urfer - Friday, July 2, 2021 - link
This combo is weird, the cheaper one has a 3.5mm jack but no SD slot and bigger one has an SD slot but no 3.5mm jack. Look at their pricing, $100 for a 2x increase in storage.Also the bigger one will cost $799 then. Still with my past Zenfone 2 experience, ASUS Is a bad choice due to poor support options in US. Heck even their ASUS ROG mobo division has poor support.
With all these boxes tick and no holepunch bs I may have to wait for that Sony flagship which is insanely expensive or their budget Xperia 10 III variant which is also a bit higher cost than the competition in CPU aspect but the screen is OLED and has both 3.5mm and an SD slot.
bjorn.brandt - Saturday, July 3, 2021 - link
I have the phone in Europe. Sw is buggy as hell. Pocket mode is not working, had some calls to 911 in my pocket. There is luckily possibility to open with power button press and then the fingerprint sensor wakes up. Also every second call gets muted. Seems the proximity sensor sw is not working as it should.But size wise nice phone. The photos are OK but not a camera junky. But it seems mostly stock android. Battery life is one day usually 10-20% left