The Asus ZenFone Zoom, dubbed the “world’s thinnest smartphone with 3x optical zoom,” is now official in the Philippines.
What with a large camera noticeably protruding at the back, the Asus ZenFone Zoom is no doubt a phone for photography-inclined mobile users. This 13-megapixel rear-facing camera is a whopper, boasting 3x optical zoom (12x total zoom), 10-element Hoya lens and an ultra-fast (0.03s) laser autofocus.
Shots are guaranteed to be free of blurs thanks to a 4-stop optical image stabilization, and subjects appear exactly in their true color temperatures when the dual-LED real tone flash is enabled. A physical shutter button sits on one side of the phone for easy shooting, and it also functions as a shortcut button for the camera app. For selfie fanatics, the ZenFone Zoom comes with a 5-megapixel front-facing shoter.
Despite its focus on photography, the Asus ZenFone Zoom is still a smartphone—and a decent one at that. Flaunting a 5.5-inch display with IPS panel and 1080-by-1920 Full HD resolution, the ZenFone Zoom features an aluminum unibody frame with a premium leather finish at the back. The phone utilizes an Intel Atom Z3590, a 64-bit quad-core processor clocked at 2.5GHz.
The optical camera may have added some thickness and bulk, but the ZenFone Zoom still manages to have an ergonomic design and fits comfortably in the pocket. Furthermore, the ZenFone Zoom offers PowerVR 6430 graphics, dual-SIM configuration, LTE connectivity, Wi-Fi 802.11ac and 3000mAh battery. It runs Android 5.0 Lollipop out of the box, with Zen UI modifying the user interface for a unique Asus experience.
Formally launched in Cebu City during the Sinulog Festival 2016, the Asus ZenFone Zoom has an official price of Php26,995. That seems like a hefty price, but note that this is for the version with a monstrous 128GB onboard storage.
Wow from 300$ phone priced at 600$ talk about pinoys love tubong lugaw