Home News ASUS ZenFone 5 & ZenFone Max Pro (M1) Launched; Unbelievably Low Price!

ASUS ZenFone 5 & ZenFone Max Pro (M1) Launched; Unbelievably Low Price!

May 31, 2018

Today is the day! These two phones are finally launched – and the prices are just unbelievably low. Seems like ASUS learned their mistake with the ZenFone 4 and finally snaps back to reality and listen to customer feedback! Here’s the new ZenFone 5 and ZenFone Max Pro (M1).

For the reviews of both the phones, click on the links below:

As for the notable differences between the two phones, check out this table below:

ASUS ZenFone 5 (ZE620KL)	Differences	ASUS ZenFone Max Pro (M1) (ZB602KL)
Better contrast	Screen	Lower contrast
6.2-inch 19:9 aspect ratio notched display		6-inch 18:9 aspect ratio display
Higher screen-to-body ratio		Lower screen-to-body ratio
Uses earpiece + bottom-firing speaker	Loudspeakers	Only bottom-firing speaker
ZenUI 5.0 with lots of AI technologies	Software	Pure Android 8.1 Oreo
Yes	NFC?	No
802.11ac	WiFi	802.11n
4GB	RAM	Varies – 3GB/4GB/6GB
64GB	Storage	Varies – 32GB/64GB
12MP + 8MP telephoto	Camera	Varies – 13MP/16MP + 5MP depth sensor
3,300mAh	Battery	5,000mAh
USB Type-C	USB type?	USB Type Micro-B

ASUS ZenFone Max Pro (M1)

This is the one smartphone that people have been eagerly waiting for. I was first announced in India with a ridiculously low price and has specs that can compete with the already-affordable Xiaomi Redmi Note 5.

It also comes with a total of 3 different variants – the first variant has 3GB RAM with 32GB storage and 13MP+5MP rear-cameras with 8MP selfie camera. Second variant has 4GB RAM with 64GB of storage and 13MP+5MP rear-cameras and 8MP selfie camera. The last variant has 6GB RAM with 64GB storage and 16MP+5MP rear-cameras with 8MP selfie camera.

All of these variants are equipped with Snapdragon 636 chipset. Continuing the Max legacy, it also has a 5,000mAh battery. That means you can literally game for hours without worrying about the battery. Check out our gaming performance video for the ZenFone Max Pro (M1) here.

The ZenFone Max Pro (M1) is also now the official smartphone for Garena’s Free Fire game. There will be more eSports tournaments coming soon – particularly GAX and SEA Major, with prize pool of RM6,000-RM7,000 and RM10,000-RM12,000 respectively.

Buy the ASUS ZenFone Max Pro (M1) now and you’ll also receive an in-game costume set worth RM80!

But what about the prices? It’s a little confusing, so let’s break it down for you in a simple manner. All prices listed are with 0% GST.

	Prices for ZenFone Max Pro (M1)
	3GB RAM + 32GB storage	4GB RAM + 64GB storage	6GB RAM + 64GB storage
Retail (0% GST)	RM699	RM849	RM999
Lazada Flash Sales	RM649 (Beginning July)	–	–
Exclusive Pre-Order	RM599 (1, 5, 12, 19, 26 June only)	RM799 (2 & 3 June)	–

ZenFone 5

Here comes the next generational upgrade of the ZenFone series. Please don’t get confused with the original Intel-powered ZenFone 5 that released 4 years ago. This new ZenFone 5 is beautiful and actually reminiscent of the ZenFone 3’s design.

Comes equipped with 12MP primary camera and another 8MP wide-angle camera, the ASUS ZenFone 5’s AI aims to improve your photography skills by automatically detecting the scenes and classifying the pictures in folders. However, in our review, we stated that they do need a some tweaking to the AI’s accuracy as of now.

With Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 636 chipset, 4GB RAM, and 3,400mAh battery, the ZenFone 5 can perform your tasks while maintaining a high battery efficiency level. In our test, it’s actually very likely that you’ll survive a day’s worth of usage with the ZenFone 5.

The ZenUI 5.0 is also baked with a slew of AI features – ranging from photography to charging and also to gallery app.

Priced at RM1,299, it’s up to your personal preference if you think it’s worth the extra price or not. You do get quite a lot of improvements, to be honest.

As for the availability, the ZenFone 5 pre-order starts on 4th June 2018