Asus Zenfone 3 line-up launched in Malaysia starting from RM799

Asus came in with a shock and awe campaign as they launched the complete line-up of ZenFone 3 phones in Malaysia along with their new ZenBook, Transformer 3 and Transformer 3 Pro notebooks with a grand launch at the KLCC Convention Centre.

Asus Corporate Vice-President Eric Chen unveiled the complete line-up of ZenFone 3 phone variants that consist of the flagship workhorse ZenFone 3, the premium ZenFone 3 Deluxe, the ZenFone 3 Ultra, the ZenFone 3 Max and the ZenFone 3 Laser. The ZenFone 3 Max and ZenFone 3 Laser were unveiled recently in Vietnam a month or so back while the flagship ZenFone 3, ZenFone 3 Deluxe and Ultra were first seen at Computex in Taipei sometime in June. As of today, the ZenFone 3 is immediately available for sale with the ZenFone 3 Ultra ready for preorders. The other three phones are slated to arrive by the end of this month.

From left: The ZenFone 3 5.2-inch, the Zenfone 3 5.5-inch, The ZenFone 3 Deluxe, The Zenfone 3 Laser, the ZenFone 3 Max and the ZenFone 3 Ultra

 
Asus ZenFone 3
The ZenFone 3 is Asus’ eminent workhorse flagship phone that comes in two configurations. The higher end, or rather larger configuration comes with a 5.5-inch 1080P Super IPS display, a Snapdragon 625 octacore processor – one of the first to sport the new 14nmFinFET process, a rear 16-MP camera with OIS and a fast 0.03 second autofocus time, 4GB RAM and 64GB of expandable storage via a hybrid SIM card. The front comes with an 8-MP selfie camera capable of 1080p video. The built-in battery is a 2,600mAh job with fast charging tech. The slightly smaller variant comes with a 5.2-inch display but retains similar specs that retails at RM1,499 while the larger one retails at RM1,699.

Asus ZenFone 3 Deluxe
The ZenFone 3 Deluxe is Asus’ premium flagship that comes at a pricetag that’s higher than even the Galaxy Note 7 at RM3,299 for the highest end variant but comes with an impressive array of hardware. Externally, it comes with a posh aluminium metal finish. The highest end variant of the ZenFone 3 Deluxe comes with the latest Snapdragon 2.4GHz processor, an impressive 6GB RAM and 256GB of onboard expandable storage.

The screen is a 5.7-inch 1080p Super Amoled panel that offers brighter, punchier colours over conventional LCD. The rear camera is a 23-MP, Sony-sourced IMX318 camera with a 0.03 fast autofocus with 4-axis OIS and EIS. The built-in 3000mAh batter offers QuickCharge 3.0 support. The phone sports a hybrid SIM card slot. The ZenFone 3 Deluxe also has a fingerprint reader on the rear inset below the camera. It also has a slightly more affordable variant that retains similar specs bar a different processor and less storage – a Snapdragon 820 2.15GHz processor and 64GB storage for RM2,599.

Zenfone 3 Ultra
The ZenFone 3 Ultra’s main claim to fame is the inclusion of a humongous 6.8-inch 1080p Super IPS display that has a dedicated imaging processor capable of 4K video playback – essentially this allows for smooth playback on a 1080p display.

The ZenFone 3 Ultra is a massive phablet that is quite a task to hold one-handed

The phone also aims to be exceptional on the audio front as it integrates a pair of 5-magnet stereo speakers and Hi-Res audio support. The phone also comes with a pair of Asus’ new premium ZenEar S headphones out of the box. The hardware consists of a Snapdragon 652 1.8GHz processor, 4GB RAM, 64GB of integrated storage augmented by a hybrid SIM card, a rear fingerprint reader and a 4,600mAh battery that supports Quick Charge 3.0 support for fast charging. The ZenFone 3 Ultra is also able to act as a power bank to charge other devices. The rear camera of the ZenFone 3 Ultra is similar to the ZenFone 3 Deluxe.

ZenFone 3 Max
The ZenFone 3 Max emphasises cost and battery life with the inclusion of a large 4,100mAh battery that also supports fast charging and reverse charging.

The hardware consists of a Snapdragon 615 processor, 3GB RAM, 32GB of expandable storage and a 5.2-inch HD display. The rear fingerprint reader offers a 0.3 second unlock time. The ZenFone 3 Max is the cheapest of the line-up at RM799.

ZenFone 3 Laser
The ZenFone 3 Laser has a 5.5-inch 720p display, a rear 13-MP IMX314 Sony-sourced camera that comes with a fast 0.03 second laser autofocus that’s been improved over the last generation of ZenFone kit, 4GB RAM, 32GB of expandable storage, a front-facing 5-MP camera and a built-in 3,000mAh battery. The ZenFone 3 Laser retails for RM999.

The prices and hardware configuration for the new ZenFone 3 range for Malaysia is as follows:

ZenFone 3 Deluxe (Snapdragon 821 processor/6GB RAM/ 256GB storage) RM3,299
ZenFone 3 Deluxe (Snapdragon 820/6GB RAM / 64GB storage) RM2,599
ZenFone 3 Ultra (4GB RAM/64GB storage) RM2,599
ZenFone 3 Max (3GB RAM/32GB storage) RM799
ZenFone 3 Laser (4GB RAM/32GB storage) RM999
ZenFone 3 (5.5-inch 1080p display, 4GBRAM/64GB storage) RM1,699
ZenFone 3 (5.2-inch 1080p display, 4GBRAM, 64GB storage) RM1,499

The ZenFone 3 in both sizes is immediately available for sale with the rest slated for arrival later this month. For more news swing by Asus’ official site at www.asus.com/my