Asus dropped a bomb today by announcing the world’s first smartphone with 4 GB RAM, the Zenfone 2, for just Rs 22,999 (top end model with 64 GB storage). Ther is another model with 4 GB RAM and 32 GB ROM that costs Rs 19,999. Needless to say, the new Asus Zenfone 2 (4 GB RAM) will definitely going to steal a lot of potential buyers from Mi 4 of Xiaomi and the OnePlus One.
So here we have compared the Asus Zenfone 2 (4 GB RAM, 64 GB ROM) with that of 64 GB models of Mi 4 and OnePlus One. The Mi 4 64 GB currently available from Flipkart for Rs 21,999 while the OnePlus One’s 64 GB model is available from Amazon for Rs 21,998.
Design and Display
The Asus Zenfone 2 has a huge 5.5 inch IPS display with full high definition resolution and Corning Gorilla Glass 3 – same as the OnePlus One. The Mi 4 too has full HD resolution but has a smaller 5 inch display. But that means the Mi 4’s display has much better pixel density. So it is up to you to decide whether to go for a 5 inch display or a bigger 5.5 inch display; the difference in the Pixel density won’t pinch you that much; realistically speaking you may not even differentiate the difference in pixel density.
Coming to the design fact, the OnePlus One has a never-seen-before back panel which has a sandpaper like finishing which may or may not appeal you. Personally, I never liked it as it gives a rough feeling and doesn’t feel smooth. But many of my colleagues praised it for the same. So it is kinda personal choice. It measures 152.9 x 75.9 x 8.9 mm and weighs 162 grams.
The new Zenfone 2 too is quite distinct with volume and shutter button at the back. It has a curvier body with the thinnest point measuring 3.9 mm while the thickest part (middle) measures 10.9 mm. It is 77.2 mm wide and 152.5 mm wide. It weighs 170 grams. Most importantly, the Zenfone 2 has a metal body which has been praised by many reviewers for its smoothness.
The Xiaomi Mi 4 is 68.5×139.2×8.9 mm and weighs 149 grams. It has a plastic body and was deride by many for its cheap and not-so-solid look.
So in the design war, it seems that the Asus Zenfone 2 has a bit of advantage over the two.
Camera
The Asus Zenfone 2 has a 13 Megapixel auto focus rear camera and a 5 megapixel fixed focus front camera with wide angle lens. Both the cameras are armed with PixelMaster camera technology. There is an LED flash in the rear panel too.
The Mi 4 also comes with a 13 megapixel auto focus rear camera with Sony Exmor sensor, 6 element lens, f/1.8 aperture, and Blue glass filter. There is an LED flash light in the rear panel too. It has much better looking 8 megapixel front camera.
The OnePlus One has a 13 megapixel rear camera with Sony Exmor sensor, 6 lenses and dual LED flash light support. It can record slow motion videos and HD videos at 120 fps. In the front, it boasts a 5 megapixel camera.
I wouldn’t and cannot comment which one of them is the better camera phone without actually reviewing them side by side, so let’s head to other aspects of the devices while calling it a draw in the camera section for the time being.
Battery
The Asus Zenfone 2 has a 3000 mAh Li-Po battery which is un-removable. Like other Asus devices, this phone too comes with the Ultra battery mode. Asus has though not said anything about the battery back up. The OnePlus One has a slightly bigger 3100 mAh LiPo battery. On the other hand, despite having a smaller 5 inch display, Mi 4 offers a 3080 mAh battery.
OS and Processor
The Asus Zenfone 2 has Android 5.0 Lollipop operating system and the 64 GB version with 4 GB RAM has Intel Atom Z3580 Chipset that has a 2.3 Ghz quad core processor. Note that this version has a 64 GB micro SD card slot as well. Like all Asus devices, the Zenfone 2 too has ZenUI which is being hailed by many for its features like ‘What’s Next’ scheduler and All Task feature which is like the HTC Blinkfeed.
The Xiaomi Mi 4 has the Snapdragon 801 chipset comprising a 2.5 GHz Processor and Adreno 330 graphics processor. It has 3 GB of RAM and its MIUI interface is quite simple to use. The Mi 4 however has no expandable storage so you have to be contend with its Internal Memory only.
The OnePlus One too comes with the same Snapdragon 801 chipset comprising a 2.5 GHz processor and Adreno 330 graphics processor as well as 3 GB of RAM. It too doesn’t have any expandable storage slot.
Connectivity
The Asus Zenfone 2 two SIM card slots and offers 4G connectivity. It has WiFi (a/b/g/n/ac), Bluetooth 4.0, NFC, and a Micro USB port as well. Besides, the Zenfone 2 has GPS with GLONASS for navigation.
The Mi 4 too has Bluetooth 4.0, WiFi, WiFi Hotspot, micro USB port, GPS with A-GPS and GLONASS and Beidou. However, it has only one SIM slot and it is compatible with 3G networks only.
The OnePlus One also comes with only one SIM slot but it has 4G connectivity apart from the dual Band WiFi, GPS with GLONASS, Bluetooth 4.0, micro USB port and NFC.
Conclusion
As is quite evident from the above comparison, the Asus Zenfone 2 certainly looks like a better phone than the Mi 4 and OnePlus One. Be it the design or storage, or processing power is concerned, the Zenfone 2 looks terrific on paper. We will try to review the Asus Zenfone 2 as soon as possible, so till then keep checking The Mobile Indian.