Zenfone 7 Professional hands-on: An enormous cellphone with a slick flipping digital camera

In recent times, cellphone makers have cleverly experimented with concealing the front-facing cameras of telephones in an effort to ship actually uninterrupted shows that many customers crave.  Samsung, for instance, launched a household of A80 telephones final yr that had reversible pop-up cameras. Oppo’s Discover X ($677 at Walmart) had a motorized pop-up selfie digital camera and OnePlus adopted rapidly behind with its personal OnePlus 7 Professional ($680 at Amazon). Final yr, Taiwanese electronics producer Asus launched the Zenfone 6, which had a digital camera module that flipped from the again to the entrance (and vice versa) and eradicated the entrance digital camera all collectively. 

Asus is constant that development this yr with its Zenfone 7 and Zenfone 7 Professional telephones. The handsets characteristic a show-stealing digital camera that flips excessive with a click on of a button. This lets you use the cellphone’s  three cameras on the again as front-facing cameras so you’ll be able to seize higher-resolution images on extra highly effective cameras normally reserved just for the rear.

The telephones even have 5G, probably the most cutting-edge processor accessible and big batteries accompanied with fast-charging expertise. With these updates, Asus bumped up costs considerably (extra so than we expect is justifiable). In its native Taiwan, the handsets begin at 21,999 and 27,990 Taiwanese {dollars}, or roughly $750 and $950. For context, when the Zenfone 6 launched final yr it began for less than $499. The Zenfone 7 collection will even go on sale in Europe subsequent month, however Asus sadly does not presently have plans to launch the telephones within the US.

Zenfone 7 Professional’s digital camera module

Of the 2 telephones I used to be capable of deal with the Zenfone 7 Professional. As talked about earlier, there are three cameras to select from: A 64-megapixel sensor that makes use of Sony’s IMX 686 flagship sensor, a 12-megapixel ultra-wide lens and a telephoto lens. As an improve from final yr, the telephoto lens is new and it could zoom as much as 12x. Asus additionally upgraded the flip digital camera’s motor to at least one that it says is smoother, extra sturdy and extra versatile attributable to  the addition of a special approach sensor. I will talk about digital camera efficiency, put up pattern images and provides my ideas on this reversible digital camera in my overview subsequent week, so examine again with CNET for all these particulars.

Zenfone 7 Professional is massive and clunky, however the 90Hz is sweet

The Zenfone 7 Professional is massive, chunky and one of many heaviest telephones I’ve ever used. Utilizing it with one hand is extremely cumbersome, so more often than not I used each palms to navigate. The Zenfone 7 Professional contains a 6.67-inch AMOLED show with speedy 90Hz refresh charges. Most telephones have a 60Hz show, which suggests the display screen refreshes 60 occasions a second. With the sooner display screen, the animations look smoother on the Zenfone 7 Professional and textual content and pictures are crisper. I am additionally a giant fan of the notchless show and love the unobstructed expertise that the Zenfone affords.

Zenfone 7 Professional’s battery and efficiency thus far

On the coronary heart of the Zenfone 7 Professional is the new Snapdragon 865 Plus processor, which is meant to be 10% sooner than the 865 processor discovered on most  premium Android telephones. The cellphone additionally has 8GB or 12GB of RAM (relying on the mannequin) and 128GB or 256GB of inner storage. To this point, I have been very proud of the efficiency. However once more, examine again for my full overview subsequent week to see the precise benchmark outcomes after I examine it to different telephones with the 865 chipset. 

The Zenfone 7 Professional’s large 5,000 mAh battery is similar measurement because the Zenfone 6. It is also the identical capability because the high-end Galaxy S20 Extremely’s battery. Although the capability did not enhance with the brand new iteration, Asus did add issues like extra battery care options and a sooner 30W charger, which is quoted to juice up the battery in 93 minutes. I’ll  check this declare out myself, however that is a lot sooner (on paper not less than) than the 153 minutes wanted to recharge the Zenfone 6’s battery.