Asus Zenfone 9 review

introduction

Compact size, big possibilities: Zenfone 9’s slogan, printed on the same box as the phone, sums up its priorities perfectly. One of the most pocket-sized high-end phones on the market, the latest Asus features a powerful chipset, new main camera, and increased battery capacity. Unfortunately, this time around there is no Zenfone Flip: the little Zenfone 9 is the only Zenfone 9.

And yes, it is small. Asus cut a few fractions of a millimeter here or there from the already tiny size of the Zenfone 8 and kept the weight at 169g, making the larger battery even more impressive. The improved efficiency of the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 should work wonders with the extra juice, and the fall version of Qualcomm’s high-end chipset is even more powerful than the OG one.

The other key development is the gimbal-mounted main camera that comes with a larger sensor than last year’s model. The ultrawide remains unchanged, but features autofocus which is not yet a given in 2022. Likewise, the reused AF-capable selfie camera sets the Zenfone 9 apart from the crowd.

The rest remains mostly unchanged. The 5.9-inch OLED display refreshes up to 120Hz, the battery charges up to 30 watts, there is still a headphone jack and stereo speakers, the body is IP68 rated. A somewhat surprising twist is the side-mounted fingerprint reader – the old phone had it underneath what would otherwise be the same display. Here are a lot of more numbers.

The specifications of Asus Zenfone 9 at a glance:

• Body: 146.5×68.1×9.1mm, 169g; Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus), plastic back, aluminum frame; IP68 dust / water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 minutes).
• Screen: 5.90 “Super AMOLED, 120Hz, HDR10 +, 1080x2400px resolution, 20: 9 aspect ratio, 446ppi.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM8475 Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 (4 nm): Octa-core (1×3.19 GHz Cortex-X2 and 3×2.75 GHz Cortex-A710 and 4×1.80 GHz Cortex-A510); Adreno 730.
• Memory: 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 16GB RAM; LPDDR5, UFS 3.1.
• Operating system / software: Android 12, ZenUI.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f / 1.8, 24 mm, 1 / 1.56 “, 1.0µm, PDAF, gimbal stabilization; Ultra wide angle: 12 MP, f / 2.2, 113˚, 14 mm, 1 / 2.55 “, 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF.
• Front camera: 12 MP, f / 2.5, 28 mm (standard), 1 / 2.93 “, 1.22µm, dual pixel PDAF.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 8K @ 24fps, 4K @ 30 / 60fps, 1080p @ 30/60 / 240fps, 720p @ 480fps; gyroscope-EIS, HDR; Front camera: 4K at 30fps, 1080p at 30/60 fps.
• Battery: 4300 mAh; Fast charging, USB Power Delivery 3.0.
• Various: Fingerprint reader (side mounted); NFC; 3.5 mm jack; stereo speakers.

Asus Zenfone 9 unboxing

The Zenfone 9 arrives in a dull gray recycled cardboard box with an oversized “9” printed on the lid. Inside, you get a 30W charger and a USB-C cable to match it.

There’s also a hard plastic snap-on case that covers the back and most sides and has raised edges for the cameras to ensure the glass doesn’t come in contact with surfaces. The case is also in the same color as the frame of the phone, therefore whitish in the Moonlight White version, black in the others. However, it is not as soft to the touch as the phone panel. For more information on this year’s design changes, join us on the next page.