ASUS launches Zenfone 10 with up to 144Hz display and improved cameras
As revealed earlier this month, ASUS launched this Thursday (29) the Asus Zenfone 10, the company’s newest flagship that follows the compact device formula responsible for popularizing the line. Bringing small tweaks to the design compared to its predecessor, the novelty compensates with weight adjustments in several other aspects, with emphasis on the screen, which reaches a higher refresh rate in games, and the cameras, designed to take better advantage of the Gimbal stabilization. .
Keeping the proposal of being a flagship, the Zenfone 10 comes equipped with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, accompanied by up to 16 GB of LPDDR5X RAM and up to 512 GB of UFS 4.0 storage. An important detail highlighted by the manufacturer is that all versions use LPDDR5X and UFS 4.0 memories, something that may seem obvious, but there are good reasons to remember — some companies have used slower storage in more basic variants of cell phones.
The device also retains much of the general look of the previous generation, but there are tweaks: the back promises to be more resistant to marks and wear, and is now composed of 50% recycled plastic, reducing the carbon emissions of manufacturing. Camera circles are more discreet and there are fewer inscriptions, while the ASUS logo has been added to the lower right corner. The variety of colors is another feature to return this year, with black, blue, green, white and red options.
Responsible for the compact design of the Zenfone 10, the 5.9-inch screen returns with Samsung’s new AMOLED E4 panel. The resolution is Full HD+ of 2400 x 1080 pixels and there is protection with Gorilla Glass Victus glass, PWM dimming to avoid discomfort when brightness is low, as well as peak brightness of 1,100 nits, but it is at the refresh rate at which we have the biggest change.
By default, the display reaches 120 Hz, and can be configured to reach this speed in a fixed way (along with the 60 Hz and 90 Hz options) or automatically. In games, however, users will be able to access the Game Genie app to apply a kind of overclock, taking the rate to an even more fluid 144 Hz. According to ASUS, the option is restricted to games for optimization reasons – it is likely that the idea is to save battery life.
Much of the giant’s presentation focused on cameras, and there seems to be good reason for that, considering the new features implemented. We still only have two rear lenses, equipped with a 50 MP Sony IMX766 main sensor with optical stabilization (OIS) Gimbal and a 13 MP ultrawide with 120° field of view and macro function. For selfies, the old 12 MP camera has given way to a much larger 32 MP sensor, which uses subpixels in RGBW (red, green, blue and white) format to capture more details.
The main news here are the optimizations adopted to get more out of the integrated six-axis gimbal. In addition to improving autofocus, ASUS has developed the so-called adaptive electronic stabilization (or Adaptive EIS, in the original in English), which only applies the necessary clip according to the movement detected by the phone, in order to record with greater stability without sacrificing both the field of view. That said, it’s still possible to use maximum cropping for better stabilization.
Other notable additions include 3D audio capture powered by Nokia OZO, the use of Snapdragon 8 Gen 2’s semantic segmentation capability to apply different post-processing algorithms across the image, HyperClarity function between 4x to 8x zoom levels that uses RAW data to ensure sharp text and other elements in capture, portrait mode with 2x zoom and Light Trail mode, which records motion trails even without a tripod.
On the battery, we still have a capacity of 4,300 mAh, but thanks to more efficient processing and system improvements, the device would be delivering almost 13% better autonomy – number of hours of use were not disclosed. Charging reaches 30 W with the charger included in the box and, following requests, 15 W wireless charging was implemented, which would take the smartphone from 0 to 100% in just over two hours.
Completing the technical sheet is 5G connectivity, Wi-Fi 7, NFC, Bluetooth 5.3 with support for the new high definition Qualcomm aptX Lossless codec — whose quality surpasses Sony’s LDAC —, stereo sound optimized by Dirac, P2 headphone jack featuring Dirac Virtuo spatial audio technology, a fingerprint reader integrated into the power button on the side, and IP68 certification for water and dust resistance.
Zenfone 10 adds new tricks to Zen UI
Based on Android 13, the Zenfone 10’s software has also received attention and offers some interesting new features, starting with Quick Shot. By pressing the volume down button twice with the screen off, the user triggers the camera’s photo capture, speeding up the recording of important moments. The ZenTouch, which takes advantage of the power button’s fingerprint sensor to read gestures, reached version 2.0 with features aimed at facilitating navigation.
It is now possible to slowly scroll down website pages, view all messages in the notification panel, and even fast forward or rewind videos on YouTube, without having to touch the screen. ASUS version for the shortcuts on the side of the display, the Edge Tool was another aspect to receive updates, now incorporating the quick settings buttons normally accessed through the notifications panel.
Other than that, the Always-On Display has been made more customizable and has gained the option to display images chosen by the user, and the Phone Clone function has been improved to allow the transfer of more items and files. Finally, a button to take longer screenshots has been added.
Despite the numerous improvements, the update regime is still quite modest compared to competitors: two major system updates are guaranteed, with four years of security updates. ASUS explains that its smartphone team is smaller than that of other manufacturers, and therefore needs to optimize available resources, which is the best the brand can do at the moment. Even so, the company guarantees to constantly study the possibility of expanding support.
price and availability
ASUS Zenfone 10 arrives first in Europe in the coming days, with the same price as its predecessor — €799, or about R$4,200 in direct conversion and without taxes. It was also confirmed that the device will arrive in the US in the third quarter, but values have not yet been revealed. Brazil should receive the news in the future, but no information was given at the moment.
