ASUS Unveils Groundbreaking Zenfone Zoom and Zenfone AR: An 8GB RAM Smartphone Powerhouse

In June of last year, Lenovo made waves by announcing the world’s first smartphone with Tango, Google’s highly innovative augmented reality (AR) technology. Alongside Tango, Google also championed Daydream, its bespoke virtual reality (VR) platform. Both platforms, though impressive, have yet to achieve the market saturation that Google initially envisaged. However, this newest development may signal a tide change. Technology giant, ASUS, has now announced that its newly unveiled smartphone, the ZenFone AR, will come equipped with both Tango and Daydream technologies- a combination sure to send shockwaves throughout the tech world.

The Zenfone AR is an impressive piece of hardware, sporting a sleek 5.7-inch QHD AMOLED touchscreen. Its specifications are nothing short of extraordinary: The ZenFone AR packs a motion tracking camera and a fisheye depth-sensing camera, drawing users into a world of immersive augmented and virtual realities. The device runs on Qualcomm’s top-of-the-line Snapdragon 821 chipset and boasts a remarkable 8GB of RAM, ample power to efficiently support both AR and VR functionality. Furthermore, it comes with a 23MP Sony IMX318 sensor, featuring optical image stabilization (OIS), electronic image stabilization (EIS) and the ability to record 4K videos.

ASUS gives consumers an expected release window of April to June for the Zenfone AR. Pricing information is still under wraps though ASUS has promised to provide more details come launch time.

But the AR variant is not the only thing ASUS has to offer. The Zenfone 3 Zoom follows in the footsteps of last year’s Zenfone Zoom, boasting a primary and zoom camera. This year’s edition ups the ante with dual cameras at the rear and a zoom function with a magnification of 2.3x. Add to that a secondary camera, similar to the iPhone 7, designed to create a bokeh effect and users have a phone that delivers a richer, more dynamic photography experience.

The Zenfone 3 Zoom comes equipped with twin 12 MP lenses, featuring an f/1.7 aperture and Sony’s IMX362 sensor, perfect for vivid, detailed photography. The smartphone is lightweight and sleek, tipping the scales at a mere 170g and measuring just 7.83mm in thickness. This petite powerhouse also offers a 5.5-inch 1080p touchscreen and a Snapdragon 625 SoC. On the battery front, it is equipped with a 5,000mAh powerhouse, promising long hours of usage without constant charging.

The Zenfone 3 Zoom will be available for purchase in February. Currently, the price remains undisclosed. In terms of the operating system, the Zenfone 3 Zoom will come installed with Android 6.0 Marshmallow. However, one can keep the fingers crossed and hope for an early update to Google’s latest Android 7 Nougat.