Last year, the Asus Zenfone 7 and Zenfone 7 Pro really impressed us. This year, we’ve already been impressed by the Asus ROG Phone 5 family. Now, we’re gearing up for the next releases from the company within the Asus Zenfone 8 series!
It’s likely there would be two phones launched in the Zenfone 8 family: a vanilla model and a Pro variant. However, there are conflicting rumors about these phones and Asus’ own teases seem to be wholly related to the vanilla model. With that in mind, we thought we’d put together this rumor hub to give you all the information in an easy-to-digest format!
Be sure to keep this page bookmarked as we will update it with new rumors and official announcements as they happen.
Name, models, and release date
Asus has already confirmed that the next iteration of its flagship phone series will be the Asus Zenfone 8. This makes sense as Asus has stuck pretty well to its numbered naming scheme since the launch of the Zenfone 2 in 2015 (which came after the original Zenfone 6 — it was very confusing before that).
What isn’t so clear is how many models there will be in the series. Last year, there was a regular model and an upgraded variant. Earlier this year, we heard rumors that Asus could launch a “mini” variant in the 2021 family, which would have suggested three models: a regular version, a pro version, and a mini version.
See also: Asus ROG Phone 5 review: King of the hill
However, it is starting to look like there would once again be two models in the Asus Zenfone 8 family. Asus has been sending out teasers related exclusively to the Zenfone 8, with no mention of a Pro model. The official teasers have focused heavily on how compact the regular variant is, which suggests this is the “mini” model we heard rumors about before. As such, we are thinking the Zenfone 8 will be smaller (but still powerful) and the pro model will be bigger and better.
Whatever the case, we’ll find out on May 12 the exact details, since Asus has confirmed that date for the series launch event.
Asus Zenfone 8 design
Over the past two years, the most iconic aspect of the Zenfone series has been the “flippy cam” — the mechanism that allows the rear-facing camera module to flip around to be used as a selfie camera when needed. This format allowed the displays of the more recent Zenfone 6 and Zenfone 7 series to be all-screen, with no notches, cutouts, or bezels.
However, it doesn’t look like the flippy cam will make it to the vanilla Asus Zenfone 8. A teaser image Asus shared on Twitter (mirrored above) confirms that the phone will have a left-aligned display cutout for the selfie camera. With a built-in selfie camera, there would be no need for the flippy cam.
It doesn't look like the vanilla model will have the iconic 'flippy cam' of the past two models.
Now, that doesn’t mean that the hypothetical Zenfone 8 Pro wouldn’t keep the flippy cam. However, Asus hasn’t teased any info about the Pro model, so we have no concrete information to share on that — if it even exists.
Elsewhere, a physical invitation letter sent to select members of the media included a cutout that appears to show the dimensions of the Asus Zenfone 8. The phone appears to have a height of 148mm and a width of 69mm. That would make the phone roughly the size of the vanilla iPhone 12, not the iPhone 12 Mini. Still, the iPhone 12 is quite small when compared to most Android phones. The Samsung Galaxy S21, for example, is 151 x 71mm, so the Zenfone 8 should be slightly smaller.
Finally, Asus confirmed that there will be a headphone jack included with the Zenfone 8. Yes, really!
Asus Zenfone 8 specs
One of the first teasers Asus pushed related to the Zenfone 8 series heavily suggests that we’ll see the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 under the hood. Although it doesn’t come right out and say so, the question of “How many eights can you fit in your phone?” isn’t exactly subtle.
If the vanilla model has the SD888, it’s all but assured that the Pro model would have it as well, assuming it exists. With that chipset onboard, the Asus Zenfone 8 series should be incredibly fast, incredibly powerful, and support 5G connections.
See also: 2021 SoC showdown: Snapdragon 888 vs Exynos 2100 vs Kirin 9000 vs Apple A14
Elsewhere, an earlier rumor suggests that the phone could have a 120Hz display refresh rate. This has become a flagship necessity over the past year, so that’s not too surprising. The source of that rumor also suggests we could see Full HD+ resolutions on both phones, a dual-cam setup on the back of the vanilla model, and a quad-cam setup on the back of the Pro model.
Other than these items, though, other reliable spec rumors are slim at the moment.
Price and availability
When the Asus Zenfone 6 launched, it was priced to move. At $499, the base-level model was in the same range as a OnePlus flagship of the time. The following year, though, the price of the Zenfone 7 series shot up dramatically. Check out the pricing below:
- Asus ZenFone 6: $499 / €550
- ZenFone 7: €699 (~$847)
- ZenFone 7 Pro: €799 (~$968)
Hopefully, Asus doesn’t attempt to increase the pricing even more for the 2021 Zenfone 8 family. These are tough times for most people, so an ultra-expensive smartphone wouldn’t exactly be the best move. Besides, if there’s a Zenfone 8 Pro model, Asus can feel free to give that a high price while keeping the vanilla model more affordable.
We’ll find out the exact pricing details on May 12 when the phones officially launch.
As for availability, Asus has never been great about making its phones easily accessible from all areas of the world. That being said, its teasers so far have come from its global/US-based Twitter account, which does suggest that we’ll at least see some availability of the phones in this country. However, it’s a safe bet that the phones would only be available online for most folks, and grabbing one won’t be easy.
That’s everything we know so far about the Asus Zenfone 8! Be sure to bookmark this page as we will update it with more information as we get closer to the launch.
from Android Authority https://ift.tt/3cOxaiW
