Asus quietly introduced Zenfone 4.5 or Zenfone 4 A450CG in India today which will pose a better competition to Moto E and other domestic branded devices in the same league. Zenfone 4.5 is listed on flipkart but won’t be available for purchase on 12th July with the rest of Zenfone series. Let’s take a look at what makes Zenfone 4.5 a better option over Zenfone 4.
Asus Zenfone 4.5 Quick Specs
- Display Size: 4.5 Inch LCD, 854 x 480 resolution, 217 PPI, Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection
- Processor: 1.2 GHz dual Core Intel Atom Z2520 processor with PowerVRSGX 544 GPU clocked at 300 MHz
- RAM: 1 GB
- Software Version: Android 4.4.2 KitKat (customized)
- Camera: 8 MP
- Secondary Camera: VGA
- Internal Storage: 8 GB
- External Storage: MicroSD support up to 64 GB
- Battery: 1750 mAh, Non Removable
- Dual SIM (Both MicroSIM)
Asus Zenfone 4.5 Hands on, Quick Review, Price, Features, Camera, Software and Overview HD
Design, Build and Display
The design and build remains the same as other phones in the Zenfone series. The speaker grill which was shifted next to camera sensor in Zenfone 4 is back down on the rear side. Another visible difference on the soft touch back is the addition of LED Flash. MicroSD port is also back at the bottom unlike Zenfone 4 which had it on the side. Overall, we like the metallic keys, design, punchy colors, sturdiness and the metallic trim below navigation buttons in Zenfone 4.5
The display panel is not IPS LCD and thus viewing angles tend to suffer a bit. The display is similar to Zenfone 4 in terms of quality. It has more pixels with FWVGA resolution but the pixel density is slightly less due to larger display size. The display is not the highlight of Zenfone 4.5 but it is very useable.
Processor and RAM
Chipset remains same as the one on Zenfone 4. You get 32 nm Process technology based 1.2 GHz dual core Intel Atom Z2520 dual core with each core capable of executing two threads at a time. The chipset is based on CISC structure which isn’t as performance efficient as RISC used in Snapdragon 200 MSM82xx that we are seeing in budget Tier one manufacturer devices
The chipset contains powerful 300 MHz PowerVR SGX 544 MP2 GPU. RAM capacity is 1 GB andout of this 550 MB is free which is again impressive. Considering the price tag, the chipset doesn’t seem disappointing. We will comment more on the performance after our full review.
Camera and Internal Storage
The rear camera now incorporates an 8 MP camera which brings noticeable improvement in photography. We liked the images that we clicked in our initial review, in low light conditions and it was among the top 8 MP camera units that we have seen. LED flash is also present for low light photography.
Camera software with ASUS Pixelmaster technology seems to work fine. Camera UI is also rich with bust mode and several other options. You can record 1080p and 720P videos from the rear camera.
The internal storage is 8 GB (4.5 GB User available)and can be further extended to 64 GB using Micro SD card support. The storage option is also the best you can get in this price range. Most phones are still stuck on paltry 4 GB storage model.
User Interface and Battery
This is the only Zenfone which will come with latest Android 4.4 KitKat out of the box. Other Zenfone devices are expected to receive OTA upgrade sometime later. The Android 4.4 KitKat is covered by Zen UI, which is not very heavily customized. It’s neat and simple to use.
Battery capacity has been bumped up to 1750 mAh as compared to Zenfone 4. We don’t have stats for how long this will last but you can expect it to last one day with moderate usage.
Asus Zenfone 4.5 Photo Gallery
Conclusion
The Zenfone 4.5 is a very good budget smartphone price at 6,999 INR. It will cost you 1K more than Zenfone 4, but the extra cost will be worth it. Those who didn’t want to buy Moto E because of its dismal fixed focus camera can definitely consider Zenfone 4.5 with a good camera and great value for money features.
