The highly-affordable 5-inch Android 4.4 smartphone will be priced at S$249 (1GB RAM, 8GB memory), S$269 (2GB RAM, 8GB memory) and S$299 (2GB RAM, 16GB memory).
The ZenFone 5 LTE will be available in Charcoal Black, Pearl White, Cherry Red and Champagne Gold colours (Champagne Gold will be available for only 16GB model). The purple colour shown above is not available in Singapore.
ASUS officially launched its ZenFone 5 LTE in Singapore today at Suntec Convention Centre.
The ZenFone 5 LTE will be available at all ASUS brand stores, Best Denki, Challenger and Newstead stores on 30 August.
It will also be available at the ASUS Official Online Store and Lazada.
All three major mobile operators – M1, SingTel and StarHub – will offer the ZenFone 5 LTE with their respective LTE data plans.
What catches the attention is the affordable price tag. ASUS boasts that the sub-S$300 phone gives consumers the best value-for-money market.
And I can believe that.
Shipping with the latest Android 4.4 KitKat, the phone is smooth and responsive, and more than enough for what most people use their smartphones for – making calls, sending messages, taking photos, checking social media status, and surfing the Web.
In fact, I’m impressed with their use of PixelMaster technology to enhance the low-light capability of the phone.
I like the subtle, understated Champagne Gold version of the ASUS ZenFone 5 LTE.
I believe Nikon and Sony have used similar pixel aggregation technology to extend the optical zoom of their cameras and professional camcorders respectively.
The result is that the ZenFone 5 is capable of taking images in extremely low light because of the “enhanced sensitivity” of the aggregated pixels.
Under low-light mode, the resolution of photos taken are reduced to a quarter from the normal resolution of 8 megapixels to 2 megapixels.
Below are more details on the ZenFone 5 LTE from the press release and the specifications below that.
Singapore (27 August, 2014) – ASUS today announced the availability of the ZenFone 5 (A500KL) with Long-Term Evolution (LTE) wireless communication, a first for the ZenFone range as ASUS looks to cater to global market demands.
It is also a 2014 Red Dot Award-winner thanks to its iconic ASUS concentric circle design and a ceramic finish. The ZenFone 5 LTE features ASUS ZenUI, the latest mobile interface developed around the concepts of freedom, expression and connection.
Positioned as the 5-inch LTE smartphone with power-packed performance at an affordable price tag, the ZenFone 5 LTE will be retailing at S$299 in four colours – Charcoal Black, Pearl White, Cherry Red and Champagne Gold* – at all three major mobile operators, Best Denki, Challenger, Newstead and ASUS brand stores from 30 August.
Furthermore, users may also purchase directly from the ASUS Official Online Store and Lazada.
Incredible Mobile Performance with Qualcomm Quad Core Processor and LTE Speed
Featuring a stunning, Red Dot award-winning design that weighs just 145g, the ZenFone 5 LTE features the iconic ASUS concentric circle design, a tactile ceramic finish and will be available in four colours – Charcoal Black, Pearl White, Cherry Red and Champagne Gold.
The ZenFone 5 LTE has two built-in cameras, with the main 8-megapixel PixelMaster camera for professional-looking photos.
This camera boasts a backside-illumination (BSI) sensor and wide-aperture f/2.0, 5-element lens with exclusive ASUS PixelMaster technology to capture images that are on par with most standalone digital cameras; while the 2-megapixel front camera comes with an f/2.8 lens.
PixelMaster technology improves camera performance and comes with features like Selfie, Depth of Field, and Low-light modes as well as the Time Rewind burst mode.
The ZenFone 5 LTE features a 5-inch HD 1280 x 720 IPS display, a Qualcomm MSM8926 quad-core processor running at 1.2 GHz, up to 2GB LPDDR3 RAM and an Adreno™ 305 graphics processor.
Made of Corning® Gorilla® Glass 3 for added toughness and damage resistance, the 5-inch display also comes with an anti-fingerprint coating which provides additional protection against scratches and fingerprint smudges.
In addition, the ZenFone 5 LTE is also fitted with the GloveTouch technology which increases display sensitivity and responsiveness, making it responsive enough to be used with a gloved hand.
The ZenFone 5 LTE comes with either has 8GB or 16GB of onboard eMMC flash storage which can be further expanded by a 64GB microSD card, as well as a lifetime 5GB ASUS WebStorage account.
Optimised User Experience with the All-New ASUS ZenUI
The ZenFone 5 LTE features ASUS ZenUI, the all-new mobile interface developed around the concepts of freedom, expression and connection.
It has a new visual design with modern ‘flat’ icons, vivid colour themes, animations, new ringtones and notification sounds, and a clean layout to present information clearly.
ASUS ZenUI also includes two features — What’s Next and Do It Later.
What’s Next puts important information like upcoming appointments, new messages and missed calls from VIP contacts, weather at the next destination, and more — front and center on the lock screen, the home screen and in the notification drawer.
Do It Later App
If a user is in the middle of writing an email and receives a phone call, a simple button tap automatically creates a reminder to call that person back.
Users can also save interesting items, like articles, YouTube videos, or any web page, to read later.
Each reminder and saved item is collected in the separate Do It Later app and includes a shortcut to perform the related action, such as call a contact or view a webpage.
Do It Later frees the user to focus on the task at hand, without forgetting about other important things on their agenda.
ASUS ZenUI also makes file sharing easier thanks to a host of apps.
Party Link improves on the sharing experience by letting users share files or photos with up to three parties simultaneously, with images immediately shared the moment they are taken with the ASUS ZenUI Camera app.
Share Link lets users easily share files stored in their ZenFone easily with other devices when in Wi-Fi hotspot mode.
Below are the specifications for the ASUS ZenFone 5 LTE.
| ASUS | ZenFone 5 LTE |
|---|---|
|
Processor |
Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ MSM8926 quad-core 1.2GHz with Adreno™ 305 450MHz graphics |
|
Operating System |
Android KitKat 4.4 with ZenUI |
|
Display |
|
|
Cameras |
|
|
Memory & Storage |
|
|
Networks (3G/LTE) |
|
|
SIM Type |
Micro-SIM (Single) |
|
Wireless |
|
|
Connectivity |
|
|
Sensors |
G sensor/E-Compass/Proximity Light/Hall Sensor |
|
Battery |
2110mAh; Min. 2030mAh, non-removable Li-polymer battery
|
|
Colours |
Charcoal Black / Pearl White / Cherry Red / Champagne Gold (only in 16GB) |
|
Size |
148.2 x 72.8 x 5.5~10.34mm |
|
Weight |
145g |
Tags: Android, Android 4.4, Asus, KitKat, LTE, PixelMaster, Singapore, smartphones, ZenFone, ZenFone 5