After years of waiting, the Asus Zenfone flagship series has made a comeback in the Malaysian market. This time you have a choice of a compact Zenfone 8 and a larger Zenfone 8 Flip that comes with a motorised rotating camera.
Pricing and availability
Here’s the official pricing of the Asus Zenfone 8 and 8 Flip in Malaysia:
- Zenfone 8 8GB RAM + 128GB storage – RM2,699
- Zenfone 8 16GB RAM + 256GB storage – RM3,299
- Zenfone 8 Flip 8GB RAM + 256GB storage – RM2,999
The devices are now available across all authorised retailers in Malaysia as well as the official Asus Online store on Shopee. The high-spec Zenfone 8 with 16GB RAM + 256GB storage is currently available exclusively on Shopee.
The Zenfone 8 is offered in two colours – Obsidian Black and Horizon Silver, while the 8 Flip is offered in Galactic Black and Glacier Silver.
As an early bird promo from 28th May to 11th June 2021, buyers will get a solidsuit case for free. The case retails for RM99 for the Zenfone 8 and RM119 for the Zenfone 8 Flip.
If you still have an old Zenfone lying around at home, you can get a RM200 instant rebate if you trade in your old device when you buy the Zenfone 8 series. However, this promo is only offered at authorised Asus retailers.
Zenfone 8
The Asus Zenfone 8 is probably the best compact flagship Android phone at the moment. It has a 5.9″ Samsung AMOLED display that pushes a Full HD+ (2400×1080) resolution and a high 120Hz refresh rate. It has an in-display fingerprint sensor and the screen is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus.
Under the hood, it runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor with 5G and it can be configured with up to 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM and up to 256GB of UFS 3.1 storage. Unfortunately, this model doesn’t come with a microSD card storage expansion.
Over at the rear, it gets a dual-camera setup featuring a 64MP main camera with Sony IMX686 sensor and a secondary 12MP ultra-wide-angle shooter. For selfies, it uses a 12MP front camera that sits on a tiny punch-hole.
Despite being the smallest member of the series, the Zenfone 8 also gets IP68 rated dust and water resistance, stereo speakers and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Apart from having 5G connectivity with dual-SIM support, it also supports WiFi 6e, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC and dual-frequency GPS.
Powering the device is a modest 4,000mAh battery that supports Quick Charge 4.0 and PD Charging via USB-C. Out of the box, it runs on Android 11 with ZenUI skin on top. Overall, it weighs 169g and has a thickness of 8.9mm
Zenfone 8 Flip
If you’re looking for something bigger, the Zenfone 8 Flip comes with a larger 6.67″ Super AMOLED display that’s free from notches or punch-holes. Unlike the compact Zenfone 8, it pushes a slightly lower 90Hz refresh rate and it uses Corning Gorilla Glass 6.
Under the hood, it also runs on a Snapdragon 888 processor and it comes with 8GB LPDDR5 RAM and 256GB of UFS 3.1 storage which can be expanded via a microSD card.
The standout feature is definitely its rotating triple-camera setup. It consists of a 64MP main camera, an 12MP ultra-wide-angle lens and an 8MP telephoto camera that offers 3x optical zoom. Since the triple-camera is motorised, the Flip allows you to take auto panorama, quick angle shooting and also motion tracking for videos. Since you can flip the camera to the front, you could take selfies with the best camera array on the device.
The device also gets stereo speakers but unfortunately, it doesn’t come with a 3.5mm headphone jack. Another thing that’s lacking is IP-rated dust and water resistance.
As you would expect with a bigger phone, the Zenfone 8 Flip comes with a 5,000mAh battery which also supports Quick Charge 4 and USB PD Fast charging via USB-C. The device is also running on Android 11 with ZenUI skin on top. Unsurprisingly, the Zenfone 8 Flip is significantly heavier at 230g and it is 9.6mm thick.
