Asus Zenfone 9 evaluate

Small telephones don’t promote. Or so goes the accepted knowledge, particularly in a yr when it seems probably that Apple will drop the Mini from the iPhone 14 collection, and Sony killed off its diminutive Xperia 5 line. 

No-one advised Asus that although, so it’s bringing again its compact Zenfone flagship – and actually the Zenfone 9 is even smaller and shorter than final yr’s Zenfone 8. 

To be truthful, the corporate’s not alone. Whereas Apple and Sony could also be shifting away from one-handed handsets, Asus itself factors out that it’s dealing with renewed competitors from the Samsung Galaxy S22 and Xiaomi 12, each of that are smaller than their predecessors. 

The Zenfone 9 is smaller than both although, and due to Asus’s efforts to nonetheless squeeze in flagship specs this could be the go-to small cellphone for Android customers – right here’s why. 

Design and construct 

• Compact and light-weight 
• Grippy plastic end 
• IP68 score 

There’s quite a bit to love about the way in which the Zenfone 9 seems. The apparent beginning place is the scale – due to utilizing a small 5.9in show it is a small cellphone by trendy requirements, and at 169g it’s additionally impressively light-weight. 

At 9.1mm thick it’s not the thinnest cellphone round, however you’d actually not name it chunky, and that very slight additional thickness feels irrelevant when you consider how compact the cellphone is general. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The design is novel in different respects too although. The end, for one. Asus has used a brand new polymer end for the rear of the Zenfone 9, which it says is extra scratch-resistant than typical cellphone plastics.  

Out there in 4 colors – black, blue, crimson, and an off-white – it additionally boasts a grippy, textured end. To be sincere, I didn’t like this at first; I believed the cellphone felt low-cost and virtually like paper, although I’ve largely come round to the feeling, and definitely respect the truth that it feels safe and durable. It’s completely different to most telephones although, and it’s possible you’ll wish to test it out in individual earlier than committing to the cellphone. 

I’ve additionally had some issues with the end throughout my evaluate. Asus first despatched me a white mannequin of the cellphone, which I discovered picked up refined yellow-ish stains inside a number of days. The corporate says that I acquired one in all a small batch of white fashions that by no means acquired the ultimate protecting coating throughout manufacture, and the blue alternative I used to be despatched hasn’t had the identical challenge – however I’d nonetheless be cautious about shopping for it in white. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

To finish on a great notice, the protecting requirements listed below are high notch too. The show is coated in Gorilla Glass Victus, the newest commonplace, and the cellphone as an entire has an IP68 score for mud and water-resistance. 

Show and audio 

• Punchy 120Hz AMOLED display screen 
• Headphone jack 
• Disappointing stereo audio system 

The important thing to the Zenfone 9’s measurement is the choice to make use of a 5.9in show. That’s far smaller than most flagships – lots of that are pushing near 7in now – and extra compact than even the likes of the Galaxy S22, Xiaomi 12, or iPhone 13 (although it nonetheless dwarfs the 5.4in iPhone 13 Mini). 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Regardless of the scale, the Zenfone 9’s display screen isn’t quick on specs. It’s an AMOLED panel with a 120Hz refresh price and a Full HD+ decision, and it additionally helps HDR10+ content material. It’s brilliant too – 1100nits peak brightness in keeping with Asus, which in apply was sufficient to make it comfy to make use of even in brilliant daylight. 

Basically, that is one of the best small display screen round, with no actual compromises other than its measurement. The one spec lacking is LTPO refresh price scaling that may enhance battery life, however I can’t say I actually missed it. 

As for audio, the standout function is the inclusion of a 3.5mm headphone jack – particularly spectacular in a cellphone that’s each this small and waterproof, the 2 widespread excuses for dropping the jack. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Sadly, the cellphone’s stereo audio system impressed me much less. That’s a little bit odd, since Asus usually handles audio nicely and even partnered with Dirac to tune the cellphone, however I discovered it weak and tinny it doesn’t matter what I performed. A lot of that’s probably all the way down to the sheer measurement – larger telephones match larger audio system – nevertheless it’s nonetheless a slight disappointment. 

Specs and efficiency 

• Innovative Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip 
• Cooling limits efficiency considerably 
• As much as 16GB RAM 

Maybe the strangest factor in regards to the Zenfone 9 is the specs you’ll discover inside. 

Asus selected to equip the cellphone not solely with a flagship chipset, however particularly the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 – a mid-cycle refresh chip with overclocked efficiency, largely present in gaming telephones and efficiency flagships. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Mix that with the choice to spec the cellphone with as much as 16GB RAM and 256GB storage, and you’ve got a cellphone that’s not simply highly effective for its measurement, however a downright powerhouse in its personal proper. 

There’s a giant caveat to that although: cooling. Chips run scorching, and cooling tech takes up a number of house. That’s tough in small cellphone, and though Asus tells me that the cellphone’s thermals are 230% bigger than within the earlier mannequin, it’s nonetheless not sufficient.  

In benchmarks the Zenfone 9 is clearly highly effective, however lags considerably behind Asus’s personal 8+ Gen 1-powered ROG Cellphone 6 Professional (and even, at occasions, final yr’s Zenfone 8), particularly on the CPU-heavy Geekbench 5 benchmark – although admittedly, that’s a gaming cellphone with extra dedicated cooling. 

That’s to not say the Zenfone is a slouch – simply don’t anticipate a high-end gaming machine (although few avid gamers are prone to be drawn to the dinky show anyway). In common day-to-day use the cellphone flies, with no lag or stutter, and along with the 120Hz show it feels exceptionally responsive. 

Naturally it helps 5G, although US readers ought to notice that it doesn’t assist mmWave, so received’t deal with 5G on each provider. Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, and NFC spherical out the connectivity, and it additionally helps dual-SIM – although there’s no choice to broaden storage with a microSD card. 

Battery and charging 

• Over a day’s battery life 
• Glorious longevity for the scale 
• 30W wired charging 

Small telephones have small batteries, and thus small telephones have quick battery lives. 

Or do they? Regardless of the cellphone itself being a contact smaller, the Zenfone 9’s battery is greater than earlier than, with a complete capability of 4300mAh.  

That’s nonetheless small by flagship cellphone requirements (although a lot bigger than the Galaxy S22’s, for what it’s value) however paired with the 8+ Gen 1’s energy effectivity enhancements the result’s a battery that comfortably lasts greater than a day. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

I sometimes discovered I’d have round half the battery left after I went to mattress, and sufficient remaining by morning to final till midday or so. You’ll nonetheless must cost the cellphone every day then, however received’t have to fret about operating out earlier than mattress – a uncommon factor in a cellphone this measurement. 

Charging is a little bit restricted. There’s no wi-fi charging assist, and wired charging is at 30W. I discovered it restored 56% of the battery in half an hour, which means a full cost will take an hour or so. Not unhealthy, however there’s undoubtedly higher on the market. 

Digital camera and video 

• Twin rear cameras 
• Gimbal-stabilised major lens 
• First rate selfie digicam 

If there’s one space the place the Zenfone 9 arguably falls behind its flagship competitors it’s the digicam spec, although it actually relies upon the place your priorities lay. 

Asus has included simply two rear lenses right here: a 50Mp major digicam, and a 12Mp ultrawide. There’s no telephoto or periscope, neither is there a devoted macro digicam, much like the lens choice on the Pixel 6 and iPhone 13.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The upshot is that additional effort has been put into making that major digicam sing. It makes use of the Sony IMX766 sensor, which we’ve seen this yr in telephones starting from the mid-range Nothing Cellphone (1) all the way in which as much as the uber flagship Oppo Discover X5 Professional.  

Asus has differentiated issues by supplementing the sensor’s built-in optical picture stabilisation (OIS) with a six-axis gimbal system for additional improved stability. That’s a trick Vivo has used to nice impact in its personal current flagships, and is a giant a part of why we reckon the Vivo X80 Professional has among the finest cellphone cameras round. 

The gimbal helps in a number of methods. For one, it stabilises video, supplying you with ultra-steady footage from the rear digicam. Nevertheless it additionally kicks in for stills, particularly in low mild, serving to the cellphone keep regular between the a number of pictures taken to energy HDR and evening mode.

The result’s improved element, particularly at evening, alongside enhancements to dynamic vary and publicity – appropriately exposing brilliant mild sources reasonably than blowing them out, for instance. These are among the finest evening mode photographs I’ve seen from a cellphone at this worth, and low mild images is without doubt one of the cellphone’s key strengths.

(PC customers could should swipe to navigate the slideshow beneath.)

It’s not good although. The IMX766 isn’t the most important sensor round, so some rival telephones will be capable of carry in additional mild and element. The shutter can also be a little bit sluggish, so I struggled to get good photographs of shifting canines, and it clearly struggles in very brilliant environments, with some pictures affected by glare and others from lack of element and even some visible artifacting. 

The 12Mp ultrawide doesn’t have the gimbal stabilisation (nor any OIS, for that matter) nevertheless it’s nonetheless an honest shooter. It received’t fairly match the primary digicam on element or dynamic vary, however the color tuning is impressively shut, so photographs out of each cameras do a minimum of look constant. 

On the entrance, there’s a 12Mp selfie digicam, which for probably the most half impresses. Colors are punchy, publicity is balanced, and element is nice, although this digicam did throw out the shot with the worst visible glitching I’ve seen, the place the turquoise of my shirt extends as much as my neck and the shirt itself is closely artifacted. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The front-facing digicam can report video at as much as 4K@30fps, whereas the rear digicam can go as excessive as 8K@24fps. That’s with out the gimbal although, and if you’d like the additional stabilisation to work its magic then high quality caps at 1080@60. 

Software program and updates 

• Runs Android 12 with Zen UI 
• Software program tweaks for one-handed use 
• Solely assured two Android updates 

The Zenfone 9 ships with Android 12, and runs Asus’s Zen UI on high. It is a fairly barebones pores and skin although, and for probably the most half the cellphone seems and appears like ‘inventory’ Android. 

It additionally makes use of Google’s personal core apps for nearly all the pieces, with just one or two further Asus apps pre-installed. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Despite the fact that the cellphone is already small, Asus has labored to optimise it even additional to swimsuit one-handed use. The perfect side of that is the side-mounted fingerprint sensor, which doubles as a button dubbed ‘ZenTouch’. 

By default, swiping down on this pulls down your notification tray, although in the event you choose you should utilize it to refresh pages, scroll shortly, or management media playback. It’s a small contact, however one I naturally discovered myself utilizing quite a bit for notification entry, because it saves the hand adjustment wanted to succeed in the highest of the display screen. 

Equally, a tiny swipe down proper on the backside of the show prompts a devoted one-handed mode for the cellphone, whereas swiping down wherever within the digicam app brings these settings to the centre of the display screen. Once more, small touches designed to save lots of you from stretching and straining whereas utilizing the cellphone. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The draw back to all that is Asus’s long-term assist. The corporate solely guarantees two Android model updates – so Android 13 and 14 – and “a minimum of two” years of safety patches. With the equally priced and sized Galaxy S22 providing double that, Asus actually must do higher right here. 

Worth and availability 

The Zenfone 9’s flagship specs do sadly imply flagship costs, and this cellphone prices a little bit greater than final yr’s. It’s obtainable in three variations direct from Asus: 

• 8GB RAM + 128GB storage: $699/£699/€799 
• 8GB RAM + 256GB storage: $749/€849 
• 16GB RAM + 256GB storage: $799/£749/€899 

Nonetheless, the cellphone is a little bit cheaper than the Galaxy S22 or Xiaomi 12, and the highest spec 16+256GB mannequin is particularly aggressively priced – nicely definitely worth the improve contemplating that in any other case the storage isn’t expandable. 

Take a look at our rating of one of the best small telephones for extra diminutive choices, or our round-ups of one of the best telephones and finest Android telephones for different flagship options. 

Verdict 

The Zenfone 9 is a full-force flagship in a small measurement, and with remarkably few compromises for it. 

The 5.9in show makes this one of many smallest telephones in the marketplace, particularly on the Android facet, and comfortably the smallest with specs this sturdy. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 and as much as 16GB of RAM mark this as a critical efficiency cellphone, although cooling issues do go away that energy barely throttled. The 8+ Gen 1 can also be partly to thank for the wonderful battery life nonetheless, which places different compact smartphones to disgrace. 

The gimbal-stabilised major digicam impresses, particularly at evening, although with a number of visible glitches and points in brilliant environments it’s clear Asus has some software program tuning to do. Some might also miss the variability supplied by rivals, particularly the shortage of a telephoto lens right here. 

Given the cellphone is so good, it’s irritating that Asus is simply promising two years of assist, so this can solely swimsuit those that know they’re on an everyday improve schedule. The general expertise is superb although, with good software program and welcome touches just like the IP68 score and headphone jack. 

Specs 

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 
• 8/16GB LPDDR5 RAM 
• 128/256GB UFS 3.1 storage 
• 5.9in 120Hz AMOLED show 
• Digital camera: 
  • 50Mp, f/1.9 Sony IMX766 major digicam with OIS & gimbal-stabilisation 
  • 12Mp, f/2.2 Sony IMX363 ultrawide digicam 
  • 12Mp, f/2.45 Sony IMX663 front-facing digicam 
• 4300mAh battery 
• 30W wired charging 
• Twin stereo audio system with Dirac HD Sound 
• USB-C 
• Headphone jack 
• Wi-Fi 6/6E 
• Bluetooth 5.2 
• Twin-SIM 
• Sub-6GHz 5G 
• IP68 score 
• Gorilla Glass Victus show 
• 146.5 x 68.1 x 9.1 mm 
• 169g 
• Android 12 with Zen UI