ASUS Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro Review By a Non-Selfie Lover

by - Wednesday, October 04, 2017

The ASUS Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro was launched early August 2017 along with other equally good mobile phones from the Zenfone 4 line. I was lucky enough to get my hands on this phone to make a full review. The first thing that I thought after receiving this phone, "I am not even a selfie lover. How do I even do this?"


AESTHETICS


The first notable thing about the new ASUS phone is its metallic rouge red back cover. Its color pops out that you can't miss it. I can also handheld this 5.5-inch phone easily because of its thin build plus round edges.

READ MORE: ASUS ZENFONE 4 SELFIE PRO: UNBOXING + FIRST IMPRESSIONS

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The hard home button is a major turn on for this phone because I don't need to worry deteriorating it in the future. It is also responsive when reading my thumb mark for phone unlocking.

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The Rouge Red metallic color is a huge compliment to my gown during the last E! Bloggers Ball.

The volume and lock buttons are situated on the right side of the phone. After a few days of breaking this phone in, I find this button location a strategic one because taking a screenshot is way easier. (I still have to adjust when using it as a camera shutter though.)

DISPLAY AND PERFORMANCE


I immediately noticed how clear and snappy the ASUS Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro is because of its Full HD 1080p resolution and 401ppi pixel density. The videos are spot on! I literally said to myself that watching Youtube on mobile has never been this fun actually. 

I can easily scan through the apps without lag too since it's powered with Octa-core 2.0 GHz Cortex-A53. My first basis if a certain phone is good during my first hands on. 


CAMERA (AKA THE STAR!)


This latest ASUS phone comes with a 16 Megapixels rear camera and 24 + 5 (Dual Camera) megapixels front camera. Because this phone specializes in photography, I tried to test its features in different light setups.

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SELFIE CAMERA


ASUS is killing it with this phone's 120-degree wide-angle camera, making it easier to take wefies with everyone you are with. When toggled on, the end photo looks like it was taken with a fisheye lens because of the curved corners on the output. The subject needs to be in the center of the image to prevent distortion in the image.

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For lowlight setups, the ASUS camera app detects and notifies the user to change from front to rear camera to get a better photo resolution.

WELL-LIT PHOTO:


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With Zidjian Floro (L) and Luvern Sampang (R)


LOWLIGHT PHOTO: 


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With Jonas (Top) | With Kenny Ngo and Dems Angeles (Bottom)

This phone supports the Beauty Live feature present in the new ASUS phones. This feature has beautification effects to accentuate the subject's face. With my experience using this, I kept the level to a minimum to maintain a natural look. Without makeup, I saw my blemishes erased in an instant. (As if I'm wearing a full-covered foundation!)

You know what's extra nice about this feature? Even Instagram story supports it! No need to worry looking pale and makeup free on my ig stories. 😍

SOFTLIGHT LED FLASH 


It's funny how I discovered this feature by accident! I slightly got startled when a flash suddenly lit up the moment I pressed the shutter button on the screen. lol Little did I know that this extra feature can step up my awkward selfies and make it more internet-worthy.

COMPARISON:


There is a little to no difference in the photo resolution taken in front of a ring light (left) and the selfie camera with the softlight led flash on (right). It's totally given that the light is more diffused on the left because of the ring light. Don't you think the softlight LED flash did a good job, too? 💙

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I tested it further by taking selfies at Marquis in BGC during the ZenBook's launch with its new endorser AsNTM Winner, Maureen Wroblewitz. The photo became brighter without the harsh flashlight reflecting right in front of our faces. 

I can imagine using the softlight LED flash during daytime to see how it can erase the shadows in my face as well.

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With Earth Rullan (L) and Maureen Wroblewitz (R)


REAR CAMERA


With its 16 MP rear camera with a Sony image sensor and ASUS SuperPixel™ Engine, I expected nothing less but amazing photos from this phone. It didn't fail though because of its quick autofocus.  I also like how the depth of field is highly present in the photos that I took whether it's daytime or night time.

WELL-LIT PHOTO:


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LOWLIGHT PHOTO:


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Even in lowlight setup, the rear camera excelled in capturing a high resolution photo despite the lack of light in the venue. Though autofocus can be quite a stress for this light setup, a little adjustment and timing can help fix this issue. :)

I also need to stress the fact that the rear camera has a manual photography setup portion. As a person with average photography skills, I tested this feature out and had fun with it. Now, I don't need to worry forgetting my mirrorless camera when going to events since I have this phone around.

BATTERY


From charging to consuming battery, the ASUS Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro's non-removable Li-Ion 3000 mAh battery kept up with my lifestyle. Because it's fast charging, the phone can be fully charged in an hour. (Very important!) Its battery capacity isn't as great as the other android phones out there but I'm happy it can last me a day with wifi on and Spotify on the loop.

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VERDICT


The ASUS Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro comes with more pros than cons. It can totally go well with my lifestyle because of its lasting battery, photo resolution and bright display. I also have to stress how easy the user experience is with its thin build.

The only thing that I hindered me from giving this phone a 10 out of 10 is my camera app experience. Maybe because I've jumped from iPhone to Android, I had a hard time understanding what each icon stands for. The manual included in the box doesn't have the details about it either that's why I had to do some searching online so as to know how can I utilize the functions that this app has. 

Nonetheless, I'm willing to give this phone a chance to keep up with my multimedia needs. With the holiday celebrations happening soon, the ASUS Zenfone 4 Selfie Pro is the perfect partner in capturing the special moments that I'll be having with my loved ones.

The non-selfie lover in me is more than happy with having this phone around! 💖  

ASUS ZenFone 4 Selfie Pro (ZD552KL) specs: 

5.5-inch full HD AMOLED display @ 1920×1080 pixels, 401ppi 
Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 
2.0GHz octa-core CPU Adreno 506 GPU 
4GB LPDDR3 RAM
64GB internal storage 
expandable via microSD slot up to 128GB (dedicated) 
16MP rear camera with LED Flash 
12MP + 5MP dual front camera (120-degree wide-angle) 
4G LTE Cat4 
Dual nano-SIM 
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n 
Bluetooth 4.1, A2DP, EDR, LE 
GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS 
Fingerprint Scanner 
ASUS ZenUI (Android 7.0 Nougat) 
3000mAh Li-Ion battery 
154.02 x 74.83 x 6.85 mm (dimensions) 145 grams (weight) 
Deepsea Black, Sunlight Gold, and Rouge Red 

(Taken from http://www.yugatech.com/mobile/asus-zenfone-4-selfie-pro-review/#kfbEhQ1TDc5HlGff.99)

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