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Asus ZenFone 5 review: An attractive budget smartphone

SINGAPORE — At first look, the Asus ZenFone 5 is tempting. Its simple, classic design, array of features and budget price tag are attractive.

SINGAPORE — At first look, the Asus ZenFone 5 is tempting. Its simple, classic design, array of features and budget price tag are attractive.

The 5-inch Corning Gorilla Glass 3 screen provides scratch resistance and durability. At 720p screen resolution, the display was sharp and clarity was not an issue when watching videos. The curved plastic back makes the phone comfortable to hold — although it is a handful at 148.2mm by 72.8mm by 5.5mm to 10.4mm.

The ZenFone 5 runs on Android Jelly Bean 4.3 and is powered by an Intel Atom Z2560 processor that runs at 1.6GHz. The 2,110 mAh non-removable battery could last a day with average usage: Surfing the Web, navigating via Google Maps and using WhatsApp and Facebook.

One of its best features is the ASUS ZenUI, which is touted as having more than 200 enhancements over the stock Android operating system. Visually, the flat icons and clean layout are easy on the eye. What’s Next is also a standout among the new features: Information, such as appointments and weather updates, are presented on the lock screen, home screen and in the notification drawer, making it easy to see what is going on at a glance.

The phone, which has an internal storage of 8G and a microSD card slot that can take up to 64GB, also supports dual SIM cards.

But for the avid shooter, the ZenFone5’s main drawback will be the camera performance. While Asus has said the f/2.0 aperture, 8-megapixel camera can deliver professional-looking photos, the phone falls short here. Picture quality is decent, but can be hit and miss. At times, images appear flat and the colours are not as vibrant. The electronic shutter was also a bit slow.

Nonetheless, the camera comes with features — such as Selfie mode, Low-Light Mode and Time Rewind — that can be quite fun, if not exactly novel. Time Rewind, for instance, takes multiple shots before and after you press the shutter button, after which you can choose the best shot.

The Low-Light Mode is also impressive. The ZenFone 5 outperformed the Apple iPhone 5s and the Samsung Galaxy S4 in a dark environment. Pictures, while grainy, were clearer and brighter.

Overall, the ZenFone 5 is a respectable budget smartphone worth considering if you are in the market for one, although the mediocre camera leaves me wanting more.

The ZenFone 5, available in two colours — pearl white and charcoal black — retails at S$249.

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