We strongly recommend the ZenFone for those who need a stylish phone with a great camera and dependable performance .
The ZenFone 5 (A501CG) is available to pre-order from Asus now for £179.99, though we think it'll drop in price as third-party resellers begin to offer it after launch. The smartphone is set to be released in the UK on 20 October.
There's also a 4G version of the ZenFone 5 (A500KL) available, at a pre-order price of £199.99. It uses a different processor (a 1.2 GHz quad-core Qualcomm chip) to offer that 4G connectivity. We've tested the A501CG ZenFone 5 without 4G, so this review reflects that, but the design and specs aside from the processor and 4G connectivity are the same.
Display: 5″ 1280*720 IPS+ Panel, Corning Gorilla Glass 3; CPU: 1.6GHz Intel Atom Dual-Core Z2560; RAM: 2GB; Storage: 16GB & 8GB; Connectivity: 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0; Camera: 2MP front, 8MP rear; Battery: 2110 mAh; OS: Android JellyBean 4.3 (will update to 4.4 KitKat)’; Memory Slot: MicroSD card (up to 64 GB); SIM: Dual Micro SIM card .
Battery life also leaves a lot to be desire as the 2,110 mAh battery isn’t enough to make this phone last throughout a full day without carefully monitoring your usage. Luckily, ASUS has included some power management options to help you get the most out of the battery should you go for an extended period of time without a charger.
On the software side the Zenfone 5 comes with Android 4.3 Jellybean with a promise of being updated to KitKat by ASUS but no word on when that will happen. On top of Android is ASUS’s Zen UI that is very clean, flat, and colorful. It comes packed with a lot of extra functionality without being gimmicky and adds to the Android experience without taking away the core features of Android.
