Asus 8z quick review: Powerful compact smartphone you can buy!

Asus 8z review: Finally! We have right the competition for Apple iPhone 13 Mini, thanks to Taiwanese tech giant Asus who brought small powerful Android smartphone to India -- Asus 8z, which gives flagship level performance similar to iPhone 13 Mini. So those who are looking to buy a small, compact and premium android phone, this phone might meet your demands! 

Here's why:

Let's start with pricing and color options, The Asus 8z is priced at Rs. 42,999 in India and comes with 8GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 128GB of UFS 3.1 storage. It is available in two colors, Obsidian Black and Horizon Silver. This compact phone from Asus is backed with Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G, 120Hz 5.9-inch AMOLED display, 4000mAh battery and IP68 water and dust resistance. We used the Obsidian Black color variant and here are my views on this phone.

In terms of design and looks, the device is very comfortable to use and you can carry it for long hours in your hands with any discomfort. And the good part is, Asus 8z feels refreshing -- both front and rear side didn't attract fingerprint marks, dust even using it in open spaces for longer durations. In fact, Asus 8z is actually slightly smaller than the iPhone 13. The front panel is protected by Gorilla Corning Victus, while the back uses Gorilla Glass 3 with a frosted finish — almost a matte look. The Asus 8z's frame is made of aluminum and looks premium, the moment you hold the device. Also, this phone is rated IP68 for dust protection, and weighs 169 grams only. Overall. the device ticked most of the right boxes in terms of looks and build.

On the rear side of the Asus 8z, you will see a dual-camera setup with the LED flash and Asus branding. On the right edge of the device, the Asus 8Z houses the power button and a dedicated space for the volume keys. At the bottom, the device features a Type-C USB charging port,  Nano-SIM Card Slot, and Dual Super linear speakers. The smartphone is also offering a 3.5mm audio jack on the top of the device. The speakers performed extremely well during the review period. Connectivity options on the Asus 8Z include 5G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth v5.2, GPS/ A-GPS/ NavIC, NFC, USB Type-C port, and more. Sensors on the phone include accelerometer, ambient light sensor, compass/ magnetometer, gyroscope, proximity sensor, and in-display fingerprint sensor. 

In terms of display performance, the Asus 8z has a 5.9-inch full-HD+ (1,080x2,400 pixels) Samsung E4 AMOLED display with a 20:9 aspect ratio and a 120Hz refresh rate. The display is also protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus. Also, the built-in in-display fingerprint scanner is fast and responsive. The AMOLED display  ensures a snappy and fluid user experience. The screen has an outdoor brightness of 800 nits (100 per cent APL), peak maximum brightness of 1100 nits, color accuracy of average Delta E<1, 112 per cent of DCI-P3, 445ppi in pixel density and HDR10+ support. A true flagship display panel. The overall experience while using the screen was smooth and lag-free. The multimedia experience was smooth, the colors came out good on the screen in the various light conditions.

Let's talk about camera specifications and performance now, the Asus 8z comes with a dual rear camera setup that houses a 64MP Sony IMX686 primary sensor with an f/1.8 lens, along with a 12MP Sony IMX363 secondary sensor with an f/2.2 ultra-wide lens. For selfies and video chats, it has a 12MP Sony IMX663 selfie camera at the front. According to the company, the smartphone has SONY sensors for both the front and back cameras, all three of them with fast auto-focus. The main and ultra-wide view back cameras can double as a macro and telephoto camera. In our review, the rear camera captures bright and stunning pictures. The ultra-wide lens adds additional perspective to your clicks to fit all the details in one frame.

While reviewing the Asus 8z, we used most of the modes to check the camera performance and rear cameras took detailed pictures in various light conditions. The photos I captured were colorful and beautiful. While taking multiple shots with different modes, the device did a decent job here. The videos also came out good on this mobile phone. However, if we compare the images captured with Asus 8z in low light conditions in normal settings with the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE and Samsung Galaxy A73, this Asus phone did good job here. In terms of front camera performance, the smartphone captures good shots in daylight conditions but lacked sharpness in low lights if we compare it other smartphones in the same price bracket. 

Asus 8z is powered by the all new 5nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G Mobile Platform with a 25 per cent faster Kryo 680 CPU and 35 per cent faster Qualcomm Adreno 660 GPU (compared to previous generation). ASUS 8z has also been equipped with up to 8GB of LPDDR5 RAM and up to 256GB of UFS3.1 SSD storage – ensuring smooth and fluid performance that can keep up with anything. The Snapdragon 888 5Gchipset makes the gaming experience smooth and lag-free on this smartphone. The good thing is the UI is very easy to use and users might not face any issues. While playing games like Battlegrounds Mobile India and other light gamers, we witnessed lag-free gaming here. The graphic quality was good in normal settings. However, the battery drained quickly. Overall, the Asus 8z was fast, smooth, switching between the apps, including WhatsApp, Instagram, and more, was easy and the performance was flawless.

Also, the Asus 8z comes with key features specially tailored for India that really makes a huge difference being a high-end flagship smartphone. It features a UI that’s accessible in 7 major Indian languages throughout, and is continually updated to be as much as accurate as possible. In terms of battery performance, the Asus 8x comes with a 4,000mAh battery on the smartphone which supports 30W fast charging as well as Quick Charge 4.0 and Power Delivery support. Once fully charged, this smartphone lasted for a day during normal to medium usage. Also, the device did not heat up during gaming and video streaming for long hours. However, the battery drained quickly on heavy usage. 

Asus 8z Verdict: Available at the starting price of 42,999, this compact smartphone from Asus comes with a flagship tag and premium features at reasonable rates. The device offers good performance, and decent design. For those who are looking for a compact phone or alternative of iPhone 13 Mini in Android world, this Asus phone might meet your demands.