Asus Zenfone 9 long-term review
- s
- smallphoneloverboy
- Jxs
- 11 Jan 2023
i still use my xperia xz1 compact from 2017 but when it is done, I promise I'll buy a Zenfone 9 (or 10?) !!!1
- ?
- Anonymous
- Hxd
- 11 Jan 2023
newflesh, 11 Jan 20236 inches, small phone, lol. I'll just give you an exce... moreAre you comparing a device from 8 years ago to today’s standards?
- H
- Hamad
- Hxd
- 11 Jan 2023
Rocking this phone since September and 0 issues, 0 lags. What a great device!
- i
- ithehappy
- tT9
- 11 Jan 2023
Dear GSMA,
Smoothness isn't subjective. Sustained performance of a device maintaining it as close to its native refresh rate is tangible, not something which can even remotely be considered as subjective. I am disappointed that you said that.
Saurav
- J
- Johnny Romania
- ajW
- 11 Jan 2023
I can't understand why this phone was so well reviewed by anyone on the internet, just for being smaller. It's ugly as hell, huge chin, infinetely ugly unnecessary big camera rings.
S22 has the same footprint, telephoto, better and bigger display, no ugly chin, better build quality and very neat and polished design, it's quite beautiful. I can't see how anyone would actually like zenfone 9 design over s22. You just can't.
I am a big fan of the zenfone flip phones. In 2020 I even wanted to straight up trade my iphone 11 for a zenfone 7 pro, the other person came close, but in the end didn't want to.
- K
- KC
- pKR
- 11 Jan 2023
CountDookula, 11 Jan 2023The reason we're so vocal is simple - there are no sma... moreIt's a shame this phone came out after I brought out of no choice the iPhone 13 mini. Only purchased it because of the compact size at the time, but I'm an Android user since 2009. So the ZenFone 9 would have been ideal.
- n
- newflesh
- 8ut
- 11 Jan 2023
CountDookula, 11 Jan 2023The reason we're so vocal is simple - there are no sma... more"Also don't understand the persistent sneering tone throughout the article."
That's what I wrote about below, some 7 years ago the tone was 180 degrees different, and this 6 inch Zenfone would've been called absurd size, lol.
- L
- Lolipop
- I2d
- 11 Jan 2023
How can this even compete with iphone 13??
Same size but apple si like porsche and this is skoda
- ?
- Anonymous
- YQZ
- 11 Jan 2023
"So if you're sensitive to pulse-width modulation dimming, either skip this handset"
The only alternative which is Samsung does not provide DC dimming, so no way skipping this phone for that reason.
- C
- CountDookula
- p%L
- 11 Jan 2023
The reason we're so vocal is simple - there are no small phones available on android. This isn't one - it's too big and it sells poorly because it's competing with other big phones + because Samsung offers more years of updates and software that works. The actual small one-handed smartphone was the iPhone mini and not everyone wants to go Apple. The last comfy flagships on Android were S10e and XZ2 Compact.
Also don't understand the persistent sneering tone throughout the article. If you like big phones, well, good for you, but I for one have no desire to use a big phone ever again after buying the mini iphone. And I feel for people who don't want to leave android.
- ?
- Anonymous
- Fvv
- 11 Jan 2023
Hopefully they make bezels and chin thinner in the next Zenfone. It looks like a cheap low-end chinese phones.
- J
- JA
- jCP
- 11 Jan 2023
ASUS keeps coming sooo close to my ideal one, but then skipping over deal-breakers. why get rid of the SD slot in favor of dual-SIM only? apparently dual-SIM is a common need in India and some other markets, but for me in the USA I'd much rather have a variable use SIM tray that allows SD card use OR dual-SIM.
also, why offer a phone in various colors if the max-spec one is ALWAYS black, the least appealing color on this particular phone...and as this long term review states, the only fingerprint magnet among all the color options?
lastly, why only USB 2.0? why would i want to have an ancient I/O port when competitors have 3.0 or better?
lastly, more tentatively: I'm concerned about updates. im pleased ASUS has gotten Android 13 out so quickly, but i think their reps were WAY too casual when telling ourlets like GSMA about their future update plans.
"Ehhhh....updates will depend on sales".......uhm, WHAT?
that does NOT inspire confidence in me as a potential customer.
ASUS should continue putting out phones, they are an important contributing voice in phone design. however they should understand the enthusiast nature of their US and worldwide customers. ADD, DON'T SUBTRACT. or don't market something as a flagship!
hell, I'd have bought a ROG 5 or 6 if they didnt snap like twigs, per Jerryrigzeverything on YouTube.
LAST QUESTION: according to GSMA's uniquely detailed reviews of phone speakers, the ROG 6 and the Zenfone 9 have excellent speakers, but both are a step down from the Rog 5 amd Zenfone 8...the latter have more deep bass and more high treble. the GSMA audio samples bear that out. the Rog 5 remains the best sounding smartphone ever made.
why the audio downgrade? great speakers are a unique ASUS asset in the Android space. this article compares them to Samsung's best, but i have never heard any Samsung phones reach ASUS in speaker quality.
ASUS speakers should be improving every single year. and the Zenfone should copy the ROG phone and always have 2 symmetrical, powerful, FRONT FACING speakers. ALL phones should.
- ?
- Anonymous
- n1h
- 11 Jan 2023
Yoedi16, 11 Jan 2023What zenfone 9 issue you encounter? since ramdump issue onl... moreThere's really annoying task switcher issue where it crashes upon quick double press of recents button
- ?
- Anonymous
- n1h
- 11 Jan 2023
What can s22 give you other than a telephoto camera and wireless charging? Ignoring poor processor, bloated OneUI, poor battery life, lack of headphone jack etc just for those is idiotic.
- n
- newflesh
- 8ut
- 11 Jan 2023
salarx, 11 Jan 2023Screen to body ratio matters. I get it. "The last of the mohicans" Xperia XZ1C was 129 x 65 mm, 4.6'' while iPhone Mini is 131 x 64, 5.4'', so the same size but a *lot* bigger screen estate and they're both what I'd consider compact small phones. Now Zenfone 9's, aka the smallest current android phone, dimensions are 146 x 68, 5.9' it's a huge difference in terms of pocketability, one hand use. What I mean is that Z9 is by no means a small and compact phone. I know what I'm talking about as I've used all of them
- k
- kek
- GBh
- 11 Jan 2023
Anonymous, 11 Jan 2023I am done with them, Zenfone 8 had RAM dump issues and my s... moreI also read about that issue and that's what kept me away from the Zenfone 8.
And it seems Zenfone 9 has software bugs, so time to wait for Zenfone 10.
- s
- salarx
- vGJ
- 11 Jan 2023
newflesh, 11 Jan 20236 inches, small phone, lol. I'll just give you an exce... moreScreen to body ratio matters.
- n
- newflesh
- 8ut
- 11 Jan 2023
6 inches, small phone, lol. I'll just give you an excerpt from the 2015 review here because I found it very fun to read now and it really puts things into perspective of how far we've come (or fallen):
"Amidst an industry increasingly pushing toward more and more screen real estate, sometimes to *absurd* levels, as much as 6.0-inches in a handheld device, there is an ever-growing niche for high-end devices on the sub 5.0-inch scale."
https://www.gsmarena.com/sony_xperia_z5_compact-review-1318.php
- ?
- Anonymous
- 0vE
- 11 Jan 2023
Yoedi16, 11 Jan 2023What zenfone 9 issue you encounter? since ramdump issue onl... moreSame reason
At least that is what Asus service claims to me, I bought the Zenfone 9 because people claimed it was solved.
- Y
- Yoedi16
- 61E
- 11 Jan 2023
Anonymous, 11 Jan 2023I am done with them, Zenfone 8 had RAM dump issues and my s... moreWhat zenfone 9 issue you encounter? since ramdump issue only occured to zenfone 8