ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 Review: The battery and performance you need

ASUS has launched its latest phone, Zenfone Max Pro M1 a couple of months ago. The Max Pro M1 is one of the most talked about phone from the company in recent times, thanks to its advanced processor, design aesthetics and battery prowess. The specification sheet of the device puts it into a pool of some  of the most valued smartphones in market, but does it live up to the expectations let's find out.

Specifications and Price: 

ASUS ZenFone Max Pro (M1) is available in two variants namely 3GB / 32GB for Rs.10,999 and the 4GB / 64GB for Rs. 12,999 exclusively on Flipkart. 

Under the hood the device runs on Snapdragon 636 (one of the latest and fastest processors from Qualcomm) with Adreno 509 GPU. The device comes with two variants 3 GB/32 GB and 4 GB/64 GB. 

The device comes with a dual camera setup at rear featuring a 13 MP sensor with f/2.2 wide aperture and 5 MP camera for depth sensing which enables bookeh effect feature of the phone. On the front the phone sports a 8 MP camera at front for selfies. Both the cameras are supported by flash lights. 

The phone comes with a finger print sensor at back, 5000 mAh strong battery, and usual connectivity options. The device comes with a dedicated slot for SD card, along with slots for two nano SIM cards.

On the display part, the Zenfone Max Pro M1 comes with 5.99 inch FHD+ display (1080 x 2160) , the screen comes with 18:9 aspect ratio (no notch here). 

Build and Design:

The Zenfone Max Pro M1 comes with unibody metallic body, on the front almost all the space is covered by the display, thanks to narrow bezels. The curved edges makes it easier to hold in hand and make a grip, however the metallic device feels little slippery when using via one hand. A phone cover should fix the issue for those who think they are prone to drop their phones. 

The left edge of the phone hosts the slot for SIMs and memory card, while the power button and volume rockers are placed on the right edge of the phone. The feedback from physical buttons is good and we didn't faced any issue using the same.

Top edge just hosts a noise cancellation mic, while the bottom edge is home to 3.5 mm jack, a mic, USB charging slot and speaker grill placed left to right. 

Turning the device towards to it rear, and you will spot the dual rear cameras placed vertically (The camera glass has Dual Camera written over it, in case you have not observed that already) just at the top left corner with a round flash light just below the camera setup.  The finger print is placed just above the center of the device. ASUS branding is engraved on the back in grey color, which is hard to notice sometimes.

Overall we are happy with the build quality of the phone, especially with the fact that ASUS has managed to put a 5000 mAh battery in these dimensions and keeping the weight in check (though it feels a bit heavy than other devices, but that can be managed and doesn't feel difference when used the device for 3-4 days). 

Camera:

Camera has been the USP of ASUS Zenfones , Zenfone Max Pro M1 doesn't disappoint here, the autofocus is quick, there is no notice able shutter lag, the colors are vivid in bright light and photos have details even in low lights. The bookeh mode is fine, but user cannot play with focus areas after the shot is taken.

The camera app comes with a lot of filters and modes such as Auto, candle light, beach, snow, flowers etc. There is beautify option as well in built.

Below are few samples taken from the phone for you to judge. (Click on pictures to enlarge)

Performance:

We divide performance into three parts, the tasking ability, the software and the battery. As far as tasking ability goes, the device doesn't give much reasons to complain except the fact that the finger print sensor was found to be bit slow than what we have seen in other devices and sometimes the extra smooth touch display would not recognize the touch. The touch issue was not very prominent but yes in our 4-5 days of usage we observed this more than a couple of times. 

On software side, ASUS has really done a good job to ditch its Zen UI and provide users with stock Android. The device runs on Android Oreo and is expected to receive updates for Android P. The multitasking is good, multimedia consumption experience is excellent. The gaming experience as well is good. 

Now comes the favorite part and USP of the device the phone manages to give you a proper 2 days backup on normal usage. Average users can expect at least 1.5 days backup without needing to plug in the charger. Battery fall down graph was also pretty stead in our usage, except for the times when we used the device for gaming (Asphalt 8). 

Verdict:

If I am looking for a device in 10 to 13K price range, I would go for Zenfone Max Pro M1 for its Battery, performance, camera and stock android experience. Which means I am willing to accept the slow finger print sensor (in hope of an update which could fix it) and intermittent display issue we encountered for the otherwise balanced device.

Update:

ASUS has listened to the user's feedback and rolled out a new update on 14th June, 2018. This update resolves the slow finger print sensor issue. The response time for unlocking the device via fingerprint has certainly improved along with camera performance especially on depth shots.