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Without making any significant changes from its predecessor, the Asus Zenfone 10 could have easily maintained its position as one of the greatest compact smartphones in the world. Asus has tweaked the new version just enough to make it a step forward from the previous one and competitive with other, larger smartphones. When it comes to smartphone performance density, Asus continues to lead the pack.
The same is true of the battery life, albeit it’s unfortunate that both photography and software upgrades are inferior to those offered by Samsung and Google, two of the most important competitors. Still, as you’ll see in this Asus Zenfone 10 review, our overall impression is quite favorable, and we’re convinced that this would be a terrific purchase for any Android phone buyer, regardless of whether or not you’re expressly after a compact phone.
Asus ZenFone 10 Specifications
Some of us long for the days when cell phones could fit comfortably in our pockets or handbags, and there was a period when it seemed like that was the case.
| Specification | Details |
|---|---|
| Display | 5.9-inch OLED (2400 x 1080) |
| Storage | 128GB/256GB/512GB |
| RAM | 8GB/12GB/16GB |
| Charging | 30W wired, 15W wireless |
| Rear cameras | 50MP main, 13MP ultrawide |
| Selfie camera | 32MP |
| Link | Check Price |
Asus Zenfone 10: Design and Display
The 5.92-inch 1080p OLED curved screen with fast refresh rate. Despite having a 144 Hz refresh rate, Asus has set a maximum frame rate of 120 fps for normal operation. Only in games that fully support the feature will the refresh rate be able to reach 144 fps. Even so, the restriction to 120Hz for everyday use is tolerable for me. As intended, it saves some power compared to constant high performance, though most users likely won’t notice the difference.
The camera cutout and the rounded corners are the two things we don’t like about the display. Even though they’re more visually appealing, rounded corners prevent me from seeing what’s on the complete screen. The Zenfone 10 has a chin that’s bigger than the forehead, and the bezels around the screen aren’t quite thin. In my opinion, Asus could make the forehead bigger so that it’s flush with the bottom bezel, and the company could even be able to squeeze in a selfie camera up top as they did with the ROG Phone.
Asus Zenfone 10: Cameras
The Zenfone 10 will not have a zoom lens, just like its predecessor, the Zenfone 9. This decision was made by Asus. Instead, it has the same mix of a primary and ultrawide snapper on the back, and the configuration is very similar to the one found on the original.
This is true of the primary 50MP lens, which has the same Sony IMX766 sensor as its predecessor. Despite this, it features an updated six-axis gimbal stabilization technology that moves the entire camera package to stabilize an enhanced 1.5 degrees in each direction. This is three times more than what is possible with normal OIS.
Asus Zenfone 10: Performance
The chipset in the Zenfone 10 is not where Asus cut corners. Depending on where you buy it and how much you’re prepared to spend, it comes with either an 8GB or a 12GB or a 16GB RAM and a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor. Therefore, at the at least, you’re getting a phone with a chipset comparable to the Galaxy S23’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy and as much or more RAM as you can choose for the considerably more expensive Galaxy S23 Ultra.
Our benchmarks reveal that Asus’s decision to include a high-quality processor and ample memory in the Zenfone was a wise one. When pitted against the Galaxy S23, which has less RAM but a special high-performance variant of the same Snapdragon CPU, the Zenfone 10 comes out on top, or at least very close. Even if the Pixel 7’s Google Tensor G2 offers other software benefits that our benchmarks don’t measure, it still can’t compete with the other two phones.
Asus Zenfone 10: Battery Life
The Zenfone 10 manages to pack a whopping 4,300 mAh battery inside its little frame. That’s not a lot compared to other flagship phones, but it’s plenty for a device of this size. Despite being smaller than the Galaxy S23 and the Pixel 7, the Zenfone’s battery life still outpaces their respective ratings of 3,900 and 4,355 mAh.
It’s unclear whether the Asus’s superior endurance is due to its larger battery, its smaller screen, or its lower brightness, but it easily outlasts both of its competitors on Tom’s Guide’s unique battery test (constantly accessing web sites over 4G until the battery dies).
Final Words
After using the Zenfone 10 as my primary phone for an extended period of time, my abiding impression is that it fits into my life with minimal hassle and accomplishes a lot of things really effectively. It doesn’t come with as many limitations as other compact phones do. There is no “but the battery’s rubbish” or “but it’s not very powerful” or “but it hasn’t got a very good display” to be found. Compact, well-designed, and a joy to use thanks to the availability of stock Android software, it checks all the appropriate boxes.
Asus ZenFone 10 review: The good and The bad
Despite the fact that the phone has a great performance from the processor and a reasonable battery life, it falls short in a few crucial areas.
The Good
- Compact frame stands out
- Powerful performance
The Bad
- Only two years of software updates
Questions and Answers
We found that 7-8 hours was a reasonable estimate for our usage pattern. However, please keep in mind that we rely heavily on Wi-Fi for our cellphones. In most cases, just a small fraction of the battery-free time—say, one or two hours—is spent on 5G.
With the ROG Phone, Asus utilized both internal expertise and a thriving community to create the greatest gaming phone currently on the market, further distinguishing itself from the competition.