This New ASUS Zenfone 8 Looks Kinda Nice

A phone from Asus has grabbed my attention in a very long time, but that may have just changed with their announcement of the Zenfone 8. With a smallish body, an impressive specs list, and a very reasonable price, this could be a great option in a world filled with nothing but Samsung or OnePlus or Google.

The Asus Zenfone 8 ships with a Snapdragon 888 processor, 8GB or 16GB RAM, 128GB or 256GB UFS3.1 storage, 5.9″ 1080p AMOLED display at up to 120Hz, 4000mAh battery, stereo speakers, IP68 water and dust resistance, 3.5mm headphone jack, Bluetooth 5.2, WiFi 6/6E, dual rear camera, and Android 11 that’s pretty close to stock.

For cameras, you have a main 64MP shooter (Sony IMX686) that pulls in 16MP pictures at f/1.8. It can shoot at up to 8K and 24fps or 4K and 60fps. The secondary shooter on the back is ultrawide at 12MP and f/2.2. The front camera weighs in at 12MP.

At 148 x 68.5 x 8.9mm, it’s almost exactly the same size as a Pixel 5, which I can’t seem to put down because it fits so well in the hand. However, this Zenfone 8 absolutely puts the Pixel 5’s specs to shame.

What’s the price for all that goodness? It’ll apparently cost around $599 for 8GB-128GB and $799 for 16GB-256GB. That’s a wild deal if it holds up and Asus makes it easy to buy in the US. It should be here in a handful of weeks. Once it arrives, we’ll let you know.