Hello, dearies! After weeks of anticipation, ASUS Philippines unveiled the latest smartphone models in a launch dubbed as Zenvolution PH. It's one of the grandest launches as of the moment and I was one of the lucky few who got the first dibs on the latest models that ASUS is offering in the market now. One of the smartphones launched that day was the ZenFone 3 5.2 and ZenFone 3 5.5
ASUS surprised me weeks ago when I received a beautiful and elegant grayish box. It's a ZenFone 3 without a doubt. So when I opened the box, a beautiful and sleek sapphire black phone that's lighter than my ASUS ZenFone 2 Laser greeted me. I'm so giddy that I can't contain my excitement because there will be another baby in our ASUS family. The question is, will it trump the previous models of ASUS ZenFone that I have and will be rightful in their tagline #IncredibleIsNow? Read more on my first impressions + unboxing video below :)
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D |
Three weeks have passed and up to know I can't believe that I have a new baby -an ASUS ZenFone 3. It came in a sophisticated grayish box that is handy, fits my palm, and has a gold logo of ZenFone 3. There's no color indicator outside the box so if you're planning to give this as a gift, the receiver would be surprised once he/she opened it.
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D ASUS ZenFone 3 5.2" |
Unboxing
Inside the box of my review unit are as follows:
1. ASUS ZenFone 3 5. 2" (Z017D) Unit in Sapphire Black
2. AC Adapter Charger
3. USB Cable Type C
4. ZenEar Headphones with Spare Ear Buds
5. Sim Card Ejector
5. Sim Card Ejector
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D Inside the ASUS ZenFone 3 5.2" Box |
First Impressions
Upon opening the flip top box, I immediately checked the phone. Slide off the wrap and inspected the overall appearance of the unit. The first thing I noticed was the shape of the phone. It's different from ZenFone 2. Very light and thin! The texture is smooth and I love the color that I got because it's black and not an ordinary black- Sapphire Black to be exact. A color that exudes class and elegance that's why I can say it has a premium look indeed.
Beauty Inside and Outside
Front
Even without holding the phone, you can see the elegant appearance and what embodies this smartphone. The combination of glass and metal is sublime on its own. It's not an ordinary glass but a 2.5D Contoured Corning Gorilla Glass. If your phone is always in good hands like you're not clumsy like a ninja, (hahaha) no need for a tempered glass. But for added protection, a tempered glass won't hurt.
Facing in front is the 8 MP PixelMaster Camera. The capacitive buttons are placed at the bottom of the phone and still no backlight like the previous phone models which sometimes I dislike but it's not a big deal for me. I can go in a well-lit place at night if I have to, right?
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D ASUS ZenFone 3 Slim bezel, premium crafted-metallic diamond cut bevel, and thinnest edge |
Beauty Inside and Outside
Front
Even without holding the phone, you can see the elegant appearance and what embodies this smartphone. The combination of glass and metal is sublime on its own. It's not an ordinary glass but a 2.5D Contoured Corning Gorilla Glass. If your phone is always in good hands like you're not clumsy like a ninja, (hahaha) no need for a tempered glass. But for added protection, a tempered glass won't hurt.
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D ASUS ZenFone 3 front |
Facing in front is the 8 MP PixelMaster Camera. The capacitive buttons are placed at the bottom of the phone and still no backlight like the previous phone models which sometimes I dislike but it's not a big deal for me. I can go in a well-lit place at night if I have to, right?
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D ASUS ZenFone 3 front top and bottom |
Back
Here's the back of ASUS ZenFone 3- the 16MP rear camera is located at the center and it's slightly protruding at the back. This is the reason why the phone will not lie flat on a table. The fingerprint sensor is situated below the rear camera.
Again, the back is covered with 2.5D Contoured Corning Gorilla Glass with silver accent on the side. The logo of ASUS is placed at the bottom. The dual LED real tone flash is on the right side while the Laser AF is on the left side of the camera.
Top, Bottom, and Sides
The keys for the power and volume can be seen at the right side of the phone. It's back to the place where I'm used to so hooray for that. This doesn't have a removable battery though.
The left side is where you'll place the sim card. Is this kind of a sorcery because there are no slot or button for sim cards and expandable memory? Well, there is but it's hidden and that's where you'll use the sim card ejector.
Here's the back of ASUS ZenFone 3- the 16MP rear camera is located at the center and it's slightly protruding at the back. This is the reason why the phone will not lie flat on a table. The fingerprint sensor is situated below the rear camera.
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D ASUS ZenFone 3 back |
Again, the back is covered with 2.5D Contoured Corning Gorilla Glass with silver accent on the side. The logo of ASUS is placed at the bottom. The dual LED real tone flash is on the right side while the Laser AF is on the left side of the camera.
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D ASUS ZenFone 3 upper back |
The 3.5mm jack is located on the top while the USB Type C connector is at the bottom.
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D |
The keys for the power and volume can be seen at the right side of the phone. It's back to the place where I'm used to so hooray for that. This doesn't have a removable battery though.
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D |
The left side is where you'll place the sim card. Is this kind of a sorcery because there are no slot or button for sim cards and expandable memory? Well, there is but it's hidden and that's where you'll use the sim card ejector.
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D Sim Card Tray with Sim Card, Micro SD, and Sim Card Ejector |
Slot 1 Micro SIM
Slot 2 Nano SIM/Micro SD up to 128 Gb
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D Sim Card and Micro SD Card Tray |
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D Sim Card and Micro SD Card Slots |
I use only one sim and a 32 Gb memory card. So far so good. The display is bright and clear. The photos are beautiful and crisp. I thank ASUS for the 2650 mAh battery that lasted me for more than 10 hours while Data or WiFi is on. ZenFone 3's performance is simply amazing when it comes to scrolling and loading websites and multi-tasking. It's Octa-core, baby!
Clarity
The design, color, and build are love at first sight. Second love? the camera and the features like depth of field, beautification, and super-resolution. Some of my favorite shots here:
Auto Mode
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D Meiji Chocolates in Auto mode |
Super Resolution
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D Flowers in Daang Bakal shot in Super Resolution |
Effects in Gray Scale
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D Kenzo inside Himpilang Daang Bakal, San Fernando Pampanga |
I'll be musing more of my experiences on ZenFone 3's phone features, gaming, and over-all entertainment on my next post and that will be one of the parts for the full review of ASUS ZenFone 3. Before I end this post, let me share a short unboxing video. Oh, by the way, this is how my beauty arsenal looks like now :)
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| Unboxing and First Impressions: ASUS ZenFone 3 Z017D |
Unboxing Video
For more information about ASUS Philippines, visit their website:
https://www.asus.com/ph/
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Follow them on Twitter: @ASUSph
Follow them on Instagram: @asusph
Good Times!~
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