Android Zenfone 2: Initial impressions

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deepakvrao

Adept
Just got it yesterday.

Reasonably well built. Looks more premium than the ZF5. Pretty snappy, and everything works as it should. No lag. I dont play games though.

Zen UI is great with lots of nice featres like double tap to wake up/sleep. Double tap home button to make screen smaller for single hand use.

Battery - after first charge lasted me about 14 hours till it reached 15%, but that was with more than usual screen on time, as well as BT streaming to my stereo. With my wife's ZF5 the batter improved significantly after about a week of charging. Wifi was on all day, but data was not on as my limit for the month has been reached.

Screen is sharp. Nothing brilliant, and brightness is just OK in bright sunlight. In call volume could be a bit higher.

The volume button at the back is surprisingly better than the side ones, and you get used to it fast.

Placing the power button on the top is a bad choice, but with the double tap you really don't need to use it. On advantage is that you can double tap without lifting the phone from the table, with just one finger and see the notifications.

Charging is fast. 1 hour gives about 60%, and 2 hours to full charge with their supplied charger.

I got the 2GB RAM, full HD model for 15K.

Size - feels almost the same as the ZF5 though it has a 5.5" screen. Bit heavier but not really noticeable even in my pocket.

EDIT: Almost forgot. The biggest drawback is that the superb 'do not disturb' feature of the ZF5 is gone, thanks to Lollipop. This was in fact one of the reasons I had selected an Asus, after seeing how customisable the feature was on my wife's phone. The only disappointment really.
 
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Well after a couple of charges, I finished 8am to 8pm with 50% left. This was 'my' average use of calls/SMSs/browsing plus some GPS navigation for maybe about 20-30 minutes with screen on. Not bad for my usage.

Wifi on thruout.
 
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I have the 4GB model, Red color. :) . Tap to wake is a very nice feature to have. I am getting a week of battery on dual sim stand by. I use this one as a pure backup phone.

Even with 4GB, this thing is laggy. My old Note 3 Snapdragon model was bit faster with just 3GB. More fluid.
 
Hmm. For me, I live in US. I have commitments in India. So banking OTP's. And also, my numbers are with several people I know. So good for that.

Also, I get to have a number right the moment when I land in airport. Its useful a lot. Like if I am going to my mysore office, they arrange cab to pick me up from Bangalore airport to our guest house in mysore.
If i go to my home...then to tell my parents how long till i get out..

And both of those numbers were my first 2 numbers I ever took. Don't want to let em go.

Think these usage are enough for me.
 
I don't think its a bad thing. I use a iPhone 6 Plus. comparing to that its already small. I care nothing about aesthetics. But yea, i hear the same line in tonnes of reviews.
 
m-jeri said:
I have the 4GB model, Red color. :) . Tap to wake is a very nice feature to have. I am getting a week of battery on dual sim stand by. I use this one as a pure backup phone.

Even with 4GB, this thing is laggy. My old Note 3 Snapdragon model was bit faster with just 3GB. More fluid.
Click to expand...
Whoa!
It is laggy even with 4 gigs of RAM?
 
I believe so. The unlock keypad itself takes a bit to take my pin code. My colleagues think they are fast. But it is no. The home screen swipes. The time it take my message inbox to load up. App drawer UI transition. There is a definite lag. Of course I am nitpicking. Most people will be perfectly happy with this. Provided the price point and the specs.

My Note 3 N9005 still is the snappiest Android I used to this date. It was running some custom ROM.
 
Well, the only 'snappy' android that I have really used is the Galaxy S2, and this is as smooth if not smoother than that. Having said that, I am just an average joe, and not a phone connoisseur.

Again curious, what's wrong with capacitative buttons?
 
I might end up picking this up as I require a dual sim phone and nothing is better than this.[DOUBLEPOST=1430913975][/DOUBLEPOST]@m-jeri Which version you picked up ?

4GB RAM with 32 GB or 64?
 
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4GB with 32GB. Again. No use of any other model for me. The only big memory app i used is the Nokia Here Maps offline navigation. Downloaded the India and US maps. Thats it.
 
Got a case and a tempered glass protector for mine. I don't know why, just think its way too cool.
 

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^where you got the red color? you've mentioned about one week battery life while in standby, but have you tried using continuously(as main phone) and battery life?
 
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