At a media event in New Delhi, ASUS has launched the ZenFone 3 series in India. All three models in the series — the ZenFone 3, ZenFone 3 Deluxe, and ZenFone 3 Ultra — will be going up for sale shortly. The highlight in the series is the ZenFone 3 Deluxe, which is the first phone to ship with the Snapdragon 821 SoC and 256GB internal storage.

ASUS has had remarkable success with the ZenFone line in India, selling over 4 million units to date. Here's what you get with its latest offerings:

Category ZenFone 3 ZenFone 3 Deluxe ZenFone 3 Ultra Display 1080p 5.5-inch SuperIPS+ LCD

77.3% screen to body radio 1080p 5.7-inch SuperAMOLED

79% screen to body ratio 1080p 6.8-inch IPD LCD

79% screen to body ratio Construction Front and rear Corning Gorilla Glass panels with 2.5D contoured edges and metal frame Full aluminum alloy unibody with "invisible antenna" Full aluminum alloy unibody with "invisible antenna" Processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 625

Octa-core 14nm

8x1.4GHz ARM Cortex-A53 Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 Qualcomm Snapdragon 652

Octa-core 28nm

4x1.8GHz ARM Cortex-A72

4x1.4GHz ARM Cortex-A53 GPU Adreno 506 Adreno 530 Adreno 510 RAM 4GB 6GB 4GB Main camera 16MP ASUS PixelMaster 3.0 (Sony IMX298 sensor)

f/2.0, 6-element Largan lens

0.03 second TriTech autofocus

4-axis OIS

3-axis EIS

Color correction sensor

Dual-tone LED flash 23MP ASUS PixelMaster 3.0 (Sony IMX318 sensor)

f/2.0, 6-element Largan lens

0.03 second TriTech autofocus

4-axis OIS

3-axis EIS

Color correction sensor

Dual-tone LED flash 23MP ASUS PixelMaster 3.0 (Sony IMX318 sensor)

f/2.0, 6-element Largan lens

0.03 second TriTech autofocus

4-axis OIS

3-axis EIS

Color correction sensor

Dual-tone LED flash Front camera 8MP, 85-degree wide-angle lens 8MP, 85-degree wide-angle lens 8MP, 85-degree wide-angle lens Wireless 802.11ac Wi-Fi: 5G/2.4G, MIMO

Cat 6 LTE 802.11ac Wi-Fi: 5G/2.4G, MIMO

Cat 13 LTE + 3CA 802.11ac Wi-Fi: 5G/2.4G, MIMO

Cat 6 LTE Fingerprint sensor Rear sensor, 5-finger registration, 360 degree recognition Rear sensor, 5-finger registration, 360 degree recognition Below screen sensor, 5-finger registration, 360 degree recognition Connectibity Bluetooth 4.2

Type-C USB 2.0 Bluetooth 4.2

Type-C USB 3.0 Bluetooth 4.2

Type-C USB 2.0 SIM/SD slots Slot 1: MicroSIM (4G)

Slot 2: NanoSM (3G) or MicroSD Slot 1: MicroSIM (4G)

Slot 2: NanoSM (3G) or MicroSD Slot 1: MicroSIM (4G)

Slot 2: NanoSM (3G) or MicroSD GPS GPS, AGPS, GLONASS, BEIDOU GPS, AGPS, GLONASS, BEIDOU GPS, AGPS, GLONASS, BEIDOU OS Andorid 6.0 Marshmallow

ZenUI 3.0 Andorid 6.0 Marshmallow

ZenUI 3.0 Andorid 6.0 Marshmallow

ZenUI 3.0 Battery 3,000mAh 3,000mAh with Quick Charge 3.0 4,600mAh with Quick Charge 3.0 Audio Hi-Res Audio

New 5-magnet speaker

NXP Smart AMP Hi-Res Audio

New 5-magnet speaker

NXP Smart AMP Hi-Res Audio

New 5-magnet speaker

NXP Smart AMP

DTS Headphone: X 7.1

DTS HD Premium Sound Video Processor ASUS Tru2Life+ featuring PixelWorks 4K TV Grade processor

DisplayPort over USB Type C Other features Always on panel Power bank capability with 1.5A rapid charge Colors Shimmer Gold

Aqua Blue

Sapphire Black

Moonlight White Titanium Gray

Glacier Silver

Sand Gold Titanium Gray

Glacier Silver

Rose Pink





As always, ASUS is launching several configurations of each handset, so here's what you need to know about the pricing of the ZenFone 3 in India:

ZenFone 3 Laser (ZC551KL) - ₹18,999 ($285)

ZenFone 3 (ZE520KL) - 5.2-inch FHD display/3GB RAM/32GB storage - ₹21,999 ($330)

ZenFone 3 (ZE552KL) - 5.5-inch FHD display/4GB RAM.64GB storage - ₹27,999 ($420)

ZenFone 3 Ultra (ZU680KL) - ₹49,999 ($745)

ZenFone 3 Deluxe - Snapdragon 820/64GB storage - ₹49,999 ($745)

ZenFone 3 Deluxe - Snapdragon 821/256GB storage - ₹62,999 ($940)

The ZenFone 3 Deluxe with the Snapdragon 821 SoC will be costlier than the Galaxy Note 7 in the country, which has a street price of ₹59,900 ($900). You're getting a lot for your money with either phone, but it is unlikely ASUS has the brand cachet to entice buyers. That said, it is great to see the Taiwanese manufacturer bring the highest spec variant of the ZenFone 3 Deluxe to India (looking at you, Xiaomi).

The ZenFone 3 is up for sale on Amazon India right now, and other variants will be available from next month.

See at Amazon