Asus on Monday announced the launch of its latest mid-range smartphone - ZenFone Max Pro M1 - in India. Key highlights of the handset include an 18:9 full-HD+ display, a large 5000mAh battery (with 10W charger), the latest Snapdragon 636 SoC, and face unlock. The ZenFone Max Pro M1 smartphone takes on the likes of Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro, which comes with the same Snapdragon 636 system-on-chip but is priced higher. The handset goes on sale in India exclusively via Flipkart starting May 3; this is the global debut of the smartphone.

Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 Review

Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 price in India, launch offers

Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 price in India has been set at Rs. 10,999 for the variant with 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage, while the model with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage will cost Rs. 12,999. The phone will be made available across in Midnight Black and Grey colour options. The company has partnered with Flipkart to offer Complete Mobile Protection - which covers broken screens, liquid damage, hardware and software faults, etc. - at Rs. 49 for a year. On the first day of release, the handset will be available with no-cost EMI via credit cards and Bajaj FinServ.

As for the launch offer, ZenFone Max Pro M1 buyers on Vodafone will get 10GB complimentary data month for 12 months on recharges of Rs. 199 and above for prepaid users. They will also get weekly telco and non-telco offers, Asus said. For postpaid users on Rs. 399 Red plan, Vodafone will give 10GB additional data a month for a year, while those on Rs. 499 Red plan will get free Red Protect access free.

Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 specifications

The dual-SIM (Nano) Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 runs a pure version of Android 8.1 Oreo out-of-the-box, and will get Android P and Android Q upgrades. It sports a 5.99-inch full-HD+ (1080x2160 pixels) IPS Full View display with an 18:9 aspect ratio. The handset is powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 SoC, coupled with an Adreno 509 GPU.

As for camera specifications, the ZenFone Max Pro M1 bears a dual camera setup at the back with a 13-megapixel primary Omnivision sensor (f/2.2 aperture) and a 5-megapixel secondary depth sensing sensor. On the front there is an 8-megapixel selfie camera with f/2.0 aperture, an 85.5-degree wide-angle lens, and a 5P lens. Both the rear and front camera get soft-light LED flash. There is up to 64GB EMCP inbuilt storage on the phone, with microSD card support up to 2TB for expansion. And, a 5000mAh battery, with a bundled 10W charger, powers in the internals from under the hood.

Connectivity options include 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n with Wi-Fi Direct, Bluetooth 4.2 (with aptX), GPS/ A-GPS, BDS, GLONASS, Micro-USB, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Sensors onboard the Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 include Face Unlock sensor, fingerprint sensor, and the likes. Dimensions are 159x76x8.61mm and weight is 180 grams.

Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro

The company also announced a 6GB RAM variant of the ZenFone Max Pro M1, which will come with 64GB internal storage, 16-megapixel + 5-megapixel rear camera setup on the back, and 16-megapixel selfie shooter. The remaining specifications remain the same as that of the standard variant. This variant will be released "soon" and will be priced at Rs. 14,999.

We discussed whether Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 is a Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro killer on Orbital, our weekly technology podcast, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts or RSS, download the episode, or just hit the play button below.

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