ASUS ZenFone 2 / Zoom

[Obsy]

I would definitely take this over Alcatel. Almost every spec is better.

What are your reasons?

I cancelled my Idol 3 200$ pre order as ZenFone 2 seemed a better deal. For 50 more bucks, you get twice the RAM, and quadruple the storage. That alone is a winner for me.

I'm considering the Idol 3 as well. For those who find the S615 and 2GB RAM more than adequate, I think the Idol 3 offers a superior user experience. It has much better battery life, a better and brighter display (reviews are pegging it at 600-700+ nits), front facing speakers, and a slimmer/lighter build. It might have a better camera combo, too.

And on T-Mobile, you also have the advantage of AWS HSPA+ and their new low frequency LTE. Yeah, the Zenfone 2 really doesn't have either of those bands.

 

[RossMAN]

What are your reasons?

I cancelled my Idol 3 200$ pre order as ZenFone 2 seemed a better deal. For 50 more bucks, you get twice the RAM, and quadruple the storage. That alone is a winner for me.

software/bloat http://www.androidcentral.com/asus-zenfone-2-review

Or I might wait for the new Nexus 5 2015 or Moto X 2015 successor.

 

[Uppsala9496]

What I don't understand about that androidcentral review are the contradictions about the software.

The Bad: Software is filled with bloat

Bottom line: For a maximum of $299 you're getting an unlocked phone with nearly-flagship specs and a really good software experience...

So what is it? Is it a really good software experience (which means no bloat to me) or is software that is filled with bloat (which implies it is not a good experience).

Waiting not so patiently for the AT review.

 

[NikolaeVarius]

What I don't understand about that androidcentral review are the contradictions about the software.

The Bad: Software is filled with bloat

Bottom line: For a maximum of $299 you're getting an unlocked phone with nearly-flagship specs and a really good software experience...

So what is it? Is it a really good software experience (which means no bloat to me) or is software that is filled with bloat (which implies it is not a good experience).

Waiting not so patiently for the AT review.

A car that drives excellently and amazingly well comes with a boatload of unneeded features that you don't use but don't actively do anything to harm your enjoyment of driving the car.

Not contradictory at all.

 

[MtSeldon]

I'm considering the Idol 3 as well. For those who find the S615 and 2GB RAM more than adequate, I think the Idol 3 offers a superior user experience. It has much better battery life, a better and brighter display (reviews are pegging it at 600-700+ nits), front facing speakers, and a slimmer/lighter build. It might have a better camera combo, too.

And on T-Mobile, you also have the advantage of AWS HSPA+ and their new low frequency LTE. Yeah, the Zenfone 2 really doesn't have either of those bands.

It has a brighter screen , not a better screen. Alcatel doesn't have a better camera. I don't care iabout the slimmer/lighter build unless difference is really big, which isn't.

Zenfone 5 also has lots of preinstalled applications. Never bothered me, they just stay there , and don't interfere with anything.

 

[Obsy]

It has a brighter screen , not a better screen. Alcatel doesn't have a better camera. I don't care iabout the slimmer/lighter build unless difference is really big, which isn't.

Reviews generally praise the Idol 3's display more than the ZenFone 2's, and it's also been measured to be more color accurate, so I would say that the Idol 3 has a better display.

I'm leaning on the ZenFone 2's rear camera being a bit better now after watching MobileTechReview's video, but that was a subjective comparison. And honestly, if the cameras between them are practically equal, then I would easily say that the Idol 3 is a better photographic device. Why? Because of its 300+ nit brighter screen that will allow you to better compose and interpret your image in daylight.

A car that drives excellently and amazingly well comes with a boatload of unneeded features that you don't use but don't actively do anything to harm your enjoyment of driving the car.

Not contradictory at all.

I wonder if the massive amount of bloat contributes to its mediocre battery life, though.

 

[MtSeldon]

the reviews i checked, says a brighter screen but not a better one. but i dont know how much difference it does make in real life. have to see it in real myself.

But the performance difference is real. In some benchmarks (for example video,3d mark ) Zenfone 2 is more than three times faster. This is a huge difference, they are not even in the same league.

 

[VenomXTF]

You can just uninstall those apps.

 

[Uppsala9496]

A car that drives excellently and amazingly well comes with a boatload of unneeded features that you don't use but don't actively do anything to harm your enjoyment of driving the car.

Not contradictory at all.

Software is filled with bloat. That's bad. But it is a really good software experience. That is good.
Which is it? A good or a bad experience?

That's like saying the car has tires that result in a poor driving experience yet the car drives excellent and amazingly well.

 

[NikolaeVarius]

Software is filled with bloat. That's bad. But it is a really good software experience. That is good.
Which is it? A good or a bad experience?

That's like saying the car has tires that result in a poor driving experience yet the car drives excellent and amazingly well.

That metaphor is . . .wow. Makes no sense at all.

 

[TuxDave]

software/bloat http://www.androidcentral.com/asus-zenfone-2-review

Or I might wait for the new Nexus 5 2015 or Moto X 2015 successor.

This discussion brings back memories of this classic tool:
http://decrap.org/

I'm not sure how big of a problem this is for Android and whether or not the preinstalled apps it impacts the phone performance. It doesn't sound like there's any preinstalled rootkits but it sounds like people are generally more paranoid with preinstalled software as a result.

 

[joejoe666]

Which one to buy, zenfone 2 for $200 or Lg G2 for $150? (plus taxes)

 

[KeithP]

I wonder if the massive amount of bloat contributes to its mediocre battery life, though.

Possibly. In the Android Central review they seemed happy with the battery life but I believe they also uninstalled all the bloatware...

The other — and considerably more annoying — part of the equation is the expanse of trial apps, utilities and virus scanners pre-installed on the phone. Apps like Clean Master and Dr. Safety are pre-installed and automatically "scanning" for "threats" on your phone, and they're paired up with pre-installed chat apps, game trials and other questionably-desirable content in an "Apps4U" folder. Thankfully a vast majority of these apps can be uninstalled, but I still wish they weren't there in the first place.

My phones are all set to sync and notify me of every email, social network, news story and update from several accounts, while I spend most of my time on Wifi and use the phone for bits of prolonged podcast and music listening throughout the day. Even after a full 17 hour day (registering somewhere between two and three hours of screen use) I regularly had 30 percent or more battery left, which is quite superb. When I needed to fire up the mobile hotspot for a while or take a ton of pictures the battery didn't seem to drop too considerably either, which is also important.

I never once worried about battery life on the ZenFone 2, which just can't be said for every phone out there today. And while there are battery-saving customization options and an "ultra-saving mode," I didn't find any of it necessary to get what I needed out of the 3000mAh battery.

It could be if a review claims the phone had mediocre battery life that they left all the bloat apps running. Luckily that can be fixed by the user although it is shame they have to do so.

-KeithP

 

[Uppsala9496]

That metaphor is . . .wow. Makes no sense at all.

Exactly.

 

[NikolaeVarius]

Exactly.

No, as in your metaphor itself makes no sense because its so completely removed from what is actually happening in this situation that it doesn't even relate.

 

[ThatsABigOne]

So, can a regular user uninstall bloatware apps on Asus?

 

[r4sh1d]

Are they going to release a 128 GB version in the US? I believe ASUS released a 128 GB version in India (flipkart).

 

[MtSeldon]

So, can a regular user uninstall bloatware apps on Asus?

Some of them can be uninstalled. But i just tried to uninstall asus backup application , it only uninstalled the updates ,the app wasnt totally removed.

But most of the third party applications can be uninstalled . I don't think this is an important factor when choosing a phone. Uninstalling the annoying ones would only take a few minutes. Asus applications doesn't interfere with the user , they just sit there doing nothing if you don't use

 

[Obsy]

So, can a regular user uninstall bloatware apps on Asus?

Here's what you can disable:

Clean Master, 50+ Games!, TripAdvisor, Dr. Safety, Zinio, Amazon Kindle, Data Transfer, Omlet Chat, Up, WebStorage, Google Chrome, Gmail, Google+/Photos, Maps, Play Music, Play Movies & TV, Play Books, Play Newsstand, Play Games, YouTube, Hangouts

And here's what I do want to disable but can't:

ASUS Support, Audio Wizard, Backup, Browser, Calculator, Calendar, Do It Later, Email, File Manager, Flashlight, Gallery, Kids Mode, Messaging, Mini Movie, Mirror, Music, MyASUS, Party Link, PC Link, PhotoCollage, Quick Memo, Setup Wizard, Share Link, Splendid, SuperNote, Themes, Weather, What's Next, Zen Circle, Zen Talk

I like to keep the Google apps, so for me the ratio of bloat vs 'removable' apps is 3:1. I'm a picky Nexus user at heart, though, so most people won't find this phone as bloated as I do.

 

[Obsy]

Possibly. In the Android Central review they seemed happy with the battery life but I believe they also uninstalled all the bloatware...

It could be if a review claims the phone had mediocre battery life that they left all the bloat apps running. Luckily that can be fixed by the user although it is shame they have to do so.
-KeithP

I hope that's the case. I removed all that I could on mine, but I still need to give it some time to see how the battery life is

But the performance difference is real. In some benchmarks (for example video,3d mark ) Zenfone 2 is more than three times faster. This is a huge difference, they are not even in the same league.

Graphics is a specialized case, but there's no doubt that the ZenFone 2 benches better. I have the slower ZF2 which probably benches only ~10% faster than the Idol 3 in Geekbench (the high-end ZF2 benches 40% faster), but I still find it plenty fast. All I'm saying is that the average, non-tech enthusiast user has quite a lot going for them with the Idol 3.

 

[lsd]

Torn between the zf2 and the idol 3 . I guess the deciding factor is which company can I count on to provide timely updates?

 

[Obsy]

Torn between the zf2 and the idol 3 . I guess the deciding factor is which company can I count on to provide timely updates?

They're both pretty bad at it, but I'd say ASUS is better. Still, don't expect updates

 

[MtSeldon]

Graphics is a specialized case, but there's no doubt that the ZenFone 2 benches better. I have the slower ZF2 which probably benches only ~10% faster than the Idol 3 in Geekbench (the high-end ZF2 benches 40% faster), but I still find it plenty fast. All I'm saying is that the average, non-tech enthusiast user has quite a lot going for them with the Idol 3.

Graphics is not a specialized case imho. GPU 's are almost used in every scenario nowadays.

lsd
Torn between the zf2 and the idol 3 . I guess the deciding factor is which company can I count on to provide timely updates?

They aren't even in the same leage. Zenfone 2 is the superior option.
But if camera is important . they are both not good enough i think.

The only think i find really annoying with Zenfone 2 , is that those three buttons at the bottom doesn't have backlighting. it makes it harder to use at dark, wonder what was the cost of a simple backlighting ?

 

[Obsy]

Graphics is not a specialized case imho. GPU 's are almost used in every scenario nowadays.

I'm referring to your 3D Mark quotation. Just because it is 'used in every scenario' doesn't mean it needs to be three times as fast there. I can guarantee you that most people do not buy their phones to look at GPU benchmarks.

They aren't even in the same leage. Zenfone 2 is the superior option.

Sure, if he buys the higher-end model and his killer app is running benchmarks.

 

[MtSeldon]

Those benchmarks are done for a reason. They reflect the overall performance of a device. If the user likes playing games r than the difference between these two phones is huge. They are not even in the same league.