Verdict
Marmite-like design apart, the Asus ZenFone 10 is a stable compact smartphone with flagship processing energy, all-day battery life and a vastly customisable method to Android 13 – although it is rather just like its predecessor, and prices extra money in 2023.
Execs
- Prime-end efficiency
- All-day battery life
- Six-axis gimbal stabilisation steadies picture and video seize
- Pocketable design
Cons
- Bio-plastic rear feels just a little low-cost
- Identical essential digital camera sensor as ZenFone 9
- Comparatively sluggish 30W charging
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Six-axis gimbal stabilisationThe 50MP rear digital camera is stabilised by Asus’ personal six-axis gimbal stabilisation system that, as an alternative of shifting the sensor like conventional OIS, strikes all the digital camera package deal to offer 3x extra motion stabilisation. -
All-day battery lifeAlthough the 4300mAh cell may not be as giant as some flagships, the small show and power-efficient chipset means the ZenFone 10 has no bother lasting all day and effectively right into a second with gentle to reasonable use. -
Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 energyThe Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset discovered inside the ZenFone 10 delivers top-tier efficiency, matching benchmarks of flagship telephones that price a whole lot extra.
Introduction
Asus appears to have carved out a distinct segment with its ZenFone vary, catering to those who desire a smaller display screen than the 6.5- to five.8-inch panels utilized in most flagships. The Asus ZenFone 10 continues this pattern, however is it actually as compact as Asus would have you ever imagine? I’m not so certain.
Dimension apart, the ZenFone 10 is a plucky flagship with all of the bells and whistles you’d count on, from flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 energy to a 144Hz AMOLED show and all-day battery life – however it’s additionally fairly just like its predecessor, the ZenFone 9, and it prices just a little extra too.
The query is, then, has Asus executed sufficient with the ZenFone 10 to keep up its pocket-friendly proposition in 2023? Properly…
Design and display screen
- ‘Compact’ design isn’t a lot smaller than an iPhone 14 Professional
- New eco-friendly bio-composite rear
- 5.9-inch 144Hz AMOLED show
The Asus ZenFone 10 takes a number of visible cues from its predecessor, the ZenFone 9, sporting the identical dual-material design and common compact dimensions. That’s nice if you happen to have been a fan of the ZenFone 9, however if you happen to’re a bit like me and also you’re not into the final look, it’s a tad disappointing.
The design baffles me just a little; it seems like an iPhone 14, full with the identical angular edges and rounded corners, with what seems like an affordable case completely caught on the rear. The rear casing doesn’t utterly attain the sides of the bezel both, additional including to the odd look.
There’s a change in materials in comparison with the ZenFone 9, although it has break up opinion at Trusted Opinions over the previous couple of weeks. Some have beloved the bio-based polycarbonate paper-esque end of the cellphone whereas others have thought that it made the cellphone really feel quite a bit cheaper than its £749/$699 price ticket. There’s a clear case within the field for those who actually dislike it, I suppose.
Not less than it’s out there in some relatively vibrant finishes together with Midnight Black, Starry Blue, Aurora Inexperienced, Comet White and Eclipse Purple. I’m an enormous fan of the Aurora Inexperienced end despatched for assessment, although the Eclipse Purple does additionally look good.
I believe my essential difficulty stems from the ‘compact’ advertising and marketing of the ZenFone 10. Asus claims that the perfect dimensions for a compact smartphone are under 70mm in width and 150mm in peak, however actually and actually, these measurements are relatively fatuous.
You see, whereas the ZenFone 10 certainly comes inside these boundaries at 68.1 x 146.5 x 9.4mm, in actuality, it’s barely any smaller than the 6.1-inch iPhone 14 Professional. Check out the 2 side-by-side proper right here:
Certain, the ZenFone remains to be ever so barely narrower than the 6.1-inch iPhone 14 Professional, however there isn’t as a lot in it as Asus may need you imagine. That’s extra irritating whenever you realise that the small trade-off in dimensions means a discount in display screen dimension at 5.9 inches.
It’s not all simply advertising and marketing guff although; like most small-screen Android smartphones, the ZenFone 10 is very easy to make use of one-handed – I used to be even capable of attain the highest of the display screen to swipe down and entry the notification shade, and there aren’t many 2023 flagships I can say that about.
It additionally helps that the 5.9-inch AMOLED panel is a premium one; although its FHD+ decision isn’t fairly as pixel-packed because the WQHD panel from the Samsung Galaxy S23 Extremely, its small dimensions nonetheless ship a good 444 PPI.
It’s a lot brilliant at a most of 1100 nits which not solely makes it straightforward to make use of open air however a dream for HDR content material from Netflix and Amazon Prime, and the blacks are as inky as you’d count on from an AMOLED panel.
There’s a 144Hz refresh fee on provide to make all the things really feel smoother and extra responsive, however there’s a catch; it’s not an LTPO show like different flagships, that means it may’t drop right down to the battery-saving 1Hz when wanted. As an alternative, the cellphone robotically switches between 60, 90 and 120Hz in every day life, with the complete 144Hz refresh fee solely out there when enjoying video games.
There’s not a lot of a notable change in comparison with LTPO panels in on a regular basis use, however it will’ve been good to see – not least due to improved battery effectivity in comparison with normal panels.
Different notable {hardware} options embrace full IP68 mud and water resistance, and the brand new ZenTouch 2.0 fingerprint reader and good key. The side-mounted button may be swiped to carry out a variety of actions, from accessing the notification shade to scrolling by websites and, new for the ZenFone 10, the power to quick ahead and rewind movies on YouTube.
It’s a helpful characteristic however right-handers beware; I discovered it’d activate pretty typically if my palm was touching the ability button.
Cameras
- Close to-identical digital camera sensors
- New six-axis gimbal stabilisation system
- Nice, however not industry-leading, efficiency
As with the ZenFone 9, Asus has determined to forego a zoom lens on the ZenFone 10. As an alternative, it boasts the identical mixture of a essential and ultrawide snapper on the rear – and it’s a near-identical setup too.
That’s true of the principle 50MP lens, utilizing the identical Sony IMX766 sensor as its predecessor, although it options an upgraded six-axis gimbal stabilisation system that strikes all the digital camera package deal to stabilise an elevated 1.5 levels in each route – 3x greater than normal OIS.
What does that imply for you and me? In concept, it ought to fight the blur when taking pictures with a shaky hand greater than the competitors. In actuality, it doesn’t fairly eradicate blur in all situations, however I’d argue that the stabilisation is up there with among the greatest round, with far fewer blurry photographs than some telephones I’ve examined not too long ago.
Extra usually talking, the 50MP essential lens is a succesful one. The seize course of is impressively swift, and whereas the ensuing photographs showcase a pleasant vibrancy, it’s price noting that they don’t have the identical diploma of distinction depth generally present in Samsung’s choices.
It additionally does an awesome job within the HDR division, managing to seize loads of element in each brilliant and darkish areas, even when coping with difficult scenes bathed in daylight.
One drawback I’ve observed is that the cellphone generally struggles with significantly brilliant and vibrant colors, just like the crimson of the flowers from my backyard, with the brightest elements wanting notably much less outlined than different elements of the flower. It’s not one thing I observed typically, however price noting nonetheless.
With an f/1.9 aperture and a 1/1.56in sensor smaller than the 1-inch sensors of competing flagships just like the Xiaomi 13 Professional, night time time pictures isn’t precisely industry-leading, although it does a good job if in an setting the place there are sources of sunshine like road lights. The color temperature of the general picture can generally be just a little too heat, and a few photographs look just a little delicate in locations, nonetheless.
The ultrawide may solely boast a slight MP increase from 12MP to 13MP, however the photographs are well-tuned to match the principle snapper by way of temperature and color copy that, when mixed with anti-distortion tech, makes it laborious to discern which lens took which picture when scrolling by your Gallery. Not less than I did when it got here to discovering samples for the assessment!
There are telltale indicators, significantly when zooming in, however it’s greater than sufficient for capturing detailed group photographs for sharing on social media – simply don’t try utilizing it in low gentle because the outcomes aren’t fairly as spectacular as these from the principle sensor.
There may be an choice for 2x zoom within the Digital camera app to deliver you just a little nearer to your topic, however that is executed by cropping the principle sensor – and the additional you zoom, the more severe it seems total. It’s occasions like these that I actually want the ZenFone 10 had a devoted telephoto sensor, delivering high-quality close-ups, particularly when it’s a characteristic of many different flagships at the same worth.
Selfies from the 32MP selfie digital camera are fairly spectacular, with nice element, loads of gentle and a stage of vibrancy that merely isn’t current in some high-end choices just like the Xiaomi 13 Professional. That’s largely right down to the usage of an RGBW sensor instead of the RGGB sensor utilized by many different selfie cameras, with extra white pixels offering not solely higher gentle consumption however an total discount in noise – one thing significantly notable when capturing selfies in low gentle.
Portrait mode can be a standout characteristic of the selfie digital camera, with spectacular edge recognition and a not-too-OTT fake bokeh impact.
As you may count on from a six-axis gimbal stabilisation system, video can be tremendous easy, even when capturing 4K@60fps video. Audio seize can be respectable right here, due to Asus’ partnership with OZO which helps scale back noise and supplies stereoscopic audio for higher immersion when capturing movies.
Efficiency and software program
- Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 efficiency
- Assist for varied high-res audio codecs
- Closely customisable method to Android 13
The Asus ZenFone 10 is nearly as highly effective as they arrive, sporting Qualcomm’s top-end Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset together with both 8GB or a whopping 16GB of RAM and both 128-, 256- or 512GB of UFS 4.0 storage to play with.
As you may count on from the corporate that additionally develops the performance-focused ROG Cellphone 7 Final, efficiency is stable right here. Not as soon as did I really feel that the ZenFone 10 couldn’t deal with what I used to be throwing at it, with an ultra-responsive really feel little question enhanced by that easy refresh fee, full with speedy animations and instantaneous app hundreds.
In actual fact, it’s a reasonably stable little gaming cellphone with sustained efficiency even when enjoying more difficult video games like Name of Obligation Cellular at excessive body charges, making it choice for avid gamers that need one thing extra compact than the large, cumbersome alternate options – so long as you’re feeling comfy gaming on a small 5.9-inch show, that’s.
That’s backed up by benchmark take a look at outcomes too, with the ZenFone 10 comfortably capable of compete with flagships that price a whole lot extra:
Audio efficiency can be up there with among the greatest round, not least due to the inclusion of a 3.5mm headphone jack – considered one of vanishingly few flagship gadgets to sport the port in 2023. That’s additional bolstered by Dirac tuning, in addition to Hello-Res Audio assist – each wired and wi-fi – and aptX Lossless for high-res assist over Bluetooth.
Even with no pair of cans related, the stereo speaker setup is impressively loud for such a small cellphone, although with the same old caveats about smartphone audio system and a scarcity of bass. The opposite draw back is that it may make the skinny rear panel vibrate in your fingers at excessive volumes, making the cellphone really feel a bit low-cost in comparison with glass-backed alternate options.
In terms of the final software program expertise, count on Android 13 with Asus’ ZenUI pores and skin utilized.
I really like what Asus has executed with its method to Android 13. It’s nonetheless pretty inventory, and the place Asus has launched adjustments (like with its method to powering off the cellphone), it additionally supplies the choice to modify again to the inventory Android choice. It’s this method to customisation that actually stands out amongst most third-party Android skins, right down to minor components like altering the form of the fast settings icons.
New to Asus’ Android 13 pores and skin is the power to customize the cellphone’s always-on show with GIFs and different customized photographs, in addition to enhancements to Sport Genie to spice up recreation efficiency and the power to take lengthy screenshots. The latter feels surprisingly overdue.
Total, it’s an awesome, clear, customisable method to Android 13 that the majority customers will respect, whether or not coming from inventory Android or one other method to the OS totally.
The software program promise isn’t fairly up there with Samsung and Google, nonetheless, with a promise of two OS upgrades and 4 years of safety patches.
Battery life
- Simply an all-day machine
- Sufficient to final two days with minimal utilization
- Pretty sluggish 30W charging
The mixture of a extremely environment friendly chipset, a small show and a reasonably respectable 4,300mAh battery means you gained’t actually have to fret about battery life with the ZenFone 10 – in my expertise, not less than.
I wouldn’t describe myself as an influence consumer however I do use my cellphone for emails, looking, messaging on WhatsApp, listening to music and taking snaps after I’m out and about, and never as soon as in my two weeks of utilizing the cellphone did I get fearful that it’d go flat earlier than I made it house. Even on relatively busy days, I’d end with round 30-40% battery left within the tank.
On days after I used the cellphone much less, battery life acquired even higher – in actual fact, I managed to go from Friday afternoon to Sunday night time on a single cost.
That’s backed up by my benchmark outcomes too, with the ZenFone 10 draining 5% throughout an hour of HDR Netflix playback and simply 4% over half-hour of gaming.
The one draw back is the cost speeds; it’s capped at a relatively sluggish 30W when in comparison with different flagships just like the OnePlus 11 and its 100W charging pace. I’ve discovered {that a} full cost is feasible in round 1 hour and 20 minutes when utilizing the equipped 30W HyperCharge adapter, which is ok, however is usually a little sluggish for these last-minute top-ups.
The one saving grace is that the ZenFone 10 is appropriate with any USB-C PD 30W charger, that means you don’t want an Asus-branded charger to benefit from the full cost speeds.
There’s additionally 15W wi-fi charging out there for the primary time on a ZenFone that, whereas slower than wired charging, is far more handy.
Newest offers
Do you have to purchase it?
You’re keen on small, compact telephones:
It may not be as compact as some may count on, however the ZenFone 10 remains to be among the many smallest flagship Android smartphones out there in 2023.
You desire a telephoto lens:
Whereas the six-axis gimbal stabilisation of the principle 50MP shooter is a pleasant contact, and the 13MP ultrawide does an awesome job in most circumstances, it lacks a telephoto lens – one thing you’ll discover on a lot of the equally priced competitors.
Ultimate Ideas
I may not personally be a fan of its design, however the Asus ZenFone 10 is a stable smartphone for the cash – particularly for these sick of big 6.8-inch shows on smartphones. It’s not practically as compact as Asus may need you imagine, measuring in not a lot smaller than an iPhone 14 Professional, however the 5.9-inch AMOLED show is not less than straightforward sufficient to make use of one-handed.
There’s additionally some cool digital camera tech on provide, together with a brand new six-axis gimbal stabilisation system that helps scale back blur in each pictures and movies, and it makes taking long-exposure photographs a lot simpler, negating the necessity for a tripod. It’s only a disgrace that the core digital camera tech is near-identical to its predecessor, that means there’s no actual improve to digital camera high quality in comparison with the ZenFone 9.
Regardless of its comparatively small dimensions, the ZenFone 10 is a powerhouse with the top-end Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and as much as 16GB of RAM and 512GB of UFS 4.0 storage on provide. It unsurprisingly delivered stable on a regular basis efficiency in addition to pretty beefy recreation efficiency, and it’ll comfortably final the overwhelming majority of customers all day with no top-up.
So, whereas it may not be a really compact smartphone just like the iPhone 13 Mini, it’s one of many smallest and most succesful you’ll discover on the Android facet of issues in 2023, significantly on the high finish of the market.
How we take a look at
We take a look at each cell phone we assessment totally. We use industry-standard exams to match options correctly and we use the cellphone as our essential machine over the assessment interval. We’ll at all times let you know what we discover and we by no means, ever, settle for cash to assessment a product.
Discover out extra about how we take a look at in our ethics coverage.
Used as a essential cellphone for over per week
Thorough digital camera testing in well-lit and low-light circumstances
Examined and benchmarked utilizing revered {industry} exams
FAQs
Sure, the ZenFone 10 is rated IP68 for mud and water resistance.
Sure, you’ll get a 30W HyperCharge charging brick and USB-C cable within the field.
Trusted Opinions take a look at knowledge
Geekbench 6 single core
Geekbench 6 multi core
Max brightness
1 hour video playback (Netflix, HDR)
30 minute gaming (gentle)
Time from 0-100% cost
Time from 0-50% cost
30-min recharge (included charger)
15-min recharge (included charger)
3D Mark – Wild Life
GFXBench – Aztec Ruins
GFXBench – Automobile Chase
UK RRP
EU RRP
Producer
Display screen Dimension
Storage Capability
Rear Digital camera
Entrance Digital camera
Video Recording
IP score
Battery
Wi-fi charging
Quick Charging
Dimension (Dimensions)
Weight
Working System
Launch Date
First Reviewed Date
Decision
HDR
Refresh Price
Ports
Chipset
RAM
Colors
Jargon buster
mAh
An abbreviation for milliampere-hour and a technique to categorical the capability of batteries, particularly smaller ones in telephones. Normally the upper the mAh, the longer the battery will final however this isn’t at all times the case.
OLED and AMOLED
Kinds of shows that use self-lighting pixels to offer higher distinction and extra vibrant colors than a typical LCD show, in addition to sharper blacks.
IP score
An abbreviation for ‘Ingress Safety Code’, which helps you to know to what extent a tool may be waterproof or dustproof.
IP68
The preferred and helpful stage of water resistance. Normally means a tool can stand up to mud, filth and sand and be submerged in 1.5m of water for 30m nonetheless this will generally fluctuate. Learn extra in our IP68 information for extra.
