Asus has revealed its latest high-end device, the ZenFone 6. The new model comes with a unique design feature: a rotating camera module. This means there is no requirement for a front camera (and therefore no display notch), as the main module can simply be rotated to point towards the front.
It also means you get rear camera image quality when taking selfie images or recording selfie videos, which could be a real bonus for some users. The rotation angle of the module can be adjusted via the camera app, so the feature is also useful for capturing subjects that are located further down or higher up.
Asus says the camera module housing is made with Liquidmetal technology that is 4x stronger than stainless steel but lighter. It has been tested for 100,000 actuations and closes automatically when a drop is detected. In addition, the rotation mechanism can be used to automate panorama panning or to help with motion tracking to keep your subject in frame.
Inside the rotating module Asus has implemented a 48MP Sony IMX586 Quad-Bayer sensor that produces 12MP image output for a wide dynamic range and low noise. It is combined with an F1. 8 aperture lens. There is also a 13MP ultra-wide-angle camera with a 125-degree field of view but, likely due to space constraints, no tele.
In video mode the camera can record 4K videos at 60fps with electronic image stabilization and like most recent high-end devices, the Asus also comes with a multi-frame-based night mode that offers better image quality in very low light.
Images can be viewed and composed on a 6. 4” IPS LCD that covers 92% of the front. The device is powered by a Snapdragon 855 chipset and up to 8GB of RAM. Up to 256GB of storage is available and storage can be expandable via a microSD card. The 5,000mAh battery should provide plenty of usage time.
Below is a highlight reel from Asus' ZenFone 6 introduction:
The ZenFone 6 will first be available in Europe for €500 (approximately $560). No information on pricing and availability in other regions has been released yet.
. dpreview.com2019-5-18 16:13
