- Analysis by KJ David
Not to be confused with the much-older ZenFone 4, which, in comparison, is a mundane dual-core phone, the Asus Zenfone 4 2017 is a flagship-caliber 5.5-incher whose pros and cons revolved around its classy multimedia offering.
Leading its specs is a dual-lens primary camera setup, consisting of a 12-megapixel IMX362-sensor standard camera and a secondary 8-megapixel wide-angle cam 
. Aided by Qualcomm's flagship Spectra 160 image signal processor , its rear camera system delivers 4K-2160p videos and shots of up to 120 degrees wide . As for its selfie capabilities, we are not quite sold on its 8-megapixel selfie cam resolution 
, given the upsurge of higher-tech selfie cams around the time of its release, but it does bring back Asus's SelfieMaster function kit .
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While its 5.5-inch Full HD (1080p) screen is not as ambitious as some of its high-end rivals' 2K-1440p displays, it does come with a couple of niceties, in the form of a 600nit maximum brightness and a 2.5D curved Gorilla Glass cover that is also present in its rear end . Popping its lid open, the Zenfone 4 2017 loads its pros and cons on the shoulders of a high-ranking Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 14nm split-octa-core processor running at 2.2GHz + 1.8GHz . This is accompanied by a monstrous 6GB RAM and a dedicated Adreno 512 graphics chip .
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Given its top-tier (as of this write-up) hardware components, its 3300mAh-only battery capacity sounds a bit off, but its promising self-attributed scores, including a 1800-minute 3G talk time and an 18-hour WiFi browsing time leave us with little room to complain. Asus's trademark BoostMaster charging system, promising a 50 percent replenishment in under 36 minutes of charging is in place as well.
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In true flagship fashion, this Zenfone edition scores a 600Mbps maximum data rate on LTE Cat 12/13 networks , while its audio features are led by a Hi-Res Audio system and dual speakers . We cannot help but wish it had more than 64GB of internal storage , though, but its 2TB microSD card support shrugs off this con nicely. Topping things off for the Zenfone 4 2017 is a metal unibody with diamond-cut edges , offered in Midnight Black, Mint Green, and Moonlight White, with the Android 7.0 Nougat overlaid with Asus's ZenUI 4.0 as its cherry-on-top.
Overall, the Asus Zenfone 4 2017 is not a flawless flagship device, but multimedia-focused users should appreciate its double rear cameras and high-caliber engine, plus, it serves as a solid base model for a wide array of spinoff models, which we all know Asus loves to do.
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