ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 is a stunner release from the company with its massive 5000 mAh battery and squeeky clean stock Android software. It's the first handset off of ASUS camp that boots with pure Android experience right off the bat.
ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 Review
Review Summary
Pros
- Stock Android Experience
- Long Battery Life with Flash Charging
- Vibrant Display
- Solid Built and Good Metallic Design
- Fast and Efficient chipset
- Not a fingerprint magnet
- 5 Magnet Speaker is quite convincing
Cons
- Inconsistent camera
- Somewhat thick body
The ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 is definitely a promising device. Does it has what it takes to be your next smatphone purchase? Let's find out.
Design
From the outside, the ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 is quite large. This means that you can’t use it with one hand. And with the beefy 5000 mAh, you can’t consider the smartphone to be on the lighter side. However, judging the build quality, I could tell that the Zenfone Max Pro M1 is solidly built – it’s rigid, feels good on the hands; and due to its weight, it is sturdier than most of the handsets in its price range.
The right side is a home to the power button and the volume keys. You can find the SIM card tray on the left; while the horizontal speaker slots, micro USB port, and the headphone jack are at the bottom.
Display
The ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 sports a 5.99-inch display. I could tell that ASUS also made an effort in upscaling its Max line’s display. This Pro variant, in fact, comes with a Full HD+ LCD with 18:9 aspect ratio. There’s an oleophobic coating to make everything feels good when swiping the display.
The handset’s display is above average. It’s definitely bright. ASUS even claimed that the Max Pro M1 has 450 nits. Visually, you could notice the difference especially when you place the handset next to a different phone with the same resolution. Colors are also vibrant and have good saturation. Viewing angles are superior compared to phones in this segment.
The LED indicator is also a welcome feature. It's sitting right next to the 8MP selfie camera on the front panel.
Hardware, Performance
Under the hood, the ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 ticks with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 which is coupled by 3GB of RAM. ASUS also released a 4GB RAM version of the device. Going thru your basic tasks with the phone is quite a breeze. In fact, in our Antutu Benchmark, the handset scored 112,308.
Playing games in the Zenfone Max Pro M1 is also a worthwhile experience. It could run games with heavy graphics with ease. PUBG, Mobile Legends, and Unkilled are some of the titles that I’ve tested with the handset.
It’s also a great smartphone in streaming movies. I love to use it when I watch interesting titles in Netflix. In fact, the handset also features a 5 Magnet speaker supported by NXP smart amp. With wider display, good sound, and battery, I can’t put this phone down in my streaming sessions.
Battery
The ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 is defined by its 5000 mAh battery – that’s an exceptional battery life. For power users, the phone could give you a full day of use. For normal to moderate users, you’ll be surprised by the amount of juice the phone could give.
Our PCMark battery test gave the ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 an impressive 17 hours and 11 minutes. The handset is also bundled with 2A/10W charger. This allows me to charge the phone from zero to 100% for just two and a half hour.
Though the handset is powered by a Qualcomm chipset, it does not support Qualcomm QuickCharge 3.0. ASUS opted a different fast-charging tech which is quite slower than Quick Charge 3.0. But still, the handset could still deliver in terms of optimizing the software to prolong battery life.
Software
And speaking of the software, one of the Zenfone Max Pro M1’s marquee features is the stock Android experience. Powering the whole show is the Android 8.1 Oreo instead of the proprietary ZenUI skin. Just like other smartphones with stock Android, you’ll be amazed by how buttery the phone responds to your touches.
The overall interface is clean with the notification shade and controls in one place. But, if you’re a purist, you can definitely tell that ASUS still added minimal bloatwares in the homescreen like FM Radio and Calculator. As for the updates in the future, ASUS pointed out that it’ll support future Android builds for this phone in the next two years.
Camera
The ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 boasts a dual-camera module with a primary 13MP sensor with f/2.2 aperture lens and a secondary 5MP depth-sensing camera. Using the camera for a spin in good lighting conditions can produce good photos with good amount of detail. Most of the outputs come with good color accuracy. However, I could question the cameras’ consistency. Some of the photos are off in terms of sharpness and white balance. But still, most of the photos I took are okay and legit for social media sharing.
In lowlight, shots become fuzzy. The camera takes a while to lock into the subject. Noise is also prevalent in quick shots.
However, for its price, the handset’s depth mode works fine. Edge detection of subject is okay. The blur is also believable. But, I must say that the depth-sensing camera is slow on what and where to focus. All in all, the camera is fine. I mean, there’s less to complain about this device considering its price.
For a midrange device, the ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1’s camera is decent, even better than most of it peers. Check out the sample photos.
On the other hand, the 8MP camera produces great selfies. Photos off the front camera come with great detail and color saturation. I am always a fan of ASUS’ beautification software – it does not overdo the beautification filters and selfies always look natural. There’s a front-facing flash but I rarely use it.
Conclusion
As always, ASUS delivers when it comes to its Max line. This latest offering, the ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1, is quite unique in a way that it's the first Zenfone Max to boot with stock Android experience. The software is definitely a deal maker on top of the juicy 5000 mAh battery.
There are many reasons to love the ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1. The display is also one of its strongest suits. I love using the phone, in fact I could hardly put it down for over a week.
If you're in the market for a dependable smartphone with solid battery, great display, and stock Android experience. The ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 is a good smartphone to consider. Plus, it's not asking much for Php 9,995.
The ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 3GB RAM + 32GB memory (with 13MP+5MP rear camera) is now available in Lazada at Php 9,995. The more powerful variant with 4GB RAM and 64GB memory (with 16MP + 5MP rear camera) is available in your favorite ASUS stores nationwide at Php 13,995.
ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M1 Specs
- 6.0-inch FullView FHD+ 2160 x 1080p, 424ppi
- IPS LCD, 2.5D-curved glass, 18:9 aspect ratio
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 SoC
- 1.8GHz Octa-core processor
- Adreno 509 GPU
- 3GB RAM + 32GB Storage
- microSD support, up to 2TB
- Android 8.1 Oreo, Stock Android
- Dual rear cameras: 13MP +5MP, PDAF, LED Flash Rear Camera Module
- 8MP front camera, f/2.0, LED Flash, with ASUS SelfieMaster Tech for smart beautification in selfies, videos, and livestreams
- Dual SIM
- 4G LTE
- Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n dual-band
- Bluetooth v4.2 (A2DP, LE)
- GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS
- FM Radio
- microUSB 2.0
- 3.5mm audio jack
- 5 Magnet Speaker with NXP smart amp
- Accelerometer, Ambient Light, Proximity, E-compass
- Fingerprint scanner (rear-mounted)
- Face Unlock
- 5000mAh, non-removable, with ASUS PowerMaster Tech
- Metallic finish
- 76 x 159 x 8.61mm, 180 grams
- Deepsea black, Meteor Silver
- ₱9,995 Official Price in the Philippines (via LAZADA)
- ₱13,995 4GB RAM + 64GB (16MP + 5MP rear camera) available in-store nationwide.
