KUALA LUMPUR, May 31 —Xiaomi is clearly leading the pack where budget mid-range phones are concerned with its Redmi Note 5 being the smartphone to beat. Packing a lot for just under RM800 it lived up to the hype but Asus thinks it can do better with its cheaper ZenFone Max Pro M1.

Aggressive pricing

The variants of the Max Pro M1 are priced very aggressively; the version with 3GB and 32GB of RAM costs RM699 while the 4GB and 64GB of storage costs RM849. The most expensive model comes with 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage for RM999. Contrast that with the Redmi Note 5, whose cheapest edition costs RM799 with a higher-spec version for RM999.

Still, despite the lower pricing, what are you actually getting for your money? And are you really getting a better deal? Are you actually losing out by picking Asus over Xiaomi? After a week with the phone, I’d say there is a lot to like but some important caveats to consider.

As the Redmi Note 5 is currently Asus’ primary competition in this segment, this review will use it as a base for comparison in most respects.

Solid basics

Both phones use the same chipset — the Snapdragon 636. It’s a fairly solid midrange processor, good enough for people who don’t need the power and speed of a high-end flagship phone.

With 3GB of RAM, the phone works fairly decently though if you want a smoother experience 4GB is really the way especially if you open multiple apps at a time.

The best part of the phone has to be its 6-inch display, with a Full HD+ resolution and 2160x1080 pixels. On paper that is very good for a phone at this price, when usually midrange means a very blah screen.

With a decent 450 nits of brightness and a high 1500:1 contrast ratio, text is crisp and video is rendered to a high standard. For people who spend a lot of time on YouTube it offers a pleasant viewing experience.

As to the physical design, the black edition is fairly nondescript though the feel of the phone is fairly solid in the hand.

The curved 2.5D glass is a nice touch, which adds polish to the phone and the metal/plastic finishing is constructed well enough the phone doesn’t feel so much like it costs much less than RM1,000.

Asus makes much of the phone’s 5000mAh battery — the company is known for stuffing huge batteries into its cheaper phones. Usage-wise, though, I found that with heavy usage (gaming, YouTube, music, social media) I could still manage up to 36 hours before needing a full charge.

Light usage (less media consumption) can push that to about 48 hours. A big battery however needs a longer charge — my testing found that a full charge will take just under 2.5 hours. Instead of incorporating quick-charge technology with this model, Asus instead uses its own proprietary magic to optimise the battery run-time as well as the charge time.

Another selling point of the phone is that it comes with stock Android — no custom UI and not a lot of unwanted bloatware here. Though Asus did preinstall Instagram, Facebook, and its own audio recording app, FM Radio and a calculator.

Still, it’s a nice alternative and a better experience than Xiaomi’s own stock Android phone the Mi A1.

The fingerprint sensor is a bit finicky and the face unlock only works well with good light though when it does work it’s pretty fast. But I like that the fingerprint sensor is optimised to detect your finger even when it’s slightly damp, something I can’t claim with some phones.

The portrait mode is fast and simple to use, blurring the background for a nice ‘bokeh’ effect.

That camera, though

One surprise for me is that on the lower-end variant, Asus only put an 8MP front camera which I don’t think was a great idea.

With Xiaomi, Huawei and other makers stuffing at the very least 13MP front cameras into their cheaper phones, it feels like a letdown.

The higher-end model comes with a 16MP in front so you need to pay an extra RM100 for a better selfie — which isn’t too bad, to be fair.

The rear camera, though? I wish Asus had used its own proprietary camera software or at least allowed the option for the Pixel 2 camera as I wasn’t crazy about the interface.

After a software update, I found the camera more responsive and using the portrait mode (where the background is blurred for an artistic effect) in both the rear camera and front camera was easy to set up. Far less of a hassle than Apple’s finicky portrait mode but you do need a lot of light for the best results when using the selfie cam.

I found the results decent outdoors but for a phone this price, of course low light is sub-par. But the autofocus was fairly speedy and the selfie flash is at least not too harsh.

Colours are decent on the rear cam but on the 8MP selfie cam, skin tones tended towards being reddish. The "Beautify” mode is at least not as scary as some I’ve used on other East Asian phones with four settings to choose from. Personally I favour selfie apps such as Looks, B612 or BestMe for the best results selfie-wise.

A win or nay?

In comparison with other phones in its price range, I’d say it’s a better stock Android experience than Xiaomi’s Mi A1 thanks to its better hardware. If you want a purer Android experience, Nokia’s Android One phones are an option but aren’t as much of a bargain compared to what Asus is offering.

I wouldn’t recommend the lower-end of the Max Pro M1 variants — rather than spend RM699 for a mediocre front cam, spend the extra RM150 and get more RAM, more storage and a better selfie cam.

If selfies don’t matter to you then the lower-end model is a good bargain for its great screen and good battery lfie.

All in all the Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 is great value for money if you’re looking for a decent-performing, sub-RM800 phone with good battery life.

As to software updates, Asus has a good reputation where updates are concerned so expect this phone to support Android P once it’s out. The phone officially launches today and will be available online on Lazada as well as official Asus retailers. Lazada also has special flash sale promos where you can get the ZenFone Max Pro M1 at attractive discounts so look out for them.