Asus Zenfone Max Plus M1 - a large smartphone is not for every user

The tendency to make devices with an 18: 9 screen has swept the entire mobile market. Shortly before the release of its new flagship, Asus introduced a low-cost Zenfone Max Plus (M1) device with a standard set of parameters. The model costs 17 thousand rubles, but in the salons you can find 2-3 thousand cheaper. With this price, the device becomes more interesting to buy. A detailed review of Asus Zenfone Max Plus (M1) in the text below.

Specifications

As mentioned above, the device costs about 17 thousand rubles, which for Russia can be considered an average price tag. However, in Asus, the positioning of the device goes as a budget, and this explains the presence of MicroUSB instead of Type-C, as well as the absence of an NFC chip. The brand says that the latter is not widespread in some countries to become a clear need, and microUSB format accessories are presented more widely and are cheaper. The rest of the device fits the parameters of an average smartphone.Characteristics Asus Zenfon Max Plus (M1) in the table.

Specifications	Zenfone Max Plus M1
Materials	Metal, glass, plastic
OS and firmware	Android 7.0, ZenUI 4.0
Interfaces	Bluetooth 4.0, LTE, Wi-Fi, microUSB, GPS, BDS, Glonass
Screen	5.65 inches, 18: 9, IPS, FHD +, usable area 79.8%
Chipset	MediaTek 6750T, eight-core, 4 * 1.5 GHz, 4 * 1 GHz
Coprocessor	Mali-T860
Memory	3 / 32Gb, microSD - 256Gb
Camera	16 + 8 Mp, 8 Mp
Battery	4130 mAh
Dimensions and weight	152 * 73 * 8.8 mm
Colour	Black wave, azure-silver, sunny-golden

From the above parameters, it is clear that the model has a fairly simple processor, a small amount of memory that can be expanded with a card, and without having to give up the second sim card. Pleases battery capacity, at first glance, Asus Zenfone Max Plus (m1) should have good autonomy. In addition to the standard configuration of paper clips, instructions, cable and power supply there is an OTG cable. Why the choice of the company fell on this accessory is difficult to answer, but it is.

Asus Zenfone Max Plus M1

Design

Appearance Asus Zenfon Max Plus M1 completely copied from the previous model. Four looks exactly the same. The back side is a metal panel with plastic stripes at the top and bottom, a double camera and a single flash in the upper left corner. Fingerprint scanner in the middle, its shape is round.All edges are sloping, the corners are also rounded. Appearance is not new and difficult to evaluate. It's all on the fan.

The front side is a typical 18: 9 screen format, cutout not provided. The frames are rather small. Speaker, camera, sensors on top. There are no buttons and labels on the bottom panel. Control buttons with proprietary ribbing on the right, left, a slot for SIM cards and a memory card.

At the bottom two speakers, power connector. At the top there is a microphone and a headset jack. The speaker is loud enough, pleasantly conveys voice. The quality of the microphone is also at the level, the operation of the noise cancellation system is visible.

Important! The general impression is that the casing is not easily soiled, the oleophobic coating is good, the device fits comfortably in your hand, it does not slip out. It is not necessary to buy a case, only in case of concern for the surface of the case. It is no secret that metal is quickly covered with scratches and scuffs.

Display

The Asus Zenfone Max Plus smartphone or simply M1 (zb570tl) is equipped with a 5.65-inch display made using IPS technology. For FullVision screens, the resolution is standard - 2160 * 1080 pixels. The matrix is ​​very well tuned., there is a slight lack of green color, that is, red will be in priority.

The model has large viewing angles, no inversion is noticeable. The stock of brightness is enough to view the text or image in direct sunlight. The set of settings is standard. There is an oleophobic and anti-glare layer, both work fine. Matrix in the device executed on a solid top five.

Battery

Above it was said that the smartphone Asus Zenfon Max Plus M1 has a sufficiently capacious 4160 mAh battery. It seems that the model will work for a long time, and official data confirm this. The manufacturer stated:

• waiting in 4G networks - 26 days;
• conversations - 26 hours;
• 13 hours of video;
• 21 hour surfing over Wi-Fi.

Unfortunately, the actual data leaves much to be desired. The phone with active loads survives no more than 12 hours, in games the battery will sit in less than 4 hours, watching movies for about 7 hours. Full charge 2 hours 40 minutes. No fast charge - an obvious minus, and here the manufacturer can not come up with an excuse, so there are no official comments about its absence.

On a note! There is information that the model is implemented proprietary technology PowerMaster, which intelligently controls the level of battery consumption and increases its life. In fact, nothing like this is visible.Either the technology does not work, or it requires improvements that will appear as updates are released.

At the moment, the battery is weak, and this is a minus. Slightly compensate for these numbers should be able to talk 3 hours after 15 minutes of charging, as well as different energy-saving modes. So say the creators of the device. In fact, these are incomprehensible and unnecessary manipulations that could be replaced by normal battery operation.

Camera

The camera in the phone is Asus Zenfon Max Plus M1 double. What is interesting, the manufacturer stubbornly puts second matrix with a wide viewing angle of 140 degreeswhile the whole world installs black and white sensors to get the bokeh effect and the now fashionable background blur. Asus has its own vision of the market, so the phone has a wide-angle matrix. The main sensor is made by Samsung, it has a 16 megapixel resolution.

The following can be said about the camera: of the three modules only the main one makes really high-quality images with good sharpness, without noise at any time of the day. The front camera turned out to be strangely weak, and the auxiliary, like any wide-angle, is noisy. Video device shoots in FHD with 30 frames per second.The quality is average, the first seconds are always out of focus.

In other words, the camera is second failure moment of the device after battery. To put up with the fact that only one of the three cameras shoots qualitatively is not very desirable, even considering the price of the model.

Performance and Protection

The MediaTek MT6750T processor is very common. There is an impression that it is distributed by bags free of charge, just to get rid of it. The phone Asus Zenfon Max Plus M1 was rather slow. Not that too, but he falls short of average speed. Chipset nuances are slightly compensated by a proprietary shell with good optimization, but it brings low memory speed, both operational and main. In the tests, the device is gaining 43 thousand points. The case is heated under load, there is a metal fault, as plastic devices with the same processor remain cold.

Important! What M1 is able to do: play video, run simple games, provide surfing on the net, chat in instant messengers. If the last two points try to do at the same time and actively, the phone will begin to slow down. The speed of work is unsatisfactory.

The device is protected by the usual fingerprint, this function works fine. The second level of protection is face recognition. Here is a complete minus. The function works so badly that all the reviews say that it is better to turn it off immediately. Why Asus is introducing it into their new devices is not entirely clear, if they say that more useful functions are not really needed.

Conclusion

Zenfone Max Plus is a big device with a good display, and nothing more. The model is weak in performance, autonomy and battery. With a price tag of 17 thousand rubles, buying it means simply throwing out money, but if you find it with a price of a couple thousand less, you might think. Call the phone frankly can not be bad. Despite the price tag, positioning it like a cheap device, and it puts everything in its place. Suitable for those who want to watch movies, sit on the Internet, and does it not too often and for a long time. So people will like the smartphone.

From the point of view of the camera, the main chip is quite good for itself, and if you do not need any newfangled chips and face photos for social networks, then the device may be even more interesting than some competitors. The final choice is up to the user, but with the purchase you need to clearly prioritize: Is speed and battery important, or do you want a big beautiful display with a good camera.

Asus Zenfone Max Plus M1