yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[ZenFone 2 General] wavexda:
You think that is because turning on the "beautification" mode ? hmmm, that will be ok then.

But, if Asus remember they put offical video of Zenfone 2 where girl turn on the "beautification" mode and it was with no lag. That is not good why they are doing.
[ZenFone 2 General] DanielKennethRego:
The reviewer noted that the primary camera was also 'slow' in his opinion. Interesting, since Asus is pushing this as zero shutter lag.
[ZenFone 2 General] TheNerd:]:
This or a cheap lg g3?
[ZenFone 2 General] Aceofzeroz:
You know, I've been essentially in that same boat ever since CES as you could argue from a glance, they're very similar overall. I've decided to wait until the first written and video reviews for the Zf2 and a comparison against the G3 to make my final decision.:cool:

I'm personally not in any hurry, but it does make me impatient when I do see cheap G3s on eBay at the same price now as the lowest-end Zf2. Dunno how much longer I can hold out, lol!:D:p
[ZenFone 2 General] beastofexmoor:
I'm not seeing any unlocked GSM LG G3's that have sold anywhere close to $200.
[ZenFone 2 General] Aceofzeroz:
I did once recently, but obviously they go by very fast if you don't act. So the main thing to take from what I said was that (used) G3 buy prices are falling below the $300 mark. At least that's what I've noticed lately.:p
[ZenFone 2 General] TheNerd:]:
For me, removable battery and SD card slot are a plus. Also, rumors have been stating the zf2's camera is slow, and we all know that the g3's camera is stupendous. Speed has become irrelevant lately. Although my hunger for the latest specs haunts me ?
[ZenFone 2 General] Aceofzeroz:
My sentiments exactly on all points.;)
[ZenFone 2 General] limpopo:
Ths Zenfone 2 also has a microSD card slot, as I am sure you know - just saying it isn't a plus for the LG G3 as such.

Clearly the ZF2 is an unknown quantity in many ways, but camera is definitely an area where I would be amazed if it performs as well as the G3. No OIS (the Zenfone Zoom will have it), the ISP perhaps is a question mark, and also the camera software.

On the SoC side, the ZF2 has the Intel Atom that needs binary translation to deal with apps coded in C (unless recompiled by the developers for Intel), but it's 64-bit ARMv8-A, which is cool, versus the proven Snapdragon 801.

What puts me off about the G3 is the display - poor energy efficiency, not very bright, some artefacts identified by Anandtech, and the GPU load of having to push so many pixels.

I'm in the UK, so I don't know if I can even get hold of the ZF2 from a reliable foreign supplier/importer or at what price, whereas the G3 is around £285 new.

I'm also looking at the Oppo Find 7a, which like the G3 has microSD and removable battery.
[ZenFone 2 General] wavexda:
Day by day Im get disappointed in Zenfone 2 camera. Now in youtube is two videos with night record. The quality of video is BIG FAIL and he LAG SO MUCH!!! What is wrong with Zenfone??? :crying:

low light??? There is no in zenfone 2... :(

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ichCOi2Ko98

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51LwoKfsBVo
[ZenFone 2 General] TheNerd:]:
Yes the display worries me also. My current phone is the nexus 4, so either phone would be a huge upgrade
[ZenFone 2 General] troy5890:
The camera isn't that bad. I would definitely have that quality over the galaxy tab 4 7.0 camera. The galaxys camera sucks to much
[ZenFone 2 General] Karly Johnston:
There is no G3 priced as low as the Zen2... the top model is $284.44 USD.
[ZenFone 2 General] beastofexmoor:
Trolling Youtube I cam across all of these test videos that appear to be from the ZF2:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5iRptNkfas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51LwoKfsBVo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ichCOi2Ko98

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRV3mDZnYGM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4edfFmOiw3k

The quality is pretty poor on the low-light ones, but they are exceptionally low light and you can tell the phone is trying to boost the brightness by maximizing light amplification and dropping the frame rate.

Here's a daylight one that's longer. It seems just slightly underexposed, at least early on.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1iCcnnzpBQ
[ZenFone 2 General] sssggg:
That not LOW light. There's NO light.

Anyway...

It's march and we still don't know for sure whether or not the 2GB 1080P version will be $199.
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
ASUS event in Taiwan is live. Check their fanpage.

Wysłane z mojego GT-N7000
[ZenFone 2 General] PsyCLown89:
I wish Asus would just give us a proper, official release date. Grrr

I am currently without a phone and need to make a choice, what phone to get. How long to wait.

Got a link?
[ZenFone 2 General] Karly Johnston:
Needless to say Pixel Master should not be used for night time videography. It cuts the image down to 3MP and reduces sets of 4 pixels into one pulling all light from the converted image. Turns out is too grainy to use for video but quite usable for pictures.

2GB 1080p is $221.16 USD. Only the the 4GB models will run the top Z3580 SoC.
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
You want to buy a smartphone and yet you don't know how to use google?

https://www.facebook.com/asusclub.tw/timeline
[ZenFone 2 General] Karly Johnston:
Graphics better than 801 and CPU better than 805 with 64 bit future proofing... under $300. Its like giving it away. They must get these Intel SoCs for free.
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
Intel never gives something for free. I know it from guy who used to work for MSI. Now he is hired by ECS.

Places where you can order Zenfone 2 in Taiwan: ASUS Store, Yahoo! Kimo shopping, PChome Online shopping and Taiwan Family Mart

Asus releases the Zenfone 2, slaps sub-$300 price tag on the 4 GB RAM model
[ZenFone 2 General] Karly Johnston:
Intel lost $3.3 billion making Atom chips last year, they are trying to increase market share so yeah, they are giving them away. There is no 4GB up for order yet... still waiting and waiting.
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
You don't have any proof.
[ZenFone 2 General] PsyCLown89:
Buddy, not everyone has a lot of time to Google forever. If you had stated it was their Taiwan Facebook page then I'd have had no issues finding it.

I am at work, I am busy when I am at work. Do not have the luxury of sitting in front of my PC the whole time while I am at work.

That comment is unnecessary, you do not know nearly enough about me to justify and state something like that.

However thanks for the link. :good:
[ZenFone 2 General] mr.r9:
DON"T buy from the Asus webpage unless you are sure it supports your radio bands (4G/3G). Wait for your regions version. I didn't see 900/1800/2100 which is what most Euro & MENA regions use.
[ZenFone 2 General] Karly Johnston:
My bad, Intel lost $4.2 billion on Atom last year... learn to use Google for your proof.
[ZenFone 2 General] limpopo:
Had a look at these sites, but they don't seem to be set up to serve the English-speaking buyer! Not sure if any of them would deliver internationally even if I could understand the lingo. I do speak French though, so I am hoping to pick one up from there later this month.
[ZenFone 2 General] zombination:
It's written at the end of asus store (http://store.asus.com/tw/category/A22572)

UMTS speed:

HSPA+ 上傳:5.76Mbit/s/下載:42Mbit/s

DC-HSPA+ 上傳:5.76Mbit/s/下載:42Mbit/s

LTE speed:Category 4 maximum:150Mbit/s/下載:50Mbit/s

4G band:

FDD LTE: 3/8/28

TDD LTE: 38/39/40/41

3G:WCDMA:850/900/1900/2100;TD-SCDMA:1900/2100

2G:EDGE/GPRS/GSM: 850/900/1800/1900
[ZenFone 2 General] Overandout:
I might be being a bit slow here, but I still can't find a release date (even in Taiwan) for the 4GB version.

Even the 2GB models which are so-say "available" have an estimated shipment date of 6th April, so its a bit misleading to say that these phones are available. More like they have confirmed the price and some are available for pre-order....

I'm really hoping that the rest of the roll out happens soon as I'm going to Hong Kong at the beginning of April and I really wanted to get a 4GB RAM version, especially seeing as the price is so competitive.
[ZenFone 2 General] wavexda:
Did they in this site (http://store.asus.com/tw/category/A22572) ship phone in whole world?
[ZenFone 2 General] Fire code:
You are right!

Different country ASUS provide different band.

And 4GB vision will come Taiwan about 4/30.

Fxxking ASUS sells... waste my time
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
You know nothing Jon Snow.

Wysłane z mojego GT-N7000
[ZenFone 2 General] Karly Johnston:
4GB is for the West and will be released March 31st.
[ZenFone 2 General] MiyagiSan:
How convenient. You can make

any

claim as you please and pass the burden of proof to others.

Oops!. Seems you can't: Burden of Proof fallacy.

How about

you

provide evidence to support

your

claim that Intel lost $4.2 billion on Atom last year.
[ZenFone 2 General] istperson:
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Intel+lost+$4.2+billion+on+Atom
[ZenFone 2 General] MiyagiSan:
A google search is neither proof nor sufficient evidence of the claim.
[ZenFone 2 General] istperson:
But it gets you one step closer to it.
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
Yet it still proves nothing.

I have my insider that is working with Intel for many many years and he told me one thing:

Intel never gives something for free

.

So let us stop this off topic here as the price of the Zenfone is more than fine and all we need now is first review.
[ZenFone 2 General] MiyagiSan:
It's a crapshoot. It might lead to evidence. It might not.

---------- Post added at 06:38 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:34 PM ----------

It you want that claim to be taken seriously, you are going to have to provide evidence too....

I need more than that: full kernel source, device tree, manufacturer support of AOSP rom developers, etc.....a review would be a nice next step though :D
[ZenFone 2 General] beastofexmoor:
Thanks for posting these. Most of this we'd seen, but the accessories are nice. Looks like the cover should price in at $20-25. It looks like they're selling replaceable backs as well, similar to the Moto G.

Regarding the Intel chips, I think it's obvious that Intel is heavily discounting their Atom chips to try to get a major foothold in the mobile market. Whether or not they're "giving them away" is all unknown to us, but they've obviously made Asus a very competitive pricing deal.

It sounds like the phones are actually shipping in Taiwan in April? Does that mean the US will not see them until May? I guess we'll have to wait and see..
[ZenFone 2 General] istperson:
These articles say, that Intel is still investing in acquiring more market share, and they speculate that despite losing money, they still give the chips very cheap. Toms Hardware even says they are almost paying OEMs to use their SOCs, which is exaggerating, but very close to the truth. So this is not evidence, it's logical thinking, and it's not against the law. Yet.
[ZenFone 2 General] MiyagiSan:
The comment you replied to was in reply to [MENTION=2186921]radier[/MENTION]'s comments. Not yours.

Nevertheless, all that the figures released by Intel shows is that the Mobile Division had losses of a specified magnitude. The attribution to Atom or Intel's contra revenue plan or anything else would need evidence not just logical thinking.
[ZenFone 2 General] istperson:
In court. But this is the XDA forum.
[ZenFone 2 General] MiyagiSan:
Anywhere people are engaged in logical thinking.
[ZenFone 2 General] vipercoyote:
Hum i guess we have to wait until end of March for the USA version correct?

My tmobile bands are 700MHz (newer LTE) / 1700MHz (HSPA+/LTE) / 1900MHz (3G) / 2100MHz (HSPA+/LTE), although I think mostly 1700 and 2100 for LTE/HSPA+

And none of the phones will work with LTE.... darn i was ready to order
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
The specification on ASUS website confirms that ZE551ML and ZE550ML use Intel XMM 7262 modem.

http://www.intel.com/content/dam/ww...ts/product-briefs/mobile-xmm-7260-1-brief.pdf
[ZenFone 2 General] mr.r9:
I really really hate early announcements, which turn to elongated delays, which results in different versions...ahhhhhhhh.

Why not announce then release it a week later? The Galaxy S6, HTC M9 and maybe a new Xiaomi Mi5 will be released by the time the 4GB/ram model is released. I say don't waste time until the unit is actually in your region. We don't know anything (Practical) about the intel modem and what bands it will support of if we can unlock other bands.
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
UMTS speed:

HSPA+ UL:5.76Mbit/s/DL:42Mbit/s

DC-HSPA+ UL:5.76Mbit/s/DL:42Mbit/s

LTE speed: Category 4 maximum:150Mbit/s/DL:50Mbit/s

4G band:

FDD LTE: 1/2/3/4/5/7/8/9/17/18/19/20/28/29

TDD LTE: 38/39/40/41

3G:

WCDMA:

850/900/1900/2100

TD-SCDMA:

1900/2100

2G:

EDGE/GPRS/GSM: 850/900/1800/1900

(Network support varies by country)

Source: http://www.asus.com/us/News/MvVMex3oXQ1Vaggt
[ZenFone 2 General] zombination:
Here's LTE Bands by region

WW SKU : europe

http://getnews.jp/archives/854914
[ZenFone 2 General] Overandout:
According to that image, the TW SKU phone should have nearly all FDD LTE bands, but the ones on sale offer only bands 3, 8 and 28....

:confused:
[ZenFone 2 General] grayson73:
The only bands missing on the TW version are band 17 for AT&T and 12 for T-Mobile, right?
[ZenFone 2 General] Goreman:
Why no LTE advanced then?;)
[ZenFone 2 General] TheAtheistOtaku:
does asus plan on releasing this in the US? i dont see them mention it anywhere...
[ZenFone 2 General] Karly Johnston:
They wouldn't include US LTE bands if they didn't. They mentioned April for US release in the last earnings call.
[ZenFone 2 General] Lipcrkr:
CEO Johnny says:

"The ZenFone 2 series will build on the resounding success of the ZenFone. ZenFone 2 embodies every aspect of the ASUS brand spirit—In Search Of Incredible—and we look forward to introducing this empowering luxury worldwide with upcoming launch events in China, Hong Kong, France, Russia, Japan, Indonesia, India, and the United States".

Supposedly late April or early May.
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
Both version of ZE551ML with 4GB and 32GB/64GB will be available from 23/03/2015 12:00 in Taiwan.

Source
[ZenFone 2 General] Aceofzeroz:
Ahaa, so by my calculations the 64gb ROM/4gb RAM model converts to USD$317.23, which is still quite affordable for the entire package!:D
[ZenFone 2 General] Overandout:
Shame we had to wait so long. Unlikely that the 4GB RAM will be available in Hong Kong when I go on 4th April. :(

Question is, do I get a 2GB RAM from HK, or wait till the 4GB comes to my local store???

Aaaargh!! :eek: Can't decide!!
[ZenFone 2 General] limpopo:
I don't know how long you are in HK, but I think you'll be lucky if you find any version there in early April. This release is really dragging out. If you do, just grab it - at least you won't pay any sales tax there.

I think the 32GB/2GB RAM version is the sweet spot really. Let's not pretend this phone will be perfect. It is a mid-ranger, but with certain interesting features, such as Dual SIM Dual Active, and 64-bit CPU on Intel's 22nm process. I see it as a stop-gap phone as we transition through Qualcomm's failure to be ready for 64-bit.
[ZenFone 2 General] Overandout:
Thanks for the opinion. I fear you may be right, I will only be in HK for a few days...

I'm not so interested in 4GB RAM for its RAM capacity, but I would like to understand better the advantage of a faster clocked processor. Surely 2.3Ghz processing speed should provide quite an improvement to real world use than the 1.8GHz?
[ZenFone 2 General] limpopo:
These are burst frequencies, which cannot be sustained for very long (less than a second or two) because of thermal constraints. We will have to wait for performance testing - I don't think we have seen these chips in a smartphone form factor yet - but you will not have 27% better performance with Z3580 over Z3560.

Also, differences in performance that may be visible in benchmarks sometimes have very little practical impact on your experience of a device..
[ZenFone 2 General] Lipcrkr:
That's good to know. I plan on buying the Z3560, full HD, with 2GB for about $220 in the US.
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5suYA6gqei4
[ZenFone 2 General] TheAtheistOtaku:
I messaged the 4 gig ram 32gig storage seller on eBay about what bands that particular model supports. Here's a copy paste of the reply

Dear theatheistotaku,

Thank you for your inquiry.

Here is info of network system: (please call your local mobile company to check 4G is works or not)

Network system:

Support Carrier Aggregation Technology

Dual-band Support: 900+1800, 700+1800

UMTS speed:

HSPA+ Upload:5.76Mbit/s/Download:42Mbit/s

DC-HSPA+ Upload:5.76Mbit/s/ Download:42Mbit/s

LTE speed: Category 4 maximum:150Mbit/s/ Download:50Mbit/s

4G band: FDD LTE 700/900/1800

3G:WCDMA:850/900/1900/2100

2G:EDGE/GPRS/GSM: 850/900/1800/1900

I assume it's the same for the other models from Taiwan too
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWdASyrEKus&feature=youtu.be
[ZenFone 2 General] troy5890:
Just saw that video of the unboxing for the asus zenfone 2. I am so excited for this device
[ZenFone 2 General] glockaki:
just surfed the ebay and i went nuts. the 4gb ram version costs from 750 dollars up to 900???!!!what is going on with this prices?? what is the official price for that model?
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
Price was confirmed hundred times. Just look for them.

Actual launch of 4GB version is scheduled for 23/03.
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
ASUS Zenfone 2 ZE551ML 2.3GHz/4GB RAM Unboxing + Benchmark Score

Tell me one thing. Shouldn't be Antutu or Geekbench runing in 64 bit?
[ZenFone 2 General] 0kpkp0:
I do not think Intel had the 64 bit version of Lollipop ready in time for this.
[ZenFone 2 General] DanielKennethRego:
That link was great, thanks.

Didn't Asus earlier post results of the Zenfone 2 exceeding 50k on Antutu?

Still, at least it beats the OnePlus One significantly.
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
Lollipop 64 bit was originaly build on x86 architecture.

From these screens we can see that kernel is 64 bit.
[ZenFone 2 General] BigMatza:
Would love to know if this phone supports video out via HDMI, MHL, DisplayPort, or SlimPort. Despite the phone being available (in Taiwan) for a few days already, I'm surprised this information has not yet surfaced.
[ZenFone 2 General] troy5890:
Hey guys is the zenfone 2 coming to the U.S in April or the end of March?
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
Ask ASUS U.S. and find out.
[ZenFone 2 General] Overandout:
According to Asus, the phone will be released in SE Asia during April, but I have asked in several authorised Asus retailers in Bangkok and all of them said that they don't expect to see it until June. They can't confirm the LTE bands it will support either.

I was really waiting for this phone since January, but now I'm tempted to go for the Jiayu 3 instead of waiting 3 more months for a device with unknown specs.
[ZenFone 2 General] piskr:
In April according to the Asus agenda. Only a few countries had been selected for March delivery and up to date it started to roll out only in Taiwan (partially - the cheaper model).

---------- Post added at 08:15 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:34 PM ----------

The more that I think about it the more I'm positive that this is the only logical Zenfone LTE scheme: http://getnews.jp/archives/854914

Everything match completely. The first group of LTE bands is for TW and JAP and it corresponds wide specter of Japans's LTE frequencies. The second is for Euro Asia and others, and covers EU, Russia, Australia etc. The third one covers USA, Canada and probably partially Latin America and the forth is for China with its specially bands and India which doesn't have LTE at the moment.

Lets see if this theory is correct when Asus starts selling Zenfone in France (this month?). Apparently only ZE551ML (4GB RAM model?) will be equipped with LTE which suits particularly region. The cheaper models seem to support only unifying LTE specter FDD LTE, bands 3/8/28.
[ZenFone 2 General] troy5890:
Thanks for answering. Because I thought it was going to come to the USA at the end of March. I'm going to wait until the first/second week of April. Hopefully it makes it here by then.
[ZenFone 2 General] Aceofzeroz:
Same here, the 2nd week should be the latest and most optimum time to hit the US markets since most new Q2 phones would be out by then. :cool:;) I await the more affordable ZE551ML 1.8gh/2gb ram version and everything else that follows!:D
[ZenFone 2 General] troy5890:
I'm waiting for the ZE550ML. That will make a good mid-range device. I'm so excited for custom roms to start showing up some time later. Hopefully it won't be to bad like the galaxy tab 4 7.0
[ZenFone 2 General] Overandout:
In theory yes, but if this scheme is being applied, why are the TW SKU phones only supporting 3 out of the many bands listed? (I don't expect anyone to answer this by the way, but according to Asus and what we have seen from e-bay sellers confirms that the TW phones do not even claim to support these frequencies of LTE).
[ZenFone 2 General] TheAtheistOtaku:
On so it goes on sale in canada in spring. the article says unlocked, but doesnt list the bands. anyone with knowledge of canadian carriers make an educated guess as to what frequencies/bands it will support?

http://blogs.vancouversun.com/2015/...d-zenfone-2-smartphone-in-canada-this-spring/

With me living in buffalo ny, and canada being a 10 min drive away, this may be good news for me :D

Especially since the american dollar is stronger then the canadian dollar
[ZenFone 2 General] piskr:
Canadian operators have LTE on following frequencies: 4G LTE Bell Mobility 1700/2100/2600/2500Mhz; 4G LTE Rogers 1700/2100Mhz; 4G LTE SaskTel 2500/2600Mhz; 4G LTE TELUS 1700/2100Mhz;

Assumnig that information from Asus website is accurate all Canadian bands but 41 (Bell) are supported in USA model of ZE551ML and all but 41 and 7 (Bell, SaskTel) are supported in TW model.
[ZenFone 2 General] Pehehetri:
is it possible to install windows on it since it has an Atom processor? (maybe dualboot)
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
Ask the same question after a year from now.

Wysłane z mojego GT-N7000
[ZenFone 2 General] radier:
Samsung Galaxy S6, Asus ZenFone 2 imaging camera comparison test

http://www.eprice.com.tw/mobile/talk/102/4932808/1/rv/asus-zenfone-2-4g_32g-ZE551ML-review/
[ZenFone 2 General] __Miguel_:
Oh, how I wish for a full x86-based Windows phone... Not WP, but a full Windows installation, with a simplified Start screen (maybe even the Metro UI ported over from WP), a working phone interface, and access to all my apps.

Sure, I know I'm a fringe user, but having a full-blown Windows machine on a phone-sized machine, capable of handling my phone calls and SMS, that can be converted into a desktop PC by just plugging it to an HDMI cable and pulling out a BT keyboard and mouse, is something I've been dreaming for years... No dice, though, apparently.

As for installing Windows, I'm not sure, to be honest. If the device has a working BIOS/UEFI interface, it might be possible, but you'd need to unlock the bootloader (which is usually locked down harder than a nun in a convent), and possibly flash something (again, very difficult, because Intel likes to protect stuff based on their hardware with signed images), before the thing would even be able to boot from USB to install the OS. And then, of course, you'd be left with no phone/messaging interface, because Windows lacks both the OS support (you can only get phone support via AT commands, and that's assuming you have drivers for the hardware and they expose a COM interface) AND the appropriate phone/messaging software.

Windows Phone doesn't seem possible. AFAIK there are no x86-based WP devices, everything is based on Qualcomm SoCs.

On that comparison... It seems that the S6 has a slightly better camera.
[ZenFone 2 General] Karly Johnston:
No, but Microsoft is making a custom ROM that will flash Android to Win 10. This is for Chinese who cant get Google Services but im sure someone here will make work on Zen2.