ASUS has finally reimagined the max and brought in the Zenfone Max Pro M2 as a successor to the Max Pro line. Featuring improved camera function, smarter AI enhancements, durability, and overall performance, the Zenfone Max Pro M2 is ready to dominate the market as the number one #BatteryKing.
Design & Construction
Dropping its predecessor’s smudge-proof back panel, the Zenfone Max Pro M2 opts for style with its polycarbonate back panel adorned in a premium-looking reflective coating that creates an interesting effect when reflecting light. It also sports a notched display, a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor, and the same Micro-USB charging port much like the Zenfone Max Pro M1. As of now, the Zenfone Max Pro M2 is only available in one color variant. The power and volume buttons are located on the right-hand side of the device, and at the bottom sits an earphone jack, charging port, and the speaker. The sim card tray can be accessed on the left-hand side of the phone.
Display & Multimedia
The Zenfone Max Pro M2 has a 6.26-inch IPS LCD touchscreen with a screen resolution of 1080 x 2280 px and a pixel density of 403ppi. Text and images appear sharp and there are hardly any color distortions when viewed from other angles. Videos and animations are also smooth. The display is also protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 6, which is twice as durable as the Gorilla Glass 5 and can survive accidental drops of up to a meter high.
As for sound quality, the Zenfone Max Pro M2 ’s speakers can get really loud but end up sounding hoarse and crackly when the volume is turned all the way up. When used for gaming, I noticed that setting the volume at 50% is already loud enough.
Camera
One of the Zenfone Max Pro M2 ’s highlights is its AI-powered 12MP+5MP main camera and a 13MP front camera which can take amazing pictures both indoors and outdoors. The Zenfone Max Pro M2 also has improved low-light functions compared to the M1, and photos that are taken in full auto mode end up with good saturation and color balance.
There are 5 shooting modes: Auto, Pro, HDR, Sports and Night. All of which work significantly better than its predecessor especially with the addition of the Pro mode that allows you to manually adjust settings such as the shutter speed, ISO, Exposure Value and White balance. The HDR mode works alright, but I noticed that though it helps out bring details in the scene, it sacrifices the saturation and contrast of the picture.
The overall camera performance is great considering that it already takes the load off from users by having the AI enhancements already working all the time. It makes snapping photos easy and hassle-free.
Zenfone Max Pro M2 Sample Photos
Performance
Since the Zenfone Max Pro M2 is only powered by a Snapdragon 660 chipset, I didn’t expect much in terms of performance. Though it can surprisingly handle heavy games, loading assets takes a lot of time. It was also pretty disappointing that the phone totally crashed when I tried to play Hello Neighbor. As for games with lower graphics requirements, the Zenfone Max Pro M2 did well. I also find it impressive that after an hour worth of playing, the phone didn’t heat up as much as I expected it to. The 6GB RAM is also perfect for multitasking, but I recommend not loading two games at the same time or it will lag despite the RAM’s size.
We’ve tried running benchmarking tools on the Zenfone Max Pro M2 and found that it’s not (currently) compatible with Antutu. On Geekbench it managed to get a Single-Core Score of 1457 and a Multi-Core Score of 5402.
The Zenfone Max Pro M2 really is the battery king, and just like the M1, this phone can easily last up to two days. Even after gaming non-stop for hours, the Zenfone Max Pro M2 still has enough power left for other tasks like watching videos or browsing the internet.
In conclusion, the Zenfone Max Pro M2 is an amazing device packed with features that definitely make it worth your money. Retailing for a suggested price of Php 14,999, the ASUS Zenfone Max Pro M2 is a great bang for your buck!
