ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1 Gaming Performance, Our Verdict + Award

Gaming Performance – 3DMark

We tested the ZenFone Max Pro M1’s gaming performance using 3DMark, using the Ice Storm Unlimited test.

Ice Storm Unlimited	Samsung Galaxy S9	Honor 10	ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1	Samsung Galaxy A8 2018
Gaming Score	39588	30560	19752	14684
Graphics	45577	34801	20707	15201
Physics	27116	21423	17008	13121
Graphics Test 1	267.9 fps	206.2 fps	113.5 fps	134.4 fps
Graphics Test 2	157.2 fps	119.5 fps	74.6 fps	43.8 fps
Physics Test	86.1 fps	68.0 fps	54.0 fps	41.7 fps
	Review Price Check	Review Price Check	Price Check	Review Price Check

The Qualcomm Adreno 509 GPU is reasonably fast in games, but certainly does not offer flagship-class gaming performance.

 

Our Verdict

The ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1 (Price Check) is a very impressive smartphone.

Like the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5, it is a mid-range smartphone based on the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 platform, with 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of flash storage. They both also have very similar 6″ Full HD+ displays and rear-mounted fingerprint sensors. But that is where the similarities end.

The ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1 (Price Check) was obviously designed to be a Redmi Note 5 killer. It basically offers almost everything the Redmi Note 5 offers and then some – triple slot tray, a 5-magnet speaker, and a larger 5,000 mAh battery – all in the same form factor and weight!

If that does not impress you, perhaps its price will. Xiaomi priced their Redmi Note 5 (3 GB + 32 GB) at RM 799 / ~US$ 205. ASUS offers the ZenFone Max Pro M1 at just RM 699 / ~US$ 179! Believe it or not, the arguably superior ZenFone Max Pro M1 (Price Check) is 12.5% cheaper than its competitor!

Now, the Redmi Note 5 boasts Samsung sensors for their dual-lens camera, but the Omnivision sensors in the ZenFone Max Pro M1 proved to be surprisingly capable. They delivered really good photographic and video recording performance. Even the audio recording was better than what we would expect at this price point.

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The Redmi Note 5 comes with a rather large 4,000 mAh battery, but it’s no match for the ZenFone Max Pro M1‘s 5,000 mAh battery, which delivered an impressive battery life of over 14 hours!

The ZenFone Max Pro M1 (Price Check) is no doubt chunkier than the Redmi Note 5, but somehow it is actually 1 gram lighter! How on earth did ASUS stuff a 20% larger battery into the ZenFone Max Pro M1 and yet kept the weight so low?

We really love the ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1 (Price Check). It offers a fantastic combination of good performance, great display, excellent camera and amazing battery life, at an incredible price point. It is literally a steal!

For these reasons, the ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1 deserves our Editor’s Choice Award! Great work, ASUS!

 

Price + Availability

Here is the official announcement on the Malaysian price and offers for the ASUS ZenFone 5 and ZenFone Max Pro M1 smartphones.

Here’s a summary of the recommended retail prices :

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• ASUS ZenFone 5 (4 GB + 64 GB) : RM 1,299 / ~US$ 326
• ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1 (6 GB + 64 GB) : RM 999 / ~US$ 251
• ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1 (4 GB + 64 GB) : RM 849 / ~US$ 213
• ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1 (3 GB + 32 GB) : RM 699 / ~US$ 176

Here’s a summary of the offers :

• ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1 (4 GB + 64 GB) Lazada Pre-Order (2 and 3 June) : RM 799 / ~US$ 221
• ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1 (3 GB + 32 GB) Lazada Flash Sales (3, 10, 17, 24, 31 July) : RM 599 / ~US$ 151

If you are in the US, here are some purchase links :

• ASUS ZenFone 5 (4 GB + 64 GB) : $390
• ASUS ZenFone 5Z (6 GB + 64 GB) : $549

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