Page 6 : Overall & 3D Performance, Our Verdict
Contents
Overall Performance
AnTuTu is a nice benchmark for testing various performance aspects of Android devices.
| ASUS ZenFone 3 Ultra | HTC 10 | honor 5C | Samsung Galaxy S7 edge | |
| TOTAL SCORE | 76096 | 113813 | 53417 | 131246 |
| 3D SCORE | 18816 | 50700 | 9842 | 40824 |
| – 3D (Marooned) | 10864 | 34778 | 5795 | 23336 |
| – 3D (Garden) | 7952 | 15922 | 4047 | 17488 |
| UX SCORE | 26794 | 30890 | 19297 | 42765 |
| – UX Data Secure | 5077 | 6319 | 5577 | 8169 |
| – UX Data Process | 4198 | 3379 | 2706 | 5966 |
| – UX Strategy Games | 7503 | 5433 | 4109 | 10745 |
| – UX Image Process | 6879 | 9521 | 3144 | 13878 |
| – UX I/O Performance | 3137 | 6238 | 3761 | 4007 |
| CPU SCORE | 23689 | 21915 | 19254 | 37882 |
| – CPU Mathematics | 6950 | 8494 | 4198 | 11831 |
| – CPU Common Use | 6311 | 5931 | 5947 | 10875 |
| – CPU Multi-Core | 10428 | 7490 | 9109 | 15176 |
| RAM | 6797 | 10308 | 5024 | 9775 |
The ZenFone 3 Ultra was fast in 2D graphics and CPU performance, but it did rather poorly in the 3D tests. It was far slower than top-of-the-line smartphones like the HTC 10 and the Samsung Galaxy S7 edge, but it was also twice as fast as the Kirin 650-powered honor 5C.
Gaming Performance – 3DMark
We tested the ZenFone 3 Ultra’s gaming performance using 3DMark, using the Ice Storm Unlimited test.
| ASUS ZenFone 3 Ultra | HTC 10 | honor 5C | Samsung Galaxy S7 edge | |
| Gaming Score | 17719 | 23171 | 11560 | 28650 |
| Graphics | 21124 | 27512 | 11067 | 33685 |
| Physics | 11328 | 14925 | 13698 | 18810 |
| Graphics Test 1 | 115.2 fps | 136.6 fps | 63.4 fps | 162.9 fps |
| Graphics Test 2 | 76.3 fps | 106.4 fps | 38.8 fps | 133.1 fps |
| Physics Test | 36.0 fps | 47.4 fps | 43.5 fps | 59.7 fps |
The ASUS ZenFone 3 Ultra did better in this test, coming in just 24% slower than the HTC 10, and 38% slower than the Samsung Galaxy S7 edge.
Our Verdict
Make no mistake – the ASUS ZenFone 3 Ultra is a large, weighty phablet. You will either love it, or hate it.
If you want a large phablet to replace the cumbersome tablet + smartphone combo you have been using so far, you will love the large, beautiful 6.8″ display, and appreciate how solid and premium it feels. No cheap plastic for ASUS’ premium phablet. It even comes with the best earphones ASUS makes.
But if you want something svelte and light, the ZenFone 3 Ultra is definitely not for you. You will never fit it into a pocket, or actually use it with a single hand. That’s why ASUS made the ZenFone 3 and ZenFone 3 Deluxe models. The ZenFone 3 Ultra is meant for those who want a large phablet, period.
As far as performance goes, you are unlikely to be disappointed. It may not do well in 3D games, but it’s speedy enough in everything else. And it is absolutely fantastic as an entertainment device. Videos look great on the 6.8″ display, and the audio output is remarkably clear and loud.
It also has a long battery life, and recharges quickly – something you will appreciate if you are always on-the-go and have little access to a power point. Heck, it even supports reverse charging, allowing you to play the hero to your friends when they forget to bring their power banks.
[adrotate banner=”4″]The PixelMaster 3.0 camera is really quite something. With 22.5 MP of resolution with a fast lens and advanced optical and electronic image stabilization, it can really deliver great photos and videos. The blown-out highlights are a disappointment though. ASUS should really work on correcting it.
The ASUS ZenFone 3 Ultra is, no doubt, the best phablet ASUS has ever made. A premium phablet, made out of metal and glass. It represents a massive upgrade in features and build quality over its predecessor, the ZenFone 2 Laser (ZE601KL). ASUS is definitely trying to move up the value chain.
However, such premium features come with a premium price. ASUS actually priced it at a premium over its nearest competitor, the Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro. You will have to decide if that the better PixelMaster 3.0 camera, larger storage capacity and screen size are worth the price premium.
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It’s a pity that the Zen Phone 3 Uttra has The same screen resolution of the other smaller phones. Just seems a waste of potentially a great big display.
They could have gone with a 1440p display, but that would mean greater cost and power consumption for arguably no real benefit. With a pixel density of 324 ppi, it would certainly qualify as a “Retina display” at the standard viewing distance.
Remember – this is a large phablet, so we are more likely to view it at a distance. You can’t tell the difference with say, the Galaxy S7 edge, unless you compare them side by side and peek close-up.
As all three devices have the same resolution the DPI would change depending on the display size. The Ultra would not give you anymore screen realestate just a larger display. The idea of a phablet would be to increase screen realestate to make it a more productive device compared with a smaller ( non Phablet ) phone.
I would love to see manufacturers take the phablet size of six inches or larger and turn them into higher end devices rather than the middle spec devices we are seeing now.
Correct, the ZenFone 3 Ultra won’t give you more pixels, just a larger screen.
If you are viewing movies on a range of phablets at a distance of, say… 10 inches, a larger screen is arguably more enjoyable, but the higher resolution on any of these phablets won’t be noticeable.
If you are looking to work on a phablet, then yes, the higher resolution will matter… a LOT. Sadly, the only phablet that is close to 6″ with 1440p resolution is the Galaxy Note7.
Peter you are right!
Im looking to replace my aging xperia z3 tablet compact which is 8inch to a slightly smaller 6+ inch phablet. But it seems non of the newer phablet are high end devices.
Even Sony’s XA Ultra is powered by the mediocre Mediatek chipset instead of something higher end.
The Ultra was something I was considering but the price for that mid range chipset seems a bit too much also…
Hi Terence,
I have a real problem with manufacturers building large screen devices with questionable specifications. If these devices where cars then they would have an SUV chassis with a compact cabin being powered by a small 1.6 litre engine. What’s the point?
Why not manufacture a large screened phablet with high end specifications and call it a flagship device. Just giving a phone a large screen without the benefit of higher resolution just makes it suitable for media consumption rather than a device suitable for media creation and productivity.
Hi..just to ask from your experice reviewing this phone..did you noticed that the website,whatsapp and facebook app display are quite small despite the big screen size.The good thing is we can see more things in a screen.I tried changing to fonts to largest size but it is still the same
i did comparison with xiaomi mi max..the display of a website in mi max is larger and fit the screen
I suspected this is related DPI optimization
Can you give some comments?
That may be due to the higher resolution 1080p display. The icons and text will seem smaller, if you are migrating from a lower resolution 720p display, for example. Then again, the Xiaomi Mi Max has the same resolution.
Unfortunately, we no longer have the ZenFone 3 Ultra with us, so we cannot confirm it on our end… 🙁