Asus Zenfone Max M2 Review: A great mid-range phone with value for money
Product: Asus Zenfone Max M2
Display: 6.26-inch HD+ Full View display with notch
Processor: Snapdragon 632 SoC
RAM: 3GB/4GB RAM
Camera: 13MP+2MP rear cameras, 8MP front camera with LED soft light flash
Battery: 4,000mAh battery
Rating: 7.5/10
Given the midrange smartphone market, Asus has been given all established players a tough time in the segment. The Asus Zenfone Max M2 happens to be a great mid-range device that competes with the likes of Xiaomi and Realme in the segment.
Asus Zenfone Max M2: Design, Display and Looks
Asus had also launched the Zenfone Max pro M2 along with the Zenfone Max M2 that has been received quite well in the Indian market. Asus has launched the Asus Zenfone Max M2 in two variants that include the 3GB RAM/32GB storage that is priced at Rs 9,999 and 4GB RAM/64GB storage priced at Rs 11,999.
Asus Zenfone Max M2: Design, Display and Looks
Getting on with the design, display and looks of the Zenfone Max M2, the phone looks at par with the Zenfone Max pro M2 that gives the phone a nice look with a prominent body that feels good to hold in the hand. It features a dual camera setup at the back stacked vertically with the flash placed right below them. The phone gets a fingerprint sensor, provided at the back that is easy to use and gets the Asus branding right under it.
Asus Zenfone Max M2: Design, Display and Looks
The phone has the usual buttons on the side that include the volume buttons, power button along with some ports that include the 3.5mm jack on the top with a micro USB port at the bottom, along with a 5-magnet speaker for louder, deeper and less distorted sound effect.
Talking about the display, the phone comes with a 6.26inch HD+ IPS Notch display with 1520x720 resolution, 430nits brightness and front 2.5D curved glass. The viewing angles are great and the screen projects great colours.
Asus Zenfone Max M2: Performance and usability
In terms of performance, the Zenfone Max M2 comes powered with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 632 Octa-core Processor backed with Qualcomm Adreno 506 GPU paired in 3GB RAM/32GB storage and 4GB RAM/64GB storage that can be increased to 2TB using a MicroSD card.
The phone comes with stock android and runs on Android Oreo out of the box. The device works perfectly well and apps open quickly and easily.
Asus Zenfone Max M2: Camera
Comparing it to the Asus Zenfone Max pro M2, the camera on the Zenfone Max M2 is slightly on the downside in terms of image optimization. The phone comes with a 13 Megapixel rear camera with F1.8 aperture, 1.12μm pixel size, 4K video recording and LED flash, along with a 2 Megapixel secondary depth-sensing camera.
Towards the front is an 8 Megapixel camera with 1.12μm pixel size and a Softlight LED Flash.
The primary 13 MP rear camera captures fine details and images turn out to be sharp with optimum colour accuracy. Portrait shots come out to be fine but at times one might not get the best colour contrast in portrait mode. There were times when the rear camera was struggling to capture details in picture shot, especially in the outdoor conditions. The front camera takes decent shots, but there are instances when it takes a little time to focus.
Summing up the camera performance, the cameras here were a little average, but the rear camera did deliver acceptable results.
Asus Zenfone Max M2: Camera
Asus Zenfone Max M2: Camera2
Asus Zenfone Max M2: Camera3
Asus Zenfone Max M2: Camera4
Asus Zenfone Max M2: Battery
The Asus Zenfone Max M2 houses a 4000mAh battery, and boy it's good. The device easily lasts the whole day with just 20 per cent life left on full usage at the end of the day. The battery takes two hours to charge completely from zero to hundred but would have loved it if they added fast charging support.
Asus Zenfone Max M2: Verdict
With the aggressive pricing on the Asus Zenfone Max M2 the phone is a solid proposition in the market given the looks and performance it offers.
