Asus announces Zenfone 3 alongside premium Deluxe and giant Ultra models

Asus has kicked off its Computex Taipei announcements with the Zenfone 3 series, comprising a trio of phones with some pretty big differences. The regular Zenfone 3 is positioned as a mainstream phone with strong design at a low price; the Zenfone 3 Deluxe goes for high-end performance and build quality; and the Zenfone 3 Ultra is centered around entertainment with a gigantic screen. All three of the models look to be far better built than the plastic Zenfone 2.

The Zenfone 3 has a 5.5-inch LCD screen, a Snapdragon 625 processor, a 16-megapixel rear camera, an 8-megapixel front-facing camera, a 3000 mAh battery, a fingerprint sensor, USB-C 2.0, up to 4GB of RAM, and up to 64GB of storage. The phone is made from two panels of glass on the front and back with a metal frame; it's available in gold, blue, black, and white.

The Zenfone 3 Deluxe moves to aluminum unibody construction with "invisible" antenna lines, which Asus claims is a world first. The screen is a 5.7-inch 1080p OLED panel, and inside the phone has a Snapdragon 820 series processor, a 23-megapixel camera, USB-C 3.0, and up to 6GB of RAM; other specs are largely the same as the standard Zenfone 3. Color options include grey, silver, and gold.

The Zenfone 3 Ultra has similar construction to the Deluxe but is dominated by a huge 6.8-inch 1080p LCD screen. Inside there's a Snapdragon 652, up to 4GB of RAM, the same 23-megapixel camera as the Deluxe, USB-C 3.0 with DisplayPort support, what Asus describes as a 4K TV-grade video processor, and a 4,600 mAh battery. It's available in grey, silver, and pink.

The Zenfone 3 starts from $249, the Ultra will cost $579, and the Deluxe will be priced from $499. Asus hasn't yet provided information on release dates.

Zenfone 3, Zenfone 3 Deluxe, and Zenfone 3 Ultra hands-on photos

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