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The recently released ASUS smartphone zenfone 2 has hit a new price/perf benchmark point with an MSRP of $199 but mid-high range specs:
-4G LTE
-Quadcore x86 processor
-5.5 inch IPS 1080P screen with gorilla glass
-2GB of RAM
-16GB storage
-3000 mAh battery
The low price is in part because Intel has been desperately trying to get a foothold in the mobile market and likely playing contra-revenue games. Unlike past low-cost options like the oneplus phone, this phone has wide release being sold at online retailers like Amazon.
Is this setting a new standard in low-cost, high-performance phones, or is this a temporary ploy until Intel starts charging for their SoCs? Will this lead to a price war between Mediatek, Qualcomm, and Intel? All of which have already released phones this year for the North American marketplace supporting the 4G spectrum. How low-priced can these smartphones with laptop-like specs go?
Reviewed here: http://anandtech.com/show/9251/the-asus-zenfone-2-review
[Editor's Comment: Original Submission]
(Score: 2) by takyon on Thursday May 28 2015, @11:03PM
Very low price for the specs, and a lot for the $100 upgrade.
It all comes down to the Atom chip. The battery life is bad, but it could be worse. It's funny how the charge time is so low.
Intel has more chances to crack into mobile with newer generations of Atom, but it doesn't look great for smartphones. It looks like a good fit for Microsoft tablets (alongside the more powerful Intel Core-M).
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